Merl Lindsay

Merl Lindsay
Merl Lindsay
Background information
Birth name Merle Lindsay Salathiel
Born 1916
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
Died October 12, 1965 (aged 49)
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
Genres Western swing
Occupations musician, songwriter, bandleader
Instruments fiddle
Years active 1930s–1960s
Labels 4 Star, Bullett, MGM, Mercury
Associated acts Oklahoma Night Riders
Ozark Jubilee Band

Merle Lindsay Salathiel (1916–October 12, 1965), better known as Merl Lindsay, was one of the premier American Western swing musicians from the 1930s to the mid-1960s and founder of Merl Lindsay and His Oklahoma Night Riders.[1]

Contents

Biography

Merle Lindsay Salathiel was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He began his music career in 1936 playing fiddle in his father (C.E. Salathiel)'s ballroom, Salathiel's Barn. In 1937 he formed his first band, the Barnyard Boys. In 1947, he created a larger band and added a female singer, calling the group Merl Lindsay and His Oklahoma Night Riders. During the 1940s, he owned a ballroom in Compton, California, and broadcast over a four-station radio hookup in Hollywood and Long Beach. He also performed with Jimmy Wakely in Western B-movies.

In 1957, Lindsay joined ABC-TV's Ozark Jubilee, taking over the ten-piece Ozark Jubilee Band. His group adopted the name when the TV program's title was changed to Country Music Jubilee the next year. During later years he toured the US and performed at his ballroom, Lindsayland, in Oklahoma City.

Many famous Western swing musicians performed with Lindsay's bands over the years. Two of his female singers were Wanda Jackson[2] and Norma Jean.[3] His brother, Doyle Salathiel (1920–1976), played with Lindsay's bands as well as others, and was a composer who wrote the words for the band's signature song, "Water Baby Blues". Lindsay's nephew, Max Salathiel (1935–2006), an accomplished Oklahoma City guitar player, also worked with his band in the 1950s.

Other band members included Robert "Buddy" Ray, Rudy Martin, Frederick "Freddie" Loveland, Louvenie Loveland, Ted Haff, Mike Hugo, Clarence Bailey, Homer Bean, Gerald "Buster" Magness, Gene Jones (steel guitar) and Sonny Rogers.

Lindsay died in Oklahoma City from cancer on October 12, 1965. He is buried in Sunnylane Cemetery in Del City, Oklahoma.

Compositions

Lindsay wrote many songs that became hits for himself and other Western swing artists. Among them:

Notes

  1. ^ Boyd, The Jazz of the Southwest, p. 177: "... the famed Merle Lindsey [sic], whose big western swing band out of Oklahoma City was one of the best in the Southwest. ..."
  2. ^ Wolfe, Country Music Annual 2002p. 193: "Jackson first performed on KLPR radio in Oklahoma City at the age of fifteen. She also joined the Merle Lindsey [sic] and Hank Thompson bands while in high school in Oklahoma City."
  3. ^ Tribe, Country: A Regional Exploration, p. 102: "... Merle Lindsey [sic] and the Oklahoma Night Riders, which did well in the early and mid-50s, furnishing a place of apprenticeship for country girl Norma Jean Beasler, who as 'Pretty Miss Norma Jean' became one of the new breed of female country stars in the 1960s."

References

  • Boyd, Jean Ann. The Jazz of the Southwest: An Oral History of Western Swing. University of Texas Press, 1998. ISBN 0-292-70860-2
  • Coffey, Kevin. Merl Lindsay and his Oklahoma Nite Riders (Krazy Kat KKCD 33, 2005) insert.
  • Tribe, Ivan. Country: A Regional Exploration. Greenwood Press, 2006. ISBN 0-313-33026-3
  • Wolfe, Charles K.; James E. Akenson. Country Music Annual 2002, University Press of Kentucky, 2002. ISBN 0-8131-0991-4

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Merl Lindsay — (* 12. Dezember 1915 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, als Merle Lindsay Salathiel; † 12. Oktober 1965) war ein US amerikanischer Country Musiker. Lindsay war in Oklahoma und Kalifornien ein bekannter Vertreter des Western Swings und leitete seine… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Water Baby Blues — Infobox Standard title= Water Baby Blues comment= image size= caption= writer=Merl Lindsay composer= lyricist= published= written= language=English form=Western swing original artist=Merl Lindsay and His Oklahoma Nightriders recorded by= (many… …   Wikipedia

  • Western swing — Stylistic origins Western blues folk swing Dixieland jazz Cultural origins 1920s and 1930s; small towns in the US Southwest Typical instruments guitar • piano • drums • vocals • …   Wikipedia

  • Western swing — El Western swing es un subgenero de música campera originada en el suroeste de Estados Unidos en la década de los años 20, entre los grupos populares de música del oeste partiendo de la influencia del jazz.[1] [2] [3] [4] …   Wikipedia Español

  • Okie — For the J. J. Cale album, see Okie (album). Rear view of an Okie s car, passing through Amarillo, Texas, heading west, 1941 Okie is a term dating from as early as 1907,[1] originally denoting a resident or native of Oklahoma. It is derived fr …   Wikipedia

  • Ozark Jubilee — Also known as Country Music Jubilee Jubilee USA Format Country music …   Wikipedia

  • Norma Jean (singer) — This article is about the country singer. For other uses, see Norma Jean (disambiguation). Norma Jean Beasler in the early 1950s Background information Birth name Norma Jean Beasler Also know …   Wikipedia

  • List of songs about Oklahoma — This is a list of songs about the U.S. state of Oklahoma, Oklahomans and Oklahoma locations.ongs about Oklahoma#* 12 Days Left Me * 24 Hours From Tulsa Gene PitneyA* All Aboard For Oklahoma * Almost To Tulsa Mike AuldridgeB* Boys from Oklahoma… …   Wikipedia

  • D Records — Founder Pappy Daily Genre Various Country of origin US D Records was a record label located in Houston, Texas. It was founded by Pappy Daily.[1] The label closed in 19 …   Wikipedia

  • 12. Dezember — Der 12. Dezember ist der 346. Tag des Gregorianischen Kalenders (der 347. in Schaltjahren), somit bleiben 19 Tage bis zum Jahresende. Historische Jahrestage November · Dezember · Januar 1 2 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”