Bobby Lord
Encyclopedia
Robert L. Lord better known as Bobby Lord, was an American country music
artist popular in the 1950s and 60s.
, but grew up in Tampa
. As a teenager, he entered talent contests, wowing crowds with his edgy rockabilly
style. He was popular with Tampa's young crowd, playing concerts at dance halls. At Plant High School
, he met his wife, Mozelle, whom he married when he was 20.
After graduating from Plant, he was offered the chance to host his own television show while a freshman at the University of Tampa
. The Bobby Lord Homefolks Show was an hour-long program on Saturday nights on WSUN-TV
in St. Petersburg
and featured Lord singing with a backing band. In 1952, he won a nationwide talent competition sponsored by TV Guide
which led to an appearance on Paul Whiteman
's TV Teen Club on ABC-TV
from Philadelphia.
Soon after, songwriter Boudleaux Bryant heard one of Lord's demo tapes and passed it on to Columbia Records
, which signed him in 1953. At age 19, he was the label's youngest recording star. He began releasing country and rockabilly hits for Columbia, and in 1955 joined Ozark Jubilee
, an ABC-TV program based in Springfield, Missouri
.
In 1960, the Jubilee was canceled and Lord moved to Nashville
, where he was immediately offered a spot on the Grand Ole Opry
. He continued appearing on the Opry well into the 1970s. He recorded for Hickory Records
starting in 1961 and Decca Records
from 1967. During this time he also hosted Opry Almanac on WSM-TV
in Nashville, which was the morning counterpart to Ralph Emery
's afternoon show on that station. Under the auspices of WSM-TV, he also hosted a weekly syndicated
half-hour program featuring popular country artists. Lord's backing band on the syndicated show included Jerry Byrd
on steel guitar
, Jerry Whitehurst on piano and Spider Wilson on guitar.
In 1969, Lord left Nashville and went into semi-retirement from the music industry to devote time to his family and his interests in real estate
and insurance
. In the 1980s, he hosted TNN
's program Country Sportsman, later called Celebrity Outdoors, until 1989. He was also the author of the 1969 book, Hit the Glory Road.
Bobby Lord died on February 16, 2008 in Stuart, Florida
at the age of 74. He was a resident of Jensen Beach, Florida
and was survived by his widow, Mozelle, and three children.
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
artist popular in the 1950s and 60s.
Biography
Lord was born January 6, 1934 in Sanford, FloridaSanford, Florida
Sanford is a city in, and the county seat of, Seminole County, Florida, United States. The population was 38,291 at the 2000 census. As of 2009, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 50,998...
, but grew up in Tampa
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
. As a teenager, he entered talent contests, wowing crowds with his edgy rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
style. He was popular with Tampa's young crowd, playing concerts at dance halls. At Plant High School
Henry B. Plant High School
H.B. Plant High School was opened in 1927 on South Himes Avenue in Tampa, Florida, United States. The school is named in honor of railroad and hotel tycoon Henry B. Plant. The school mascot is the Panther. The school motto is "Strength Through Unity." Plant High School currently has enrolled more...
, he met his wife, Mozelle, whom he married when he was 20.
After graduating from Plant, he was offered the chance to host his own television show while a freshman at the University of Tampa
University of Tampa
The University of Tampa , is a private, co-educational university in Downtown Tampa, Florida, United States. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. In 2006, the University celebrated its 75th anniversary...
. The Bobby Lord Homefolks Show was an hour-long program on Saturday nights on WSUN-TV
WSUN-TV
WSUN-TV was a television station in St. Petersburg, Florida from 1953 to 1970 and was the first TV station in the Tampa/St. Petersburg television market.-Early history:...
in St. Petersburg
St. Petersburg, Florida
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St...
and featured Lord singing with a backing band. In 1952, he won a nationwide talent competition sponsored by TV Guide
TV Guide
TV Guide is a weekly American magazine with listings of TV shows.In addition to TV listings, the publication features television-related news, celebrity interviews, gossip and film reviews and crossword puzzles...
which led to an appearance on Paul Whiteman
Paul Whiteman
Paul Samuel Whiteman was an American bandleader and orchestral director.Leader of the most popular dance bands in the United States during the 1920s, Whiteman's recordings were immensely successful, and press notices often referred to him as the "King of Jazz"...
's TV Teen Club on ABC-TV
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
from Philadelphia.
Soon after, songwriter Boudleaux Bryant heard one of Lord's demo tapes and passed it on to Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
, which signed him in 1953. At age 19, he was the label's youngest recording star. He began releasing country and rockabilly hits for Columbia, and in 1955 joined Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee is the first U.S. network television program to feature country music's top stars, and was the centerpiece of a strategy for Springfield, Missouri to challenge Nashville, Tennessee as America's country music capital...
, an ABC-TV program based in Springfield, Missouri
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...
.
In 1960, the Jubilee was canceled and Lord moved to Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, where he was immediately offered a spot on the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
. He continued appearing on the Opry well into the 1970s. He recorded for Hickory Records
Hickory Records
Hickory Records is a United States record label founded by Acuff-Rose Music in 1954 which operated the label up to 1979. Present owner Sony/ATV Music Publishing revived the label in 2007. Originally based in Nashville, functioning as an independent label throughout its history, it has had several...
starting in 1961 and Decca Records
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
from 1967. During this time he also hosted Opry Almanac on WSM-TV
WSMV-TV
WSMV-TV, virtual channel 4, is the NBC-affiliated television station serving the Nashville, Tennessee area. It broadcasts its digital signal on VHF channel 10. Owned by Meredith Corporation, its transmitter and tower are located adjacent to its studios on Knob Road in west Nashville, south of...
in Nashville, which was the morning counterpart to Ralph Emery
Ralph Emery
Walter Ralph Emery is a country music disc jockey and television host from Nashville, Tennessee. He gained national fame hosting the syndicated television music series, Pop! Goes the Country, from 1974 to 1980 and the nightly Nashville Network television program, Nashville Now, from 1983 to 1993...
's afternoon show on that station. Under the auspices of WSM-TV, he also hosted a weekly syndicated
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
half-hour program featuring popular country artists. Lord's backing band on the syndicated show included Jerry Byrd
Jerry Byrd
Gerald Lester "Jerry" Byrd was an American musician who played Lap steel guitar in country and Hawaiian music.-Career:...
on steel guitar
Steel guitar
Steel guitar is a type of guitar or the method of playing the instrument. Developed in Hawaii in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a steel guitar is usually positioned horizontally; strings are plucked with one hand, while the other hand changes the pitch of one or more strings with the use...
, Jerry Whitehurst on piano and Spider Wilson on guitar.
In 1969, Lord left Nashville and went into semi-retirement from the music industry to devote time to his family and his interests in real estate
Real estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
and insurance
Insurance
In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...
. In the 1980s, he hosted TNN
The Nashville Network
The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows...
's program Country Sportsman, later called Celebrity Outdoors, until 1989. He was also the author of the 1969 book, Hit the Glory Road.
Bobby Lord died on February 16, 2008 in Stuart, Florida
Stuart, Florida
Stuart is the only incorporated city of Martin County, Florida, on Florida's Treasure Coast. The population was 14,633 at the 2000 census. As of 2007, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 15,964....
at the age of 74. He was a resident of Jensen Beach, Florida
Jensen Beach, Florida
Jensen Beach is a census-designated place in Martin County, Florida, United States. The population was 11,100 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Port St...
and was survived by his widow, Mozelle, and three children.
Albums
| Year | Album | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Bobby Lord's Best | Harmony |
| 1965 | The Bobby Lord Show | Hickory |
| 1970 | You and Me Against the World/ Wake Me Up Early in the Morning |
Decca |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
CAN Country | |||
| 1955 | "No More, No More, No More!" | — | — | singles only |
| "Ain't You Ever Gonna" | — | — | ||
| "Sittin' Home Prayin'" | — | — | ||
| "Hawkeye" | — | — | ||
| "I Can't Do Without You Anymore" | — | — | ||
| 1956 | "So Doggone Lonesome" | — | — | |
| "Beautiful Baby" | — | — | ||
| "Without Your Love" | 10 | — | ||
| 1957 | "Your Sweet Love" | — | — | |
| "High Voltage" | — | — | ||
| "Am I a Fool" | — | — | ||
| 1958 | "The Fire of Love" | — | — | |
| "Walking Alone" | — | — | ||
| 1959 | "Party Pooper" | — | — | |
| "Too Many Miles" | — | — | ||
| 1960 | "Give Me a Woman" | — | — | |
| "Before I Lose My Mind" | — | — | ||
| 1961 | "Fascination" | — | — | |
| "I'll Go Alone" | — | — | The Bobby Lord Show | |
| 1962 | "Precious Jewel" | — | — | |
| "Don't Shed Any Tears for Me" | — | — | ||
| 1963 | "Shopping Center" | — | — | single only |
| 1964 | "Life Can Have Meaning" | 21 | — | The Bobby Lord Show |
| "Take the Bucket to the Well" | — | — | ||
| 1965 | "I'm Going Home Next Summer" | — | — | |
| 1966 | "Cash on the Barrelhead Cash on the Barrelhead "Cash on the Barrelhead" is a song written by Charlie and Ira Louvin, known professionally as the Louvin Brothers, which was first recorded and released in 1956 as the B-side of "You're Running Wild"... " |
— | — | singles only |
| "It Only Hurts When I'm Laughing" | — | — | ||
| 1967 | "Look What You're Doing" | — | — | |
| "One Day Down" | — | — | ||
| 1968 | "Live Your Life Out Loud" | 44 | — | You and Me Against the World/ Wake Me Up Early in the Morning |
| "The True and Lasting Kind" | 49 | 36 | ||
| 1969 | "Yesterday's Letters" | 40 | — | |
| "Rainbow Girl" | 28 | 45 | ||
| 1970 | "You and Me Against the World" | 15 | 30 | |
| "Wake Me Up Early in the Morning" | 21 | 32 | ||
| 1971 | "Goodbye Jukebox" | 75 | — | singles only |
| "Peace of Mind" | — | — | ||
| 1972 | "Everybody's Here" | — | — | |
| 1973 | "Got Yourself Something" | — | — | |
| "Hello Wine" | — | — | ||
| 1974 | "Your Song" | — | — |
External links
- Bobby Lord at Hillbilly-Music.com
- Bobby Lord obituary