Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan
Encyclopedia
Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan is an American country music
duo from Florida
. It is composed of guitarist
/keyboardist
/vocalist Jack Blanchard (born May 8, 1942) and his wife, keyboardist/vocalist Misty Morgan (born May 23, 1945). The duo recorded for several labels in the 1970s, including the charting albums Birds of a Feather and Two Sides of Jack and Misty. Between 1969 and 1976, the duo also released fourteen singles, including "Tennessee Bird Walk", a Number One country hit and #23 pop hit in 1970.
and lived in Ohio
as children. They met in 1963 in Florida
, where Blanchard was working as a comedian
and Morgan as a pianist
.
"Tennessee Bird Walk", which went to Number One on the country charts and #23 on the pop charts. Following it was another novelty hit in "Humphrey the Camel", at #5 country and #78 pop.
The duo's second album, Two Sides of Jack and Misty, was released on Mega Records
two years later. It produced four more chart singles, including the #15 "Somewhere in Virginia in the Rain" and another novelty song, "The Legendary Chicken Fairy". Later in the 1970s, Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan released six singles on Epic Records
, reaching Top 40 for the last time in 1974 with the #23 "Just One More Song". Except for a compilation album called Sweet Memories in 1987, the duo did not release any other material until 1995's Back in Harmony. From there, they began recording on a self-established independent label, "Velvet Saw Records" (named after Jack's nickname). From 2005 through 2008 they released three archival CD albums on Australia's Omni Records label.
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...
duo from Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. It is composed of guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
/keyboardist
Keyboardist
A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instruments with keyboards have come into common usage, requiring a more...
/vocalist Jack Blanchard (born May 8, 1942) and his wife, keyboardist/vocalist Misty Morgan (born May 23, 1945). The duo recorded for several labels in the 1970s, including the charting albums Birds of a Feather and Two Sides of Jack and Misty. Between 1969 and 1976, the duo also released fourteen singles, including "Tennessee Bird Walk", a Number One country hit and #23 pop hit in 1970.
Biography
Jack Blanchard was born on May 8, 1942, and Misty Morgan was born on May 23, 1945. Both were born in the same hospital in Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
and lived in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
as children. They met in 1963 in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, where Blanchard was working as a comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
and Morgan as a pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
.
Musical career
By 1967, he and Morgan were married and began playing music together, and in 1969, the duo signed to Wayside Records to release its first single, "Big Black Bird (Spirit of Our Love)", which peaked at #59 on the U.S. country singles charts. After it came the novelty songNovelty song
A novelty song is a comical or nonsensical song, performed principally for its comical effect. Humorous songs, or those containing humorous elements, are not necessarily novelty songs. The term arose in Tin Pan Alley to describe one of the major divisions of popular music. The other two divisions...
"Tennessee Bird Walk", which went to Number One on the country charts and #23 on the pop charts. Following it was another novelty hit in "Humphrey the Camel", at #5 country and #78 pop.
The duo's second album, Two Sides of Jack and Misty, was released on Mega Records
Mega Records
Mega Records was a Nashville, Tennessee-based music label that released albums by bands such as Apollo 100 and country and western singer Sammi Smith, as early as the early 1970s...
two years later. It produced four more chart singles, including the #15 "Somewhere in Virginia in the Rain" and another novelty song, "The Legendary Chicken Fairy". Later in the 1970s, Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan released six singles on Epic Records
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
, reaching Top 40 for the last time in 1974 with the #23 "Just One More Song". Except for a compilation album called Sweet Memories in 1987, the duo did not release any other material until 1995's Back in Harmony. From there, they began recording on a self-established independent label, "Velvet Saw Records" (named after Jack's nickname). From 2005 through 2008 they released three archival CD albums on Australia's Omni Records label.
Discography
- Birds of a Feather (Wayside Records, 1970) US #185, US Country #16
- Two Sides of Jack and Misty (Mega RecordsMega RecordsMega Records was a Nashville, Tennessee-based music label that released albums by bands such as Apollo 100 and country and western singer Sammi Smith, as early as the early 1970s...
, 1972) US Country #35 - Sweet Memories (Chalice Records, 1987)
- Back in Harmony (Playback Records, 1995)
- Back from the Dead (BAM Records, 2000)
- A Little Out of Sync (Velvet Saw Records, 2001)
- Masters of the Keyboards (Velvet Saw, 2001)
- Jack and Misty are Crazy (Velvet Saw, 2003)
- Beginnings (Velvet Saw, 2004)
- Back From the Dead, Vol. 2 (Velvet Saw)
- Life and Death (and Almost Everything Else) (Omni Records, 2006)
- Weird Scenes Inside the Birdhouse (Omni Records, 2007)
- Nashville Sputnik the Deep South/Outer Space Productions of Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan Omni Records 2008]
- Traveling Music [Velvet Saw Records] 2009)
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... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
CAN Country | CAN | |||
| 1969 | "Big Black Bird (Spirit of Our Love)" | 59 | — | — | — | Birds of a Feather |
| 1970 | "Tennessee Bird Walk Tennessee Bird Walk "Tennessee Bird Walk" is a 1970 novelty single by the country music husband-and-wife duo Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan. The single was the duo's second release on the country charts and became their most successful single... " |
1 | 23 | 1 | 12 | |
| "Humphrey the Camel" | 5 | 78 | 24 | 78 | ||
| "You've Got Your Troubles (I've Got Mine)" | 27 | — | 11 | — | ||
| 1971 | "There Must Be More to Life (Than Growing Old)" | 25 | — | — | — | Two Sides of Jack and Misty |
| "Fire Hydrant #79"A | 46 | — | — | — | ||
| 1972 | "Somewhere in Virginia in the Rain" | 15 | — | 31 | — | |
| "The Legendary Chicken Fairy" | 38 | — | 37 | — | ||
| "Second Tuesday in December" | 60 | — | — | — | singles only | |
| 1973 | "A Handful of Dimes" | 65 | — | — | — | |
| 1974 | "Just One More Song" | 23 | — | 46 | — | |
| "Something on Your Mind" | 53 | — | — | — | ||
| "Down to the End of the Wine" | 41 | — | 26 | — | ||
| 1975 | "Because We Love" | 74 | — | — | — | |
| 1976 | "I'm High on You" | 68 | — | — | — | |
- AB-side to "There Must Be More to Life (Than Growing Old)."
External links
- http://jackandmisty.com The Jack Blanchard & Misty Morgan Official Home Page.