Biography
Blessed with an excellent tenor tone of voice, traditional bluegrass singer and guitarist Jimmy Martin learned his build as lead vocalist for Costs Monroe’s Blue Turf Boys for a lot of 1949-1951 and again in 1952-1953. Martin’s vocals and his powerful electric guitar playing both complemented Monroe properly, and in the opinion of several, he was the best possible business lead vocalist and guitarist Costs ever endured. In 1951, between stints with Monroe’s music group, Martin became a member of with the Osborne Brothers, developing the Sunny Hill Children. Though this association lasted just until 1955, Martin provides used this music group name up for this. In maintaining such high criteria over time, Martin has employed numerous major-league music artists, including banjo players J.D. Crowe, Costs Emerson, Vic Jordan, Alan Munde, and mandolin participant Paul Williams, most of whom eventually managed to get big in bluegrass. Martin is necessary listening for anybody with more when compared to a passing curiosity about bluegrass. Martin was created and raised within the Cumberland Mountains of East Tennessee. As an adolescent, he fell deeply in love with Monroe’s music, which motivated him to pursue a profession as a vocalist. He started working at r / c around Morristown, TN, to get encounter; he also worked well like a housepainter to create ends meet up with. At age 22, he auditioned in Nashville for Monroe’s music group to replace Mac pc Wiseman, and he effectively approved the audition. For another four years, Martin remained with Monroe, saving 46 edges for Decca Information. In 1951, Martin briefly sang with Bob Osborne, that was captured on some singles for Ruler Records. At exactly the same time, he was an associate from the Monroe part task the Shenandoah Valley Trio, which lower several tracks for Columbia. Martin break up from Monroe once and for all in 1954, becoming a member of Bobby and Sonny Osborne’s duo like a business lead vocalist. He remained with the Osbornes for approximately a year, documenting several classes for RCA-Victor. Jimmy remaining the brothers the next year, acquiring the music group name Sunny Hill Kids — which got previously been utilized by the Osborne Brothers — with him. Within the springtime of 1956, Martin authorized with Decca Information and produced his first single recordings. Through his single records and shows within the Grand Ole Opry as well as the Louisiana Hayride, Martin helped provide bluegrass in to the mainstream. This is mainly because he focused on bluegrass that centered on the vocals, not really the equipment. Within 2 yrs, he started charting in the united states Top 40, you start with the quantity 14 one “Rock and roll Hearts.” Through the entire ’60s, he previously the occasional strike one and became a staple from the bluegrass celebration circuit. Over time, Martin’s Sunny Hill Boys hosted an abundance of brand-new musical abilities, including Doyle Lawson, Costs Emerson, Clarence “Tater” Tate, Paul Williams, Alan Munde, and J.D. Crowe. Even though lineup from the music group changed constantly, the grade of the music artists continued to be high throughout his profession. In 1971, Martin sang “I Noticed the Light” and “Sunny Aspect from the Mountain” over the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s Will the Group End up being Unbroken, which helped boost his market. Martin parted from Decca Information in 1974, putting your signature on with Starday/Gusto Information soon after his departure. He remained at Gusto for pretty much a decade, launching six albums during his tenure on the label. After Gusto went of business within the ’80s, Martin started his very own record label, Ruler of Bluegrass, which reissued his traditional Decca recordings. Martin continuing to execute concerts and bluegrass celebrations in to the ’90s. In 1999 Martin was the main topic of a biography entitled “True Adventures Using the Ruler of Bluegrass.” A couple of years afterwards, in 2003, he became the main topic of the documentary film Ruler of Bluegrass:THE LIFE SPAN & Instances of Jimmy Martin. The bluegrass tale passed on May 14, 2005 following a long struggle with cancer.
Quick Facts
Full Name Jimmy Martin
Died May 14, 2005, Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Profession Actor, Singer
Nationality American
Music Groups Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass Boys
Music Songs Sunny Side of the Mountain, Free Born Man, Freeborn Man, Ocean of Diamonds, Sophronie, Hit Parade of Love, Run Pete Run, Widow Maker, You Don't Know My Mind, Rock Hearts, 20-20 Vision, I Like to Hear 'em Preach It, Honey You Don't Know My Mind, Don't Cry to Me, Drink up and Go Home, Foggy Old London, Pete The Best Coon Dog In The State Of Tennessee, Hold Whatcha Got, Stormy Waters, My Walking Shoes, Ain't Nobody Gonna Miss Me, Don't Give Your Heart to a Rambler, I Can't Quit Cigarettes, I Cried Again, Jimmy's Mule, Mr. Engineer, Made In The Shade - If A Tree Don't Fall, It Takes One To Know One, Lost To A Stranger, Grant Turner Introduction, Prayer Bells of Heaven, Rose Of Old Kentucky
Albums First Time Together, Good 'N' Country & Country Music Time, You Get What You P(L)ay for! [Remastered], Songs of a Freeborn Man, Live '69 & '71, Don't Cry To Me - Songs From The Film "King Of Bluegrass", Jimmy Martin & The Sunny Mountain Boys [Box Set], You Don't Know My Mind, Kids of the Rockin' Nation, Tribute To The King Of Bluegrass - Volume 1, Bill Monroe Decca Singles Collection, vol. 1, Love Somebody, Remember Me, Wild At Heart, Rare Retro Sounds, The Rhythm of Love, Don't Cry to Me, Bill Monroe Decca Singles Collection, vol. 2, Broken Colour, Riding Tunes, Berlin, Best Of The Best
Movies King of Bluegrass: The Life & Times of Jimmy Martin, Six Gun Man, From the Terrace, The Black Lash, West to Glory, Neath Canadian Skies, Bluegrass: Country Soul
- Facts
- Filmography
- Awards
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- Quotes
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# | Fact |
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1 |
He was born on a hog farm, and hunted and sold 'possum skins to buy his first guitar. At 21, he was fired from a factory job for singing at work. He talked his way backstage at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, and persuaded bluegrass legend Bill Monroe to let him sing a few songs with him. Monroe was impressed and hired him. |
2 |
He was lead vocalist and guitarist for the Blue Grass Boys from 1949 to 1954, and later formed his own band, the Sunny Mountain Boys. He performed several times at the Opry, but never achieved his dream of becoming a regular cast member, allegedly because of his temperamental behavior. |
Actor
Actor
Title | Year | Status | Character |
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Five Red Herrings |
1975 |
TV Mini-Series |
Porter |
From the Terrace |
1960 |
|
Sandy Duffy (uncredited) |
The Black Lash |
1952 |
|
Henchman Pete (as Jimmie Martin) |
The Thundering Trail |
1951 |
|
Frank |
King of the Bullwhip |
1950 |
|
Pizor (as Jimmie Martin) |
Fast on the Draw |
1950 |
|
Henchman Larson (as Jimmie Martin) |
West of the Brazos |
1950 |
|
Joe (as Jimmie Martin) |
Colorado Ranger |
1950 |
|
Sandy (as Jimmie Martin) |
Crooked River |
1950 |
|
Henchman (as Jimmie Martin) |
Marshal of Heldorado |
1950 |
|
Bank Robber (as Jimmie Martin) |
Hostile Country |
1950 |
|
Fred - Ranch Hand (as Jimmie Martin) |
The Daltons' Women |
1950 |
|
Joe - Henchman (as Jimmie Martin) |
Battleground |
1949 |
|
G.I. from the South (uncredited) |
Ringside |
1949 |
|
Fight Second (as Jimmie Martin) |
Big Jack |
1949 |
|
Bandit (uncredited) |
Frontier Revenge |
1948 |
|
Henchman Pete (as Jimmie Martin) |
Mark of the Lash |
1948 |
|
Danny Phillips (as Jimmie Martin) |
Song of the Drifter |
1948 |
|
Henchman Knuckles (uncredited) |
Driftwood |
1947 |
|
One of McDougal's Children (uncredited) |
Six-Gun Serenade |
1947 |
|
Curt Weldon (as Jimmie Martin) |
West to Glory |
1947 |
|
Cory |
Renegade Girl |
1946 |
|
Bob Shelby (as James Martin) |
'Neath Canadian Skies |
1946 |
Short |
Constable Lewis (uncredited) |
Six Gun Man |
1946 |
|
Tim Hager (as Jimmie Martin) |
Stranger from Santa Fe |
1945 |
|
Dan Murray (as Jimmie Martin) |
Four Jills in a Jeep |
1944 |
|
Aide (uncredited) |
Soundtrack
Soundtrack
Title | Year | Status | Character |
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The Marty Stuart Show |
2013 |
TV Series writer - 1 episode |
|
Self
Self
Title | Year | Status | Character |
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High Lonesome: The Story of Bluegrass Music |
1994 |
Documentary |
Himself |
Archive Footage
Archive Footage
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# | Quote |
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1 |
"I'm just an old country boy with a third-grade education, and I'm liable to say anything." - interview with The Tennessean newspaper, 2002, explaining his feisty reputation. |
# | Trademark |
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1 |
Oversized Stetson hat |
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