Jimmy Work (March 29, 1924 – December 22, 2018) was an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

ian and songwriter best known for the country standard "

Making Believe "Making Believe" is a country music song written by Jimmy Work. Kitty Wells recorded a chart-topping version in 1955. The song is on many lists of all-time greatest country music songs and has been covered by scores of artists over the past fifty ...

". Work was born in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County, Ohio, Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 C ...

, but moved to Dukedom, Tennessee, with his family at age two. He picked up guitar at age seven, and learned fiddle and songwriting by his early teens. By 1945, he had begun playing professionally in

Pontiac, Michigan Pontiac ( ') is a city in and the county seat of Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 61,606. A northern suburb of Metro Detroit, Pontiac is about northwest of Detroit. Founde ...

, where many Southerners had moved to take jobs in the

automotive industry The automotive industry comprises a wide range of company, companies and organizations involved in the design, Business development, development, manufacturing, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles. It is one of the world's largest industry ...

. He appeared on local radio and published a songbook late in the decade, in addition to recording two singles for the Trophy Records label. His third single was " Tennessee Border", for

Alben Records Elbling is a variety of white grape (sp. ''Vitis vinifera'') which today is primarily grown in the upstream parts of the Mosel region in Germany and in Luxembourg, where the river is called Moselle. The variety has a long history, and used t ...

; his version was not a hit, but the following year, the song became a hit for

Red Foley Clyde Julian "Red" Foley (June 17, 1910 – September 19, 1968) was an American musician who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II. For more than two decades, Foley was one of the biggest stars of the gen ...

Bob Atcher James Robert Owen "Bob" Atcher (May 11, 1914 – October 31, 1993) was an American country musician. Biography Atcher was born in Hardin County, Kentucky, United States, and learned violin and guitar from his father, who was a champion fiddle p ...

Jimmie Skinner Jimmie Skinner (April 27, 1909 – October 28, 1979) was an American country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter and acoustic guitarist. He also was known for a mail-order record business and retail store in Cincinnati, Ohio. Biography Ski ...

, and

Tennessee Ernie Ford Ernest Jennings Ford (February 13, 1919 – October 17, 1991), known professionally as Tennessee Ernie Ford, was an American singer and television host who enjoyed success in the country and western, pop, and gospel musical genres. Noted for ...

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

also recorded the tune, but didn't chart with it. Work then signed with

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 ...

in 1949 and that same year appeared for the first time on 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 on

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 ...

'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 ...

''. He recorded for Decca with members of Red Foley's band, but none of his Decca recordings were hits, and the label dropped him in 1950. Subsequently, he recorded for

Bullet A bullet is a kinetic projectile, a component of firearm ammunition that is shot from a gun barrel. Bullets are made of a variety of materials, such as copper, lead, steel, polymer, rubber and even wax. Bullets are made in various shapes and co ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, and

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

, the last of which released him in 1953. Signing soon after with

Dot Records Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In 1956, the company moved ...

, he finally found chart success in 1955 with the songs "Making Believe" (somewhat overshadowed by

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 ...

cover) and "That's What Makes the Jukebox Play". He played a few concerts 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 ...

that year. Later in the 1950s his fortunes in music declined, and he began working in

real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this (also) an item of real property, (more general ...

. He cut a few singles in 1959 for

All Records All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All a ...

and continued to write songs, working for

Acuff-Rose Acuff-Rose Music, Inc. was an American music publishing firm formed in 1942 by Roy Acuff and Fred Rose in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Acuff-Rose's honest behavior towards their writers set them apart from other music publishing firms ...

Bear Family Records Bear Family Records is a Germany-based independent record label, that specializes in reissues of archival material, ranging from country music to 1950s rock and roll to old German movie soundtracks. History The label has been in existence since ...

began reissuing Work's recordings in 1986. He returned to Dukedom in the 1980s to retire from music. He worked as a

millwright A millwright is a craftsperson or skilled tradesperson who installs, dismantles, maintains, repairs, reassembles, and moves machinery in factories, power plants, and construction sites. The term ''millwright'' (also known as ''industrial mecha ...

at the Goodyear plant in

Union City, Tennessee Union City is located in Obion County, Tennessee, United States. The 2020 census reported the population of the town as 11,170. It is the principal urban settlement of the surrounding micropolitan area, which includes Obion County and Fulton Count ...

, for several years before fully retiring. Work died on December 22, 2018, at the age of 94. He lived in Dukedom with his wife.

References

External links

*Bruce Eder,

Jimmy Work Jimmy Work (March 29, 1924 – December 22, 2018) was an American country musician and songwriter best known for the country standard " Making Believe". Work was born in Akron, Ohio, but moved to Dukedom, Tennessee, with his family at age two. ...

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:Work, Jimmy 1924 births 2018 deaths American country singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Ohio Musicians from Akron, Ohio Country musicians from Ohio