vocal delivery. Mullican frequently met up with another pianist, Black Boy Shine, when performing around Houston. Combining nicknames, for a short time in the 1930s, they performed as a duo called "Moonshine". In the early 1940s, he returned to the Texas Wanderers as lead singer and pianist, sang on the hits "Truck Driver's Blues" and "I'll Keep On Loving You". However, after leaving the Texas Wanderers in 1942, he became a session musician playing on the songs of Floyd Tillman, Ernest Tubb, and Red Foley. The Showboys In 1945, he put together his own band, The Showboys, who quickly became one of the most popular outfits in the Texas-Louisiana area with a mix of country music, Western swing, Cajun music, and Mullican's wild piano playing and singing. Although their style was highly eclectic and included country ballads, some of their music clearly foreshadowed what would later be called rock and roll. In September 1946, Mullican cut 16 recordings as band leader, for King Records in Cincinnati. His first release, "The Lonesome Hearted Blues" b/w "It's a Sin to Love You Like I Do" sold quite well, but did not chart. His second release, "New Jole Blon" in December 1946 (later recorded by Doug Kershaw), gained him even larger recognition by reaching number 2 on the Country and Western chart. "Jole Blon" was the beginning of a long string of hits. He became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 1951. Mullican was one of the highest-selling artists on King Records. Though not a major chart success, he was popular in the southeastern United States with records such as "The Leaves Mustn't Fall", "Hey Shah", "You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry", "Nine Tenths of the Tennessee River", and "I Was Sorta Wonderin'". In the mid-1950s, many artists, such as Lefty Frizzell and George Jones experimented with rock and roll largely due to the decline of traditional country-and-western in the mid-1950s. Mullican's success also declined during this time, and so he recorded four rock sides with Boyd Bennett and His Rockets, including "Seven Nights to Rock". However, both singles failed to chart. Before he signed to Coral in 1958, he had three other hits with King, including "Hey Shah". Later career In 1958, he was signed by country music producer Owen Bradley to Decca Records' subsidiary label Coral Records, and recorded more rock songs including "Moon's Rock" and