Performer Information

 In the late 1930s and early 40s Ray Whitley and his Six-bar Cowboys were providing the music in Western movies for cowboys who didn’t sing, like George O’Brien & Tim Holt, and they were so popular that the movie studio gave them their own Musical Western series. Jimmy Wakely was in the cast of one or two of those films before he had his own series.  Once in awhile The Farr Bros joined Ray’s band for songs like “Ragtime Cowboy Band”.

Ray was born in Atlanta in 1901, and married his wife, Kay, in 1922, after serving in the US Navy. She performed with him throughout his musical career. Early in the 1930s, Ray was a construction worker in New York City, helping build the George Washington Bridge and the Empire State Building. While there, he also worked as a musician, recording several sides for Decca. But in 1935, he landed a movie contract in Hollywood, and he appeared in his first Western movie, Hopalong Cassidy Returns, in 1936.

       Ray Whitley is probably best known as the composer of Gene Autry’s theme song, “Back in the Saddle Again,” which he wrote in 1938 for the George O’Brien film, Border G-Man. Later, he and Gene Autry re-wrote it for Gene’s 1939 recording and ’41 film. He composed numerous other songs which were recorded by many Western artists, including the Sons of the Pioneers. He starred as the musical companion of George O’Brien, William Boyd and Tim Holt in numerous B-Western films in the 1930s and 40s, but his most popular movie role was as Tim Holt’s sidekick, “Smokey.”

He also appeared in films with Gene Autry, Jimmy Wakely, Tex Ritter, Charles Starrett and Eddie Dew, and as James Dean’s manager in the Warner Brothers epic film Giant – 54 films in all.   His popularity resulted in his filming 18 musical shorts for RKO between 1937 and 1942. Ray’s old friend Fred Rose often collaborated in making these short films, all of which were introduced with his famous “El Capitan Yodel” theme.

At different times in his career, Ray managed the Sons of the Pioneers and Jimmy Wakely, and was an executive with Gene Autry’s music publishing and record  companies. He also designed the SJ-200 guitar series for the Gibson guitar company, the original of which is on display today in the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville. (Sources: Gerald F. Vaughn and O.J. Sikes)