| [News] USSCM CHECKITOUT¡(sm) Thursday, November 27, 2008 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQNpfM9tbMM http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kr-FfAsK7M0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wGUPN9-cj0&feature=related Known as "the thinking man's hillbillies," Homer Haynes and Jethro Burns got a lot of mileage out of an act that shouldn't have lasted or gone as far as it did, at least on the surface of things. Certainly there were other, far more established duos mining similar turf on the country music circuit, with Lonzo & Oscar leading the way. But Homer & Jethro were far more than just two hayseeds doing cornball send-ups of pop tunes. Underneath the cornpone facade were two top-flight musicians with a decidedly perverse sense of humor and a keen sense of satire. It was in the late '40s into the 1950s, basing themselves out of the Windy City, that the duo hit their true stride. Their first big hit was a takeoff on "Baby, It's Cold Outside" with a quite young June Carter contributing on vocals. The success of this single brought them to the attention of powerful radio station WLS, thus securing Homer & Jethro a regular spot on the National Barn Dance. Joining in 1949, the duo would stay faithful to the original version of the Grand Ole Opry, staying with the show until 1958. The national hookup did wonders for their career, which got an added boost when they started working double duty as regulars on Don McNeil's Breakfast Club, one of the top-rated morning-radio chat shows of its time, also based out of Chicago. The 1950s found them scoring big with numerous guest shots on television. The beauty of Homer & Jethro (as opposed to another country novelty act) was that they could work anywhere and be understood. They could be on the bill with Roy Rogers or trading cornball putdowns with Jimmy Dean or slickly one-upping Johnny Carson, and they always held their own. They made many recordings with Nashville legend Chet Atkins. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fZRssq7UlM (CHECKITOUT! is a service of US School of Commercial Music, the one and only online college for the worldwide study of contemporary music. Each mailing features an astounding, inspiring musical tidbit.) http://www.usschoolofmusic.com |
| "Master Music At Home(TM)" Professor John Amaral, Director US School of Commercial Music 617-666-4839 To opt out of this mailing, please click here: <USSCMoptOUT@rcn.com> |
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