Fred LaBour
Encyclopedia
Frederick LaBour better known by his stage name Too Slim, is a Grammy award winning American
musician, best known for his work with the Western swing
musical and comedy group Riders in the Sky.
and sings lead and background vocals. Prior to joining the Riders, he played with country singer Dickey Lee
's band. With the Riders, he is billed as "a Righteous Tater" or "The Man of a Thousand Hats"). LaBour is the central core of the Rider's comedy, with bits that include impressions of Gabby Hayes, carrying on conversations with a cow's skull, rolling tumbleweeds across the stage, and peddling a necktie in the form of a cactus, that he calls a cac-tie. A long-standing gag in the Rider's concerts is LaBour mishearing a request to play the theme from the television program Bonanza
on the bass, and instead playing it by slapping his face. LaBour's repertoire of character voices include the evil Swinburne Slocum; Side Meat, a feisty chuck wagon cook whose secret biscuit ingredient is cement; Freddy La, the Surfin' Cowboy; and an assortment of frontier salesmen hawking to the cattle trade.
LaBour claims that his nickname originated when the band was touring in the late 1970s and his weight slipped to 120 pounds, and people would tell him, "You're slim. Too slim."
Labour has a Masters degree in Wildlife Management from the University of Michigan
.
He provides commentary with fellow Rider in the Sky Douglas B. Green
's satellite
radio show "Ranger Doug's Classic Cowboy Corral" in the role of Ranger Doug's sidekick, the crusty old trail cook called Sidemeat. The show currently airs Sundays at 7pm ET, and Saturdays at 6am ET, on Sirius-XM's Willie's RoadHouse SiriusXM Channel 56.
urban legend
. While a junior at the University of Michigan
, having heard the October 12, 1969 WKNR
broadcast about the rumor, he and John Gray wrote a satiric parody review of Abbey Road called "McCartney Dead; New Evidence Brought to Light", itemising various "clues", many of them of their own invention, of McCartney's death. The article was published in the October 14, 1969 issue of the Michigan Daily
. Rolling Stone
described LaBour's article as "the most baroque explication" of the supposed death, claiming that the Abbey Road cover depicted a funeral procession from a cemetery, with John as "anthropomorphic God, followed by Ringo the undertaker, followed by Paul the resurrected, barefoot with a cigaret in his right hand (the original was left-handed), followed by George, the grave digger", and adding details that Paul had died in a car crash three years earlier, the top of his head sheared off, and that he was the subject of the "A Day in the Life
" car crash on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
. LaBour and Gray were astonished when the story was picked up first by newspapers in Detroit, then Chicago, and by the weekend, both coasts. Beatle scholar Andru J. Reeve, opined that LaBour's story was "the single most significant factor in the breadth of the rumor's spread."
LaBour also participated in a RKO television special that featured celebrity attorney F. Lee Bailey conducting a mock trial in which he examined various expert "witnesses" on the subject of McCartney's alleged death. LaBour told Bailey during a pre-show meeting that he had made the whole thing up. Bailey responded, "Well, we have an hour of television to do. You're going to have to go along with this." The program aired locally in New York City on November 30, 1969, and was never re-aired.
LaBour was interviewed about his role in these events in the 2005 NPS
Dutch television documentary, Who Buried Paul McCartney?
's plans to convert the Plaza Hotel
to condominiums. "A little bitty room like this? No way. I for one would probably take my business to Newark. The value of the Plaza cannot be determined by dollars and cents. There's a sense of place that transcends the bottom line."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
musician, best known for his work with the Western swing
Western swing
Western swing music is a subgenre of American country music that originated in the late 1920s in the West and South among the region's Western string bands...
musical and comedy group Riders in the Sky.
Riders in the Sky
LaBour plays double bassDouble bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
and sings lead and background vocals. Prior to joining the Riders, he played with country singer Dickey Lee
Dickey Lee
Royden Dickey Lipscomb , known professionally as Dickey Lee , is an American pop/country singer and songwriter, best known for the 1960s teenage tragedy songs "Patches" and "Laurie ."-Career:Lee made his first recordings in his hometown of Memphis for Tampa...
's band. With the Riders, he is billed as "a Righteous Tater" or "The Man of a Thousand Hats"). LaBour is the central core of the Rider's comedy, with bits that include impressions of Gabby Hayes, carrying on conversations with a cow's skull, rolling tumbleweeds across the stage, and peddling a necktie in the form of a cactus, that he calls a cac-tie. A long-standing gag in the Rider's concerts is LaBour mishearing a request to play the theme from the television program Bonanza
Bonanza
Bonanza is an American western television series that both ran on and was a production of NBC from September 12, 1959 to January 16, 1973. Lasting 14 seasons and 430 episodes, it ranks as the second longest running western series and still continues to air in syndication. It centers on the...
on the bass, and instead playing it by slapping his face. LaBour's repertoire of character voices include the evil Swinburne Slocum; Side Meat, a feisty chuck wagon cook whose secret biscuit ingredient is cement; Freddy La, the Surfin' Cowboy; and an assortment of frontier salesmen hawking to the cattle trade.
LaBour claims that his nickname originated when the band was touring in the late 1970s and his weight slipped to 120 pounds, and people would tell him, "You're slim. Too slim."
Labour has a Masters degree in Wildlife Management from the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
.
He provides commentary with fellow Rider in the Sky Douglas B. Green
Douglas B. Green
Douglas B. Green , better known by his stage name Ranger Doug, is an American musician, arranger and award-winning Western music songwriter, best known for his work with the Western music and comedy group Riders in the Sky in which he plays guitar and sings lead and baritone vocals. He is also an...
's satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
radio show "Ranger Doug's Classic Cowboy Corral" in the role of Ranger Doug's sidekick, the crusty old trail cook called Sidemeat. The show currently airs Sundays at 7pm ET, and Saturdays at 6am ET, on Sirius-XM's Willie's RoadHouse SiriusXM Channel 56.
LaBour and "Paul is Dead"
LaBour was instrumental in the spread of the Paul is DeadPaul Is Dead
"Paul is dead" is an urban legend suggesting that Paul McCartney of the English rock band The Beatles died in 1966 and was secretly replaced by a look-alike....
urban legend
Urban legend
An urban legend, urban myth, urban tale, or contemporary legend, is a form of modern folklore consisting of stories that may or may not have been believed by their tellers to be true...
. While a junior at the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
, having heard the October 12, 1969 WKNR
WKNR
WKNR — branded ESPN 850 WKNR — is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Owned by Good Karma Broadcasting, WKNR is the primary Cleveland affiliate for ESPN Radio; together with sister station WWGK, WKNR is often referred to as ESPN Cleveland.WKNR is the Cleveland affiliate...
broadcast about the rumor, he and John Gray wrote a satiric parody review of Abbey Road called "McCartney Dead; New Evidence Brought to Light", itemising various "clues", many of them of their own invention, of McCartney's death. The article was published in the October 14, 1969 issue of the Michigan Daily
Michigan Daily
The Michigan Daily is the daily student newspaper of the University of Michigan. Its first edition was published on September 29, 1890. The newspaper is financially and editorially independent of the University's administration and other student groups, but shares a university building with other...
. Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
described LaBour's article as "the most baroque explication" of the supposed death, claiming that the Abbey Road cover depicted a funeral procession from a cemetery, with John as "anthropomorphic God, followed by Ringo the undertaker, followed by Paul the resurrected, barefoot with a cigaret in his right hand (the original was left-handed), followed by George, the grave digger", and adding details that Paul had died in a car crash three years earlier, the top of his head sheared off, and that he was the subject of the "A Day in the Life
A Day in the Life
"A Day in the Life" is a song by The Beatles, the final track on the group's 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Credited to Lennon–McCartney, the song comprises distinct segments written independently by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, with orchestral additions...
" car crash on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is the eighth studio album by the English rock band The Beatles, released on 1 June 1967 on the Parlophone label and produced by George Martin...
. LaBour and Gray were astonished when the story was picked up first by newspapers in Detroit, then Chicago, and by the weekend, both coasts. Beatle scholar Andru J. Reeve, opined that LaBour's story was "the single most significant factor in the breadth of the rumor's spread."
LaBour also participated in a RKO television special that featured celebrity attorney F. Lee Bailey conducting a mock trial in which he examined various expert "witnesses" on the subject of McCartney's alleged death. LaBour told Bailey during a pre-show meeting that he had made the whole thing up. Bailey responded, "Well, we have an hour of television to do. You're going to have to go along with this." The program aired locally in New York City on November 30, 1969, and was never re-aired.
LaBour was interviewed about his role in these events in the 2005 NPS
Nederlandse Programma Stichting
NTR is a Dutch public-service broadcaster. It supplies television and radio programming of an educational and cultural nature to the Netherlands Public Broadcasting system....
Dutch television documentary, Who Buried Paul McCartney?
Filmography
LaBour appeared in the following films:- The ThornThe ThornThe Thorn is a comic, religious satire movie released on 1974 May 24 as The Divine Mr. J. It was first shown as The Greatest Story Overtold at the Detroit Institute of Art in 1971. It was released on video in the early 1980s as The Thorn. It was written, directed and produced by Peter Alexander...
(1974) - Sweet Dreams (1985)
- Who Buried Paul McCartney? (2005)
Plaza Hotel
In a 1991 New York Times article, LaBour was quoted in opposition to Donald TrumpDonald Trump
Donald John Trump, Sr. is an American business magnate, television personality and author. He is the chairman and president of The Trump Organization and the founder of Trump Entertainment Resorts. Trump's extravagant lifestyle, outspoken manner and role on the NBC reality show The Apprentice have...
's plans to convert the Plaza Hotel
Plaza Hotel
The Plaza Hotel in New York City is a landmark 20-story luxury hotel with a height of and length of that occupies the west side of Grand Army Plaza, from which it derives its name, and extends along Central Park South in Manhattan. Fifth Avenue extends along the east side of Grand Army Plaza...
to condominiums. "A little bitty room like this? No way. I for one would probably take my business to Newark. The value of the Plaza cannot be determined by dollars and cents. There's a sense of place that transcends the bottom line."