Jimmy Martin died this morning. Jimmy had lost a great deal of weight over the last couple of weeks and had been in much pain. He had made it clear to his family that he was ready to leave this world. He was recently moved to hospice care. While this is a sad day, it is also a time to celebrate an amazing person, career, and life. Jimmy lived life to the fullest and without question, lived according to his own terms. His life, which was driven by hard work, a fearless spirit, and refreshingly blunt honesty, has been an inspiration to thousands and thousands of bluegrass fans.
Jimmy Martin was an innately talented musician. He tuned into the slight musical subtleties that separate the greats from all the rest. He was also simply dripping with charisma. He will quite likely be remembered as the greatest entertainer in the history of bluegrass music. As Marty Stuart said, "When he hits the stage it's like cannons going off."
So, please, pull out those Jimmy Martin LPs, CDs, 8 track tapes or whatever you have and listen to the great gift that he has left us, his music. As I learn more about arrangements for Jimmy's funeral and where to send flowers, I will post it at www.kingofbluegrass.com
In the meantime, cards and letters of support can be sent to his children Jimmy Jr., Ray, Lisa, and Buddy at the following address: Jimmy Jr., Ray, Lisa, and Buddy PO Box 646 Hermitage, TN 37076 Sincerely, George Goehl
Brief Bio of Jimmy's Life
Jimmy Martin was born and raised in the rural farming town of Sneedville, TN. At the age of four, he lost his father, Ease Martin, to pneumonia. To help his family, he left school after the 3rd grade to work in the tobacco fields.
As a youngster, Jimmy was completely fascinated by the sounds of the weekly radio broadcast of WSM's Grand Ole Opry, the pinnacle institution in country music for musicians of his generation. When he was five years old, he made his first guitar out of a Prince Albert cigar can because Prince Albert was a sponsor of the Grand Ole Opry. At the age of 21, Martin was fired for singing on the job in a factory in Morristown, TN. He then boarded a bus to Nashville to catch a show at the Grand Ole Opry. Following the show he talked his way backstage and approached his idol, bluegrass pioneer, Bill Monroe. There, he convinced Monroe to sing a couple of songs with him. Monroe hired him on the spot. A week later, Jimmy was in Fort Smith, Arkansas singing on stage with Bill Monroe.
During his tenure with Monroe, Martin helped change the sound of bluegrass music. His aggressive rhythm guitar added a fierce drive to his mentor's music and Martin's strong, high vocal range pushed Monroe's tenor up into the sky, creating what has become known as the 'high lonesome' sound.. Together they recorded such classics as The Little Girl and the Dreadful Snake, Uncle Pen, A Voice From On High, Sitting Alone in the Moonlight, I'm Blue, I'm Lonesome, Walking in Jerusalem, and countless others.
Following a brief stint as Jimmy Martin and the Osborne Brothers, in which they made six fantastic recordings, Jimmy started his own band--Jimmy Martin and the Sunny Mountain Boys. Under this moniker, he recorded 136 sides for Decca Records, including Widowmaker, Sunny Side of the Mountain, Freeborn Man, Ocean of Diamonds, Rock Hearts, Hit Parade of Love, Don't Cry to Me, Future on Ice and others. Following his 18 years with Decca, Jimmy recorded 6 albums for Gusto Records before starting his own label, Sunny Mountain Music.
During the late 1950s, Jimmy and the Sunny Mountain Boys, featuring JD Crowe and Paul Williams, were cast members of the KWKHs Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport, Louisiana. With a 50,000 watt clear channel and a monthly broadcast on the CBS Radio Network, the Hayride helped spread Jimmys music throughout the deep south and southwest. Jimmy then moved the band to the West Virginia where they became stars the Worlds Originainal WWVA Wheeling Jamboree.
In 1972 Jimmy joined a parade of stars, including Roy Acuff, Earl Scruggs, Mother Maybelle Carter, Merle Travis, and Doc Watson, to record a three record album, "Will the Circle be Unbroken," with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Jimmy sang the Grand Ole Opry Song, Losing You, Sunny Side of the Mountain, My Walking Shoes, and You Don't Don't My Mind. The album went on to become a Gold Record.
In the late 1990s Bear Family Records released a five CD-box set of Jimmy's Decca recordings and his recordings with the Osborne Brothers. Most recently he was the subject of documentary, entitled "King of Bluegrass: The Life and Times of Jimmy Martin," and the companion soundtrack entitled "Don't Cry to Me." This year Music Mill Entertainment re-issued two of Jimmy's gospel albums and a CD featuring recordings that Jimmy made with Bill Monroe from 1949-1954.
Jimmy landed numerous hits on the country charts, won songwriter and vocalist rewards and has been made a member of the International Bluegrass Hall of Honor. Jimmy and Barbara Gibson had four children together-- Jimmy Jr., Ray, Lisa, and Buddy.
Nice post. Fortunate I am to live in the "Birthplace of Country Music." and they are playing a lot of Jimmy this afternoon; plus Tim White has quite a few interviews he had done over the hours.
Having known Jimmy for more years than I care to admit, I can attest to that statement, especially the "blunt honesty" part. He knew how he wanted the music and he suffered no prima donnas in his band. Consequently, the band members never lasted very long. He used to joke when he took the stage: "I'm Jimmy Martin and I'd like for you to make welcome The Sunny Mountain Boys of 1976 (or 77,78,79,80)." Just about every Bluegrass musician alive during the 60s,70s,80s,90s, at one time or another played with Jimmy Martin. My husband's band, Lower Forty Grass, played many a Bluegrass festival with Jimmy. Another one of the "great ones" has passed on.