Vernon Dalhart

Vernon Dalhart ( born April 6, 1883 in Jefferson, Texas as Marion Try Slaughter, † September 14, 1948 ) was an American singer and one of the first stars of early country music.

Life

Marion Try Slaughter comes from a wealthy Texas ranching family. He first worked as a cowboy, and then to study classical music at the Conservatory of Dallas. In 1910 the family moved to New York City, where Vernon worked in the piano trade. There he lay down his stage name Vernon Dalhart (composed of the Texas cities Vernon and Dalhart ) to. As early as 1912 began his career as an opera and operetta tenor with a supporting role in Puccini's " Girl of the Golden West ." In June 1915, his name appeared for the first time in the Edison Diamond records catalog, so it is assumed that he recorded his first records at that time. Between 1916 and 1923 originated over 400 operetta recordings.

Career

The first musikologisch registered plate was established in December 1916 with a Just Word of Sympathy. First hit parade note was Till the Clouds Roll By ( duet with Kathryn Irving ) from August 1917 which achieved 10th place. His first country songs (which were then called " Old Time Music " or " hillbilly " ) emerged in April 1918, Hush -a- bye baby with Ma Marion Evelyn Cox was the first. His first session for Victor took place on November 6, 1918, when he took up the Al Jolson hit Rock-a- Bye Your Baby With a Dixie Melody, published in February 1919.

Since February 1918 Dalhart recorded for the Brunswick label. On 24 June 1925, for this label in New York The Boston Burglar / Wild And Reckless Hobo.

Dalhart published constant records, often in parallel at various record labels until he finally breakthrough with Wreck of the Old 97 / The Prisoner 's Song succeeded. The first recorded version thereof for Victor Records dates of 13 August 1924. Below emerged another 9 versions for other record companies. The B-side The Prisoner 's Song ( with Dave Kaplar 's Melodists; published on October 3, 1924) was his first and only # 1 on the charts and subsequently sold over 7 million times. The Prisoner 's Song (supposedly composed by Dalharts cousin Guy Massey ) is in fact a fusion of fragments of various other pieces. The main template served Here's Adieu To All The Judges And the juries, an English piece from the year 1906. Adapted Another piece was Meet Me By The Moonlight by JA Wade from 1826, a well-known composers of the time. Dalhart sang - without making an exception - at almost every record company east of the Mississippi, and took the prisoner's song for at least 50 labels with a total turnover of 25 million copies on.

Dalhart produced with high intensity more singles. However, the former operetta singer was soon replaced by authentic hillbilly musicians. The sales of his plates were after, as the stock market crash of 1929 also brought the record industry to a standstill. On 1 May 1939 he had his last recording session for RCA Victor, where a total of 6 tracks have been recorded. After that, his career was at an end plates. He held out for a time as a vocal coach on the water, then worked as a night porter in a hotel and died on 14 September 1948. It was in these years undisputed biggest star of the genre and the first country singer, reached the national awareness and was perceived abroad.

Although Vernon Dalhart had hardly set new musical impulses, he was an important pioneer for the nationwide acceptance of country music. He opened the access to hillbilly music almost single-handedly large segments of the population. For his achievements, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1981.

Statistics

Among more than 100 different pseudonyms ( depending on the source 110-133 ) he published over fifty labels 1915-1932 about 800 songs with estimated sales of 75 million records, with 2/3 allocated by today's standards of country music are. His longtime producer Ralph Peer confessed in October 1955 the magazine Variety, " Vernon Dalhart was never a hillbilly performer. He had the unusual ability to adapt Hillbilly to meet the taste of the other people he was a pseudo - hillbilly ".

Discography (selection)

Dalharts complete discography fails for several reasons. The high number of shots was partially under pseudonyms, and a large part of the track was recorded in parallel for over fifty record companies. Example is his biggest hit The Prisoner 's Song: Victor 19427 -B, 1924; Columbia 257- D, 1924; Edison 51459, as Vernon Dalhart & Co., 1925; Brunswick 2900, 1925; Bell 340, 1925; Regal 9795, 1925; Cameo 708, 1925; Perfect 12644/Supertone S-2000, 1930; Apex [ Canada ] 8428, 1926; Cylinder: Edison [ Blue Amberol ] 4954, 1925 Therefore, the following list to in the charts listed or musikologisch significant title limited. . The data is the recording data.

  • Just A Word Of Sympathy / Robert Lewis: I Know I Got More Than My Share ( Columbia A2108 ), September 1916
  • Can not Yo Heah Me Callin ' Caroline ( Blue Amberol 3231 ) July 1917
  • There's Egypt in Your Dreamy Eyes ( Blue Amberol 3244 ) August 1917
  • Till The Clouds Roll By ( with Kathryn Irving ) / You Said Something ( Emerson 7192; Starr 7607 ), August 1917
  • Hush -a- bye Ma Baby ( with Marion Evelyn Cox ) / The Missouri Waltz ( Blue Amberol 3454 ) April 1918
  • Till We Meet Again ( with Gladys Rice) ( Blue Amberol 3670 ) March 1919
  • Tuck Me To Sleep (In My Old ' Tucky Home) / B-side of Charles Hart & Elliott Shaw (Victor 18807 ), September 1, 1921
  • Al Jolson: April Showers / Weep No More, My Mammy (Columbia A3500 ), October 22, 1921
  • Edwin Dale: That's How I Believe In You / I Want My Mammy ( Al Bernard ) (Columbia 3520 ), November 1921
  • Dear Old Southland ( 4508 Amberol ), May 1922
  • Bruce Wallace & Elliott Shaw: Sweetest Little Rose In Tennessee / The Pal That I Loved ( Stole The Gal That I Loved ) ( Okeh 40177 ), July 30, 1924
  • Wreck Of The Old 97 / The Prisoner 's Song (Victor 19427 ), August 13, 1924
  • In The Baggage Coach Ahead (19 March 1925) / I'll Never Forget My Mother And Home (Victor 19627 ), (25 February 1925)
  • The Death of Floyd Collins / Wreck Of The Shenandoah (Victor 19779 ), September 9, 1925
  • The Convict And The Rose / Little Rosewood Casket (Victor 19770 ), August 26, 1925
  • Governor's Pardon / The Engineer 's Child (Victor 19983 ), March 2, 1926
  • Miami Storm / An Old Fashioned Picture (Columbia 15100D ), September 23, 1926
  • Al Craver: Wreck Of The Royal Palm Express / Vernon Dalhart Wreck Of The Number Nine (Columbia 15121D ), January 14, 1927
  • When The Roses Bloom Again / Mississippi Flood ( Victor 20611 ), April 27, 1927
  • The Gypsy 's Warning / My Carolina Home (Victor 20795 ) April 12, 1927
  • My Blue Ridge Mountain Home ( with Carson Robison ) / Oh Dem Golden Slippers ( with Carson Robison ) (Victor 20539 ), March 9, 1927
  • Lucky Lindy / Lindbergh ( The Eagle Of The USA) ( Columbia 1000D ), May 24, 1927
  • If Your Love Like The Rose Should Die ( with Carson Robison ) / Memory That Time Can not Erase (Victor 21094 ), July 21, 1927
  • When The Sun Goes Down Again ( with Charles Hart) / The Old Grey Mare ( Banner 2180 ), October 27, 1927
  • Hallelujah! I'm A Bum / The Bum Song ( Columbia 1488D ), July 30, 1928
  • Al Craver: The Crow Song / Al Craver: Farm Relief Song ( Columbia 15449D ), August 22, 1929
  • Johnny Darlin '/ You'll Never Take Away My Dreams ( Bluebird 8170 ), April 1939
Jefferson (Texas) Old-Time Music Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum Integrated Authority File
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