Ruckus Tyler was a Louisiana-born singer whose first release on Fabor was as a solo act performing two songs he wrote, "Rollin' and a-Rockin'" b/w "Rock Town Rock." Released as Fabor 135 on June 23, 1956, it was reviewed in Billboard with the appellation “rock-a-billy,” an early use of the term, which was later streamlined without the hypens to rockabilly. Though both sides had potential, neither side charted and Ruckus Tyler ended his solo career right there.
But he did pick up his career when Fabor Records owner Fabor Robison paired him with Tom Tall to do duets. Tom Tall’s original duet partner was Ginny Wright. But Ginny left Tom in order to get married, just as they were making the charts with “Boom Boom Boomerang.” This followed Jim Reeves’s leaving Ginny in the lurch after they charted with “It’s Love,” when Jim Reeves refused to record anymore for Fabor Robison and moved on to RCA Victor.
The Tom Tall and Ruckus Tyler duet was “"Don't You Know" b/w "If You Know What I Know,” which was released in the summer of 1958 as Fabor 139. Tom Tall and Ruckus Tyler were credited with writing “Don’t You Know,” while Lonnie Coleman, who wrote “Boom Boom Boomerang” for Tom Tall and Ginny Wright, was credited with the flip, “If You Know What I Know.” The repetitive word play on Fabor records can probab ly be traced back to Maxine Brown’s “Looking Back To See,” an earlier hit for Fabor Robison that led to the Browns’ contract being bought by RCA Victor—and Fabor Robison continuing to look for similar jaunty songs with catchy, repeatable –and repeated—lyrics.
Ruckus Tyler’s career with Fabor records was brief and he was not picked up by any other labels. It is possible that he was killed in a car accident, Tom Tall heard.
