R.S. Rankin was born in Royce City, TX. on February 22, 1933. Growing up in the East Texas cotton fields, his mother would always talk about her brother Aaron and how he had made it big as a blues musician. One day in 1946, his famous uncle dropped by their farm to visit his sister and her family. Rankin recalled that he was driving a two-tone Buick and all of his coat pockets were filled with cash. Rankin talked T-Bone into buying him a guitar and went on the road with him as his personal valet. Uncle T-Bone, gave him guitar lessons, bought him a white tuxedo and put him his show with him. He even let him sit in on his 1957 sessions for Atlantic doing a triple-play showoff between the both of them and renowned jazz guitarist Barney Kessel. Rankin decided then that it was time to lead his own band, and he settled in Los Angeles. He recorded a session for Atlantic in 1959, but the recordings were not issued at the time, they later popped up on a 1972 LP compilation from the label. Somewhere in the late 50's he was featured on the television show hosted by Soupy Sales. The only solo recordings by Rankin that ever saw issue was for Bill Wenzel's Midnite label in 1962. This song was a regional hit. Due to declining health and general disgust with the music business, Rankin stopped performing in 1967. In 1975 he appeared at one Los Angeles memorial show devoted to his uncle. By that time he was living somewhere in the Bay Area.
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