Sollie Paul Williams, known professionally as Tex Williams, and born on August 23, 1917, in Ramsey, Illinois, was a Western swing singer and musician. He gained recognition for his spoken blues style and achieved a major breakthrough with "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)", which topped the Billboard charts for six weeks in 1947 and reached Number 1 on the country chart that year. This song was written largely by Merle Travis and became a significant hit, also appearing in the film Thank You for Smoking (2006) and the video game L.A Noire. Williams' band, the Western Caravan, also initially recorded polkas for Capitol Records, getting their first hit with "The California Polka". He passed away on October 11, 1985, in Newhall, California.
