"Time Changes Everything" is a
Western swing
Western swing, country jazz or smooth country is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands. It is dance music, often with an up-tempo beat, which att ...
standard Standard may refer to:
Symbols
* Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs
* Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification
Norms, conventions or requirements
* Standard (metrology), an object ...
with words and music written by
Tommy Duncan
Thomas Elmer Duncan (January 11, 1911 – July 25, 1967), was an American Western swing vocalist and songwriter who gained fame in the 1930s as a founding member of The Texas Playboys. He recorded and toured with bandleader Bob Wills on and ...
, the long-time vocalist with
Bob Wills
James Robert "Bob" Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although Spade C ...
and
the Texas Playboys
James Robert "Bob" Wills (March 6, 1905 – May 13, 1975) was an American musician, songwriter, and bandleader. Considered by music authorities as the founder of Western swing, he was known widely as the King of Western Swing (although Spade C ...
. Written as a ballad, the lyrics tell of a failed romance and of the hurt that has healed. Each verse ends with the phrase "Time changes everything".
Recording and legacy
The Texas Playboys recorded "Time Changes Everything" during an April 15, 1940, recording session in Saginaw, Texas. It was first released on the
OKeh label, and has been reissued many times. (05753). It became one of the top singles that year. Artists ranging from
Roy Rogers
Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998), nicknamed the King of the Cowboys, was an American singer, actor, television host, and Rodeo, rodeo performer.
Following early work under his given name, first as a c ...
(Decca 5908, 1940, with
Spade Cooley
Donnell Clyde "Spade" Cooley (December 17, 1910 – November 23, 1969) was an American Western swing musician, big-band leader, actor, television personality, and convicted murderer. In 1961, he was tried and convicted for the murder of his ...
on fiddle) to
Woody Herman and His Orchestra (Decca 3751, 1941) soon brought out competing records. The Roy Rogers version reached number four on Billboard's "Hillbilly...Hits" chart in October, 1941.
The Playboys recorded another version on July 1, 1960, in Hollywood, California. This version was also released on many labels. In 1968 yet another version was recorded in Nashville with J. Preston doing the vocal.
[''San Antonio Rose: The Life And Music Of Bob Wills''. Charles R. Townsend. 1976. University of Illinois. p. 367. .]
It has been recorded numerous times since, including on tribute albums by
George Jones
George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American Country music, country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for a long list of hit records, and is well known for his distinctive voice an ...
(''
George Jones Sings Bob Wills''),
Ray Price (''Ray Price Sings San Antonio Rose''), and
Merle Haggard
Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential figures in country music, he was a central pioneer of the Bakersfield ...
(''
'').
References
Bibliography
*Kriebel, Robert C. ''Blue Flame: Woody Herman's Life in Music''. Purdue University Press, 1995.
*White, Raymond E. ''King of the Cowboys, Queen of the West: Roy Rogers and Dale Evans''. Popular Press, 2006.
Western swing songs
Songs written by Tommy Duncan
1940 songs
Bob Wills songs
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