Tooter boatman biography books

TOOTER BOATMAN

Born William McCon Boatman Jr., 30 May 1936, Mineral Wells, Texas
Died 1 August 1964, Mineral Wells, Texas

Tooter Boatman recorded prolifically between 1957 and 1963, but only a handful of recordings were issued during his too short life.

Thanks to Dutchman Cees Klop, who released three vinyl albums in the 1980s, the complete (or almost complete) output of Boatman has become available to fans of unadulterated rock & roll.

Boatman was born and raised in Mineral Wells, Texas, a small town (population 16,788 at the 2010 census) west of Fort Worth.

In 1957 he formed his own rock and roll group, the Chapparals (also spelled Chaparrals). The original members were : Tooter Boatman (vocals), Bill Bland (guitar), Shorty Dinglar (slap bass), Charlie O’Bannon (piano) and Clay Glover (drums).

Towards the end of 1957 they made their first record, “Poor Gal”/“Sweet Lies” (Rebel 108), which was credited to The Chaparrals. It was recorded at the Clifford Herring studio in Fo