Harold Morrison: Difference between revisions
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| associated_acts = {{hlist|[[Ozark Jubilee]]|[[Kitty Wells]]|[[Loretta Lynn]]|[[Tammy Wynette]]|[[The Wilburn Brothers]]|[[The Browns]]|[[Jeannie C. Riley]]|[[Johnnie Wright]]|[[Red Foley]]|[[Porter Wagoner]]|[[Ferlin Husky]]|[[Grandpa Jones]]}} }} |
| associated_acts = {{hlist|[[Ozark Jubilee]]|[[Kitty Wells]]|[[Loretta Lynn]]|[[Tammy Wynette]]|[[The Wilburn Brothers]]|[[The Browns]]|[[Jeannie C. Riley]]|[[Johnnie Wright]]|[[Red Foley]]|[[Porter Wagoner]]|[[Ferlin Husky]]|[[Grandpa Jones]]}} }} |
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'''Harold Morrison''' (January 30, 1931 - December 21, 1993) was an American [[country music]] Nashville guitar player. He played with [[Loretta Lynn]], [[Kitty Wells]], [[The Wilburn Brothers]], [[Tammy Wynette]] and |
'''Harold Morrison''' (January 30, 1931 - December 21, 1993) was an American [[country music]] Nashville guitar player. He played with [[Loretta Lynn]], [[Kitty Wells]], [[The Wilburn Brothers]], [[Tammy Wynette]] and other musicians. In videos, he can be seen playing the [[dobro]] on "[[Harper Valley PTA]]" with [[Jeannie C. Riley]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOZPBUu7Fro|title=Jeannie C. Riley - Harper Valley P.T.A. |website=YouTube|access-date=September 27, 2008}}</ref> or performing alongside Loretta Lynn.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-os8nYrqRg|title=The Wilburn Brothers Show (Loretta Lynn, Harold Morrison, Roy Acuff, Bashful Brother Oswald) |website=YouTube|access-date=May 24, 2014}}</ref> Morrison's accompanied performers who earned [[Music recording certification|gold records]]: he specialized in [[banjo]] and dobro playing. He was also a writer and performer of comedic songs, and helped to compose albums for many famous artists. While he has not yet been nominated for the [[Country Music Hall of Fame]], many photos of both him and the instruments he played can be found there as his talents helped many others to receive this honor.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://digi.countrymusichalloffame.org/digital/search/searchterm/Harold%20Morrison|title=Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum-Harold Morrison-Digital Archive|publisher=Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum|access-date=August 19, 2021}}</ref> He was often a guest on many TV shows that showcased country music artists, and he could usually be spotted by his signature colorful plaid sportscoat. |
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== Biography == |
== Biography == |
Revision as of 02:53, 11 February 2022
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Harold Morrison | |
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Birth name | Harold Ralph Morrison |
Born | High Lonesome, near Chadwick, Missouri, United States | January 30, 1931
Died | December 21, 1993 Springfield, Missouri, U.S. | (aged 62)
Genres | |
Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, musician, comedian |
Instruments | |
Years active | 1950–1992 |
Labels |
Harold Morrison (January 30, 1931 - December 21, 1993) was an American country music Nashville guitar player. He played with Loretta Lynn, Kitty Wells, The Wilburn Brothers, Tammy Wynette and other musicians. In videos, he can be seen playing the dobro on "Harper Valley PTA" with Jeannie C. Riley[1] or performing alongside Loretta Lynn.[2] Morrison's accompanied performers who earned gold records: he specialized in banjo and dobro playing. He was also a writer and performer of comedic songs, and helped to compose albums for many famous artists. While he has not yet been nominated for the Country Music Hall of Fame, many photos of both him and the instruments he played can be found there as his talents helped many others to receive this honor.[3] He was often a guest on many TV shows that showcased country music artists, and he could usually be spotted by his signature colorful plaid sportscoat.
Biography
Early life
Harold Ralph Morrison was born on January 30, 1931, in High Lonesome, Missouri, a small town in rural Christian County, about 40 miles southeast of Springfield. His father, Floyd Morrison, was a farm laborer and his mother, Drady Naomi Nelson, tended to the home. Harold was the firstborn child of the family, and he grew up in a typical farm community. Harold was both a banjo and guitar player and seemed to be able to pick up any stringed instrument and quickly learn to play it. He was a shy young man, but extremely talented. He began entertaining at an early age, and by the time he reached his late teens, he became determined to perform in country music and set off from home.[citation needed]
Career
He landed his first performances on the local radio stations in Springfield, Missouri in 1950, and by 1951 he began performing as a duo with fiddler/guitarist Jimmy Gateley. They started off working together with the Red River Rustlers on KJSB radio in Jamestown, North Dakota, and later the pair moved to Wheeling, West Virginia where they partnered with WWVA (AM) radio. Harold and Jimmy played mostly as a duo but occasionally performed with Dusty Owens' music group. In 1954 they recorded sessions with Owens' band for Columbia Records. They then went on to Springfield, Missouri, where in 1955 they became a part of Ozark Jubilee, and went on tour with Red Foley. They were also regulars on the Ozark Jubilee TV show from 1955 to 1960.[4] Morrison had also begun to perform as a session musician for several studios. He played steel guitar in the studio with The Browns when they recorded "I Take the Chance", and with Porter Wagoner, where he played the banjo on a few of Porter's songs, including "I'm Stepping Out Tonight' and "A Good Time Was Had By All".
Around[when?] 1950, he married Eva Lou Ash. Harold and Eva would go on to have 3 daughters (Karla, Gina, and Georgia), one of whom would grow up to be a country music performer.[5] By 1957, he had relocated along with his family to Nashville, Tennessee where he performed on steel guitar and dobro with Kitty Wells on several Decca Records recordings, including her version of "I Can't Stop Loving You". He also recorded some singles with Johnnie Wright for RCA Victor. When Kitty Wells and Johnnie Wright went out on tour, Morrison went along and remained on tour for several years. In 1959 as he made some recordings for Reader's Digest. In the early 1960s, he became a member of The Wilburn Brothers both on tour and was also their co-star on their TV series, "The Wilburn Brothers Show".[6] In the mid-1960s, he made several recordings of instrumental work and comedy routines for Decca Records which was released as "Hoss, He's the Boss".[7] In 1965, he played the banjo on Loretta Lynn's big hit "Blue Kentucky Girl". In 1967 under Epic records, he along with Maple Hill Boys released the single "Opry Theme", the first time the Grand Ole Opry allowed its theme to be recorded.[8] In 1969, he became a member of George Jones and Tammy Wynette's band and remained with them until they divorced in 1975. After 1975, he continued touring with Wynette's band, but without George.[9][10][11] In the early 1970s, he was occasionally a guest on Porter Wagoner's TV show.[12]
In 1975, along with his daughter Karla (aka Kitty) and Benny Williams, they formed the Smoking Cigarettes bluegrass music group. The group went on tour for several years on the bluegrass circuit, made appearances at many of the larger bluegrass festivals, and they even won several of the competitions. Once the band broke up, Morrison continued playing with several different groups until 1985, when he had his own band again in Branson, Missouri. In 1989, he played with Ferlin Husky, and was at their theater in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina around the time when Hurricane Hugo destroyed the building. He then went to work for a few years with Grandpa Jones, and in 1992 at Myrtle Beach, he yet again formed a new band under his own name.[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][excessive citations]
Death
He died of heart failure on December 21, 1993, in Springfield, Missouri after suffering a recent cerebral hemorrhage. He was 62 years old.[20]
Discography
Year | Album | Band | Contribution |
---|---|---|---|
1965 | "Hoss, He's the Boss" | Harold Morrison | Primary Artist |
1966 | "The Wilburn Brothers Show with Loretta Lynn & Harold Morrison" | The Wilburn Brothers | Composer, Primary Artist |
1967 | "Opry Theme" | Harold Morrison and the Maple Hill Boys | Primary Artist |
1978 | "Ever Ready" | Johnnie Taylor | Composer |
1989 | "The Thin Man from the West Plains: The RCA Sessions 1952-1962" | Porter Wagoner & the Wagonmasters | Banjo |
1992 | "Johnnie & Jack and the Tennessee Mountain Boys" | Johnnie & Jack | Baritone (Vocal), Guitar, Slide Guitar, Banjo, Composer |
1993 | "The Three Bells" | The Browns | Guitar (Steel), Dobro |
1994 | "Honky Tonk Girl: The Loretta Lynn Collection" | Loretta Lynn | Guitar |
1994 | "Queen of Country Music [Box Set]" | Kitty Wells | Guitar (Steel), Banjo |
1996 | "Rated X-Traordinaire: The Best of Johnnie Taylor" | Johnnie Taylor | Composer |
2002 | "RCA Country Legends" | Porter Wagoner | Banjo |
2003 | "For Old Times Sake [Bear Family]" | Johnnie & Jack | Baritone (Vocal), Guitar, Guitar (Steel) |
2003 | "World's Greatest Bluegrass Live" | Various Artists | Primary Artist |
2005 | "Best of Johnnie & Jack" | Johnnie & Jack | Baritone (Vocal) |
2008 | "Country Instrumentals [Reader's Digest Music]" | Various Artists | Primary Artist |
2008 | "Harold Morrison and the Maple Hill Boys - All the Good Times" | Harold Morrison | Primary Artist |
2009 | "A Country Music Odyssey" | The Browns | Banjo, Dobro, Guitar (Steel) |
2010 | "Dim Lights, Thick Smoke and Hillbilly Music: 1956" | Various Artists | Guitar (Steel) |
2010 | "Dim Lights, Thick Smoke and Hillbilly Music: 1958" | Various Artists | Baritone (Vocal), Guitar (Steel) |
2011 | "Dim Lights, Thick Smoke and Hillbilly Music: 1961" | Various Artists | Banjo |
2011 | "Dim Lights, Thick Smoke and Hillbilly Music: 1965" | Various Artists | Banjo |
2011 | "Your Squaw Is on the Warpath/Fist City" | Loretta Lynn | Banjo |
2012 | "Rockabilly Boogie" | Various Artists | Composer, Primary Artist |
2013 | "Dim Lights, Thick Smoke and Hillbilly Music: 1968" | Various Artists | Banjo |
2018 | "Epic Singles" | Harold Morrison | Primary Artist |
2020 | "Johnnie & Jack Collection: 1945-1962" | Johnnie & Jack | Composer |
References
- ^ "Jeannie C. Riley - Harper Valley P.T.A." YouTube. Retrieved September 27, 2008.
- ^ "The Wilburn Brothers Show (Loretta Lynn, Harold Morrison, Roy Acuff, Bashful Brother Oswald)". YouTube. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
- ^ "Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum-Harold Morrison-Digital Archive". Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
- ^ "Lights, Camera, Backbeat-Harold Morrison Search". Lights, Camera, Backbeat. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
- ^ "Harold Morrison: StateoftheOzarks / Daniel Farnum & Authentic Ozarks Music". stateoftheozarks.net.
- ^ "The Wilburn Brothers Show" – via IMDb.
- ^ "Harold Morrison Albums and Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2021-09-26.
- ^ "Epic Singles & LPs Score Summer Sales" (PDF). Record World. 1967. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
- ^ "Shazam". Shazam.
- ^ "Pop! Goes The Country, Show #115 w/ George Jones, Tammy Wynette, Pasty Sledd and Harold Morrison. [video recording]". digi.countrymusichalloffame.org.
- ^ "Tammy Wynette • The spring of 1970 found The George Jones/Tammy..." Tammy Wynette.
- ^ "Harold Morrison". IMDb.
- ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (2006). The encyclopedia of popular music (4th ed.). New York: MUZE. p. 8. ISBN 978-0-19-531373-4. OCLC 70062973.
- ^ "Harold Morrison Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More". AllMusic.
- ^ https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-All-Music/Billboard/60s/1967/Billboard%201967-10-28-Country.pdf
- ^ "Morrison, Harold | BluegrassBios.com". December 7, 2013.
- ^ "Des millions de morceaux. Sans aucune publicité".
- ^ "Country music legend Loretta Lynn over the years". www.tennessean.com.
- ^ "Harold Morrison". August 2, 2020.
- ^ Sentinel, Orlando. "HAROLD MORRISON". OrlandoSentinel.com.
- ^ "Harold Morrison | Credits". AllMusic.