Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

HALL, Tom T.

(b 25 May '36, Olive Hill KY) Country singer, songwriter, author, TV personality; known as the 'Nashville Storyteller', or the 'Mark Twain of Country Music': writes about his own experiences of places and people. First band was bluegrass-styled Kentucky Travellers '52--4; worked as disc jockey in Roanoke VA; served in US Army in Europe, began writing songs and performing. Returned to work as disc jockey; went to Nashville '62 with songs: wrote hit 'D.J. For A Day' for Jimmy C. Newman '63, then 'Mad' and 'What Are We Fighting For' for Dave Dudley, 'Artificial Rose' and 'Back Pocket Money' for Newman, others for Roy Drusky, Burl Ives, etc. Married Dixie Dean '64, who had emigrated from England '62. Signed to Mercury '67, own first hit 'I Washed My Face In The Morning Dew'; breakthrough with 'Harper Valley PTA' for Jeannie C. Riley '68 (no. 1 pop and country hit). Own top five country hits with 'Ballad Of Forty Dollars' and 'Homecoming', no. 1 with 'A Week In A Country Jail' '68--9; plus 'Margie's At The Lincoln Park Inn' for Bobby Bare, 'George And The North Woods' for Dudley, 'Uptight Band' for Flatt and Scruggs; own hits continued with songs about ordinary people and their lives: 'The Year That Clayton Delaney Died', 'Old Dogs, Children And Watermelon Wine', 'Ravishing Ruby'. Albums on Mercury charted in Billboard's top pop LPs '71--5: In Search Of A Song, The Rhymer And Other Five And Dimers, For The People In The Last Hard Town, Songs Of Fox Hollow; several singles crossed over to pop Hot 100 '71--5: 'I Love' reached no. 20 '74; 'Watergate Blues' just missed Hot 100 '73. To RCA '77 and had fewer hits, though making fine LPs, singles such as 'The Old Side Of Town' and 'Soldier Of Fortune' ('79--80). Wrote books incl. Why I Write Songs ... Why You Can, best-seller The Story Teller's Nashville '79. Host of syndicated TV show Pop Goes The Country. Returned to Mercury and chart career took off again with hit 'Everything From Jesus To Jack Daniels', highly praised LP The Storyteller And The Banjoman, with Scruggs. More hit singles incl. 'Famous In Missouri' and 'P.S. I Love You' '84. Many albums out of print; compilations incl. two-CD Tom T. Hall: Storyteller, Poet, Philosopher with Johnny Cash, Scruggs, Bill Monroe, Patti Page etc; he came out of semi-retirement for album Songs From Sopchoppy, both on Mercury Nashville, the latter recorded at his vacation retreat in Florida.