Charline Arthur (also Charlene Arthur, née Charline Highsmith; September 2, 1929 – November 27, 1987) was an American singer of
boogie-woogie
Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, developed in African-American communities since 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually extended from pian ...
,
blues
Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the Afr ...
, and early
rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...
. In 1950, Arthur began work as a singer and a
disc jockey
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include Radio personality, radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music f ...
at the
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
radio station
KERB
A curb (North American English), or kerb (Commonwealth English except Canada; see spelling differences), is the edge where a raised sidewalk or road median/central reservation meets a street or other roadway.
History
Although curbs have ...
. She left three years later after the impresario
Colonel Tom Parker
Thomas Andrew Parker (born Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk; June 26, 1909 January 21, 1997), discovered her, signing her with
RCA Records
RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
. She was a regular performer on the
Big D Jamboree
''Big D Jamboree'' was a radio program broadcast by KRLD-AM in Dallas, Texas. The show consisted of appearances by famous country musicians, and sketch comedy and jokes.
It was also carried by KRLD-TV during the 1950s.
History
''Big D Jamboree ...
radio program throughout the 1950s and 1960s. Arthur also performed and toured with
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
and others, but in 1956 RCA dropped her from the label and her career declined.
Described as a "flash in the pan" and a "woman before her time",
Arthur was inducted into the
Rockabilly Hall of Fame
The Rockabilly Hall of Fame is an organization and website launched on March 21, 1997, to present early rock and roll history and information relating to the artists and personalities involved in rockabilly.
Headquartered in Nashville, Tennesse ...
and has, since the 1980s, found favor with critics who praise her vocal style, her stage presence, and her influence on artists such as
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
and
Patsy Cline
Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...
.
Early life
Charline Highsmith was born in 1929 to a
Pentecostal
Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement minister and his wife from
Henrietta, Texas
Henrietta is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Wichita Falls metropolitan statistical area. The population was 3,141 at the 2010 census, a decline of 123 from the 2000 tabulation of 3,264.
His ...
and was the second of twelve children.
The family was poor but musically inclined, and music was a central part of her family life.
Her ambition was to play guitar; she collected bottles and cashed them in to raise the money for her first guitar. An early influence was the Texas boogie-woogie artist
Ernest Tubb
Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), m ...
. By the age of 15, Charline was performing on
KPLT radio station in
Paris, Texas
Paris is a city and county seat of Lamar County, Texas, United States. Located in Northeast Texas at the western edge of the Piney Woods, the population of the city was 24,171 in 2020.
History
Present-day Lamar County was part of Red River Co ...
. She joined a traveling medicine show
after winning the show's talent contest.
Charline married Jack Arthur, the show's bass player, in 1948. He later performed on some of her records and managed her during the early part of her career.
After Charline left the medicine show, she played in bars and clubs. She cut her first record in
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, in 1950, "I've Got the Boogie Blues/Love is a Gamble" (
Bullet Records
At least five record labels with the name Bullet Records have existed.
Bullet Records, Nashville, 1946-1952
The earliest Bullet Records was a record label based in Nashville, United States, which was started in 1946 by Jim Bulleit and C.V. Hit ...
), a song she had written at age twelve.
She moved to
Kermit, in West Texas,
where she worked for a while as a
DJ and singer, stirring up some controversy.
Colonel Tom Parker
Thomas Andrew Parker (born Andreas Cornelis van Kuijk; June 26, 1909 January 21, 1997), was one of those who took notice of her. Parker got Charline into a recording studio in
Nashville
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
in 1952, where she signed with
RCA Victor
RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also Aris ...
.
[ Republished in ]
Career
1952–1957
Arthur toured in 1954 with the RCA country and Western caravan, with
Hank Snow
Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow (May 9, 1914 – December 20, 1999) was a Canadian-American country music artist. Most popular in the 1950s, he had a career that spanned more than 50 years, he recorded 140 albums and charted more than 85 singles on t ...
, by
Greyhound tour bus. Artists on the tour included
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music s ...
,
Minnie Pearl
Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon (October 25, 1912 – March 4, 1996), known professionally as her stage character Minnie Pearl, was an American comedian who appeared at the Grand Ole Opry for more than 50 years (1940–1991) and on the televisio ...
,
Hawkshaw Hawkins
Harold Franklin "Hawkshaw" Hawkins (December 22, 1921 – March 5, 1963) was an American country music singer popular from the 1950s into the early 1960s. He was known for his rich, smooth vocals and music drawn from blues, boogie and honky ...
, the
New Davis sisters and
Betty Cody
Betty Cody (August 17, 1921 – July 1, 2014) was a Canadian-born country music singer. Her notable singles include the 1952 RCA releases "Tom Tom Yodel" and "I Found Out More Than You Ever Knew", and "Please Throw Away The Glass" released by ...
, with
Eddie Hill
Eddie Hill (born March 6, 1936) is an American retired drag racer who won numerous drag racing championships on land and water. Hill had the first run in the four second range (4.990 seconds), which earned him the nickname "Four Fat ...
as the tour "Master of Ceremonies". They played
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
,
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population within the city limits was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 195,111 at the 2010 United States census, 2010 cens ...
,
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, and ...
, and
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...
. At the
Little Rock, Arkansas
(The Little Rock, The "Little Rock")
, government_type = council-manager government, Council-manager
, leader_title = List of mayors of Little Rock, Arkansas, Mayor
, leader_name = Frank Scott Jr.
, leader_ ...
show, RCA sent a recording engineer who taped the show and later issued on
EP record
An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record. RCA EPB 3220, entitled "Country and Western Caravan 1954".
The height of her career was in 1955. That year she recorded for RCA, under
Steve Sholes
Stephen Henry Sholes (February 12, 1911 – April 22, 1968) was a prominent American recording executive with RCA Victor.
Career
Sholes was born in Washington, D.C. and moved with his family to Merchantville, New Jersey, at the age of nine, ...
and
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music s ...
. In a national poll she was voted the nation's second best country artist (after
Kitty Wells
Ellen Muriel Deason (August 30, 1919 – July 16, 2012), known professionally as Kitty Wells, was an American pioneering female country music singer. She broke down a barrier to women in country music with her 1952 hit recording "It Wasn't God W ...
).
She continued to tour and played with
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...
a number of times in Texas throughout 1955, including on the
Big D Jamboree
''Big D Jamboree'' was a radio program broadcast by KRLD-AM in Dallas, Texas. The show consisted of appearances by famous country musicians, and sketch comedy and jokes.
It was also carried by KRLD-TV during the 1950s.
History
''Big D Jamboree ...
show when Elvis made his first appearance there on 16 April.
In 1956, however, she parted ways with Chet Atkins; reportedly she was difficult to work with. Also, her record sales were relatively low and success on the charts eluded her.
RCA canceled her contract and she was not successful in getting another record deal.
Arthur felt that the conflict with Atkins was caused because he wanted her to record more assertive songs than she wanted to perform. Analysis of her works has shown that her most mainstream songs were her own compositions, but her lyrics were sexually suggestive and censored by both the
Grand Ole Opry
The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...
and ''
Country and Western Jamboree'', a popular fan magazine.
1957–1987
After RCA dropped her, she divorced her husband.
[ In 1957 she recorded a few songs for the Coin label in ]Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
. In the late 1950s she played and sang wherever she could and for a while had a trio with her sisters Betty Sue and Dottie, but success eluded them.[ Afterward, she moved to ]Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...
and then, with the help of an old fan, she got a regular gig in Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...
where she played until the mid 1960s. In her later career, Arthur recognized that her image, one which did not reflect femininity or domestic problems women encountered, was causing a disconnect with her fans and she became more subdued, altering her image to be more conventional.
In the late 1970s she performed for Ernest Tubb's Midnight Jamboree
''Midnight Jamboree'' is an album by United States, American country singer Ernest Tubb, released in 1960 (see 1960 in music). It also includes performances by Kitty Wells, Webb Pierce, Patsy Cline, and The Wilburn Brothers. It is out of print, a ...
show, and she retired in 1978, living near her sister in Pocatello, Idaho
Pocatello () is the county seat of and largest city in Bannock County, with a small portion on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation in neighboring Power County, in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the principal city of the ...
on a disability check. She died there on November 27, 1987, aged 58, due to natural causes.
Legacy
An important reissue of Arthur songs was ''Welcome to the Club'', containing singles recorded between 1949 and 1957, on the German label Bear Family Records. This 1986 album (whose appearance greatly pleased Arthur, then living with her sister in Idaho and suffering from arthritis) came out on CD in 1998 but remains, as ''All Music Guide to Country'' laments, the only record of hers available. While ''Welcome to the Club'' attracted little attention, interest in Arthur was renewed in the early 1990s when the role of women in country music was becoming more important. Two historians, Mary A. Bufwack and Robert K. Oermann, noted that Arthur "fought for the right to become country's first truly aggressive, independent female of the postwar era. Ultimately she lost".
Since then, various appreciations of Arthur's style and music have been published. The book ''Texas Music'' (2000) calls her a "criminally overlooked artist" and praises her for her voice and her influence on Patsy Cline
Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...
, Wanda Jackson
Wanda LaVonne Jackson (born October 20, 1937) is an American singer and songwriter. Since the 1950s, she has recorded and released music in the genres of rock, country and gospel. She was among the first women to have a career in rock and roll, ...
, and even Elvis. The ''Encyclopedia of Country Music'' (2012) hails her "gutsy, blues-flavored vocal style and brassy stage presence", and states that her importance is far, far greater than "her commercial fortunes might suggest". Charline is often cited as a pioneering rockabilly female.
Discography
Compilation albums
* ''Burn That Candle – Charline Arthur'' (Bear Family) (1986)
* ''Calling All Rock ’N’ Roll Collectors, Vol. 3b.'' (Cat)
* ''Ultra Rare Hillbilly Boogie, Vol. 1c.'' (Chief)
* ''Hillbilly Houn’ Dawgs & Honky Tonk Angels'' (Detour)
* ''The Big D Jamboree Live'' (Dragon Street)
* ''Gals Of The Big D Jamboree'' (Dragon Street)
See also
* List of personalities who appeared on Ozark Jubilee
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arthur, Charline
1929 births
1987 deaths
People from Henrietta, Texas
Singers from Texas
Boogie-woogie musicians
American blues singers
American rockabilly musicians
RCA Records artists
20th-century American singers
People from Kermit, Texas
Country musicians from Texas