Jimmy Bryant
Ivy J. "Jimmy" Bryant, Jr. ( born March 5, 1925 in Moultrie, Georgia, † September 22, 1980 ) was an American country musician and guitarist. Bryant goes with his jazz -influenced style as one of the most influential guitarists in the country music. With Speedy West he set in the 1950s, one of the most famous duos in the United States.
- 2.1 Singles
- 2.2 albums
Life
Childhood and youth
Jimmy Bryant, the oldest of twelve children of the family learned to play the fiddle as a child. Together with his father, who was also a fiddler, he appeared publicly and undertook small journeys. In 1941, he joined the U.S. Army and was injured in 1945. During his recovery, he then learned to play the guitar. At first he confined himself to country, and he later played by a comrade named Tony Mottola, especially jazz.
Career
1945, shortly after his release, he bought from his preserved money a guitar. Bryant was later one of the first known musician who played the legendary Fender Telecaster. In 1946, he moved to Los Angeles and quickly found a job at a radio station. At the same time Bryant began with a group of musicians to play, among them Speedy West. West was a talented steel guitarist and quickly the two musicians became friends. The band in which both played, began in Cliffie Stone's Hometown Jamboree act and soon established house band. After Bryant was already working as a musician for Modern Records, he now got a contract with Capitol Records, the leading label of the west coast. In addition to its function as a session musician, he played now also own solo recordings. Bryant accompanied country stars such as Tennessee Ernie Ford, Merrill Moore, Ella Mae Morse and Roy Rogers. In addition, he also worked on recordings by pop stars such as Bing Crosby and Kay Starr; later he also played with the band The Monkees.
Meanwhile, Bryant started with Speedy West making records. Your fast boogies, polkas and Rags are now considered masterpieces of the country. 1954 an album was released that was also a classic. Mid -1950s, it was a little quiet around Bryant, since he had to deal with alcohol problems. Nevertheless, he played 1955-1956 with 124 different artists. From 1956 he was no longer under contract with Capitol, instead he worked as a session guitarist for other labels. In the same year he accompanied Sammy Masters at his rockabilly songs. Bryant played occasionally, with Masters in band Rockin ' Rhythm.
End of the 1950s, Bryant pulled further back from the music business. The successful connection with Speedy West, he had temporarily abandoned. In the studio, he was rarely operates most of its singles were released at this time at Imperial Records. 1966 reached his album Bryant's Back in Town # 27 in the country album charts. In the coming years, Bryant rarely published plates. Beginning of the 1960s, he had once again teamed up for a couple of singles in Imperial with Speedy West; In 1976, he played with a West their last album For The Last Time, however, that only in 1990 was published. Three years earlier, he had also published with steel guitarist Noel Boggs an LP. Mid -1970s, he was to Nashville, Tennessee, pulled, returned to Georgia in 1979 but again back.
Jimmy Bryant, who has always been a heavy smoker, was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1979. He died in 1980 in his hometown. Posthumously Bryant was inducted into the Atlanta Country Music Hall of Fame. Through his work as guitarist Buck Owens, James Burton and Albert Lee were affected.
Discography
Singles
For singles with Speedy West Speedy West see.