Johnny Ace Auditorium in Houston, Texas, on Christmas Day 1954. During a break between sets, he was playing with a .32-caliber revolver. Members of his band said he did this often, sometimes shooting at roadside signs from their car. It was widely reported that Ace killed himself playing Russian roulette. However, Big Mama Thornton's bass player, Curtis Tillman, who witnessed the event, said, "I will tell you exactly what happened! Johnny Ace had been drinking and he had this little pistol he was waving around the table and someone said ‘Be careful with that thing…’ and he said ‘It’s okay! Gun’s not
The Late Great Johnny Ace of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. The 2004 reissue of "Hearts and Bones" also contains a solo acoustic demo of the song. However, there is an error in the third stanza of the mention of the year at the time of recording. Simon mistakenly mentioned "1956" instead of "1954" corresponds to the year of Johnny Ace's death. The song was first performed live by Paul Simon during the Simon & Garfunkel reunion concert in Central Park in September 1981. Near the end of the performance (possibly in response to Simon mentioning John Lennon's death less than a year before, and enjoying