About Me
Jimmy Brosch: A Part of Texas Music HistoryJimmy Brosch and wife Lucy are fixtures on the Texas dancing scene. You can often find them at dances, chatting with their many friends, Jimmy’s quick sense of humor not at all slowed by the passage of time. These are nice people, who recently celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary!But Jimmy Brosch and the Happy Country Boys are also a part of Texas music history. Jimmy received two Texas Polka Music Awards, one in 1994 for “An Early Texas Polka Band,†and a second in 1996 for “The Corn Cockle Polka, †recognized by TPMA as an All Time Favorite Song. Great accomplishments, capping a long career! Let’s take some time to learn more about this Texas polka pioneer, who played for 46 years.The Jimmy Brosch story begins in and around Praha, the small farming community near Moulton settled by Czech immigrants. Much of the musical entertainment for the early Czechs comprised family bands with accordion, guitar, fiddle and harmonica. The music was performed at house dances, and the occasional wedding. Some of the early bands included brass and wind instruments. These were the fine orchestras of the time, and some of the music has been preserved on early recordings.The young Jimmy Brosch wanted to play the fiddle. He began at age 12. To get his first fiddle, he rode horseback from Praha to Moravia, bargaining with Joe Holub for an instrument with an asking price of $3. Jimmy got the fiddle for $2.50, which sounded like a bargain until his Uncle Henry Brosch told him “Jimmy, You paid $2 too much!â€Undeterred, Jimmy began to play the fiddle, taking it with him into the Air Force in WWII, playing on ship and at the base while doing his job as a P-51 airplane mechanic.After returning from service, Jimmy decided to form a band. “Jimmy Brosch and His Playboys†came into being in 1946. The band rehearsed all the early Czech songs and played their first job for the Praha CYO. Jimmy put the band on the road by late 1946, performing in the Lavaca and Fayette county areas. Jimmy recalls that the hottest jobs were in the Shiner and Gonzales areas, with the band earning about $50 for a typical performance. That usually meant $9 per musician and $5 travel expense.They had some good nights and some rough nights in the early days. Jimmy recalls a freezing rainy night playing a job in Freyburg, with all the instruments and musicians crammed into or onto the top of a neighbor’s borrowed Model A, an oil table cloth covering the drums on the car’s roof. Sounds like quite an adventure!Frequent gigs were Needville, Cotton Grove, Swiss Alp, Kovar, Freyburg, and of course, weddings. Jimmy recalls Boedeckers Place, dancing every Saturday night with 500 people in the open-air pavilion, admission 50 cents and beer 25 cents! These were the early days!The also did some early polka radio every Sunday morning from KCTI Gonzales, hosted by Texas Frankie Sembera and Sonny Seiversas.But things change. Jimmy moved to Houston, attending the University of Houston for a year, supporting himself as a door-to-door salesman. Somewhere along the way, he met Lucy at a CYO dance in Moulton. Jimmy says, “I met her in the cotton patch,†but a quick glance at Lucy suggests her version is more accurate. They married in 1949, and lived in Houston, where Lucy worked for National Biscuit for ten years. Jimmy made his living working as a switchman for Southern Pacific. Along the way, they raised a family of four.The band kept on playing, but the name was changed in the 50’s to “Jimmy Brosch and the Happy Country Boys.†They played the Bill Mraz Ballroom regularly for over 18 years, and the American Legion in Crosby for 11 years. Jimmy recalls big crowds and a following that joined them at the various halls.Ask Jimmy what instrument he plays, and his quick response is “None of them well!†Typical humor for Jimmy, but he does play the fiddle, sax and accordion. Sons Bruce and Jeff were in the band, playing guitar and drums. Jimmy is quick to recognize drummer Gene Patalik, who was with him from the start and for many years.Jimmy’s experience as an aircraft mechanic in WWII ignited an interest in flying, and he owned his own plane in the fifties. Ask him sometime about buzzing the Praha Church below the steeple! The plane didn’t last too long, but the motorcycle still exists, even though Jimmy is now 75!Getting back to his music, Jimmy recognizes the celebrated “Corn Cockle Polka†written in 1967 as the highlight and real turning point of his career. The song was based on a slow Czech funeral march played as the procession went from the church to the cemetery. Jimmy liked the melody, which he originally heard from an Aunt who often hummed the tune. Jimmy changed the time to a polka beat, added lyrics and the song was born. It took off as a 45-rpm recording, becoming the band’s trademark song. It is one of only two songs recognized by the Texas Polka Music Awards as “All Time Favorite Songs,†(the other being the Shiner Song by Joe Patek).Jimmy and his band recorded 44 songs (as 45-rpm singles), 23 of which have been placed on a cassette. Jimmy says. “Our music was styled for the young and the old,†adding that except for Adolph Hofner, his was the first Texas polka band to include a steel guitar.Any regrets, Jimmy? He admits that the schedule caused him to miss the graduation of several of the children, a fact that still bothers him. He concludes by saying, “I wouldn’t trade our experiences for a million dollars, but I wouldn’t go through it again, either!â€Well, Jimmy, you don’t have. Your music is a part of Texas history and is still with us. Just enjoy yourself with the thanks of all your Texas fans.TEXAS POLKA NEW - 5/99
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