Leake County Revelers
| Leake County Revelers | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Genre (s) | Old-time music |
| founding | unknown |
| resolution | circa 1930 |
| Founding members | |
| Dallas Jones (1889–1985) | |
| Will Gilbert (1897-1960) | |
| Jim Wolverton (1895-1969) | |
| RO Mosley (1885-193?) | |
The Leake County Revelers were an American old-time band from Mississippi . Her biggest hit was the instrumental waltz Wednesday Night Waltz / Good Night Waltz .
Career
When the head of Columbia Records ' hillbilly division, Frank Walker , came to Mississippi in 1927 to seek new talent, he could hardly find a poorer region than Leake County . " The people are removed from education and all sorts of socical contacts, " Walker later recalled. The county's residents quickly referred him to a band that was already very popular in the area. He baptized them the Leake County Revelers and signed them to Columbia. Before that, the members of this group only pursued music as a hobby; RO Mosley ran a hardware store, Jim Wolverton was a farmer and Will Gilbert was a perpetual bachelor who changed his profession frequently.
The first session of the Leake County Revelers was held in New Orleans , Louisiana , in April 1927 . Of the four recorded pieces, the second single, Wednesday Night Waltz / Good Night Waltz , already brought great success. With over 200,000 copies sold, it became the band's greatest success and one of the greatest old-time hits of the decade. Cover versions of Wednesday Night Waltz quickly appeared ; the Kessinger Brothers recorded a version for Brunswick Records , the North Carolina Hawaiians recorded the song for OKeh Records and Carson Robison & Frank Luther recorded a version for Victor Records , Brunswick and Edison Records . In 1934 the single was re-released and new versions of the Stripling Brothers and Riley Puckett were immediately created . Sales of the group were with those of the Georgia - String Band Skillet Lickers or Charlie Poole measure and its North Carolina Ramblers. The Revelers were now performing all over Mississippi and could be heard on Saturday night on WJDX of Jackson , Mississippi. The year 1928 brought, in addition to an engagement for Huey Pierce Long's governor's campaign, further sessions and singles with relatively good sales. Some of her tracks have also been released in Australia and England through Regal-Zonophone Records .
The Leake County Revelers' repertoire was shaped by Waltzers, even if they did breakdowns like Johnson Gal and Leather Breeches , Yodel songs like Georgia Camp Meeting and other fiddle pieces like Monkey in the Dog Cart , Bring Me a Bottle (their version of the Skillet -Lickers hits Pass Around the Bottle ) or Been to the East - Been to the West . Their sound was clear and distinctive, created by Will Gilberts' smooth fiddle playing and the jingling mandolin by RO Mosley. The two were supported by the inconspicuous accompaniment of Jim Wolverton and Dallas Jones.
As it happened many other artists of the era that destroyed the Great Depression and the career of the Leake County Revelers. They held their last session in December 1930, after which the group broke up. Mosley, the oldest member, died in the 1930s.
Nevertheless, the Revelers' success continued into the 1970s. There were always bands that performed under similar names and in the 1970s descendants of Will Gilbert led the Leake County String Band , which starred in the 1976 film Ode to Billy Joe .
Discography
See also: The Alabama Barnstormers
| year | title | # | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia Records | |||
| 1927 | Johnson Gal / Leather Breeches | 15149-D | |
| 1927 | Wednesday Night Waltz / Good Night Waltz | 15189-D | |
| 1927 | The Old Hat / Monkey in the Dog Cart | 15205-D | |
| 1927 | My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean / In the Good Old Summertime | 15227-D | |
| Merry Widow Waltz / Make Me a Bed on the Floor | 15264-D | ||
| They Go Simply Wild Over Me / Put Me in My Little Bed | 15292-D | ||
| 1928 | Crow Black Chicken / Been To the East - Been To the West | 15318-D | |
| Julia Waltz / Rocking Yodel | 15353-D | ||
| 1929 | Bring Me a Bottle / Molly Put the Kettle On | 15380-D | |
| 1929 | Georgia Camp Meeting / I'm Gwin [!] Back To Dixie | 15409-D | |
| Memories Waltz / Where The Silv'ry Colorado Wends Its Way | 15427-D | ||
| Dry Town Blues / Good Fellow | 15441-D | ||
| Uncle Ned / Saturday Night Breakdown | 15470-D | ||
| Sweet Rose of Heaven / Beautiful Bells | 15501-D | ||
| Leake County Blues / Lonesome Blues | 15520-D | ||
| Mississippi Moon Waltz / Courtin 'Days Waltz | 15569-D | ||
| Magnolia Waltz / Birds in the Brook | 15625-D | ||
| When It's Springtime In the Rockies / Jungle Waltz | 15648-D | ||
| 1931 | Mississippi Breakdown / Thirty First Street Blues | 15668-D | |
| Texas Fair / Picture No Artist Can Paint | 15691-D | ||
| Memories / Lazy Kate | 15767-D | ||
| My Wild Irish Rose / Listen to the Mocking Bird | 15776-D | ||
| Unpublished titles | |||
| 1928 |
|
Columbia Records | |
| 1929 |
|
Columbia Records | |
| 1930 |
|
Columbia Records | |
literature
- Tony Russell: Country Music Originals: The Legends and the Lost. Oxford University Press, 2007, ISBN 978-0-19-532509-6 , pp. 116ff.
- Tony Russell: Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921-1942. Oxford University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-19-513989-5 , pp. 494f.