Louis Franklin (1923 to 2009) was a Texas contest fiddler from Whitewright, in north Texas. He learned from his uncle Major Franklin, one of the pillars of Texas style, and recorded with him on the 1966 County album Texas Fiddle Favorites. He taught his son Larry Franklin, who went on to win three Grammys with Asleep at the Wheel. The Texas Fiddlers Hall of Fame inducted Louis in 1990.
Why Franklin matters
The Franklin family has five members in the Texas Fiddlers Hall of Fame, and Louis is the link in the middle. He carried the sound of his uncle Major, who won the World’s Champion contest at Crockett in 1949, to his son Larry, one of the most recorded fiddlers in Nashville. If you have heard a Texas breakdown on a country record in the last 30 years, you have heard Louis Franklin’s teaching.
Life and career
Franklin was born in 1923. He grew up in Whitewright, Texas, and started fiddle at age eight, learning from his grandfather and from his uncle, Major Lee Franklin. Major was born in Arkansas in 1904, moved to northeast Texas as a boy, and became one of the state’s most respected contest fiddlers.
He played with a western swing band from Denison, Texas, and competed on the Texas contest circuit. In 1966 County Records released Texas Fiddle Favorites (County 707), which paired Louis, credited as Lewis Franklin, with Major Franklin and Norman Solomon. Louis played Salt River, Blue Eagle, Dill Pickle Rag, Leather Britches, and Cotton Patch Rag on the record.
Franklin served on the board of the Texas Old Time Fiddlers Association and placed third at the 1978 World Series of Fiddling near Norman, Oklahoma. He and his son Larry recorded Keepsake Album, with twin fiddle numbers and Texas standards like Sally Goodin and Dusty Miller. Larry began at age seven under his father’s guidance and won the World Championship at Crockett at 16. The Texas Fiddlers Hall of Fame inducted Louis in 1990. Larry followed in 2002, and two more Franklins, Ray and Royce, entered in 2003. Louis Franklin died in 2009.
Playing style
Franklin played the Texas contest style his family helped build: long bow strokes, smooth string crossings, and worked-out variations for each tune. His uncle Major did not believe in stunt fiddling, and Louis played the same way, keeping the melody in front. His tunes on Texas Fiddle Favorites are hoedowns and rags, the two forms that anchor a Texas contest round, and his rags carry the swing feel of the Denison dance band he played in.
Influences and legacy
Franklin learned from his grandfather and from Major Franklin. He recorded beside Norman Solomon, the great rival of Benny Thomasson, and came up in the same contest world as Eck Robertson, whom his son met at his first contest in 1960.
His main legacy is Larry Franklin, who took the family style into Asleep at the Wheel, the Time Jumpers, and Nashville session work, and who joined the National Fiddler Hall of Fame in 2017.
Signature tunes and songs
Salt River Blue Eagle Dill Pickle Rag Cotton Patch Rag Leather Britches Back Up and Push.
Essential recordings
Texas Fiddle Favorites, with Major Franklin and Norman Solomon (County, 1966) Keepsake Album, Louis and Larry Franklin
Awards and honors
World Series of Fiddling, third place (1978) Texas Fiddlers Hall of Fame (1990)
Watch and listen
Franklin plays Back Up and Push, a Texas jam standard. Listen for the long bow and the variations on each pass.
Franklin plays Doughboy Rag. This is the swing side of Texas fiddling.
What to learn from Franklin
Learn Back Up and Push from his video. It is a short, square tune every Texas jam knows, and Franklin’s version shows how a contest fiddler builds variations without leaving the melody. The technique to steal is his restraint. Play the tune plain once, then add one change per pass: a slide, a double stop, a different string crossing. Never add two at once. That is how the Franklins played, and it is why their fiddling still sounds clean sixty years after the County record.
Sources
Texas Fiddlers Hall of Fame, Fiddlers’ Frolics Louis Franklin (2), Discogs Major Franklin, Lewis Franklin, and Norman Solomon, Texas Fiddle Favorites, Discogs Louis and Larry Franklin, Keepsake Album, Discogs Larry Franklin, National Fiddler Hall of Fame Major Franklin, National Fiddler Hall of Fame Larry Franklin (musician), Wikipedia
Related players
See the fiddle players hub and the fiddle guide for more Texas contest fiddlers. Franklin learned from Major Franklin and recorded with Norman Solomon. Benny Thomasson and Vernon Solomon were his contest-era peers, and Orville Burns sits beside him in the Texas Fiddlers Hall of Fame.