Jimmy Lee Fautheree (April 11, 1934 - June 29, 2004) was an American

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 ...

and country singer. Born in

Smackover, Arkansas Smackover is a small city in northern Union County, Arkansas, Union County, Arkansas, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population was at 1,865. It had a large oil boom in the 1920s, with production continuing for some time. Histor ...

, he began playing guitar at age 12, and was heavily influenced by

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 ...

. In 1946 his family moved to

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 ...

, where he played on KRLD's ''

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 ...

''. By 1951 he was playing on the ''

Louisiana Hayride ''Louisiana Hayride'' was a radio and later television country music show broadcast from the Shreveport Municipal Memorial Auditorium in Shreveport, Louisiana, that during its heyday from 1948 to 1960 helped to launch the careers of some of th ...

''; that year he signed to

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

and released his first single, "I Keep the Blues All the Time", as Jimmy Lee. Capitol released seven further singles from Fautheree before dropping him in 1952. Despite never charting, the recordings have been cited as influential on later rockabilly artists, including

James Burton James Edward Burton (born August 21, 1939, in Dubberly, Louisiana) is an American guitarist. A member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2001 (his induction speech was given by longtime fan Keith Richards), Burton has also been recognized ...

. Fautheree subsequently found work as a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

for musicians such as

Faron Young Faron Young (February 25, 1932 – December 10, 1996) was an American country music producer, musician, and songwriter from the early 1950s into the mid-1980s. Hits including "If You Ain't Lovin' (You Ain't Livin')" and " Live Fast, Love Hard, D ...

and

Webb Pierce Michael Webb Pierce (August 8, 1921 – February 24, 1991) was an American honky-tonk vocalist, songwriter and guitarist of the 1950s, one of the most popular of the genre, charting more number one hits than any other country artist during the ...

. Along with "Country" Johnny Mathis, he performed on ''Louisiana Hayride'' as

Jimmy & Johnny Jimmy & Johnny were an American country music duo composed of Jimmy Lee Fautheree and "Country" Johnny Mathis. They scored several hits on the U.S. country charts in the 1950s. The duo's career began on the radio show ''Louisiana Hayride'', wher ...

, and released a charting single under the "Jimmy Lee & Johnny Mathis" moniker on

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock and roll ...

, 1954's "If You Don't, Somebody Else Will". Fautheree left Mathis to work with Wayne Walker, a partnership that lasted only four months but yielded a few recordings. Following this he began recording with his brother Lynn, again under the name Jimmy & Johnny; they signed to

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

, but by 1957 the pair had moved back to Dallas. Fautheree went back to solo recording, recording in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

in 1958 at J&M Studio. He recorded briefly with Mathis again between 1958 and 1959. Some self-released material and a single on

Paula Records Paula or PAULA may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Paula, in video game '' EarthBound'' * Paula, in ''The Larry Sanders Show'' * Paula Campbell (''EastEnders''), in 2003 Film and television * ''Paula'' (1915 film), a s ...

brought him into 1960, and throughout the next decade Fautheree worked increasingly in the genre of

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music, and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music varies according to culture and social context. Gospel music is com ...

. By the 1970s Fautheree had left the business, working in

asbestos Asbestos () is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous crystals, each fibre being composed of many microscopic "fibrils" that can be released into the atmosphere b ...

removal. In 1995, he returned to music with Mathis, recording a new single, "It Won't Be Much Longer", together. He played both in the U.S. and abroad in the 2000s, and released a full-length album with

Deke Dickerson Deke Dickerson (born 3 June 1968) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and film composer. Dickerson was born in St. Louis, Missouri. After playing in several local rockabilly bands, Deke formed The Untamed Youth at age 17 in his hometow ...

entitled ''I Found the Doorknob''. Shortly after the album was complete he died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

in Dallas on June 29, 2004. His mother's name was Lodema Hammonds, the daughter of Mack Hammonds of Maud, Texas, who was a descendant of

Phillip Hamman Phillip Hamman was an American soldier in the Revolutionary War of 1775–1783. In 1823 he was ordained preacher of the Friendship Baptist Church of Fackler, Alabama. In 1970 the Tidence Lane chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution ...

, the Savior of the Greenbrier.

Discography

References

Jimmy Lee Fautheree Jimmy Lee Fautheree (April 11, 1934 - June 29, 2004) was an American rockabilly and country singer. Born in Smackover, Arkansas, he began playing guitar at age 12, and was heavily influenced by Merle Travis. In 1946 his family moved to Dallas, ...

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fautheree, Jimmy Lee 1934 births 2004 deaths American country singer-songwriters American rockabilly musicians Singer-songwriters from Arkansas American session musicians People from Smackover, Arkansas 20th-century American singers Country musicians from Arkansas