Martha Carson

Martha Carson (* 19th May 1921 in Neon , Kentucky , as Irene Amburgey ; † 16th December 2004 in Nashville , Tennessee ) was an American Country - Gospel -Musikerin. She was initially a member of the Coon Creek Girls , then performed with James Carson and eventually had her own band in the 1950s. Her gospel, enriched with rock and roll elements, influenced many of her contemporaries such as Elvis Presley .

Life

Childhood and adolescence

Carson was born in Kentucky as Irene Amburgey. During her school days she learned to play folk songs and spirituals on her guitar and wrote her first songs before she was ten years old. With her two sisters Bertha and Opal (later known as Jean Chapel ) she appeared on local radio as "Sunshine Sisters".

Career

In 1939, Amburgey met mandolinist James Carson , son of musician Fiddlin 'Doc Roberts , while she was playing in Asa Martin's Morning Roundup on WLAP. The two married shortly afterwards and moved to Bluefield , West Virginia , where they performed on WHIS. In the same year the folklorist and presenter John Lair discovered the three Amburgey Sisters and brought them to his Renfro Valley Barn Dance as "Coon Creek Girls". During this time she changed her name to Martha Carson .

In 1940 Carson and her husband James moved to WSB Barn Dance from Atlanta , Georgia , where the two performed as "The Barn Dance Sweethearts". Their repertoire consisted mainly of gospels and other spiritual songs, both of them sang with James on the mandolin and Martha on the guitar. During these years James and Martha Carson became one of the most famous country duos in the country and began in 1949 to record for Capitol Records .

In 1950, James and Martha separated, who is now starting to work at WNOX in Tennessee. However, for the time being, no further solo singles from Carson could be recorded, as Capitol had the duo under contract until 1957. Instead, recordings with Bill Carlisle and other WNOX stars were produced; Carson is among other things the singer on Carlisle's hit Too Old to Cut the Mustard . But Fred Rose , an influential person within the Nashville country scene, was able to convince Capitol to release Carson from the contract. Her first solo single with Capitol, Satisfied , made it into the charts and made it possible for her to appear on WSM . A year later she joined the ensemble of the Grand Ole Opry , the most successful country show in the United States.

Over the next few years, Carson remained successful with hits like Journey to the Sky , This Ole House and Saints and Chariot and toured with stars like Little Jimmy Dickens , Ferlin Husky and the rising Elvis Presley . Presley later said that he and Carson often sang gospel songs together after the performances and that she influenced his performances like no other artist. In 1954 she married Xavier Crosse, who had got her a contract with RCA Victor and with whom she lived in New York City from 1955 . It was also Crosse who got her on the Steve Allen Show , which made her national fame outside of the country scene.

In the late 1950s, Carson turned at times to more urban country pop, but its popularity was slowly but surely beginning to wane. In the 1980s it was hardly ever present in public. She died in 2004.

Discography

Singles

year	title	#	Remarks
White Church Records
	I'm Gonna Let It Shine / Budded on Earth to Bloom In Heaven	1118
	When He Heard My Plea / He Will Set Your Fields On Fire	1119
	The Man of Galilee / The Sweetest Gift, a Mother's Smile	1120
	I Ain't Got Time / There's an Open Door Waiting For Me	1189
Capitol Records
1951	Satisfied / Hide Me Rock of Ages	1900
1952	Weighed the Balance / You Sure Do Need Him Now	1982
1952	I Wanna Rest / Old Blind Barnabus	2077
1952	Beyond the Shadow / I'm Gonna Walk and Talk with the Lord	2145
1952	He Will Set Your Fields on Fire / When God Dips His Pen of Love In My Heart	2180
1952	Fear Not / Cryin 'Holy Unto the Lord	2252
1953	Inspiration from Above / There's a Higher Power	2342
1953	Ask and You Shall Receive / I feel It In My Soul	2477
1953	Singing on the Other Side / I've Got a Better Place	2634
1954	Lazarus / Bye and Bye	2740
1954	I Bowed Down / He'll Part the Water	2825
1954	Peace on Love / Christmas Time is Here	1969
1955	It's Alright / Counting My Blessing	3045
RCA Victor
1955	Lord I Can't Come Now / I've Got So Many Million Years	6250
1955	Let the Light Shine on Me / Laugh a Little More	6293
1956	David and Goliath / I Want to Rest a Little While	6413
1956	Music Drives Me Crazy / Dixieland Roll	6510
1956	All These Things / Faith is the Key	6603
1956	Get the Golden Key / He Was There	6724
1957	Let the Light Shine On Me / Satisfied	6861
1957	Now Stop / Just Whistle or Call	6948
1958	Light of Love / That Ain't Right	1356	released by Cadence Records
1960	High on the Hill / Everything's Alright	4437
Dot records
1961	Everything Happens for the Best / Right Now, Right Now	16286
Sims Records
1963	Everybody Needs Somebody / It Takes a Lot of Lovin '	144

Albums

• 1955: Journey to the Sky
• 1957: Rock-a My Soul
• 1960: Satisfied
• 1962: A Talk with the Lord
• 1963: Martha Carson
• 1964: Martha Carson
• 1965: Martha Carson sings

Web links

• Entry on Allmusic
• Martha Carson on Hillbilly-Music.com (English)
• Biography and photos