Billy Walker
Background information
Birth name	William Marvin Walker
Born	(1929-01-14)January 14, 1929 Ralls, Texas, U.S.
Died	May 21, 2006(2006-05-21) (aged 77) Fort Deposit, Alabama, U.S.
Genres	Country,rock and roll
Occupation	Singer, songwriter
Instrument	Guitar
Years active	1947–2006
Labels	Capitol,Columbia,Monument,MGM,RCA, Tall Texan
Website	billywalker.com

William Marvin Walker (January 14, 1929^[1] – May 21, 2006)^[2] was an Americancountry music singer and guitarist best known for his 1962 hit, "Charlie's Shoes". Nicknamed The Tall Texan, Walker had more than 30 charting records during a nearly 60-year career,^[3] and was a longtime member of theGrand Ole Opry.

Billy Walker was born inRalls, Texas, United States,^[1] and was the youngest of three children. His mother died when he was only six years old, and Billy's father was unable to care for him and his two older brothers.^[1] Some of the children, including Billy, were placed in a Methodist orphanage inWaco, Texas.^[1] He attended High School inWhiteface, Texas, and had won a talent contest which entitled him to appear on radio inClovis, New Mexico.^[1] He had returned to live with his father at the age of 11.^[1] Inspired by the music ofGene Autry as a teenager, he had begun his professional music career in 1947 at age 18.^[1] After his debut on Clovis radio as a teenager he later joined theBig D Jamboree inDallas in 1949.^[1] The same year,Hank Thompson helped him sign withCapitol Records after he worked with Walker inWaco.^[4] His manager at the time had him wear aLone Ranger-style black mask and billed him as The Traveling Texan,^[1] the Masked Singer of Country Songs.

In 1951, Walker signed withColumbia Records and the following year joined theLouisiana Hayride inShreveport, Louisiana,^[1] where he andSlim Whitman were responsible in part forElvis Presley's first appearance on the radio program. In 1954, Walker scored his first hit with "Thank You for Calling".^[1] His early Columbia recordings were at aDallas studio owned by producerJim Beck, responsible for hits byRay Price,Lefty Frizzell and others.^[5] In 1955, Walker, Presley andTillman Franks teamed up for a tour of West Texas. Walker soon became a cast member of ABC-TV'sOzark Jubilee inSpringfield, Missouri,^[1] where he began a long friendship with host,Red Foley.^[5]

After a brief attempt atrock and roll, Walker played the Texas bar circuit before moving toNashville, Tennessee, in 1959 and joining the Grand Ole Opry in 1960.^[1] He was one of the first artists to record aWillie Nelson song;^[1] and his 1961 version of "Funny How Time Slips Away" reached No. 23 onBillboard's country singles chart and helped establish Walker's national reputation.^[6] In 1962, he topped the chart with "Charlie's Shoes", the only No. 1 single of his career.^[1] His smooth tenor was well-suited to other Western-inspired hits including "Matamoros" and "Cross the Brazos at Waco" (1964).

After performing at a charity concert inKansas City, Kansas on March 3, 1963, Walker received a call to return to Nashville.^[2] Fellow performerHawkshaw Hawkins gave Walker hiscommercial airline ticket,^[2] and instead flew back to Tennessee on March 5 on a private plane, which crashed, killing Hawkins,Patsy Cline,Cowboy Copas and pilot Randy Hughes.^[4]

After leaving Columbia in 1965, Walker signed with producerFred Foster'sMonument Records and moved toMGM in 1970 and toRCA Records in 1974.^[1] He later recorded for several independent labels, including his own Tall Texan label.^[5]

In the late 1960s, he hosted a syndicated television show,Billy Walker’s Country Carnival, and appeared on other country music TV programs.^[4] Walker performed around the world, and several times during the 1980s sang at the International Festival of Country Music atWembley Arena inLondon.^[1] In April 2006, Walker recorded the duet "All I Ever Need Is You" with Danish singerSusanne Lana forHillside House Records. The recording, at Signal Path Studio inNashville, Tennessee, was produced byCharlie McCoy.

Walker continued to tour and remained a mainstay on the Grand Ole Opry, and was scheduled to perform two days following his death withTerri Clark,Porter Wagoner and others.^[5]

On May 21, 2006, Walker died in a road accident when the van he was driving back to Nashville after a performance inFoley, Alabama, veered offInterstate 65 inFort Deposit and overturned.^[2] His wife Bettie; bassist Charles Lilly Jr., son of Everett Lilly ofThe Lilly Brothers; and guitarist Daniel Patton were also killed.^[2] The Walkers, Lilly, and Patton died instantly.^[2] Walker's grandson, Joshua Brooks, survived with serious injuries.^[5] Walker was interred in Spring Hill Cemetery in Nashville.

• AllMusic entry on Billy Walker
• Escott, Colin. (1998). "Billy Walker". InThe Encyclopedia of Country Music. Paul Kingsbury, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 566–7.
• "In Memory of Billy Walker". The estate of Billy Walker. Retrieved2009-04-17.

• Official website
• "Billy Walker".Find a Grave. RetrievedAugust 11, 2010.
• Billy Walker & Patsy Cline Plane Crash
• Charles Lilly tribute Web site

• 1929 births
• 2006 deaths
• 20th-century American guitarists
• 20th-century American male singers
• 20th-century American singer-songwriters
• American country guitarists
• American country singer-songwriters
• American male guitarists
• American male singer-songwriters
• Burials at Spring Hill Cemetery (Nashville, Tennessee)
• Capitol Records artists
• Columbia Records artists
• Country musicians from Texas
• Grand Ole Opry members
• Guitarists from Texas
• MGM Records artists
• Monument Records artists
• Musicians from Dallas
• People from Crosby County, Texas
• RCA Records artists
• Road incident deaths in Alabama
• Singer-songwriters from Texas

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Short description is different from Wikidata
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