Lefty Frizzell
William Orville "Lefty" Frizzell (March 31, 1928 – July 19, 1975) was an American country and honky-tonk singer-songwriter.[1]
Lefty Frizzell
William Orville Frizzell
Lefty Frizzell
March 31, 1928
Corsicana, Texas, U.S.
El Dorado, Arkansas, U.S.
July 19, 1975 (aged 47)
Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Singer-songwriter
- Acoustic guitar
- vocals
1942–1975
Frizell is known as one of the most influential country music vocal stylists of all time. He has been cited as influencing prominent country singers like George Jones, Merle Haggard, and Willie Nelson. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1982 as well as the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In his prime, Frizzell was the first artist to achieve four songs in the top ten on the Country Music Billboard charts at one time. Frizzell went on to have more success, releasing many songs that charted in the Top 10 of the Hot Country Songs charts as an artist and songwriter. After dealing with alcoholism, he died of a stroke at age 47.
Musical beginnings and jail[edit]
While living in Greenville, Texas, during World War II, Frizzell performed on radio station KPLT in nearby Paris, Texas. There he met Alice Harper; they married in March 1945. In 1946, they moved to Roswell, New Mexico, and Frizzell performed on radio station KGFL and with the house band at the Cactus Gardens dance hall.
In July 1947, the 19-year-old Frizzell was arrested and jailed for having sex with an underage fan. He was charged with statutory rape, convicted the following month, and served six months in the county jail. Filled with guilt, he wrote poems to his wife from his cell; one of them would become his first big record.[2]
After his release in late 1949, he was led away from music, and back to the oil fields to work with his father. However, soon he was performing in nightclubs again. By 1950, he had landed a regular job at the Big Spring, Texas, nightclub "Ace of Clubs" where he developed a dedicated fan following.
Personal troubles, later years, and death[edit]
Frizzell began a downward spiral after developing a debilitating alcohol problem. Despite his history of infidelity, arrests for sex with underage fans, contractual legal troubles, and automobile accidents, Alice Harper remained his wife, and their marriage produced three children.[2]
During the late 1960s he recorded many songs, but Columbia released very few.[1] Because of his declining record sales, he began to perform less. In 1968, he recorded with June Stearns as Agnes and Orville.[1]
In early 1972, Frizzell left Columbia Records and signed with ABC Records.[1] That same year, he was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and his song "If You've Got the Money (I've Got the Time)" earned him the Grammy Hall of Fame Award.
By this time, drinking was taking a toll on him. He had developed chronic hypertension, his appearance had changed drastically, and his voice had deteriorated. On July 19, 1975, at age 47, Frizzell died of a massive stroke,[1] and was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens in Goodlettsville, Tennessee. Frizzell was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in October 1982.