George S. Davis (August 19, 1906 – November 11, 1992), known as The Singing Miner, was an American

folk singer Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be c ...

and songwriter, who worked as a

coal miner Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use c ...

, and then as a disc jockey on local radio in

Hazard, Kentucky Hazard is a list of Kentucky cities, home rule-class city in, and the county seat of, Perry County, Kentucky, Perry County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 5,263 at the 2020 Census. History Local landowner Elijah Combs, Elijah Comb ...

from 1947 until 1969.

Career

Davis began his career about 1933, about the same time the

United Mine Workers of America The United Mine Workers of America (UMW or UMWA) is a North American Labor history of the United States, labor union best known for representing coal miners. Today, the Union also represents health care workers, truck drivers, manufacturing worke ...

began organizing the

coal mines Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

Eastern Kentucky Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways * Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air ...

. Among the songs he wrote and sang were "White Shotgun," "Buggerman in the Bushes," "Coal Miner's Boogie," "When Kentucky Had No Union Men," and "Harlan County Blues." "

Sixteen Tons "Sixteen Tons" is a song written by Merle Travis about a coal miner, based on life in the mines of Muhlenberg County, Kentucky. Travis first recorded the song at the Radio Recorders Studio B in Hollywood, California, on August 8, 1946. Cliff ...

", the song about the misery of coal mining, is credited as being written in 1946 by country singer

Merle Travis Merle Robert Travis (November 29, 1917 – October 20, 1983) was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and guitarist born in Rosewood, Kentucky, United States. His songs' lyrics often discussed both the lives and the economic expl ...

, who was the first to record it. However, Davis much later claimed that Travis based it on a song of his called "Nine-to-ten tons" (or, in some tellings, "Twenty-One Tons") written in the 1930s. There is no supporting evidence for Davis' claim. Davis' 1966 recording of his version of the song can be heard on the album ''George Davis: When Kentucky Had No Union Men''.

Folkways Records Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987 and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways. History The Folkways Records & Service ...

, FW02343, 1967

Death and legacy

Davis was 86 years old when he died in 1992 in

London, Kentucky London is a home rule-class city in Laurel County, Kentucky, in the United States. It is the seat of its county. The population was 7,993 at the time of the 2010 census. It is the second-largest city named "London" in the United States and the ...

, United States. His D28 Martin Guitar that he played from 1947 until 1992 was displayed in the new studios of WKIC and WSGS on Main Street in Hazard.

References

External links

Remembering George Davis The Singing Miner

George Davis Discography On Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

George Davis Biography by John Cohen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis 1906 births 1992 deaths People from Hazard, Kentucky American folk guitarists American male guitarists American folk singers American male singer-songwriters American radio DJs Musicians from Appalachia Folk musicians from Kentucky 20th-century American singers Singer-songwriters from Kentucky 20th-century American guitarists Guitarists from Kentucky People from LaFollette, Tennessee 20th-century American male singers