The Tennessee Waltz
Encyclopedia
"Tennessee Waltz" is a popular
/country music
song
with lyrics by Redd Stewart
and music by Pee Wee King
written in 1946 and first released in December 1947 as a single by Cowboy Copas
that same year. The song became a multimillion seller via a 1950 recording - as "The Tennessee Waltz" - by Patti Page
.
The popularity of "Tennessee Waltz" also made it the fourth official song of the state of Tennessee
in 1965. As of 1974, it was the biggest selling song ever in Japan.
player for Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys and sold to Pee Wee King , although King claims that he and Golden West Cowboys vocalist Redd Stewart
co-wrote the song. According to King, he and Stewart were driving near Memphis on their way to a Grand Ole Opry
appearance in Nashville when they heard the new Bill Monroe
single "The Kentucky Waltz" on the radio with Stewart resultantly inspired to write the lyrics for "Tennessee Waltz" - with no blank paper handy, Stewart wrote on a matchbox - while humming a tune composed by King, which served as the Golden West Cowboys intro music and was known only as "the no-name waltz." King says he and Stewart presented "Tennessee Waltz" to music publisher Fred Rose
the next day and that Rose adjusted one line of Stewart's lyric: "O the Tennessee waltz, O the Tennessee Waltz," to "I remember the night and the Tennessee Waltz." A considerable amount of time passed before Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys were able to record "Tennessee Waltz," their recording being made in a December 2, 1947 session at the RCA Victor Studio in Chicago. Cowboy Copas, who had formerly vocalized on the Golden West Cowboys' recordings and who still performed with the group, recorded the song for King Records just after the Golden West Cowboys, with Copas' version being released just prior to the Golden West Cowboys': both singles became Top Ten C&W
hits - the chart was then known as "Best Selling Folk Retail Records" - in the spring and summer of 1948 with respective peaks of #3 (Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys) and #6 (Cowboy Copas).
Patti Page recorded the song - as "The Tennessee Waltz" - to serve as B-side
to the seasonal single "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" issued by Mercury Records
as Catalog# 5534 at the end of 1950. It's been asserted that Page herself chose to record "Tennessee Waltz," the C&W version being a favorite song of her father's, and also that Jerry Wexler
, then a record reviewer for Billboard
brought "Tennessee Waltz" to the attention of Page's manager, Jack Rael, by playing him a new R&B
rendition by Erskine Hawkins
. Page cut "The Tennessee Waltz" in a November 1950 session in New York City with Rael conducting his orchestra: her vocal was cut multitracked with three voices, with two and as a single voice with Page herself selecting the two voice multitracked vocal featured on the single as released. "The Tennessee Waltz" entered the Pop Music chart of Billboard
dated 10 November 1950 for a 30 week chart run with a #1 peak on the 30 December 1950 chart; the track would remain at #1 for a total of nine weeks. (After the initial pressings "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" was replaced as the B-side by "Long Long Ago".) A #2 C&W hit, "The Tennessee Waltz" became Page's career record.
The success of the Patti Page version led to covers by Les Paul with Mary Ford (Capitol
1316) and Jo Stafford
(Columbia
39065) both of which reached the Top Ten - Stafford's at #7 and Paul/Ford at #6 (the latter was a double sided hit with "Little Rock Getaway" reaching #18). The Fontane Sisters
made their first solo recording cutting "Tennessee Waltz" in a November 1950 session at RCA Victor Studios in New York City; the track would reach the Top 20. In addition, the original version - credited to Pee Wee King - was re-released to reach #6 C&W.
Other recordings were made by Guy Lombardo
and his Royal Canadians (Decca
27336), for the UK
market by Petula Clark
and for the Japanese
market by Chiemi Eri
.
On the Cash Box
charts, "Tennessee Waltz" reached #1 on December 30, 1950 with the Patti Page, Jo Stafford, Guy Lombardo and LesPaul/Mary Ford versions being given a tandem ranking; as such "Tennessee Waltz" remained #1 in Cash Box through the February 3, 1951 chart.
version recorded by both Bobby Comstock & the Counts and Jerry Fuller
: on the Billboard Hot 100
the versions respectively reached #52 and #63 while Cash Box assigned both versions a joint ranking on its Top 100 Singles chart with a peak position of #42.
In 1964 "Tennessee Waltz" was recorded in a rock and roll
ballad style by Alma Cogan
; this version was #1 in Sweden for five weeks and also reached the Top 20 in Denmark while a German language rendering (with lyrics by Theo Hansen) reached #10 in Germany. The success of Cogan's version has inspired remakes by Swedish singers Kikki Danielsson
(Wizex
(on the 1978 album Miss Decibel
)) and Lotta Engberg
(on the 2000 album Vilken härlig dag
) and - with the German lyrics - by Heidi Brühl
, Gitte
, Renate Kern and Ireen Sheer
.
Sam Cooke
recorded a double-time
version of "Tennessee Waltz" for his Ain't That Good News
album recorded 28 January 1964 at the RCA Studio in Hollywood. Released March 1, 1964, Ain't That Good News would be the final album release of new material by Cooke, and "Tennessee Waltz," coupled with another album track: "Good Times
," would be the final Sam Cooke single released during the singer's lifetime, with "Tennessee Waltz," the original B-side, becoming sufficiently popular to chart at #35. Cooke performed "Tennessee Waltz" - and also "Blowin' in the Wind
" - as a guest on the premiere of Shindig!
broadcast 16 September 1964.
In 1966, Otis Redding
recorded a version of "Tennessee Waltz" featuring Booker T & the MGs
on his classic R&B
album The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul
.
Manfred Mann
included a version of the song on their number-one EP
in 1966.
Johnny Jones - a native of Atlanta who had briefly replaced Sam Cooke in the Soul Stirrers
before Johnnie Taylor
joined the group - reached #49 R&B in 1968 with his deep soul
rendition of "Tennessee Waltz" cut for producer Bobby Robinson
's Fury Records
.
In 1980 Lacy J. Dalton
hit #18 on the C&W chart
in Billboard with her gritty reworking of "Tennessee Waltz".
In 1983 the song was featured on the James Brown
album Bring It On (Churchill Records).
Norah Jones
performed "Tennessee Waltz" as an encore during a live show at the House of Blues in New Orleans on August 24, 2002. It is featured as extra material on the following DVD-release of the show.
Leonard Cohen
recorded "Tennessee Waltz" - one of the few covers he's ever cut - for his 2004 album Dear Heather
; this version featured an additional verse written by Cohen himself.
Other artists who have recorded "Tennessee Waltz" (with the parent album): LaVern Baker
(Woke Up This Mornin 1993), Eva Cassidy
(Imagine
2002), Holly Cole
(Don't Smoke in Bed 1993), Connie Francis
, Emmylou Harris
(Cimarron
1981), Tom Jones
backed by The Chieftains
(Long Black Veil 1995), (1995), Pete Molinari (Today, Tomorrow and Forever 2009), Anne Murray
(Let's Keep It That Way 1978), Elvis Presley
, Billie Jo Spears
(Country Girl 1981) and Lenny Welch
.
http://www.music543.com/phpBB2/viewlist.php?l=12096
featured an impromptu performance of "Tennessee Waltz" by Monti Rock
with go-go dancing
accompaniment by Jayne Mansfield
.
The marching bands of several state funded universities perform the song at the end of every home football game. These include The University of Tennessee
Pride of the Southland Band
, and The Middle Tennessee State University
Band of Blue
. The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Marching Mocs perform the "Tennessee Waltz March" during pre-game of every home football game, as well as at other athletic events. Outside of Tennessee, Baylor University Golden Wave Band
in Waco TX, and The Appalachian State University
Marching Mountaineers in Boone NC, also play the song at home football games. East Tennessee State University
dropped football in 2004, but "Tennessee Waltz" can be heard at the end of every Buccaneers sports radio broadcast.
The Patti Page
version of the song is featured in the Channel Four drama Mo
(based on the life of the British politician Mo Mowlam
).
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
/country music
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...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
with lyrics by Redd Stewart
Redd Stewart
Henry Ellis Stewart , better known as Redd Stewart, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist who co-wrote "The Tennessee Waltz" with Pee Wee King in 1948.-Biography:...
and music by Pee Wee King
Pee Wee King
Julius Frank Anthony Kuczynski , known professionally as Pee Wee King, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist best known for co-writing "The Tennessee Waltz"....
written in 1946 and first released in December 1947 as a single by Cowboy Copas
Cowboy Copas
Lloyd Estel Copas , known by his stage name Cowboy Copas, was an American country music singer popular from the 1940s until his death in the 1963 plane crash that also killed country stars Patsy Cline and Hawkshaw Hawkins. He was a member of the Grand Ole Opry.-Biography:Copas was born in 1913 in...
that same year. The song became a multimillion seller via a 1950 recording - as "The Tennessee Waltz" - by Patti Page
Patti Page
Clara Ann Fowler , known by her professional name Patti Page, is an American singer, one of the best-known female artists in traditional pop music. She was the best-selling female artist of the 1950s, and has sold over 100 million records...
.
The popularity of "Tennessee Waltz" also made it the fourth official song of the state of Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
in 1965. As of 1974, it was the biggest selling song ever in Japan.
Early versions
The song is said to be originally written by Jimmy Wilkinson (Jimmy Wilson) the upright bassDouble bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
player for Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys and sold to Pee Wee King , although King claims that he and Golden West Cowboys vocalist Redd Stewart
Redd Stewart
Henry Ellis Stewart , better known as Redd Stewart, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist who co-wrote "The Tennessee Waltz" with Pee Wee King in 1948.-Biography:...
co-wrote the song. According to King, he and Stewart were driving near Memphis on their way to a 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...
appearance in Nashville when they heard the new Bill Monroe
Bill Monroe
William Smith Monroe was an American musician who created the style of music known as bluegrass, which takes its name from his band, the "Blue Grass Boys," named for Monroe's home state of Kentucky. Monroe's performing career spanned 60 years as a singer, instrumentalist, composer and bandleader...
single "The Kentucky Waltz" on the radio with Stewart resultantly inspired to write the lyrics for "Tennessee Waltz" - with no blank paper handy, Stewart wrote on a matchbox - while humming a tune composed by King, which served as the Golden West Cowboys intro music and was known only as "the no-name waltz." King says he and Stewart presented "Tennessee Waltz" to music publisher Fred Rose
Fred Rose (musician)
Fred Rose was an American Hall of Fame songwriter and music publishing executive.-Biography:Born in Evansville, Indiana, Fred Rose started playing piano and singing as a small boy. In his teens, he moved to Chicago, Illinois where he worked in bars busking for tips, and finally vaudeville...
the next day and that Rose adjusted one line of Stewart's lyric: "O the Tennessee waltz, O the Tennessee Waltz," to "I remember the night and the Tennessee Waltz." A considerable amount of time passed before Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys were able to record "Tennessee Waltz," their recording being made in a December 2, 1947 session at the RCA Victor Studio in Chicago. Cowboy Copas, who had formerly vocalized on the Golden West Cowboys' recordings and who still performed with the group, recorded the song for King Records just after the Golden West Cowboys, with Copas' version being released just prior to the Golden West Cowboys': both singles became Top Ten C&W
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...
hits - the chart was then known as "Best Selling Folk Retail Records" - in the spring and summer of 1948 with respective peaks of #3 (Pee Wee King's Golden West Cowboys) and #6 (Cowboy Copas).
Patti Page recorded the song - as "The Tennessee Waltz" - to serve as B-side
A-side and B-side
A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
to the seasonal single "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" issued by Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
as Catalog# 5534 at the end of 1950. It's been asserted that Page herself chose to record "Tennessee Waltz," the C&W version being a favorite song of her father's, and also that Jerry Wexler
Jerry Wexler
Gerald "Jerry" Wexler was a music journalist turned music producer, and was regarded as one of the major record industry players behind music from the 1950s through the 1980s...
, then a record reviewer for Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
brought "Tennessee Waltz" to the attention of Page's manager, Jack Rael, by playing him a new R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
rendition by Erskine Hawkins
Erskine Hawkins
Erskine Ramsay Hawkins was an American trumpet player and big band leader from Birmingham, Alabama, dubbed "The 20th Century Gabriel". He is most remembered for composing the jazz standard "Tuxedo Junction" with saxophonist and arranger Bill Johnson...
. Page cut "The Tennessee Waltz" in a November 1950 session in New York City with Rael conducting his orchestra: her vocal was cut multitracked with three voices, with two and as a single voice with Page herself selecting the two voice multitracked vocal featured on the single as released. "The Tennessee Waltz" entered the Pop Music chart of Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
dated 10 November 1950 for a 30 week chart run with a #1 peak on the 30 December 1950 chart; the track would remain at #1 for a total of nine weeks. (After the initial pressings "Boogie Woogie Santa Claus" was replaced as the B-side by "Long Long Ago".) A #2 C&W hit, "The Tennessee Waltz" became Page's career record.
The success of the Patti Page version led to covers by Les Paul with Mary Ford (Capitol
Capitol Records
Capitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
1316) and Jo Stafford
Jo Stafford
Jo Elizabeth Stafford was an American singer of traditional pop music and jazz standards and occasional actress whose career ran from the late 1930s to the early 1960s...
(Columbia
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...
39065) both of which reached the Top Ten - Stafford's at #7 and Paul/Ford at #6 (the latter was a double sided hit with "Little Rock Getaway" reaching #18). The Fontane Sisters
The Fontane Sisters
The Fontane Sisters were a trio from New Milford, New Jersey.-Early years:Their mother, Louise Rosse, was both a soloist and the leader of the St. Joseph's Church choir in New Milford. Bea and Marge started out singing for local functions, doing so well, they were urged to audition in New York City...
made their first solo recording cutting "Tennessee Waltz" in a November 1950 session at RCA Victor Studios in New York City; the track would reach the Top 20. In addition, the original version - credited to Pee Wee King - was re-released to reach #6 C&W.
Other recordings were made by Guy Lombardo
Guy Lombardo
Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo was a Canadian-American bandleader and violinist.Forming "The Royal Canadians" in 1924 with his brothers Carmen, Lebert, and Victor and other musicians from his hometown, Lombardo led the group to international success, billing themselves as creating "The Sweetest...
and his Royal Canadians (Decca
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....
27336), for the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
market by Petula Clark
Petula Clark
Petula Clark, CBE is an English singer, actress, and composer whose career has spanned seven decades.Clark's professional career began as an entertainer on BBC Radio during World War II...
and for the Japanese
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
market by Chiemi Eri
Chiemi Eri
, was a Japanese popular singer and actress.Eri was born as Chiemi Kubo on January 11, 1937 in Tokyo, Japan. She started her singing career at the age of 14 with her version of "Tennessee Waltz." She sang American songs such as "Jambalaya" & "Come on-a My House". Eri started her career as an...
.
On the Cash Box
Cash Box magazine
Cashbox magazine was a weekly publication devoted to the music and coin-operated machine industries in the USA which was published from July 1942 to November 16, 1996...
charts, "Tennessee Waltz" reached #1 on December 30, 1950 with the Patti Page, Jo Stafford, Guy Lombardo and LesPaul/Mary Ford versions being given a tandem ranking; as such "Tennessee Waltz" remained #1 in Cash Box through the February 3, 1951 chart.
Later versions
"Tennessee Waltz" returned to the charts in the fall of 1959 with a rockabillyRockabilly
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...
version recorded by both Bobby Comstock & the Counts and Jerry Fuller
Jerry Fuller
-Biography:Jerry Fuller was born in Fort Worth, Texas to a musical family, his father having been a singer with Bob Wills' Light Crust Doughboys. Jerry Fuller and his brother Bill performed as a duo in their home state, recording for the local Lin label, before Jerry branched out on his own and...
: on the Billboard Hot 100
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...
the versions respectively reached #52 and #63 while Cash Box assigned both versions a joint ranking on its Top 100 Singles chart with a peak position of #42.
In 1964 "Tennessee Waltz" was recorded in a rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
ballad style by Alma Cogan
Alma Cogan
Alma Cogan was an English singer of traditional pop music in the 1950s and early 1960s. Dubbed "The Girl With the Laugh/Giggle/Chuckle In Her Voice", she was the highest paid British female entertainer of her era...
; this version was #1 in Sweden for five weeks and also reached the Top 20 in Denmark while a German language rendering (with lyrics by Theo Hansen) reached #10 in Germany. The success of Cogan's version has inspired remakes by Swedish singers Kikki Danielsson
Kikki Danielsson
Ann-Kristin "Kikki" Danielsson is a Swedish country, dansband and pop singer. Sometimes, she also plays the accordion and she has also written some lyrics. She is also famous for yodeling in some songs. Kikki Danielsson gained her largest popularity in the Nordic region from the late 1970s until...
(Wizex
Wizex
Wizex is a Swedish "dansband", formed in Osby, Sweden in 1973, with Kikki Danielsson as singer. The band has since had several front singers.Wizex finished 2nd in the Swedish Melodifestivalen 1978....
(on the 1978 album Miss Decibel
Miss Decibel
Miss Decibel is a 1978 studio album from Swedish "dansband" Wizex. The album contained the song "Miss Decibel", that was popular back then and also reached Svensktoppen. At Svensktoppen, the song "Om en stund" also was...
)) and Lotta Engberg
Lotta Engberg
-External links:* *...
(on the 2000 album Vilken härlig dag
Vilken härlig dag
Vilken härlig dag was released on September 18 in the year 2000 and is a studio album from Swedish dansband Lotta Engbergs. The album was more folk song-inspired than earlier albums, and it was the last album from Lotta Engbergs. The album peaked at the 17th place on the Swedish album chart...
) and - with the German lyrics - by Heidi Brühl
Heidi Brühl
Heidi Rosemarie Brühl was a German singer and actress who came to prominence as a young teenager and had a prolific career in film and television...
, Gitte
Gitte Hænning
Gitte Hænning is a Danish singer and film actress, who rose to fame as a child star in the 1950s.Because her name was relatively unique, she was known primarily without a surname in Europe. She moved to Sweden in 1958. Her first hit in Swedish was "Tror du jag ljuger" from 1961...
, Renate Kern and Ireen Sheer
Ireen Sheer
Ireen Sheer is a German-British pop singer, who has competed in several Eurovision Song Contests over the past four decades...
.
Sam Cooke
Sam Cooke
Samuel Cook, , better known under the stage name Sam Cooke, was an American gospel, R&B, soul, and pop singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur. He is considered to be one of the pioneers and founders of soul music. He is commonly known as the King of Soul for his distinctive vocal abilities and...
recorded a double-time
Double-time
In music and dance, double-time is a type of meter and tempo or rhythmic feel. It is also associated with specific time signatures such as 2/2. Contrast with half time....
version of "Tennessee Waltz" for his Ain't That Good News
Ain't That Good News (album)
A record that featured one side of harder soul numbers and another of mellower ballads, much like R&B musician Ray Charles' Modern Sounds records, Ain't That Good News reflects Cooke's greater freedom in choosing material and sidemen. Therefore, it offered much pent-up emotional and musical...
album recorded 28 January 1964 at the RCA Studio in Hollywood. Released March 1, 1964, Ain't That Good News would be the final album release of new material by Cooke, and "Tennessee Waltz," coupled with another album track: "Good Times
Good Times (Sam Cooke song)
"Good Times" is a song written and recorded by Sam Cooke, released as single in 1964.Featured musicians are John Ewing , Edward Hall , John Pisano , Clifton White and The Soul Stirrers...
," would be the final Sam Cooke single released during the singer's lifetime, with "Tennessee Waltz," the original B-side, becoming sufficiently popular to chart at #35. Cooke performed "Tennessee Waltz" - and also "Blowin' in the Wind
Blowin' in the Wind
"Blowin' in the Wind" is a song written by Bob Dylan and released on his album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan in 1963. Although it has been described as a protest song, it poses a series of questions about peace, war and freedom...
" - as a guest on the premiere of Shindig!
Shindig!
Shindig! was an American musical variety series which aired on ABC from September 16, 1964 to January 8, 1966. The show was hosted by Jimmy O'Neill, a disc jockey in Los Angeles at the time who also created the show along with his wife Sharon Sheeley and production executive Art Stolnitz....
broadcast 16 September 1964.
In 1966, Otis Redding
Otis Redding
Otis Ray Redding, Jr. was an American soul singer-songwriter, record producer, arranger and talent scout. He is considered one of the major figures in soul and R&B...
recorded a version of "Tennessee Waltz" featuring Booker T & the MGs
Booker T. & the M.G.'s
Booker T. & the M.G.'s is an instrumental R&B band that was influential in shaping the sound of southern soul and Memphis soul. Original members of the group were Booker T. Jones , Steve Cropper , Lewie Steinberg , and Al Jackson, Jr....
on his classic R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
album The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul
Complete & Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul
- Personnel :* Joe Arnold – Tenor saxophone* Steve Cropper – Guitar* Donald "Duck" Dunn – Bass* Isaac Hayes – Keyboards* Al Jackson, Jr. – Drums* Wayne Jackson – Trumpet* Booker T. Jones – Bass, Keyboards, Vibraphone* Andrew Love – Tenor saxophone...
.
Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann
Manfred Mann was a British beat, rhythm and blues and pop band of the 1960s, named after their South African keyboardist, Manfred Mann, who later led the successful 1970s group Manfred Mann's Earth Band...
included a version of the song on their number-one EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
in 1966.
Johnny Jones - a native of Atlanta who had briefly replaced Sam Cooke in the Soul Stirrers
The Soul Stirrers
One of the most popular and influential gospel groups of the 20th century, the Soul Stirrers were pioneers in the development of the quartet style of gospel and, without intending it, in the creation of soul music, doo wop, and motown sound, some of the secular music that owed much to gospel.The...
before Johnnie Taylor
Johnnie Taylor
Johnnie Harrison Taylor was an American vocalist in a wide variety of genres, from rhythm and blues, soul, blues and gospel to pop, doo-wop and disco.-Early years:...
joined the group - reached #49 R&B in 1968 with his deep soul
Southern soul
Southern soul is a type of soul music that emerged from the Southern United States. The music originated from a combination of styles, including blues , country, early rock and roll, and a strong gospel influence that emanated from the sounds of Southern African-American churches. The focus of the...
rendition of "Tennessee Waltz" cut for producer Bobby Robinson
Bobby Robinson (record producer)
Bobby Robinson was an African-American independent record producer and songwriter in New York, most active from the 1950s through the mid 1980s. He produced hits by Wilbert Harrison, The Shirelles, Dave "Baby" Cortez, Elmore James, Lee Dorsey, Gladys Knight & The Pips, King Curtis, Spoonie Gee,...
's Fury Records
Fury Records
Fury Records was set up by Bobby Robinson in 1957. In 1959 it had a Billboard No.1 hit with Kansas City, sung by Wilbert Harrison. In the early seventies the label launched early rap groups like Grandmaster Flash....
.
In 1980 Lacy J. Dalton
Lacy J. Dalton
Lacy J. Dalton , is an American country and western singer and songwriter, known for her gritty, powerful vocals, which a number of critics likened to a country equivalent to Bonnie Raitt . She had a number of hits in the 1980s, including "Takin' It Easy," "Crazy Blue Eyes" and "16th Avenue." ...
hit #18 on the C&W chart
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...
in Billboard with her gritty reworking of "Tennessee Waltz".
In 1983 the song was featured on the James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
album Bring It On (Churchill Records).
Norah Jones
Norah Jones
Norah Jones is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress.In 2002, she launched her solo music career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album Come Away With Me, which was certified a diamond album in 2002, selling over 20 million copies...
performed "Tennessee Waltz" as an encore during a live show at the House of Blues in New Orleans on August 24, 2002. It is featured as extra material on the following DVD-release of the show.
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, musician, poet and novelist. Cohen published his first book of poetry in Montreal in 1956 and his first novel in 1963. His work often explores religion, isolation, sexuality and interpersonal relationships...
recorded "Tennessee Waltz" - one of the few covers he's ever cut - for his 2004 album Dear Heather
Dear Heather
Dear Heather is Leonard Cohen's eleventh studio album, released in 2004.It shows a further departure from Ten New Songs, with more female lead singing and a marked increase in read poetry over sung lyrics, two of these being poems by other writers....
; this version featured an additional verse written by Cohen himself.
Other artists who have recorded "Tennessee Waltz" (with the parent album): LaVern Baker
LaVern Baker
LaVern Baker was an American rhythm and blues singer, who had several hit records on the pop chart in the 1950s and early 1960s. Her most successful records were "Tweedlee Dee" , "Jim Dandy" , and "I Cried a Tear" .-Early life:She was born Delores LaVern Baker in Chicago, Illinois...
(Woke Up This Mornin 1993), Eva Cassidy
Eva Cassidy
Eva Marie Cassidy was an American vocalist known for her interpretations of jazz, blues, folk, gospel, country and pop classics. In 1992 she released her first album, The Other Side, a set of duets with go-go musician Chuck Brown, followed by a live solo album, Live at Blues Alley in 1996...
(Imagine
Imagine (Eva Cassidy album)
Imagine is the third album by American singer Eva Cassidy. Released in 2002, six years after her death, it was her second UK no. 1 album.-Track listing:-Personnel:-Production:-Charts:Album-References:...
2002), Holly Cole
Holly Cole
Holly Cole is a Canadian jazz singer, particularly popular in Canada and Japan for both her versatile and distinctive voice, along with her adventurous repertoire, which spans such divergent genres as show tunes, rock, and country music.-Holly Cole Trio:In 1983, Cole travelled to Toronto to seek a...
(Don't Smoke in Bed 1993), Connie Francis
Connie Francis
Connie Francis is an American pop singer of Italian heritage and the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and 1960s. Although her chart success waned in the second half of the 1960s, Francis remained a top concert draw...
, Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris
Emmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
(Cimarron
Cimarron (Emmylou Harris album)
Cimarron was a 1981 Emmylou Harris album that, like its predecessor, Evangeline, was composed mostly of outtakes from other recording sessions that hadn't fit into any of Harris' other albums. As a result, critics at the time complained that the album was "choppy" and lacked a unifying sound. ...
1981), Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
backed by The Chieftains
The Chieftains
The Chieftains are a Grammy-winning Irish musical group founded in 1962, best known for being one of the first bands to make Irish traditional music popular around the world.-Name:...
(Long Black Veil 1995), (1995), Pete Molinari (Today, Tomorrow and Forever 2009), Anne Murray
Anne Murray
Morna Anne Murray CC, ONS is a Canadian singer in pop, country and adult contemporary styles whose albums have sold over 54 million copies....
(Let's Keep It That Way 1978), Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, Billie Jo Spears
Billie Jo Spears
Billie Jo Spears is an American country music singer. She reached the top-10 of the Country music charts five times between 1969 and 1977, her biggest hit being "Blanket on the Ground", which, in 1975, became her only number one...
(Country Girl 1981) and Lenny Welch
Lenny Welch
Lenny Welch , is an American MOR/pop singer.He was born in New York City on May 31, 1938 . He was raised in Asbury Park, New Jersey. His biggest hit, a cover version of the big band standard "Since I Fell for You," reached number 4 on U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1963...
.
http://www.music543.com/phpBB2/viewlist.php?l=12096
Miscellany
The August 3, 1966 broadcast of The Merv Griffin ShowThe Merv Griffin Show
The Merv Griffin Show is an American television talk show, starring Merv Griffin. The series ran from October 1, 1962 to March 29, 1963 on NBC, September 20, 1965 to September 26, 1969 in first-run syndication, from August 18, 1969 to February 11, 1972 at 11:30 PM ET weeknights on CBS and again in...
featured an impromptu performance of "Tennessee Waltz" by Monti Rock
Monti Rock
Monti Rock III is a flamboyant American musician and performer from New York City.-Career:Born on 29 May 1942, to a Puerto Rican family in the Bronx, Monti parlayed his role as celebrity hairdresser into a role center stage...
with go-go dancing
Go-Go dancing
Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at a discotheque. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s when women at the Peppermint Lounge in New York City began to get up on tables and dance the twist...
accompaniment by Jayne Mansfield
Jayne Mansfield
Jayne Mansfield was an American actress working both in Hollywood and on the Broadway theatre...
.
The marching bands of several state funded universities perform the song at the end of every home football game. These include The University of Tennessee
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
Pride of the Southland Band
Pride of the Southland Band
The Pride of the Southland Band is the official name of the University of Tennessee's marching band.-History:The Pride of the Southland Marching Band has been performing at halftime for more than one hundred years, but has existed since 1869 when it was founded as part of the Military Department....
, and The Middle Tennessee State University
Middle Tennessee State University
Middle Tennessee State University, commonly abbreviated as MTSU, is a public university located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, United States....
Band of Blue
Band of Blue
The Band of Blue, also known as the MTSU Marching Band of Blue, is an organization on the campus of Middle Tennessee State University that puts on regular half time shows during Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football games, as well as performances in the community and several marching band...
. The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga is a public university located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The University, often referred to as UTC or simply "Chattanooga" , is one of three universities and two other affiliated institutions in the University of Tennessee System; the others being in...
Marching Mocs perform the "Tennessee Waltz March" during pre-game of every home football game, as well as at other athletic events. Outside of Tennessee, Baylor University Golden Wave Band
Baylor University Golden Wave Band
The Golden Wave Band or GWB is a 250-member marching band associated with Baylor University. Known at various times as the Baylor Bear Band, the Golden Wave, BUGWB , and the Golden Wave Band, the GWB performs both on and off campus...
in Waco TX, and The Appalachian State University
Appalachian State University
Appalachian State University is a comprehensive , public, coeducational university located in Boone, North Carolina, United States. Appalachian State, also referred to as Appalachian, App State, or simply App, is the sixth largest institution in the University of North Carolina system...
Marching Mountaineers in Boone NC, also play the song at home football games. East Tennessee State University
East Tennessee State University
East Tennessee State University is an accredited American university located in Johnson City, Tennessee. It is part of the Tennessee Board of Regents system of colleges and universities, the nation's sixth largest system of public education, and is the fourth largest university in the state...
dropped football in 2004, but "Tennessee Waltz" can be heard at the end of every Buccaneers sports radio broadcast.
The Patti Page
Patti Page
Clara Ann Fowler , known by her professional name Patti Page, is an American singer, one of the best-known female artists in traditional pop music. She was the best-selling female artist of the 1950s, and has sold over 100 million records...
version of the song is featured in the Channel Four drama Mo
Mo (film)
Mo is a 2010 TV film about the later life and career of the British Labour Party politician Mo Mowlam, written by Neil McKay and directed by Philip Martin.-Synopsis:...
(based on the life of the British politician Mo Mowlam
Mo Mowlam
Marjorie "Mo" Mowlam was a British Labour Party politician. She was the Member of Parliament for Redcar from 1987 to 2001 and served in the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.Mowlam's time as Northern...
).