Western swing • 1921–1979
The official family archive
Singer, guitarist, songwriter—and the lead voice on Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys’ landmark 1950 recording of “Faded Love.”
Biography
From family music in southwest Oklahoma to radio, Hollywood, Bob Wills’ bandstand, Intro Records, and decades at Lawton’s Southern Club.
Myrl Edward “Rusty” McDonald was born in southwest Oklahoma on October 10, 1921. At 11 he began playing guitar and singing with his father, Pop, a drummer, and his brother Jesse, who played fiddle and bass. He formed the Songbillies and played around Oklahoma before an Oklahoma City bandleader hired him as lead vocalist.
In 1940 Rusty moved to Dallas to join the Callahan Brothers, performing live on KRLD radio and across Texas and Oklahoma. In 1945 the group traveled to Hollywood for Springtime in Texas. Rusty later sang with the Light Crust Doughboys and toured with Al Dexter.
Rusty toured with Tex Ritter in 1949. Bob Wills brought him into the Texas Playboys in 1950, when “Faded Love” was recorded with Rusty on lead vocal. The group also recorded songs Rusty wrote, including “I Didn’t Realize” and “Dotting Each I with a Teardrop.”
After another Tex Ritter tour, Rusty signed with Intro Records. Los Angeles sessions produced “Remember to Say Goodbye,” “Baby Sittin’ Boogie,” “Silver and Gold,” “Long Lost Love,” and “Call Operator 210.” Through much of his later career, the Southern Club in Lawton was home base for Rusty and the Southernairs.
Rusty died June 5, 1979. His music survives in recordings, photographs, correspondence, clippings, and the memories of people who heard him. This site exists to keep that record together.
Listen
Recordings and performances preserved through the family-curated YouTube archive.
Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys, with Rusty McDonald on lead vocal.
An extended live performance from the archive.
Rusty performing during a radio appearance with Bob Wills.
Discography
Known recordings gathered from the family archive and surviving label scans.
Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys; Rusty McDonald, lead vocal.
Gallery
Photographs, record labels, and memorabilia preserving a life in western swing.
Add to the story
The family would love to hear from musicians, listeners, historians, collectors, and anyone with a story or piece of the archive.
RustyMcDonald1@gmail.com
(512) 967-3386