George Morgan (singer)
George Thomas Morgan (June 28, 1925 – July 7, 1975) was a mid-20th-century American country music singer. He is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame and a former member of the Grand Ole Opry.
George Morgan | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | George Thomas Morgan |
| Born | June 28, 1924 |
| Origin | Waverly, Tennessee |
| Died | July 7, 1975 (aged 51) |
| Genres | country |
| Occupation(s) | singer-songwriter |
| Instruments | vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1949–1975 |
Biography
Morgan was born to Zachariah "Zach" Morgan and Ethel Turner in Waverly, Tennessee, but was raised in Doylestown, Ohio. He was, along with a few other contemporaries (most notably Eddy Arnold and Jim Reeves), referred to as a "country crooner;" his singing style being more similar to that of Bing Crosby or Perry Como than that of Ernest Tubb or Lefty Frizzell.
Morgan was a member of the Grand Ole Opry since 1948, and is best remembered for the Columbia Records song "Candy Kisses", which was a No. 1 hit on the Billboard country music chart for three weeks in 1949. He also had several hits based on a "rose" theme: "Room Full of Roses", "Red Roses for a Blue Lady", and "Red Roses From the Blue Side of Town". His version of "Almost" (1952), written by Vic McAlpin and Jack Toombs, was Morgan's second million selling record.[1] In the early 1950s he hosted a 15-minute radio program syndicated nationally by RadiOzark Enterprises in Springfield, Missouri.
In 1974, Morgan was the last person to sing on the stage of the Ryman Auditorium before the Grand Ole Opry moved to the new Grand Ole Opry House. A week later he was the first to sing on stage at the venue.
Death
He died in 1975 of a heart attack after undergoing open heart surgery and was interred in the Spring Hill Cemetery in Madison, Tennessee.
Personal life
His daughter, country music singer Lorrie Morgan, released two songs as duets with her late father dubbed in: "I'm Completely Satisfied" (1979) and "From This Moment On" (2006).
Discography
Albums
| Year | Album | US Country | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1964 | Tender Lovin' Care | 17 | Columbia |
| Slippin' Around (w/ Marion Worth) | 12 | ||
| 1965 | Red Roses for a Blue Lady | 9 | |
| 1967 | Candy Kisses | 35 | Starday |
| Country Hits by Candlelight | 33 | ||
| 1968 | Steal Away | ||
| Barbara | |||
| 1969 | Sounds of Goodbye | ||
| Like a Bird | 42 | Stop | |
| 1971 | Real George | ||
| 1974 | Red Rose from the Blue Side of Town / Somewhere Around Midnight |
37 | MCA |
| 1975 | A Candy Mountain Melody | ||
| From This Moment On | 37 | 4 Star |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | CAN Country | |||
| 1949 | "Candy Kisses" | 1 | singles only | |
| "Please Don't Let Me Love You" | 4 | |||
| "Rainbow in My Heart" | 8 | |||
| "All I Need Is Some More Lovin'" | 11 | |||
| "Room Full of Roses"A | 4 | |||
| "Cry-Baby Heart" | 5 | |||
| "I Love Everything About You" | 4 | |||
| "Ring on Your Finger" | 15 | |||
| 1952 | "Almost" | 2 | ||
| 1953 | "(I Just Had a Date) A Lover's Quarrel" | 10 | ||
| 1956 | "There Goes My LOVE" | 15 | ||
| 1959 | "I'm in Love Again" | 3 | ||
| "Little Dutch Girl" | 20 | |||
| "The Last Thing I Want to Know" | 26 | |||
| 1960 | "You're the Only Good Thing (That's Happened to Me)" | 4 | ||
| 1964 | "One Dozen Roses (And Our Love)" | 23 | Tender Lovin' Care | |
| "All Right (I'll Sign the Papers)" | 45 | |||
| "Slippin' Around" (w/ Marion Worth) | 23 | Slippin' Around | ||
| "Tears and Roses" | 37 | singles only | ||
| 1965 | "Dear John" | |||
| "It's All Coming Home to You But Me" | ||||
| 1966 | "A Picture That's New" | 27 | ||
| "Saving All My Love (For You)" | ||||
| "Home Is Where the Heart Is" | ||||
| "Married" | ||||
| "Speak Well of Me (To the Kids)" | ||||
| 1967 | "I Couldn't See" | 40 | Candy Kisses | |
| "Shiny Red Automobile" | 58 | |||
| 1968 | "Barbara" | 55 | Barbara | |
| "Living" | 56 | |||
| "Sounds of Goodbye" | 31 | Sounds of Goodbye | ||
| "I'll Sail My Ship Alone" | ||||
| 1969 | "Like a Bird" | 30 | Like a Bird | |
| "We've Done All the Lovin' We Can Do" | Real George | |||
| "Enemy" | Like a Bird | |||
| 1970 | "Lilacs and Fire" | 17 | Real George | |
| "Kansas City Stockyards" | ||||
| "I Wouldn't Have You Any Other Way" | ||||
| 1971 | "Rose Is Gone" | singles only | ||
| "Gentle Rains of Home" | 68 | |||
| 1973 | "Let's Live Together Marianne" | |||
| "Makin' Heartaches" | 62 | 93 | Red Rose from the Blue Side of Town / Somewhere Around Midnight | |
| "Mr. Ting-a-Ling (Steel Guitar Man)" | 56 | 83 | ||
| 1974 | "Red Rose from the Blue Side of Town" | 21 | 19 | |
| "Somewhere Around Midnight" | 66 | |||
| "A Candy Mountain Melody" | 82 | A Candy Mountain Melody | ||
| 1975 | "In the Misty Moonlight" | 65 | From This Moment On | |
| "From This Moment On" | 62 | |||
| 1978 | "I Just Want You to Know" | single only | ||
| 1979 | "I'm Completely Satisfied with You" (w/ Lorrie Morgan) | 93 | From This Moment On | |
A"Room Full of Roses" also peaked at No. 25 on the Billboard Hot 100.
References
- Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2nd ed.). London: Barrie and Jenkins Ltd. p. 61. ISBN 0-214-20512-6.
