Moon Mullican - Citizendia

Moon Mullican
Birth name	Aubrey Wilson Mullican
Born	March 29, 1909 (1909-03-29) Polk County, Texas, USA
Died	January 1, 1967 (aged 57) Beaumont, Texas
Genre(s)	country and western, Western swing, rockabilly
Occupation(s)	singer, pianist, songwriter
Years active	1926-1966
Label(s)	King Coral
Associated acts	Cliff Bruner Jimmie Davis

Aubrey Wilson Mullican (March 29, 1909 - January 1, 1967), known as Moon Mullican, was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and pianist. Events 1461 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Towton - Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Year 1909 ( MCMIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Polk County is a County located in the US state of Texas. As of 2000 the population was 41133 The United States of America —commonly referred to as the New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1967 ( MCMLXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. Beaumont is a city in and the County seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont&ndash Port Arthur Metropolitan A music genre is a categorical and typological construct that identifies musical sounds as belonging to a particular category and type of music that can be distinguished from other Country music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains. This article is about the Musical genre. For the popular western swing Steel guitar tuning see E9 tuning. Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of Rock and roll music and emerged in the early 1950s A pianist (/'piənɪst/ is a Musician who plays the Piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces play with an ensemble or Orchestra A songwriter is someone who writes the Lyrics to songs the Musical composition (chords or Melody to songs or both In the Music industry, a record label can be a Brand and a Trademark associated with the Marketing of music recordings and Music is a Japanese record company founded in 1931 as a division of Japanese publisher Kodansha. For the label that owned Coral Records see Decca Records. Cliff Bruner ( April 25, 1915 &ndash August 25, 2000) was a Fiddler and Bandleader of the Western swing era of James Houston Davis ( September 11, 1899 - November 5, 2000) better known as Jimmie Davis, was a noted Singer of both sacred Events 1461 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Towton - Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Year 1909 ( MCMIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1967 ( MCMLXVII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the 1967 Gregorian calendar. Country music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains. However, he also sang and played jazz, rock 'n' roll and the blues. Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll) is a form of Music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s with roots in mostly African The Blues is a vocal and instrumental form of Music based on the use of the Blue notes It emerged as an accessible form of self-expression Indeed, he was one of the main artists who gave country music a very deep blues edge and predated what would be done in rock 'n' roll by 20 years. He was associated with the hillbilly boogie style which greatly influenced rockabilly; Jerry Lee Lewis cited him as a major influence on his own singing and piano playing. Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of Rock and roll music and emerged in the early 1950s Jerry Lee Lewis (born September 29, 1935) is an American Rock and roll and Country music Singer, Songwriter

Career

He was born to a farming family of Scottish, Irish and Eastern European descent in Polk County, Texas. Polk County is a County located in the US state of Texas. As of 2000 the population was 41133 Texas ( is a state geographically located in the South Central United States and is also known as the Lone Star State. As a child he began playing the organ, and befriended one of the black sharecroppers on the farm, a guitarist named Joe Jones, who taught him the blues. However, his religious family did not always approve and he was torn between religion and secular music. After making his mark as a local piano player, he left home at 16, and headed to Houston, where he began playing piano and singing in local clubs. His career choice was to be a singer or a preacher, and he chose the former.

By the 1930's Mullican had earned the nickname "Moon", either short for "moonshine" or from his all-night performances (sources differ). Production Uses Usually large scale distillation is practiced for the purpose of making ethanol for drinking, yet it may also practiced for creating Biofuel His earliest influences were popular blues artists of the day such as Bessie Smith, Blind Lemon Jefferson and Leroy Carr, together with country musicians including Jimmie Rodgers and Bob Wills. Bessie Smith (July 9 1892 or April 15 1894&ndash September 26 1937 was an American Blues singer "Blind" Lemon Jefferson ( September 24, 1893 or October 26, 1894 or July 1897 &ndash December 1929 was an influential Leroy Carr ( March 27 1905 – April 29 1935 The success of his first release resulted in more Vocalion recordings. James Robert (Bob Wills ( March 6, 1905 &ndash May 13, 1975) was an American Western swing musician Songwriter ^[1] In 1936, he covered Cab Calloway's "Georgia Pine" and also sung his own compositions "Ain't You Kinda Sorry" and "Swing Baby Swing" for Leon Selph's Western swing band, The Blue Ridge Playboys. Cabell "Cab" Calloway III ( December 25, 1907 &ndash November 18, 1994) was a famous American Jazz Singer This article is about the Musical genre. For the popular western swing Steel guitar tuning see E9 tuning. He also played and recorded with Cliff Bruner's Texas Wanderers, the Sunshine Boys, and Jimmie Davis. Cliff Bruner ( April 25, 1915 &ndash August 25, 2000) was a Fiddler and Bandleader of the Western swing era of James Houston Davis ( September 11, 1899 - November 5, 2000) better known as Jimmie Davis, was a noted Singer of both sacred By the end of the 1930s, he had also become a popular vocalist with a warm, deep, vocal delivery.

In the early 1940s he returned to the Texas Wanderers as lead singer and pianist, sang on the hits "Truck Driver's Blues" and "I'll Keep On Loving You". However, he also made records with others including an excellent rendition of Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies", the blues ballad "Sundown Blues" and "Pipeliner Blues" (a song that he would return to many a time). Irving Berlin (11 May 1888 &ndash 22 September 1989 was a Russian-born American Composer and Lyricist, and one of the most prolific American songwriters His style at this time was predominantly blues and jazz. Many would not have recognised him as a country artist.

In 1945 he put together his own band, the Showboys, who quickly became one of the most popular outfits in the Texas/Louisiana area with a mix of country music, Western swing, and Mullican's definite blues-influenced piano and singing. Although their style was highly eclectic and included country ballads, some of their music clearly foreshadowed what would later be called rock and roll. In 1946 Mullican made his first recordings as band leader, for King Records in Cincinnati. is a Japanese record company founded in 1931 as a division of Japanese publisher Kodansha. His first hit was a version of "New Jole Blon" in 1947 (later recorded by Doug Kershaw), followed by the ballad "Sweeter Than the Flowers" in 1948. Doug Kershaw, born January 24, 1936, is an American fiddle player from Louisiana known as "The Ragin Cajun" 1 As well as the hits, he recorded many memorable and excellent songs in many styles showing a versatility that would not be seen until Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley would surface. A typical Mullican session would see him sing a country ballad one minute and then a saxophone driven blues the next. Record labels often did not know what to do with this side of his music and what he was doing (fusing blues and country elements) would one day be called rock 'n' roll.

During the late 1940s, Mullican influenced many other country artists. He had defined a style of country balladeering not hinted at in his 1930s jazz/blues work. This style of music influenced Jim Reeves (a band member for a while), Hank Williams (who named Moon as a favorite artist), Hank Snow, Bill Haley, Elvis Presley, and especially Jerry Lee Lewis, who covered many of Mullican's songs. James Travis "Jim" Reeves ( August 20 1923 &ndash July 31 1964) was an American country and Pop singer Hank Williams ( September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American Singer-songwriter and Musician who has Clarence Eugene Snow ( May 9, 1914 &ndash December 20, 1999) better known as Hank Snow, was a Hall of Fame Country music This article is specifically about the singer For detailed information about his rock and roll group see Bill Haley & His Comets. It was in the realm of hillbilly boogie, however, that Mullican had his greatest influence. Many of his songs, such as "Pipeliners Blues", "Hey! Mister Cotton-Picker" and "Cherokee Boogie" (his biggest hit, in 1951) directly foreshadowed the style adopted by Haley and later rock'n'rollers. Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll) is a form of Music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s with roots in mostly African

Among the other songs he recorded were the Hank Williams-style "It's a Sin to Love You Like I Do", the clever anti-war "When a Soldier Knocks and Finds Nobody Home", the bluesy ballad "There's a Chill on the Hill Tonight", the Piedmont-style blues "Triflin' Woman Blues" and the gospel anthem "Bye and Bye". The Piedmont blues (also known as Piedmont fingerstyle or East Coast' blues) is a type of Blues music characterized by a unique fingerpicking method on the Gospel music is Music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life as well as (in terms of the varying music styles to He also ventured into pop with "Mona Lisa" and covered blues standards like Leadbelly's "Goodnight Irene", and Memphis Minnie's "What's the Matter With the Mill". Huddie William Ledbetter, (January 1888 – December 6 1949 was an American folk and Blues Musician, notable for his clear and forceful singing Memphis Minnie McCoy-Lawler (born Lizzie Douglas, June 3, 1897 in Algiers, Louisiana; died Some songs, like "The Leaves Mustn't Fall" and "A Crushed Red Rose", were semi-autobiographical. He had many top 10 hits in this time including the No. 1 "I'll Sail My Ship Alone" as well as "Sweeter than the Flowers", "Cherokee Boogie" and many "Jole Blon" derivatives. He is also believed to have co-written "Jambalaya", made famous by Hank Williams, but which could not be credited to him because of his contract with King Records. Jambalaya the lyrics Goodbye Joe he gotta go me oh my ohHe gotta go pole th pirogue down the bayou ^[2]

By the end of the 1940s, he was a member of the Grand Ole Opry and found a national audience from its radio broadcasts. The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly Country music radio program and concert broadcast live on WSM radio in Nashville, Tennessee With the advent of rock 'n' roll, Mullican's style of music came to the fore. He responded with his famous classic "7 Nights to Rock" as well as "Moon's Rock" and many more. His age stopped him from a career as a rock 'n' roll hitmaker, although 1958's "Early Morning Blues" showed where rock 'n' roll came from - the blues.

In 1958 he was signed by Owen Bradley to Coral Records, and recorded an album called "Moon Over Mullican" which showed he could also do swing akin to Sinatra well. Owen Bradley (c October 21, 1915 - January 7 1998) was an influential American Record producer For the label that owned Coral Records see Decca Records. Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra (December 12 1915 &ndash May 14 1998 was an American singer and actor He is also believed to have jammed on-stage with Buddy Holly around this time. Charles Hardin "Buddy" Holley (September 7 1936 – February 3 1959 was an American Singer-songwriter and a pioneer of Rock and roll. ^[3]

In the early 1960s Mullican was a largely forgotten figure nationally, but based himself in Texas and carried on gigging and recording for the Starday and Spar labels. The decade saw him record country songs like "I'll Pour the Wine" and "Love Don't Have a Guarantee", together with less notable oddities including "I Ain't No Beatle, But I Wanna Hold Your Hand". One of his last records, "Love That Might Have Been", was excellent and should have been the start of what might have been. However, Moon had a heart condition, although he continued to perform regularly. On New Year's Eve 1966, he suffered a heart attack in Beaumont, Texas, and died early in the morning on January 1, 1967. Beaumont is a city in and the County seat of Jefferson County, Texas, United States, within the Beaumont&ndash Port Arthur Metropolitan

In 1976 he was posthumously inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame was established by the Nashville Songwriters Foundation Inc His influence is felt in the outlaw movement, rockabilly and country blues to this day and - along with Jerry Lee Lewis - has shown that the guitar players do not have it all to themselves in country music. There have been many posthumous compilations of his music, on various labels including Ace and Bear Family. ^[2]

References

External links

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