Johnny Horton
Johnny Horton (born April 30, 1925 in Los Angeles , California , † November 5, 1960 near Milano , Texas ) was an American country and rockabilly musician . His biggest hit was The Battle of New Orleans .
Life
Childhood and youth
Johnny Horton was born in Los Angeles, although he would later claim that he was born in eastern Texas. With his family looking for work, Horton moved between Texas and California. His mother taught him to play the guitar when he was eleven, and in 1944 Horton graduated from a Methodist school with the aim of becoming a pastor. But he soon gave up on these plans and moved across the country, including coming to Alaska in 1949 and working there in the oil industry. During his time in Alaska he began writing his first songs. His later nickname "The Singing Fisherman" is based on the fact that he was testing fishing tackle for business and in the late 1950s he started his own fishing tackle company, the Cane River Bait Company in Natchitoches, Louisiana.
Career
The following year, Horton moved back to Texas, where he won a talent competition by the then completely unknown Jim Reeves . The success encouraged him to make further appearances; Horton tried his hand at music and met an employee of the radio station KWKH. He told Horace Logan , host of the Louisiana Hayrides by Horton and his talent. Logan invited Horton to an audition, hired him for the hayride and got him a record deal with Fabor Robison.
Horton got his own radio show in Pasadena and Abbott made his first records. In 1952, Horton moved to Shreveport , Louisiana . During his appearances in the Louisiana Hayride he met Hank Williams , who had just been fired from the Grand Ole Opry . After Williams' death in 1953, he met his widow Billie Jean. The two became a couple and married in September 1953.
Despite Horton's regular radio presence, his singles with Abbott and later Mercury Records remained unsuccessful; even a duet with Billy Barton , Bawlin's baby , couldn't change that. 1955 Tillman Franks Hortons manager and got Horton a contract with Columbia Records . In his first session he played the rockabilly title Honky Tonk Man , which was able to place in the top ten in 1956. He achieved other successes, including with One Woman Man , the rockabilly title I'm Coming Home and The Woman I Need . But just as quickly as the hits came, they disappeared again at the end of 1957. Horton's rockabilly was no longer in demand. Horton was offered due to his chart successes to become a permanent member of the Opry; however, he declined, probably out of consideration for Billie Jean, since her late husband had been expelled from the Opry in 1952.
In the fall of 1958 he was able to return to the charts with All Grown Up , but it was not until the country folk ballad When It's Springtime in Alaska that he achieved his final breakthrough. The song reached number one on the country charts. With The Battle of New Orleans , Horton achieved his greatest hit. The title came back to the top of the country charts and was also number one on the pop charts. Horton was able to hold his position for six weeks. In the following period he had further great successes with historical, folk- based pieces such as Johnny Reb , Sink The Bismarck and North To Alaska . The latter was used as the theme song for the film of the same name with John Wayne in the lead role. The film was released in Germany under the title Land of a Thousand Adventures .
Horton's career came to an early end in 1960 when he was killed in a car accident on the way from a concert in Austin to Shreveport, near Milano. His posthumously published title Sleepy-Eyed John reached number ninth on the charts and a new release by Honky Tonk Man in 1962 number eleven on the country and number 96 on the pop charts.
Discography
Albums
- 1958: Sings Free and Easy
- 1959: Johnny Horton
- 1959: Fantastic
- 1959: The Spectaculary Johnny Horton
- 1960: Makes History
- 1961: Greatest Hits
- 1962: Honky Tonk Man
- 1965: I Can't Forget You
- 1966: On Stage
- 1968: The Unforgettable Johnny Horton
- 1970: On The Road
- 1970: The Legendary Johnny Horton
- 1971: The Battle of New Orleans
- 1971: The World
Singles
| year | title | Charts | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard Hot Country Songs | |||
| Cormack Records (Masters by Abbott) | |||
| 1951 | Done Rovin '/ Plaid and Calico | ||
| 1951 | Birds and Butterflies / Coal Smoke, Valve Oil and Steam | ||
| Abbott Records | |||
| 1951 | Devilish Lovelight / Candy Jones | ||
| 1951 | Mean Mean Son of A Gun / Happy Millionaire | ||
| 1951 | Done Rovin '/ Plaid and Calico | ||
| 1951 | Birds and Butterflies / Coal Smoke, Valve Oil and Steam | ||
| 1951 | In My Home In Shelby County / Go and Wash Your Dirty Feet | ||
| 1951 | Shadows Of The Old Bayou / Talk Gubbler Talk | ||
| 1951 | On The Banks of Nile / It's A Long Rocky Road | ||
| 1952 | Words / Smokey Joe's Barbecue | ||
| 1952 | Betty Loraine / Somebody's Rockin 'My Broken Heart | ||
| 1952 | Bawlin 'Baby / Rhythm In My Baby's Walk (with Billy Barton) | ||
| 1953 | Plaid and Calico / Shadows Of The Old Bayou (re-release) | ||
| Mercury Records | |||
| 1952 | First Train Headin 'South / Devil Sent Me To You | ||
| 1952 | Rest Of Your Life / This Won't Be The First Time | ||
| 1952 | I Won't Forget / Child's Side of Life | ||
| 1953 | Tennessee Jive / Mansion You Stole | ||
| 1953 | SS Lure Line / I Won't Get Dreamy Eyed | ||
| 1953 | Red Lips and Warm Red Wine / You You You | ||
| 1953 | All For The Love Of A Girl / Broken Hearted Gypsy | ||
| 1954 | Move On Down The Line / Train With The Rhumba Beat | ||
| 1954 | Ha Ha and Moonface / You Cry In The Door | ||
| 1954 | There'll Never Be Another Mary / No True Love | ||
| 1955 | Ridin 'The Sunshine Special / Journey With No End | ||
| 1955 | Hey Sweet Thing / Big Wheels Rollin ' | ||
| Columbia Records | |||
| 1956 | Honky Tonk Man / I'm Ready If You're Willing | 9 | |
| 1956 | I'm A One Woman Man / I Don't Like I Did | 7th | |
| 1956 | I'm Coming Home / I've Got A Hole In My Pirogue | 11 | |
| 1957 | She Knows Why / Honky Tonk Mind (The Woman I Need) | 9 | |
| 1957 | I'll Do It Everytime / Let's Take The Long Way Home | ||
| 1957 | Lover's Rock / You're My Baby | ||
| 1958 | Honky Tonk Hardwood Floor / Wild One | ||
| 1958 | All Grown Up / Counterfeit Love | 8th | |
| 1958 | When It's Springtime In Alaska / Whispering Pines | 1 | |
| 1959 | The Battle of New Orleans / All For The Love Of A Girl | 1 | |
| 1959 | Johnny Reb / Sal's Got A Sugar Lip | 10/19 | |
| 1959 | I'm Ready If You're Willing / Take Me Like I Am | ||
| 1959 | They Shined Up Rudolph's Nose / The Electrified Donkey | ||
| 1960 | Sink The Bismarck / Same Old Tale The Crow Told Me | 6th | |
| 1960 | Johnny Freedom / Comanche (The Brave Horse) | 69 | |
| 1960 | North To Alaska / Mansion You Stole | 1 | |
| 1961 | Sleepy-Eyed John / They'll Never Take Her Love From Me | 9 | |
| 1961 | Ole Slew Foot / Miss Marcy | ||
| 1962 | Honky Tonk Man / Words | 11 | |
literature
- Colin Escott: Johnny Horton . In: Paul Kingsbury (Ed.): The Encyclopedia of Country Music . Oxford University Press, New York 1998, pp. 247-249.
Web links
- Johnny Horton in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Johnny Horton in the All Music Guide
- Entry into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame
Individual evidence
- ^ Joel Whitburn: Top Pop Singles 1955-1993 . Record Research, Menomonee Falls WI 1994, p. 281. It was Horton's only top twenty hit in the German charts, the single came to 17th place. Günter Ehnert (Ed.): Hit Bilanz. German chart singles 1956–1980 . Taurus Press, Hamburg 1990, p. 101
- ↑ Fred Bronson: The Billboard Book of Number One Hits . 3rd revised and expanded edition. Billboard Publications, New York City 1992, p. 54
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Horton, Johnny |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American country singer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 30, 1925 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | los Angeles |
| DATE OF DEATH | 5th November 1960 |
| Place of death | Milano (Texas) |