Noel Boggs

Throughout country music history, few steel guitarists have rivaled the artistry of Noel Boggs, who wove jazz influences drawn from his friend Charlie Christian into Western swing across more than a thousand sideman sessions. Noel Boggs entered the world in Oklahoma City on November 14, 1917. He first picked up the guitar during his teenage years, and by the time he finished high school he was already performing on three separate radio stations throughout the Oklahoma City area.

During 1936 and 1937 he traveled with Hank Penny's Radio Cowboys, though he returned to Oklahoma before the end of 1937. In the closing years of the decade he performed alongside Wiley & Gene as well as Jimmy Wakely, then launched his own ensemble in 1941.

Boggs entered the premier Western swing outfit, Bob Wills & the Texas Playboys, in 1944. Stepping in for Leon McAuliffe, he remained with Wills for two years and contributed to numerous Tiffany Transcriptions along with several Columbia recording dates. In 1946 he moved to another leading Western swing figure, Spade Cooley, and stayed with Cooley's Dance Band through 1954.

A heart attack struck Boggs the following year, forcing him to stop playing for three months. He assembled the Noel Boggs Quintet in 1956; the group cut several albums for Repeat throughout the 1960s. Subsequent heart attacks eventually curtailed his capacity for recording and touring, and he passed away in 1974.