Biography
The Original Texas Playboys Under The Direction Of Leon McAuliffe
Effective period / Period of releases: 1977 - 1983
Members: Johnny Gimble, Al Stricklin, Joe Ferguson (3), Eldon Shamblin, Leon McAuliffe, Leon Rausch, Keith Coleman, Smokey Dacus, Gene Gasaway, Bob Kizer, Bob Boatright, Clarence Cagle, Jack Stidham
Organized after Bob Wills' death in 1975, active until 1986.The band was made up of a core of The Texas Playboys from the glory days in Tulsa - Leon McAuliffe, Smokey Dacus, Al Stricklin, Joe Ferguson (3), and included Playboys from later eras - Keith Coleman, Leon Rausch, Johnny Gimble, Gene Gasaway. A few years later, Eldon Shamblin would rejoin the group. The agreement was that when one of the originals died, the band would fulfill their remaining engagements and then disband, which they did after the death of Pianist Al Stricklin, performing a final concert on November 16, 1986, at the Will Rogers Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas.