Ted Daffan
Ted Daffan, born Theron Eugene Daffan on September 21, 1912, in Beauregard Parish, Louisiana, was a significant figure in American country music. He became renowned for his compositions, including "Truck Driver's Blues," "Born to Lose," and "I'm a Fool to Care." Daffan's career began in the 1930s when he worked in an instrument repair shop in Houston, Texas. Encouraged by Western Swing bandleader Milton Brown, Daffan embarked on a musical career and achieved his first success with "Truck Driver's Blues," recorded by Cliff Bruner in 1939. This song was a pioneering truck-driving anthem, selling over 100,000 copies.
Following this success, Daffan signed with Columbia Records and recorded "Worried Mind" in 1940, which sold over 350,000 copies despite being covered by numerous artists. He formed his own band, The Texans, and continued to produce hits like "Born to Lose," which became a platinum disc for Ray Charles in 1962. Daffan's version of the song also sold over one million copies.
"I'm a Fool to Care," released by Ted Daffan's Texans in 1940, became another enduring classic, recorded by various artists over the years, including a chart-topping version by Les Paul and Mary Ford in 1954. Daffan retired from active performance in the 1960s, establishing a publishing house in Nashville with Hank Snow. He eventually retired to Houston, Texas, where he passed away on October 6, 1996, at the age of 84.
App
