Few musicians embody the Texas experience as entirely as San Antonio’s Adolph Hofner. With his inseparable younger brother Emil (“Bash”) on hot steel guitar, singer/guitarist/bandleader Hofner’s career has spanned from the formative early years of western swing to the post-war era when he returned to the raucous Texas-Czech dance music of his youth, at once preserving the old melodies and giving them a healthy dose of swing sensibility. All the way to last year when a debilitating stroke brought an end to the career of one of Texas music's most under recognized band leaders.

Adolph was born into a Czech speaking Bohemian community in Moulton TX in 1916. Early in his professional career, he fancied himself a crooner in the Bing Crosby mode. That is until he heard singer Milton Brown and Hawaiian steel guitar music on the radio. By 1926 he was fronting a combo in San Antonio with Bash on the newfangled electric steel guitar. Legend has it that at about this time they met a young singer/guitarist they wanted to add to their act. They approached the club owner where they were engaged for a regular stand to see about getting an extra $.40 an night for the new man. The club owner said no, and Floyd Tillman went on to find his own gig.

It has been said that in the years before WW2, Hofner and his Texans mix of hot swing, Czech and Mexican folk music, and what he called “popular material” (smooth pop tunes) made him in demand in South Texas that Bob Wills couldn't get a gig south of Waco. In fact, though professional rivals, Hofner and Wills were great friends. One often repeated yarn tells how Will got “ ‘ Dolph” (first name changed by his record companies sensitivity to a certain other Adolph causing problems across the great pond at this time) a big time screen test out in Hollywood. Wills and his band had been successful in the growing filed on musical western and he though his old pal could do the same. It was hard enough to drop the “A” from his name, but now the suits wanted to change his last name too. “It was a good enough name for my Fater, it good enough for me,” he's reported to have replied an promptly boarded a bus home to Texas.

This CD is essentially a re-issue of Arhoolie’s 1980 LP, only this time with nearly twice as much music, including five tracks from Jimmy Revards’ ‘36-’37 band (where the brother fist recorded) and more of Adolph's’ later Czech language material. Highlights of this disc include the 40’s era Texans which feature the great J.R. Chatwell, one of western swings most underrated fiddlers (especially on the title track) and a transcription of a 50’s era Pearl Wranglers radio broadcast that gives a telling glimpse of a master entertainer leader a swinging band live. My favorite tracks include a version of the Jessie Polka (actually a bohunk/swing take on the Mexican Mariachi chestnut Jesus en Chihuahua) and the Strashildo (Ghost) Polka. There is an infectious glee in his music, you can just imagine the amount of fun he and Bash are having as they sing the old Czech refrain and then take off in a hot solo.

Sadly, Adolph suffered a paralyzing stroke just last year and is unable to perform his regular weekly show at the Farmer's Daughter in San Antonio as the liner notes refer to. In a recent phone call to Mrs. Hofner, I also learned Bash is laid up isn't so well off either, having lost a leg to diabetes. She said both were thrilled to see their work available again, but it looks as though neither will ever perform again. “Hold onto those old records” she cautioned “those old times are dead and gone.” Its been said too many times that we don't appreciate the great ones until they're gone. South Texas Swing is a genuine appreciation of a truly great one and for over an hour on disc “those old times” are back and swinging.