Lefty Frizzell
Induction Year: 1972
Birth Name: William Orville - Lefty Frizzell
Birth Date: March 31, 1928
Place of Birth: Corsicana, TX
Deceased: July 19, 1975
Place of Death: Nashville, TN
Biography
"I got into a rut of trying to write in detail, and explain in detail. People have to understand or you can get in a spot. I've been hung up with that."
"When I sing, to me every word has a feeling about it. I had to linger, had to hold it, I didn't want to let go of it. I want to hold one word through a whole line of melody, to linger with it all the way down. I didn't want to let go of that no more than I wanted to let go of the woman I loved. I didn't want to lose it."
Former Occupations: |
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Discography / Career Highlights
Career Milestones:
1940 - first radio spot on KELD (El Dorado, AK); regular slot on a children's show
1944 - won 1st prize on Wayne Babb's Stage Show in Dallas; sang his own song "Please Be Mine, Blue Eyes"
1947 - landed his own half-hour spot on KFGL (Roswell, NM)
1950 - went to Dallas and made demos for Jim Beck, a studio engineer
1950 - signed first record contract with Columbia in June
1950 - first recording session for Columbia on July 25
1950 - first record released, "If You've Got the Money Honey, I've Got the Time" and "I Love You a Thousand Ways" (within 2 months of release the record sold 500,000 copies); both songs went to #1
1950 - first Opry appearance in a one-shot guest spot on December 20
1951 - signed personal management contract with Beaumont promoter Jack Starnes
1951 - first national network television appearance on "Louisiana Hayride"
1951 - signed exclusive song-writing contract with Hill and Range Songs, Inc.
1951 - joined the Grand Ole Opry as a regular
1951 - had four songs in the country top ten: "Always Late (With Your Kisses)," "Mom and Dad's Waltz," "I Love You a Thousand Ways" and "Travelin' Blues"; would not happen again on any chart until the Beatle's in 1964
1952 - left the Grand Ole Opry
1955 - first country singer to perform at the Hollywood Bowl
1956 - first Nashville recording session
1961 - moved to Nashville
1964 - last chart song, "Saginaw, Michigan" went to #1
1973 - recorded an album for ABC Records
Awards:
1982 - Country Music Hall of Fame induction
1992 - Texas Country Music Association\Golden Armadillo Award\in memory for achievements and contribution to country music
Catalog Highlights:
"I Want To Be With You Always" - Co-writer: Jim Beck - Artists: Lefty Frizzel (1951), John Prine, Tab Hunter
"I Love You A Thousand Ways" - Co-writer: Jim Beck - Artists: Lefty Frizzell (1951), Hawkshaw Hawkins (1951), Willie Nelson (1977)
"Always Late (With Your Kisses)" - Co-writer: Blackie Crawford - Artists: Lefty Frizzell (1951), Dwight Yoakum (1988)
"If You've Got The Money Honey, I've Got The Time" - Artists: Lefty Frizzell (1950), Willie Nelson (1976)
"Give Me More, More, More (Of Your Kisses)" - Co-writer: Ray Price - Artists: Lefty Frizzell (1952)
"Mom And Dad's Waltz" - Artists: Lefty Frizzell (1951), Patti Page (1961)
"That's The Way Love Goes" - Co-writer: Sanger D. "Whitey" Shafer - Artists: Lefty Frizzell, Johnny Rodriguez (1974), Merle Haggard (1984
"Bandy The Rodeo Clown" - Co-writer: Sanger D. "Whitey" Shafer - Artists: Moe Bandy (1975)
"I Never Go Around Mirrors" - Co-writer: Lefty Frizzell - Artists: Lefty Frizzell (1974), Merle Haggard, Keith Whitley
Comments:
The soundtrack for "Tender Mercies" featured Robert Duvall singing "It Hurts to Face Reality", a song Lefty wrote but never recorded
Got nickname "Lefty" when he tried his luck at boxing - decided to try out for the Golden Gloves; didn't win a title, but scored enough knockdowns to earn his nickname; his family called him Sonny
