Porter Wayne Wagoner (August 12, 1927 – October 28, 2007) 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, ...

singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. In 1967, he introduced singer

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

on his television show, ''The Porter Wagoner Show''. She became part of a well-known vocal duo with him from the late 1960s to the early 1970s. Known as Mr.

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 ...

, Wagoner charted 81 singles from 1954 to 1983. He was elected to the

Country Music Hall of Fame The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has amass ...

in 2002.

Biography

Early life and career

Wagoner was born in

West Plains, Missouri West Plains is a city in, and the county seat of Howell County, Missouri, United States. The population was 12,184 at the 2020 census. History The history of West Plains can be traced back to 1832, when settler Josiah Howell (after whom Howell ...

, United States, the son of Bertha May (née Bridges) and Charles E. Wagoner, a farmer. His first band, the Blue Ridge Boys, performed on radio station KWPM-AM from a

butcher A butcher is a person who may Animal slaughter, slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesal ...

shop in his native West Plains, where Wagoner cut meat. In 1951, he was hired by

Si Siman Si Siman (born Ely E. Siman Jr.; January 17, 1921 – December 16, 1994) was an American country music executive as a radio producer, talent agent, songwriter, record producer, television producer and music publisher who helped transform the ...

as a performer on KWTO in

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Springfield metropolitan area, which had an estimat ...

. This led to a contract 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 ...

. With lagging sales, Wagoner and his trio played schoolhouses for the gate proceeds; but in 1953 his song "Trademark" became a hit for Carl Smith, followed by a few hits of his own for RCA Victor. Starting in 1955, he was a featured performer on ABC-TV's ''

Ozark Jubilee ''Ozark Jubilee'' is a 1950s United States network television program that featured country music's top stars of the day. It was produced in Springfield, Missouri. The weekly live stage show premiered on ABC-TV on January 22, 1955, was renamed ' ...

'' in Springfield. He often appeared on the show as part of the Porter Wagoner Trio with

Don Warden Don Warden (March 27, 1929 – March 11, 2017) was an American country steel guitarist and manager best known for his years on ''The Porter Wagoner Show'' and as the manager of Wagoner and Dolly Parton. Biography Early life Born to Reverend ...

and

Speedy Haworth Herschel Haworth Jr. (May 16, 1922 – February 26, 2008), better known as Speedy Haworth, was an American guitarist and singer who was involved with the golden age of country music broadcasting in the Ozarks. He was a featured cast member ...

. Warden, on steel guitar, became Wagoner's long-time

business manager The Oxford English Dictionary defines a business manager as "a person who manages the business affairs of an individual, institution, organization, or company". Compare manager. Business managers drive the work of others (if any) in order to oper ...

. In 1957, Wagoner and Warden moved to

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

, joining the ''

''.

Chart success

Wagoner's 81 charted records include "

A Satisfied Mind "A Satisfied Mind" is a song written by Joe "Red" Hayes and Jack Rhodes. Hayes explained the origin of the song in an interview: "The song came from my mother. Everything in the song are things I heard her say over the years. I put a lot of thou ...

" (No. 1, 1955), "

Misery Loves Company Misery Loves Company may refer to: * Misery Loves Co., a Swedish industrial metal duo * ''Misery Loves Company'' (album), a 2000 album by Rosemary's Sons * "Misery Loves Company" (Porter Wagoner song), 1962 * ''Misery Loves Company'' (TV serie ...

" (No. 1, 1962), "I've Enjoyed as Much of This as I Can Stand" (No. 7, 1962–1963), "Sorrow on the Rocks" (No. 5, 1964), "

Green, Green Grass of Home "Green, Green Grass of Home", written by Claude "Curly" Putman Jr., and first recorded by singer Johnny Darrell in 1965, is a country song made popular by Porter Wagoner the same year, when it reached No. 4 on the Country chart. It was also r ...

" (No. 4, 1965), "Skid Row Joe" (No. 3, 1965–1966), "The Cold Hard Facts of Life" (No. 2, 1967), and "

The Carroll County Accident "The Carroll County Accident" is a 1968 country song written by Bob Ferguson, and recorded by Porter Wagoner that year. It was a hit for Wagoner and became one of his signature songs. "The Carroll County Accident" won CMA's Song of the Year in ...

" (No. 2, 1968–1969). Among his hit duets with

were a remake of

Tom Paxton Thomas Richard Paxton (born October 31, 1937) is an American folk singer-songwriter who has had a music career spanning more than fifty years. In 2009, Paxton received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

's "

The Last Thing on My Mind "The Last Thing on My Mind" is a song written by American musician and singer-songwriter Tom Paxton in the early 1960s and recorded first by Paxton in 1964. It is based on the traditional lament song "The Leaving of Liverpool". The song was rele ...

" (1967), "We'll Get Ahead Someday" (1968), "Just Someone I Used to Know" (1969), "Daddy Was An Old Time Preacher Man", (1970), "Better Move it on Home" (1971), "The Right Combination" (1972), " Please Don't Stop Loving Me" (No. 1, 1974) and "Making Plans" (No. 2, 1980). He also won three

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

s for gospel recordings.

Television series

His syndicated television program, ''The Porter Wagoner Show'', aired from 1960 to 1981. There were 686 30-minute episodes taped, the first 104 (1960–66) in

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

and the remainder (1966–81) in color. At its peak, his show was featured in over 100 markets, with an average viewership of over three million. Reruns of the program air on the rural

cable network Networking cables are networking hardware used to connect one network device to other network devices or to connect two or more computers to share devices such as printers or scanners. Different types of network cables, such as coaxial cable, op ...

RFD-TV RFD-TV is an American pay television channel owned by Rural Media Group, Inc. The channel features programming devoted to rural issues, concerns and interests. The channel's name is a reference to Rural Free Delivery, the name for the United Sta ...

and its sister channel in the UK

Rural TV Rural TV was a rural lifestyle and culture television channel, broadcast internationally. It was launched on March 2, 2009, replacing Pulse +45mins. It merged with FamilyNet in 2013. Background Rural TV, known as "The World's Rural Channel", w ...

. The shows usually featured opening performances by Wagoner with performances by Norma Jean, or later Dolly Parton, and comedic interludes by

Speck Rhodes Gilbert Ray "Speck" Rhodes (born July 16, 1915, in West Plains, Missouri; died March 19, 2000) was a country music comedian and entertainer. Rhodes was best known for his appearances on the Porter Wagoner television show. He came from a musical fam ...

. During Parton's tenure, she and Wagoner usually sang a duet. Each episode also featured a guest who would usually perform one or two songs. A spiritual or gospel performance was almost always featured toward the end of the show, generally performed by either Wagoner or Parton or the show's guest star, or occasionally the entire cast. After Parton left the show, Porter began taping the show at

Opryland USA Opryland USA (later called Opryland Themepark and colloquially "Opryland") was a theme park in suburban Nashville, Tennessee. It operated seasonally (generally March to October) from 1972 to 1997, and for a special Christmas-themed engagement eve ...

in various locations around the park. The shows had a friendly, informal feel, with Wagoner trading jokes with band members (frequently during songs) and exchanging banter with Dolly Parton and Don Howser. In 1974, Dolly Parton's song "

I Will Always Love You "I Will Always Love You" is a song written and originally recorded in 1973 by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. Written as a farewell to her business partner and mentor Porter Wagoner, expressing Parton's decision to pursue a solo career, ...

", written about her professional break from Wagoner, went to number one on the country music chart. Wagoner's stage alter ego was Skid Row Joe. The cast included: * Singer Norma Jean (1960–1965) * Singer

Jeannie Seely Marilyn Jeanne Seely (born July 6, 1940) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She also has several acting credits and published a book. Seely found success with the Grammy Award-winning hit "Don't Touch Me" (1966) ...

(1965–1966) * Singer

(1967–1974) * Singer Barbara Lea (1974–1976) * Singer Linda Carol Moore (1976–1978) * Singer

Mel Tillis Lonnie Melvin Tillis (August 8, 1932 – November 19, 2017) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s as part of the outlaw country movement, ...

(1968 regular) * Comedian/stand-up bass Curly Harris (1960–mid 1960s) * Announcer Don Howser

The Wagonmasters

1961

on steel guitar : "Little" Jack Little on fiddle : Benny Williams on banjo and guitar (1961) :

Comedian/stand-up bass

Mid 1960s

Buck Trent Charles Wilburn "Buck" Trent (born February 17, 1938) is an American country music instrumentalist currently performing in Branson, Missouri. He invented the electric banjo and also plays the five-string banjo, dobro, steel guitar, mandolin, e ...

on banjo and guitar : George McCormick on rhythm guitar :

Mack Magaha Mack Magaha (August 1, 1929 – August 15, 2003) was an American bluegrass fiddler best known as a member of Porter Wagoner's band, and a long-time backup player in the pioneering bluegrass band, Reno and Smiley. Music career In 1955, Magaha ...

on fiddle : Ray Downs on rhythm guitar and vocal : Michael Treadwell on bass guitar : Shannon Randolph Porter on lead guitar

After 1974

: Bruce Osborn on lead guitar : Fred Newell on banjo/guitar/mandolin : Dave Kirby on guitar : Stu Basore on steel guitar/dobro : Bobby Dyson on bass : Jerry Carrigan on drums : Mack Magaha on fiddle : Colene Walters on vocals/harmonica : Mike Pearson on lead guitar

Later work

Wagoner brought

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

to the

, produced a

rhythm & blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

album for

Joe Simon Joseph Henry Simon (October 11, 1913 – December 14, 2011) was an American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s–1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the ...

, and appeared in the

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...

film ''

Honkytonk Man ''Honkytonk Man'' is a 1982 American comedy-drama musical western film set in the Great Depression. Clint Eastwood, who produced and directed, stars with his son, Kyle Eastwood. Clancy Carlile's screenplay is based on his 1980 novel of the same ...

''. During the mid 1980s, Wagoner formed an all-girl group, The Right Combination, named after one of his hit records with Parton, and toured with them for several years. He also hosted ''Opry Backstage'' during the 1990s on

The Nashville Network The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, game shows, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows. On September ...

. Though Parton's departure was difficult for both, the two reconciled in the late 1980s and appeared together a number of times in the following years. Parton inducted Wagoner into the

in 2002. Wagoner made a guest appearance on the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

comedy series ''

Da Ali G Show ''Da Ali G Show'' is a British Satire, satirical television series created by and starring English comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. In the series, Baron Cohen plays three unorthodox journalists: faux-streetwise poseur Ali G, Kazakh reporter Borat Sag ...

'' in 2004, its second season, interviewed by

Borat Sagdiyev Borat Margaret Sagdiyev ( kk, Борат Маргарет Сағдиев) is a Satire, satirical fictional character created and performed by Sacha Baron Cohen. He is supposedly a Kazakh television journalist and is the main protagonist of the m ...

. Wagoner was honored on August 12, 2007, his 80th birthday, at the Grand Ole Opry for his 50 years of membership. It was telecast on GAC's ''Grand Ole Opry Live'' that day with artists including Parton,

Marty Stuart John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before beginning work as a ...

and

Patty Loveless Patty Loveless (born Patricia Lee Ramey, January 4, 1957) is an American country music singer. She began performing in her teenaged years before signing her first recording contract with MCA Records' Nashville division in 1985. While her first ...

. ''Grand Ole Opry Live'' host Nan Kelley was part of the birthday celebration. On June 5, 2007, Wagoner released his final album, called ''

Wagonmaster ''Wagonmaster'' is the fifty-third and final studio album by American country music artist Porter Wagoner, who died on October 28, 2007. It was released on June 5, 2007, via the ANTI- Records label. A music video was made for the album's only s ...

''. Produced by Stuart for the Anti- label, the album received the best reviews of Wagoner's career and briefly appeared on the country chart. A

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

was also produced of one of the tracks, a cover of

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

's "Committed to Parkview". He toured during the summer of 2007 to promote the album, including a late-July appearance on ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

''. One of these performances was to open for the rock group

The White Stripes The White Stripes were an American rock duo from Detroit formed in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (songwriter, vocals, guitar, piano, and mandolin) and Meg White (drums and vocals). After releasing several singles and three albums with ...

at a sold-out concert at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

Personal life

Wagoner was married twice, to Velma Johnson for less than a year in 1943, and Ruth Olive Williams from 1946 to 1986, though they separated 20 years before the divorce. He was survived by his three children, Richard, Denise and Debra. Wagoner died from

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissue (biology), tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from tran ...

in Nashville on October 28, 2007, with his family and Dolly Parton at his side. Wagoner's funeral was held November 1, 2007, at the Grand Ole Opry House. He is buried at

Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery is located at 660 Thompson Lane in Nashville, Tennessee. It is one of the largest cemeteries in Nashville. Among those interred or entombed in the cemetery, there are many prominent members of the country music ge ...

in Nashville.

Legacy

performed a concert at her theme park

Dollywood Dollywood is a theme park jointly owned by entertainer Dolly Parton and Herschend Family Entertainment. It is located in the Knoxville metropolitan area in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, near the gateway to The Great Smoky Mountains. Hosting nearly 3 ...

in Wagoner's memory after his death. Porter Wagoner Boulevard in his native West Plains, Missouri, is named in his honor. In 2013, the television show ''

Drunk History ''Drunk History'' is an American educational comedy television series produced by Comedy Central, based on the Funny or Die web series created by Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner in 2007. They and Will Ferrell and Adam McKay are the show's exec ...

'' presented a brief summary of Wagoner's relationship with Parton. Dan Cooper at

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 ...

noted, "As for his music, after signing with RCA in 1952 he produced a wealth of superb hard country, and just as much of the most wretchedly oversentimentalized tripe you'll ever want to hear. The latter, of course, is half the reason he's loved".

Discography

Studio albums

*''

Satisfied Mind ''Satisfied Mind'' is the sixth album by American rock band The Walkabouts, released in 1993 on Sub Pop.The Walkaboutsat Discogs'' It consists entirely of covers of roots music and compositions by modern singer-songwriters, including songs auth ...

'' (1957) *''A Slice of Life: Songs Happy 'n' Sad'' (1962) *''Porter Wagoner and Skeeter Davis Sing Duets'' (1962) *''Y'all Come'' (1963) *''The Bluegrass Story'' (1964) *''The Thin Man from West Plains'' (1965) *''The Grand Ole Gospel'' (1966) *''Confessions of a Broken Man'' (1966) *''Soul of a Convict and More Great Prison Songs'' (1967) *''More Grand Ole Gospel'' (1967) *'' The Cold Hard Facts of Life'' (1967) *'' Just Between You and Me'' (1968) *''The Bottom of the Bottle'' (1968) *''

Just the Two of Us Just or JUST may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Just (surname) * Just (given name) Arts and entertainment * ''Just'', a 1998 album by Dave Lindholm * "Just" (song), a song by Radiohead * "Just", a song from the album ''Lost and Found'' by Mudvayne ...

'' (1968) *''In Gospel Country'' (1968) *''The Carroll County Accident'' (1969) *'' Always, Always'' (1969) *''Me and My Boys'' (1969) *''You Got-ta Have a License'' (1970) *''

Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca ''Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca'' is the fourth collaborative studio album by Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton. It was released on March 9, 1970, by RCA Victor. The album was produced by Bob Ferguson. It peaked at number four on the '' Billboard ...

'' (1970) *'' Once More'' (1970) *''Skid Row Joe Down in the Alley'' (1970) *'' Two of a Kind'' (1971) *''Simple as I Am'' (1971) *''Porter Wagoner Sings His Own'' (1971) *'' The Right Combination • Burning the Midnight Oil'' (1972) *''What Ain't to Be, Just Might Happen'' (1972) *''Ballads of Love'' (1972) *'' Together Always'' (1972) *''Experience'' (1972) *'' We Found It'' (1973) *''

Love and Music ''Love and Music'' is the tenth collaborative studio album by Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton. It was released on July 2, 1973, by RCA Victor. It contains their top ten country single "If Teardrops Were Pennies". The album reached #8 on the U.S. ...

'' (1973) *''I'll Keep on Lovin' You'' (1973) *''The Farmer'' (1973) *''Tore Down'' (1974) *'' Porter 'n' Dolly'' (1974) *''Highway Headin' South'' (1974) *''Sing Some Love Songs, Porter Wagoner'' (1975) *'' Say Forever You'll Be Mine'' (1975) *''Porter'' (1977) *''Today'' (1979) *''When I Sing for Him'' (1979) *'' Porter & Dolly'' (1980) *''Porter Wagoner's Greatest'' (1981) *''Natural Wonder'' (1982) *''Viva'' (1983) *''Porter Wagoner'' (1986) *''The Best I've Ever Been'' (2000) *''Unplugged'' (2002) *''22 Grand Ole Gospel 2004 (2003) *''Something to Brag About'' (2004) *''18 Grand Ole Gospel 2005'' (2005) *''Gospel 2006'' (2006) *''The Versatile Porter Wagoner'' (2006) *''Wagonmaster'' (2007) *''Best of Grand Ole Gospel 2008'' (2007)

Awards

References

External links

Porter Wagoner at the Country Music Hall of Fame

in ''The

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wagoner, Porter 1927 births 2007 deaths American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters Deaths from cancer in Tennessee Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Country musicians from Missouri Deaths from lung cancer Grammy Award winners Grand Ole Opry members Members of the Country Music Association People from West Plains, Missouri RCA Records Nashville artists Singer-songwriters from Missouri 20th-century American singers 20th-century American male singers Anti- (record label) artists