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Jimmie Rodgers

Jimmie Rodgers (September 8, 1897 – May 26, 1933) was an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter widely recognized as the "Father of Country Music" for pioneering a distinctive style that fused hillbilly, blues, folk, jazz, and yodeling traditions, becoming the first major star of the genre during his brief career from 1927 to 1933.^[1]^[2] Born James Charles Rodgers in Meridian, Mississippi, to a railroad foreman father, Rodgers grew up immersed in the working-class culture of the American South, working various railroad jobs from his early teens, including as a brakeman—a role that inspired his nickname, the "Singing Brakeman."^[1] His early exposure to medicine shows and amateur performances honed his musical talents, but a 1924 diagnosis of tuberculosis forced him to leave railroading and pursue entertainment full-time, leading to a 1927 radio appearance in Asheville, North Carolina, that launched his recording career.^[2]^[1] Rodgers signed with the Victor Talking Machine Company (later RCA Victor) in 1927, releasing his breakthrough hit "Blue Yodel (T for Texas)," which sold over a million copies and established his signature yodeling technique—influenced by Swiss styles but infused with African American blues elements—as a hallmark of early country music.^[2] Over the next six years, despite his worsening health, he recorded more than 110 songs, including classics like "Waiting for a Train," "In the Jailhouse Now," and "T.B. Blues," often collaborating with notable artists such as Louis Armstrong and the Carter Family; his work blended autobiographical themes of travel, hardship, and romance with innovative vocal runs and guitar playing.^[1] By 1929, he had starred in the short film The Singing Brakeman, solidifying his status as a multimedia icon and influencing generations of performers, from Gene Autry to Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton.^[2]^[1] Rodgers's career was tragically cut short by his illness; after final recording sessions in May 1933, he suffered a fatal lung hemorrhage in New York City at age 35, yet his legacy endured as the first inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1961 and later the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, cementing his role in defining country music's commercial and artistic foundations.^[2]^[1]

Early Life

Childhood and Family Background

James Charles Rodgers was born on September 8, 1897, in Meridian, Mississippi, the youngest of three sons to Aaron Rodgers and Eliza Bozeman Rodgers.^[3]^[4] His father worked as a section foreman and maintenance supervisor on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, a position that defined the family's nomadic lifestyle in the rural American South.^[3]^[5] Eliza Rodgers died of tuberculosis in 1903, when Jimmie was just six years old, leaving the family in upheaval.^[6] Aaron remarried the following year, but Jimmie had a strained relationship with his stepmother and was primarily raised by various relatives, including aunts and grandparents, during his early years.^[6] This period of instability saw him shuttled between homes in southeast Mississippi and southwest Alabama, fostering a sense of independence amid frequent changes.^[3] The Rodgers family embodied the working-class ethos of the post-Civil War South, where railroad labor provided modest stability but demanded constant mobility along rail lines.^[4] Jimmie's childhood unfolded in this environment of economic hardship and transient communities, with the family eventually returning to Meridian, where his father's job anchored them.^[3] Such circumstances exposed young Jimmie to the rhythms of labor and migration that would later echo in his music.^[4] From an early age, Rodgers showed an affinity for music, influenced by family members including his grandfather and uncle, who played fiddle at gatherings, and an aunt trained in formal music.^[5] Growing up in the deeply religious South, he encountered gospel hymns in local churches, while proximity to railroad work introduced him to the work songs and chants of African American laborers, shaping his nascent interest in performance.^[4]^[5] These elements—familial music-making, spiritual singing, and communal labor tunes—laid the groundwork for his artistic development in a culturally rich, if challenging, setting.^[5]

Early Jobs and Musical Influences

At the age of thirteen, Jimmie Rodgers began working as a water boy for railroad crews in Meridian, Mississippi, assisting his father's gang on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad.^[3] Soon after, he won an amateur talent contest and briefly ran away to join a traveling medicine show, performing across the Southeast until his father retrieved him and secured his return to railroad employment.^[7] By his mid-teens, Rodgers took on more demanding roles, including call boy, flagman, baggage master, and eventually brakeman on lines such as the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad, a position arranged by his brother Walter.^[3] In the early 1920s, amid economic challenges and emerging health issues, he supplemented his income with odd jobs like cab driving in Asheville, North Carolina, alongside brief stints in vaudeville and additional medicine shows.^[8] Rodgers' exposure to diverse music during these years profoundly shaped his style, beginning with the blues he absorbed from African American railroad workers, whose work chants and songs echoed through the crews' daily labors.^[7] His travels with railroad gangs and shows introduced him to cowboy songs popular in the South and West, which he incorporated into his growing repertoire of folk tunes.^[7] Additionally, yodeling entered his influences through encounters with Swiss performers in traveling entertainments, a technique he later adapted into his signature vocal approach after observing their stage routines.^[9] By age fifteen, Rodgers had become self-taught on the guitar, honing his skills through observation and practice amid his itinerant lifestyle.^[3] He drew particular inspiration from the recordings of guitarist Riley Puckett, whose fingerpicking and yodeling techniques influenced Rodgers.^[10] Prior to any recordings, he performed at house parties and community gatherings, often sharing songs learned on the job, and by the early 1920s, he took on paid gigs singing in saloons and entertaining fellow railroad workers during layovers.^[3] These early appearances, blending work chants, blues, and emerging personal flair, laid the groundwork for his musical pursuits.^[11]

Musical Career

Breakthrough Recordings

In August 1927, talent scout Ralph Peer of the Victor Talking Machine Company organized field recording sessions in Bristol, Tennessee, to capture regional folk and country talent. Jimmie Rodgers, then 29 and recently arrived from North Carolina, auditioned for Peer on August 4 after his band disbanded due to internal disputes. Impressed by Rodgers' solo performance, Peer arranged an immediate recording session that day in a temporary studio at 408-410 State Street, where Rodgers cut two tracks accompanied only by his own guitar playing.^[12]^[13]^[14] These debut recordings, "The Soldier's Sweetheart" and "Sleep, Baby, Sleep," were released together as Victor 20864 in October 1927. "The Soldier's Sweetheart," a sentimental waltz-time ballad, and the gentle lullaby "Sleep, Baby, Sleep"—on which Rodgers incorporated a kazoo for rhythmic effect—marked his entry into the commercial recording industry. The single achieved moderate success, selling steadily in rural markets and prompting Victor to invite Rodgers for a follow-up session.^[7]^[13]^[15] Rodgers traveled to Victor's main studio in Camden, New Jersey, for his second session on November 30, 1927, where he recorded solo again, relying primarily on vocal delivery and guitar accompaniment. Among the tracks was "Blue Yodel," later titled "Blue Yodel No. 1 (T for Texas)," released as the A-side of Victor 21073 on February 3, 1928, backed by "Away Out on the Mountain." This blues-inflected yodel became Rodgers' breakthrough hit, selling over 500,000 copies within two years and establishing his signature style of blending country, blues, and alpine yodeling elements.^[16]^[17]^[18] The rapid sales of these early releases propelled Rodgers to national prominence in the nascent country music scene, with his records topping rural sales charts by mid-1928. Drawing from his years as a railroad worker, Victor promoted him under the moniker "The Singing Brakeman," a nickname that evoked his itinerant past and resonated with working-class audiences, solidifying his image as an authentic voice of American folk traditions.^[7]^[19]^[20]

Rise to Stardom and Tours

Following the success of his debut recording "Blue Yodel (T for Texas)" in 1928, which sold over 100,000 copies in its first three months and topped Victor's sales charts for 14 weeks, Jimmie Rodgers achieved national prominence with a series of follow-up hits.^[21] The Blue Yodel series, including numbers 2 through 9 released between 1928 and 1930, along with standalone successes like "Waiting for a Train" (1928) and "Mule Skinner Blues" (1930), solidified his status as a recording star, with his catalog selling millions of copies during his lifetime despite the onset of the Great Depression.^[7]^[22] Rodgers capitalized on his fame through an extensive touring schedule from 1929 to 1931, including nationwide vaudeville circuits with RKO Interstate and performances in major cities such as New York and Dallas.^[23] He also made regular radio appearances, broadcast on prominent stations like Chicago's WLS, which helped expand his audience across the Midwest and beyond.^[7] These live shows, often in first-run theaters, drew large crowds and featured Rodgers as a solo act, occasionally joined by session musicians for select engagements. To cultivate his public image, Rodgers adopted cowboy attire in promotional materials starting in 1929, complementing his "Singing Brakeman" nickname with train-themed imagery drawn from his railroad background and songs like "Waiting for a Train."^[7] This persona, emphasizing wanderlust and working-class roots, resonated widely in posters, sheet music covers, and his 1929 short film The Singing Brakeman.^[7] At the height of his popularity, Rodgers' earnings from royalties—exceeding $2,000 monthly by 1928—and live performances enabled significant personal investments, including the purchase of a custom Martin 000-45 guitar in 1928, inlaid with his name in mother-of-pearl.^[22]^[24] In April 1929, he relocated to Texas for health reasons and began constructing a spacious home in Kerrville, dubbed "Blue Yodeler's Paradise," funded by his concert fees and record income.^[25]^[26]

Later Sessions and Collaborations

In the early 1930s, Jimmie Rodgers shifted his recording activities to major urban studios, beginning with sessions in Hollywood and New York for Victor Records, where he expanded his sound through diverse ensembles to accommodate his declining health from tuberculosis.^[7] In July 1930, during a Hollywood session, Rodgers collaborated with jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong and pianist Lil Hardin Armstrong on "Blue Yodel No. 9 (Standin' on the Corner Blues)," a track that blended his yodeling style with jazz improvisation, marking a rare interracial partnership in early country music. That same year, Rodgers worked with his sister-in-law and frequent songwriting partner Elsie McWilliams on several compositions, including "Waiting for a Train" and "Daddy and Home," which he recorded in New York, showcasing her contributions to his lyrical themes of longing and rural life—though many credits went solely to Rodgers.^[27] McWilliams co-wrote or solely authored over a third of his catalog during this period, including "I'm Lonely and Blue" from a 1930 Camden session.^[28] By 1931, Rodgers' sessions increasingly featured backup groups to compensate for his weakening ability to perform solo, incorporating string bands, brass elements, and jug band styles for rhythmic variety and jazz-inflected energy. In June 1931, in Louisville, Kentucky, he recorded "My Good Gal's Gone Blues" with the Louisville Jug Band, led by Clifford Hayes, adding jug, clarinet, and violin to create a lively, bluesy ensemble sound that highlighted his evolving interest in hybrid genres. Additional 1931-1932 New York and Camden recordings, such as "Peach Pickin' Time Down in Georgia" with Clayton McMichen's string band and the jug-influenced "Jimmie Rodgers and His Jug Band" tracks, further demonstrated this reliance on collaborators like fiddler McMichen and multi-instrumentalists to sustain production amid his illness. These efforts produced hits like "Miss the Mississippi and You," co-written with McWilliams, emphasizing orchestral arrangements over his earlier minimalist approach.^[7] Rodgers' final recording sessions occurred in May 1933 at RCA Victor's New York studio, where his tuberculosis had advanced severely, requiring extended rests between takes and full dependence on session musicians including strings and brass. Over three dates—May 17, 18, and 24—he completed twelve sides, but the last session on May 24 yielded just three tracks: "Years Ago," "Old Love Letters Bring Memories of You," and "Mississippi Delta Blues," all released posthumously after his death two days later. These recordings, produced under duress, captured his resilient vocal style while underscoring the physical toll that ultimately ended his career.

Health Challenges and Death

Onset of Tuberculosis

In the mid-1920s, while working as a brakeman on the railroads in the American South, Jimmie Rodgers began experiencing persistent cough and fatigue that severely hampered his physical labor. These symptoms, building on childhood respiratory issues and a bout of pneumonia in 1923, culminated in a lung hemorrhage that led to his formal diagnosis of tuberculosis in the fall of 1924 at age 27.^[29]^[19] Tuberculosis was rampant in the 1920s South, where poverty, crowded living conditions, and limited sanitation contributed to high incidences, particularly in rural and industrial areas like Mississippi and Texas.^[29] Standard early treatments emphasized rest cures, fresh air therapy, and isolation in sanatoriums to promote lung recovery, though effective antibiotics were decades away and the disease remained largely incurable.^[30] Rodgers received advice from his physician to avoid strenuous activity and seek drier, elevated climates, but he did not strictly adhere to prolonged bed rest, instead incorporating light pursuits like music to maintain some mobility and income.^[29] The diagnosis profoundly altered Rodgers' trajectory, forcing him to retire from railroading by 1927 due to worsening health that made breathing difficult during manual tasks.^[19] Following medical recommendations for less taxing work, he pivoted fully to performing, viewing music as a viable alternative that aligned with the need for outdoor activity and fresh air.^[7] To manage his condition and fund ongoing care, Rodgers relocated his family to Asheville, North Carolina, in 1927 for its mountainous climate, and by 1928, he began spending extended periods in drier regions like Texas, where touring performances not only supported treatments but also allowed him to test his vocal limits despite the illness.^[19]

Final Years and Passing

In the early 1930s, Jimmie Rodgers' tuberculosis worsened significantly, leading to frequent collapses and hospitalizations that curtailed his touring schedule. By February 1933, he suffered a severe collapse requiring hospitalization, after which he largely ceased public performances to focus on recovery.^[2] Despite medical advice against travel, Rodgers dictated portions of an intended autobiography to his sister-in-law and frequent collaborator, songwriter Elsie McWilliams, during his recovery period in 1932.^[31] That year, he also provided temporary relief but could not halt the disease's progression.^[31] In May 1933, Rodgers made a final trip to New York City at the urging of Victor Records producer Ralph Peer, who arranged a recording session to secure financial support for Rodgers' family amid his dire health. Weakened and resting on a cot between takes with a nurse in attendance, he completed 12 tracks over eight days, including what would become his final song.^[2]^[7] Rodgers died on May 26, 1933, at the age of 35 in his room at the Taft Hotel in New York City, succumbing to a lung abscess complicated by tuberculosis. His body was returned to Meridian, Mississippi, where a funeral service drew thousands of mourners, reflecting his widespread popularity; he was buried in Oak Grove Cemetery.^[4]^[32] Following his death, Victor Records issued several posthumous releases, including the single "Jimmie Rodgers' Last Blue Yodel" (also known as "The Women Make a Fool Out of Me"), recorded just eight days before his passing and marketed as a poignant finale to his signature series. The label also settled outstanding royalties and advances with Rodgers' estate, providing crucial financial stability for his widow and daughter.^[21]^[2]

Musical Style and Innovations

Yodeling Technique and Blue Yodels

Jimmie Rodgers' yodeling technique emerged as a unique synthesis of European alpine traditions and African American vocal practices, particularly the falsetto elements derived from blues and field hollers. While Swiss yodeling, characterized by smooth glissandi between chest and head registers, had entered American popular culture through 19th-century Tyrolean performers and vaudeville acts, Rodgers adapted it by infusing blues-derived falsetto breaks heard from Black railroad workers and musicians during his early career. This fusion was further shaped by vaudeville influences, including performers like Emmett Miller, a blackface minstrel whose yodeling falsetto in recordings such as "Anytime" (1928) provided a model for Rodgers' stylistic experimentation.^[33]^[34]^[35] Rodgers' method involved rapid, abrupt transitions between chest voice—producing a fuller, resonant tone—and head voice or falsetto, creating a piercing, emotive contrast that served as both refrain and emotional punctuation. These shifts, often executed on signature phrases like "yodel-ay-ee" or "blue yodel," functioned as turnarounds in blues structures, with the first-species yodel (simple alternation) and second-species (more complex ornamentation) appearing in numerous of his recordings, particularly in the Blue Yodel series. Accompanied by his distinctive guitar work, which provided rhythmic syncopation and chordal emphasis, this technique amplified the yodel's role as a sonic device to evoke longing and mobility, distinguishing it from smoother alpine variants.^[36]^[37]^[38] Central to Rodgers' oeuvre were the Blue Yodel series, comprising 13 recordings produced between 1927 and 1933 that solidified his signature sound. These songs typically followed a 12-bar blues form, with lyrics exploring themes of romantic yearning, itinerant travel, and personal adversity, as in the hobo narratives of wandering and lost love. "Blue Yodel No. 1 (T for Texas)," recorded in 1927, marked his breakthrough, becoming a massive commercial success that introduced the style to wide audiences and established yodeling as a viable element in recorded country music. Similarly, "Blue Yodel No. 9 (Standing on the Corner Blues)," cut in 1930, highlighted an innovative jazz-country crossover, featuring uncredited trumpet by Louis Armstrong and piano by Lil Hardin Armstrong, blending Rodgers' yodel with improvisational brass for a rhythmic, urban edge.^[39]^[40]^[7] Through the Blue Yodels, Rodgers commercialized yodeling as a hallmark of American vernacular music, transforming it from a niche vaudeville or folk curiosity into a standardized feature for country recordings that influenced subsequent artists' approaches to vocal expression and blues integration. His innovations elevated the technique's market appeal, setting precedents for how rural and urban sounds could merge in the recording industry during the early 20th century.^[34]^[33]

Blend of Genres and Vocal Approach

Jimmie Rodgers pioneered a fusion of musical genres that distinguished his work within the emerging hillbilly music scene, blending rural hillbilly traditions with blues structures, folk ballads, and subtle jazz inflections derived from his exposure to vaudeville and urban sounds.^[4]^[41] His incorporation of the 12-bar blues form in non-yodeling tracks, such as those drawing from African American musical influences encountered during his travels, created a hybrid style that appealed to diverse audiences and helped commercialize country music.^[42] Rodgers' vocal approach was characterized by a distinctive nasal twang and a conversational storytelling delivery that conveyed emotional depth and vulnerability, often evoking the hardships of hobo and cowboy life.^[43]^[44] In songs like "In the Jailhouse Now," his phrasing emphasized narrative tension through rhythmic pauses and inflections, transforming personal anecdotes of betrayal and wandering into relatable, poignant tales that resonated with working-class listeners.^[45] His instrumentation evolved to reflect this genre-blending innovation, beginning with simple solo guitar accompaniments that highlighted his voice and later incorporating fuller ensembles featuring fiddle, banjo, and jug to adapt to urban recording sessions and broader appeal.^[5]^[43] This progression from minimalist folk setups to more rhythmic, band-oriented arrangements underscored his adaptability and helped position Rodgers as a key bridge between traditional folk roots and the commercial country genre, setting him apart from more purely acoustic contemporaries like the Carter Family.^[7]^[4]

Personal Life

Marriages and Family

Jimmie Rodgers entered into his first marriage at the age of 19, wedding Stella Kelly in 1917. The couple separated shortly thereafter, and their divorce was finalized in 1919; the brief union produced no children.^[19] On April 7, 1920, Rodgers married Carrie Cecil Williamson, the daughter of a Meridian preacher, in Lauderdale County, Mississippi. This partnership endured until Rodgers' death in 1933 and provided stability amid his rising musical career. The couple welcomed two daughters: Carrie Anita, born January 30, 1921, and June Rebecca, born in 1923 but who passed away in infancy later that year.^[19]^[46] Carrie Rodgers managed the family household during Jimmie's frequent travels and performances, ensuring continuity for their daughter Anita while he pursued opportunities in music. She later documented their shared life in the 1935 memoir My Husband Jimmie Rodgers, offering insights into the domestic dynamics that underpinned his professional endeavors. Anita, who lived until 1993, maintained a low public profile but occasionally appeared at events honoring her father's legacy, such as tributes alongside figures like Ernest Tubb and Johnny Cash.^[47]

Lifestyle and Personality

Rodgers was known for his distinctive and colorful persona, defining the singing star role in country music.^[7] As a lifelong train enthusiast stemming from his years as a railroad brakeman, Rodgers incorporated rail imagery into his songs and personal interests.^[7] Despite his battle with tuberculosis, Rodgers maintained an optimistic attitude.^[7] He steadfastly avoided sanatoriums, preferring to continue working and traveling rather than isolating himself, a choice that underscored his determination to live fully amid health challenges.^[7] Rodgers cultivated friendships with fellow musicians and promoters encountered during his travels, forming bonds that provided support in the entertainment world, though his nomadic lifestyle as a performer limited deeper, long-term connections.^[7]

Legacy

Influence on Country Music

Jimmie Rodgers is widely recognized as the "Father of Country Music" for establishing the archetype of the solo male artist through his recordings, which emphasized autobiographical themes drawn from his life as a railroad worker and traveler.^[4] His innovative blend of blues, folk, and pop elements in over 110 tracks recorded between 1927 and 1933 set a precedent for personal storytelling in the genre, influencing the development of substyles like honky-tonk and Western swing by incorporating rhythmic yodeling and train-inspired motifs.^[48]^[49] Rodgers' stylistic trademarks profoundly shaped subsequent generations of country performers, particularly through his yodeling technique and recurring train imagery. Gene Autry emulated Rodgers' yodel in early 1930s cowboy songs, adopting the solo performer's charismatic delivery to launch his singing cowboy persona.^[22] Hank Williams drew directly from Rodgers' emotive vocal style and hobo narratives in hits like "Lonesome Whistle" during the late 1940s, while Merle Haggard paid homage with a full tribute album in 1969, reinterpreting Blue Yodels to evoke Rodgers' wandering spirit in 1950s-inspired tracks.^[41]^[49] By pioneering commercial country recordings for Victor Records, Rodgers boosted the genre's viability amid the Great Depression, with hits like "Blue Yodel (T for Texas)" selling over a million copies despite economic hardship.^[50] His sessions, starting with the 1927 Bristol Sessions, marked the first major-label investment in "hillbilly" music, enabling widespread distribution and establishing country as a marketable form beyond rural audiences.^[22] This commercial breakthrough sustained sales through the 1930s, as his empathetic songs resonated with jobless listeners.^[50] Rodgers popularized working-class narratives in country music, drawing from his brakeman experiences to craft tales of migration, hardship, and resilience that bridged rural Southern folk traditions with urban sensibilities.^[4] Tracks like "Hobo's Meditation" and "T.B. Blues" captured the itinerant life of laborers, appealing to factory workers and city dwellers during industrialization and the Dust Bowl era.^[51] His fusion of blues progressions with country themes thus expanded the genre's emotional range, making it a voice for the American underclass.^[4]

Honors and Tributes

Jimmie Rodgers was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1961 as one of the inaugural class members, alongside Fred Rose and Hank Williams, recognizing his foundational role in the genre.^[52] He was also inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 in the Early Influences category.^[53] Additional honors include the Blues Hall of Fame in 2013 and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2015.^[54]^[55] In 1953, on the 20th anniversary of his death, a memorial dedication in his hometown of Meridian, Mississippi, drew more than 50,000 attendees and marked the start of the annual Jimmie Rodgers Day celebrations, which evolved into the Jimmie Rodgers Music Festival.^[56] The Jimmie Rodgers Museum, established in 1976 by fans and volunteers, opened to preserve his artifacts, including his original guitar and railroad memorabilia, and relocated to a downtown site in 2019.^[57]^[58] Rodgers' signature song "Blue Yodel No. 1 (T for Texas)" has inspired numerous covers, notably by Johnny Cash on his posthumous album Unearthed in 2003, where Cash adapted it as "T for Texas" in a raw acoustic style.^[59] The annual Jimmie Rodgers Music Festival, held every May in Meridian since 1953, features live performances, yodeling contests, and tributes by contemporary artists, establishing itself as America's longest-running music festival dedicated to a single figure.^[56] In 1978, the United States Postal Service issued a 13-cent commemorative stamp featuring Rodgers as part of its Performing Arts series, depicting him with a guitar and locomotive to evoke his "Singing Brakeman" persona; it was first available on May 24 in Meridian.^[60] Rodgers' "Blue Yodel (T for Texas)," recorded in 1927, was inducted into the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress in 2004, honoring its cultural significance in early country music.^[61] In the 2010s, Rodgers' complete recordings received renewed attention through digital reissues and streaming availability, including expanded editions of his RCA Victor catalog on platforms like Spotify and Qobuz, making his 110 tracks from 1927–1933 accessible to new generations.^[62] The ongoing Jimmie Rodgers Festival continues to screen historical documentaries and host special events, such as tributes during its 70th anniversary in 2023, reinforcing his enduring commemorations in country music circles.^[63]

References

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Jimmie Rodgers - Biography — Alabama Music Hall of Fame
Although his brief six-year career was cut tragically short by tuberculosis, Rodgers became the first nationally known star of country music.
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Jimmie Rodgers was born on September 8, 1897, in Meridian, Mississippi, the youngest of three sons. His mother died when he was very young.Missing: background | Show results with:background
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Since his father, Aaron Rodgers, worked on the Mobile and Ohio Railroad, Jimmie Rodgers grew up traveling, especially after his mother, Eliza Rodgers, died when ...
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1903, Mother, Eliza, dies from TB, when Jimmie is 6. 1904, Father, Aaron, remarries. Jimmie doesn't get along with his stepmother, so lives the next few years ...
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Aug 30, 2019 · Rodgers claimed that he learned to yodel from a group of touring Swiss performers at his church; but the Alpine yodeling tradition has no ...
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Apr 16, 2020 · Puckett's yodeling may have influenced Jimmie Rodgers, country music's first genuine star, who became known as the Blue Yodeler. Puckett ...
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Director Ralph Peer and the Victor engineers recorded fiddle tunes, sacred songs, string bands, harmonica solos, and others from July 25 to August 5. Celebrated ...
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On November 30, 1927, James Charles “Jimmie” Rodgers (September 8, 1897–May 26, 1933) entered an old church in Camden, New Jersey, that the Victor Recording ...
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Oct 2, 2007 · ... sold nearly 500,000 copies in the next two years. Blue Yodel would go on to sell a million copies. Rodgers toured and recorded relentlessly ...<|separator|>
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[27]
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For instance, she and Rodgers collaborated on his famous "Waiting for a Train," but his name alone appears on the song. She also recalled writing "My Little Old ...
[28]
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Wrote or co-wrote with Rodgers many of the songs he recorded, including “Daddy and Home,” “I'm Lonely and Blue,” “Tuck Away My Lonesome Blues,” “Home Call,” “My ...Missing: collaboration | Show results with:collaboration
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Jimmie Rodgers (1897-1933), the first performer elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame, was a folk hero in his own lifetime and has been idolized by fans ...
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... music history and helped make Jimmie Rodgers an indelible name in country music. ... " It sold nearly half a million copies, which rocketed Rodgers to stardom.
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America's Blue Yodel - Musical Traditions
Nov 3, 2006 · Jimmie Rodgers invented the blue yodel, that he 'was the first singer clearly to establish the yodel as an echo and comment on the blues'.
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Register will be discussed a little later in this essay. Defining yodel as the interplay between chest voice and head voice ... Jimmie Rodgers's falsetto effects.
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you don't have to yodel ... chest voice to head voice or 'whistle' voice or ...
[38]
(PDF) Jimmie Rodgers and the Semiosis of the Hillbilly Yodel
The study explores the yodel style of Jimmie Rodgers, examining its musical structure, performance practices, and developments throughout his career.
[39]
Registry Titles with Descriptions and Expanded Essays | Recording ...
"Blue Yodel (T for Texas)." Jimmie Rodgers. (1927). The "blue yodels" of Jimmie Rodgers, the "Father of Country Music," helped to define country music. Rodgers ...
[40]
[PDF] The Blue Yodeler is Coming to Town - TXST Digital Repository
1929-1933, Rodgers resided in Kerrville and then in San Antonio. He recorded three times in Dallas and once in the Alamo City, and several of his songs make.
[41]
Jimmie Rodgers - TeachRock.org
The music he left behind influenced a generation of early country singers, including Hank Williams, Bill Monroe, Lefty Frizzell and Merle Haggard (the latter of ...
[42]
Blues and country music - Oxford Academic
But when Rodgers recorded the generically titled “Blue Yodel” in 1927, it changed the face of the hillbilly music business. The song was a typical twelve-bar ...
[43]
[PDF] The Rise and Fall of the Hillbilly Music Genre, A History, 1922-1939.
With Jimmie Rodgers, Peer had an opportunity for the first hillbilly superstar. ... The blues tradition had a great impact on hillbilly music and the.
[44]
[PDF] Beyond High and Lonesome: A Comparative Analysis of Early Male ...
This recording in particular, a tribute to Jimmie Rodgers, shows clear imitation of Rodgers' yodel technique, which Monroe modified slightly putting “a ...
[45]
Jimmie Rodgers, the Blue Yodel, and a Young America
Mar 26, 2011 · Rodgers's blue yodeling allows him to explain his meaning and his sense of his country in ways that words could not.Missing: analysis technique
[46]
Carrie Anita Rodgers (1921–1993) • FamilySearch
When Carrie Anita Rodgers was born on 30 January 1921, in Lauderdale, Mississippi, United States, her father, James Charles Rodgers, was 23 and her mother, ...
[47]
Carrie Rodgers | My Husband - UI Press
Carrie Rodgers was married to Jimmie Rodgers from 1920 until his death in 1933. Nolan Porterfield (1936–2020) was a professor of English and writer-in-residence ...
[48]
Jimmie Rodgers - Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame
In 1924, he contracted tuberculosis. In that day and age it was a death sentence. There was no cure. A less cocksure man would have wadded up his dreams and ...Missing: management rest
[49]
Jimmie Rodgers Biography - Alan Cackett
Jimmie Rodgers in a movie still from “The Singing Brakeman,” a short film made in 1929 by Columbia-Victor Gems. He never appeared on any major radio show, or ...
[50]
Jimmie Rodgers | Rhino
Jan 21, 2014 · Overall, Rodgers recorded 110 sides for the Victor label.Rodgers' records continued to sell well during the Depression, but his health was ...
[51]
Jimmie Rodgers - The Mississippi Blues Trail
The influence of his famous “blue yodels” can be heard in the music of Mississippi blues artists including Howlin' Wolf, Mississippi John Hurt, Tommy Johnson, ...
[52]
Hall of Fame Members
The first members—Jimmie Rodgers, Fred Rose, and Hank Williams—were inducted in 1961.Jimmie Rodgers · Johnny Cash · Current Class · Election Process
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Jimmie Rodgers Music Festival survives near demise by changing ...
Apr 29, 2017 · The first Jimmie Rodgers Memorial Festival was held May 26, 1953, to honor the country music singer on the 20th anniversary of his death. “Hank ...
[54]
Jimmie Rodgers Foundation - EMBDC - Member Spotlight
“The Father of Country Music”. Do you know whose guitar is the most valuable in the world estimated to be worth $2 million? The answer is Jimmie Rodgers.
[55]
The Jimmie Rodgers Museum re-opens in new location - WTOK
Nov 16, 2019 · The new home of the Jimmie Rodgers Museum is located on Front Street in downtown Meridian, right across from the Mississippi Arts & Entertainment Experience.
[56]
Original versions of "T" for Texas by Johnny Cash | SecondHandSongs
"T" for Texas by Johnny Cash was written by Jimmie Rodgers [US1] and was first recorded and released by Jimmie Rodgers [US1] in 1928. Johnny Cash released ...
[57]
Jimmie Rodgers Music Festival | Meridian, MS
The Jimmie Rodgers Music Festival began in 1953 with the Jimmie Rodgers' Day, which attracted more than 50,000 attendees, and has provided live music ...
[58]
1978 Performing Arts Series | National Postal Museum
The 13-cent Jimmie Rodgers (1897-1933) stamp was first available on May 24, 1978, at Meridian, Mississippi. Jimmie Rodgers brought southern music to center ...
[59]
Complete National Recording Registry Listing - Library of Congress
Jimmie Rodgers Additional Information, 1927, 2004, Country/Bluegrass. Charles A ... 2003, Country/Bluegrass. Porgy and Bess (original cast recording) (album) ...
[60]
Complete Chronological Recordings of Jimmie Rodgers - Spotify
Complete Chronological Recordings of Jimmie Rodgers. All of the Blue Yodeler's recordings, from his first session on August 4, 1927 to his last on May 24 ...Missing: digital reissues 2010s
[61]
70th Annual Festival | Jimmie Rodgers Music Festival | Meridian, MS
Three documentaries have been filmed about the Revue by Public Television in Alabama, and Mississippi. Several of their regular, and guest artists have gone on ...