Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys

Born:  Died: 7 June 2003

Oklahoma City – Tommy Perkins, former drummer for Bob Wills, died Saturday from injuries suffered in a car accident while he was driving home from a festival celebrating the “King of Western Swing.” He was 69. Perkins died in Cotton County after he drove off the H.E. Bailey Turnpike into an embankment. He was not wearing a seat belt, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol said.  Perkins, who lived in Oklahoma City, was returning from the 16th annual Legends of Western Swing Music Festival in Wichita Falls, Texas, where he had performed Friday night. Perkins’ performances with Wills included the April 27, 1950, recording of “Faded Love,” made when the drummer was just 15 years old. ~ AP    Tommy died on Saturday morning June 7,2003  as a result of a heart attack while driving home from Wichita Falls, Texas, where he had played two sessions with the Bob Wills’ Texas Playboys on Friday at the Legends of Western Swing weekend. He had told some of his friends he was not feeling well, and had decided to spend Friday night in Wichita Falls before going home. He is and will forever be greatly missed both in our hearts and in the Western Swing community. ~ http://www.texasplayboys.net