[Dixielandjazz] Spade Cooley and Sidney Bechet

Art Wood artwoo at aol.com
Tue Dec 25 23:02:25 PST 2012


To Jim and List:  Spade Cooley was a highly regarded western swing violinist who in a violent outburst, murdered his wife. At the time this was a shock to me. Imagine if Don Knotts had murdered his wife...the same reaction. I thought Spade Cooley was a carefree pleasant fellow similar to his competitor, Bob Wills, but the reality was quite different.

 "On April 26, 1961, Cooley was indicted by a Kern County grand jury for the murder of his wife on April 3 at the couple's Willow Springs ranch home. Cooley's 14-year-old daughter, Melody, reportedly told the jury she watched in terror as her father beat her mother's head against the floor, stomped on her stomach, then crushed a lighted cigarette against her skin to see whether she was dead.[19] Cooley claimed his wife had been injured by falling in the shower."

There was an ironic twist in Spade's life: he was to be parolled from his life sentence by Ronald Reagan on Feb. 22, 1970 and released from Vacaville prison. He was given a 72 hr furlough and allowed to perform for the Alameda County Deputy Sheriffs Assocation at the Oakland Auditorium in Nov. of 1969.

After the performance he suffered a fatal heart attack. No parole for him.

Being a resident of Oakland at the time, I remember the incident and was fascinated by the turn of events. I always enjoyed his Western Swing music, and was stunned by the murder of his wife.  Reminds me of the old radio show "The Shadow."

"Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men?"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spade_Cooley

Bechet was known for his violent temper, yet produced some very poignant music.

"Bechet wounded 3 people as a result of a gun duel and none of the victims were the intended target."

http://www.nps.gov/jazz/historyculture/bechet.htm

I am sure that the historians and scholars on this list can provide more details on these musicians.

Art Wood






 


Bechet was known for his violent temper, yet produced some very poignant music.

"Bechet wounded 3 people as a result of a gun duel and none of the victims were the intended target."

http://www.nps.gov/jazz/historyculture/bechet.htm

I am sure that the historians and scholars on this list can provide more details on these musicians.

Art Wood






 

 


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