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Young, Curtis (9 January 1943–Present)

Singer, bassist and guitarist from East Tennessee who was still in his teens when he landed his first professional gig at the Tennessee Barn Dance, which was held in Knoxville.

In 1962, he started working at WATE-TV in Knoxville.  During his seven-year tenure, he appeared on three weekly programs and worked as a projectionist and cameraman.  On the weekend, he performed with the Kountry Kings, singing lead vocals.

In 1969, a friend of his planted the Nashville bug in his ear.  There was an opening for a bassist and vocalist at the Grand Ole Opry!  Young made the great egress to Music City and was soon on the Opry stage, performing with Stoney Cooper and Wilma Lee.

A triple threat, Young soon found himself in demand as a studio musician, not only for recordings, but also for TV and radio spots.  Then, the big screen came calling.  He recorded a demonstration reel of a song that was to be used in Robby Benson’s debut film, Jory.  The demo was so good, he was asked to fly out to L.A. to record the song proper for the movie.

Around this time, Young band-hopped from The Coopers to Chet Atkins’ outfit.  In 1979, he changed tacks again, performing with Vic Willis.  When Guy Willis died, Young became lead singer and The Vic Willis Trio was born.  This band stayed together for the next six years, but it certainly did not preclude Young from recording with other artists.  He appeared on Tom T. Hall’s 1983 release, Everything from Jesus to Jack Daniels, and George Strait’s 1984 effort, Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind.

Hollywood came calling again when Young was asked to read for a role in the Patsy Cline biopic, Sweet Dreams.  He won the audition and was cast as Patsy’s guitarist.  For his troubles, he was rewarded with a solo and a close-up.

Ironically, Young would go solo in the 1990s on albums such as If You Love MeJust FriendsOnly One Way, and Smoky Mountain Love, released in 1997.  Music Row Magazine voted him their Top Ten Album All Star five consecutive years, 1990-1994, and twice again in 1996 and 1998.  The accolade is given to the vocalist who appears on the most top-ten albums in a given year.  At last tally, Young’s number of top-ten album credits eclipsed eighty.

In 2000, he was wooed by The Jordanaires to replace the late, great Neal Matthews, Jr.  He jumped at the chance and has been with them ever since.  He got on the bandwagon just in time to be enshrined in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001.  In 2002, the group received a Grammy Award for their James Blackwood tribute album.  This was followed by more kudos, including the Sun Records Lifetime Achievement Award and the Golden Voice Award, in 2003.

 In 2005, Young did Everything & More with Billy Gilman and reunited with George Strait on the album, If You Ain’t Lovin’ You Ain’t Livin’.  The Jordanaires contributed their time and talent to the 2006 compilation, A Christmas to Cure Cancer 3.  In 2007, Young appeared on a pair of Garth Brooks CDs, a reissue of his eponymous debut and The Ultimate Hits.  He also made the cut on Hank Williams III’s Hank III Collector’s Edition in 2008.

Curtis Young is a frequent attendee of the Country Music Hall of Fame inductions.  Most recently, he saw Roy Clark, Barbara Mandrell and Charlie McCoy enshrined in the Hall.  The ceremony ended with Hall-of-Famers such as Phil Everly, Emmylou Harris, Sonny James, Charlie Louvin, Earl Scruggs, and Jordanaires Louis Nunley, Ray Walker and Curtis Young singing “Will the Circle Be Unbroken”.

He continued to perform with The Jordanaires until they were dissolved in 2013 following the death of Gordon Stoker.

Sources:

  1. http://www.curtisyoung.com/bio.html
  2. http://www.lpdiscography.com/h/Hall/hall_everythingfrom.htm
  3. http://cdbaby.com/cd/curtisyoung
  4. http://www.chapters.indigo.ca/music/36/search?sc=Jimmy+Bowen&sf=Producer
  5. http://www.christmasreviews.com/wcurecancer3.shtml
  6. http://www.modernguitars.com/archives/001872.html
  7. http://music.barnesandnoble.com/Artist/Curtis-Young/c/182483
  8. http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=7694226
  9. http://www.countrymusichalloffame.com/site/news_detail.aspx?cid=4124
  10. http://www.musicrow.com/2009/05/bobby-karl-works-the-hall-of-fame-medallion-ceremony%E2%80%94chapter-308/
  11. http://www.mp3.com/artist/curtis-young/summary/
  12. http://www.jordanaires.net/about/us.htm
  13. http://www.rfdtv.com/shows/Emery_Hall.asp