Elton Britt
Elton Britt (born June 27, 1913 in Zack , Arkansas , † June 22, 1972 in McConnelsburg , Pennsylvania; real name James Elton Baker ) was an American country musician . With There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere, Britt had the greatest hit of the war era 1942–1945.
Life
Childhood and youth
Elton Britt was born to James M. and Martella Baker in Zack, Arkansas, as the youngest child. Britt was a seriously ill child from birth, so his parents did not initially name him. It wasn't until about a year old that Britt was given the name James Elton. He was named after his father and the doctor Dr. Elton Wilson named, who saved his life. Britt grew up in a musical family; he bought his first guitar as a child and was later fascinated by Jimmie Rodgers ' records . He learned how to yodel and soon became known for his ability to yodel for extremely long periods.
Beginnings
Britt began his musical career when he substituted for their musician Hugh Ashley for the Beverly Hill Billies . The group just got back from California to work in their home state of Arkansas. Britt soon became a permanent member of the band, which had a daily radio show on KMPC. Here he also got his stage name "Elton Britt". Glen Rice, an employee of a company that sponsored their radio shows, noticed that Elton Baker didn't sound like "Hill Billy" enough and so he took the stage name Elton Britt from now on.
Career
Britt made his first recording in 1933 with Conqueror Records with the Wenatchee Mountaineers . In June 1934 he played his first better-known song Chime Bells with his brother Vernon , a new version of which was to come in at number six in the charts in 1948. Britt also played a few records as a background musician with the Beverly Hill Billies. Britt moved to New York City in 1933 .
In 1937 Britt signed a contract with the RCA Victor Record Company , which he stayed with until 1956. At first success did not want to come, even if he appeared on countless radio stations and in 1933 in his first film The Last Dogie . But at the end of the 1930s, his career took off: Britt met the songwriter Bob Miller, who would write all of his later big hits. Britt achieved respectable sales for the first time with titles like Rocky Mountain Lullaby , Driftwood on a River or another version of Chime Bells . In 1942, after World War II had also reached the USA, Britt had the big breakthrough with the patriotic song There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere . The title sold a total of over four million times and became the greatest hit of the war time. Britt also received a very special honor through his hit; he was invited to the White House by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to deliver There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere .
When Billboard Magazine first published its Hot Country Songs charts in 1944 , Elton Britt was among them. In the second half of the decade, he was in the country top ten eleven times, even if he never reached number one. Britt's other hits included Someday (1944), Detour (1946), Candy Kisses (1949) and Quicksilver (1950). Britt became a member of several famous country shows : the WWVA Jamboree , the KWKH Louisiana Hayrides and the WCOP Hayloft Jamboree as well as the not so well known Garden State Jamboree on WATV. Britt was at the height of his career.
In the 1950s there were no hits, but Britt continued to make records for RCA and from 1957 for ABC-Paramount . In 1960 Britt ran for the presidency of the United States, but lost. He returned to music and had his last hit in 1968 with the Jimmie Rodgers Blues , which reached number 26 on the charts. Two years earlier, his album Something For Everyone was in the top 30 album charts. On June 21, 1972, Britt suffered a heart attack while driving and died a day later in a McConnelsburg, Pennsylvania hospital . Britt was buried in the Odd Fellows Cemetery in Broad Top, Pennsylvania. He was posthumously inducted into the Western Music Association Hall of Fame (1990) and America's Old Time Country Music Hall of Fame in 2005.
Discography
Singles
Discography not complete.
| year | title | # | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conqueror Records | |||
| 193? | I Like Mountain Music / I Was Born In The Mountains | with the Wenatchee Mountaineers | |
| 193? | Wait For The Wagon / My Southland | with the Wenatchee Mountaineers | |
| 193? | By The Sleepy Rio Grande / Bring Your Roses To Mother | with the Wenatchee Mountaineers | |
| 193? | Alpine Milkman Yodel / Swiss Yodel | with the Wenatchee Mountaineers | |
| 193? | Just an Old Fashioned Locket / Dear Old Southern Moon | with the Wenatchee Mountaineers | |
| 1933 | Listen To The Mocking Bird / Wedding Bells Waltzs | with the Wenatchee Mountaineers | |
| Bluebird Records | |||
| 1939 | Just Because You're in Deep Elm / Chime Bells | BB-8166 | |
| They're Burning Down the House / Patent Leather Boots | BB-8175 | ||
| Driftwood on the River / Two More Years | BB-8223 | ||
| Mistook in the Woman I Love / Missouri Joe | BB-8245 | ||
| Over the Trail / Why Did You Leave Me Alone | BB-8430 | ||
| Dream Land Bay / They're Positively Wrong | BB-8461 | ||
| Will You Wait for Me / I'll Be in the Army for a While | BB-8912 | ||
| She Taught Me to Yodel / Where Are You Now? | BB-8946 | ||
| RCA Victor | |||
| 1942 | There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere / Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain | ||
| 1945 | I'm a Convict With Old Glory in My Heart / The Best Part of Travel | BB0517 | # 7 C&W charts |
| 1946 | Someday / I'm All That's Left of That Old Quartet | BB0521 | # 2 C&W charts |
| 1946 | Wave to Me, Lady / Blueberry Lane | 20-1789 | # 3 C&W charts |
| 1946 | Detour / Make Room in Your Heart for a Friend | 20-1817 | # 5 C&W charts |
| 1946 | Blue Texas Moonlight / Thank Heaven for You | 20-1873 | with the Skytoppers # 6 C&W |
| 1946 | Gotta Get Together With My Gal / I Get the Blues When It Rains | 20-1927 | # 4 C&W charts |
| 1948 | Chime Bells / Someday | 20-3090 | with the Skytoppers # 6 C&W |
| 1949 | Beyond the Sunset /? | 47-3105 | with Rosalie Allen; # 7 C&W |
| 1949 | Candy kisses /? | 21-0006 | with the Skytoppers; # 4 C&W |
| 195? | Quicksilver /? | 48-0168 | with the Skytoppers; # 3 C&W |
| 1951 | I'm Going to Walk and Talk With My God / God's Little Candles | with the Jordaineres | |
| 1954 | Hurts Me to My Heart / Goodnight Mrs. Jones | ||
| 1955 | I Almost Lost My Mind / Absent Minded Heart | ||
| 1955 | St. James Avenue / Uranium Fever | ||
| 1956 | The Yodel Blues /? | with Rosalie Allen | |
| ABC paramount | |||
| 1960 | The Convict and the Rose / Lost Highway | ||
| 1960 | Sioux City Sue / Taller Then Trees | ||
| Decca Records | |||
| 1963 | Christmas In November / Jingle Bells Polka | ||
| ABC paramount | |||
| 1965 | Home Sweet Homesick Blues / Now Is the Hour | ||
| 1965 | There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere / Red Wing | ||
| 1966 | I Still Believe / It Just Happened That Way | ||
| RCA Victor | |||
| 1966 | Someday / Chime Bells | ||
| 1966 | Detour / There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere | ||
| 1968 | The Jimmie Rodgers Blues /? | ||
| 1968 | The Bitter Taste /? | ||
| Certron Records | |||
| 1970 | Step Into My Soul / Three Nights I'm Not | ||
Albums
- 1954: Elton Britt Yodel Songs
- 1956: Yodel Songs
- 1956: Elton Britt - America's Greatest Western Recording Star
- 1958: Elton Britt & Rosalie Allen
- 1959: The Wandering Cowboy
- 1960: Beyond the Sunset
- 1960: I Heard I Forest Praying
- 1963: The Best of Britt
- 1965: The Singing Hills
- 1966: Something for Everyone
- 1968: When Evening Shadows Fall
- 1968: The Jimmie Rodgers Blues
- 1970: Elton Britt Sings Modern Country
- 1972: The Best 2
- 1972: 16 Great Country Performances
Remarks
- ^ C&W chart listings according to Whitburn, Joel: The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits. 1944-2006 . 2nd Edition. New York, NY: Billboard Books, 2006, p. 53
literature
- Stambler, Irwin / Landon, Grelun: Encyclopedia Of Folk, Country And Western Music. New York / London: St. Martin's Press, 1969, pp. 35f.
- Dellar, Fred / Thompson, Roy: The Illustrated Encyclopedia Of Country Music. Foreword by Roy Acuff. London: Salamander Books, 1977, pp. 29f.
- Shestack, Melvin: The Country Music Encyclopaedia. London: Omnibus Press, 1977, p. 24f.
- Erlewine, Michael u. a. (Ed.): All Music Guide to Country Music. The experts guide to the best recordings in country music . San Francisco, Cal .: Miller Freeman Books, 1997, p. 50
Web links
- Elton Britt on Hillbilly-Music.com (English)
- Entry in the All Music Guide
- Audio samples
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Britt, Elton |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Baker, James Elton (real name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American country musician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 27, 1913 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Zack , Arkansas, USA |
| DATE OF DEATH | June 22, 1972 |
| Place of death | McConnelsburg , Pennsylvania |