Gene Watson's Peers: Vern Gosdin
Gene Watson's peers within the country music industry
believe in the sheer talent of this unassuming man from east Texas, so much
so that Gene is regarded by many of them as 'the singer's singer' - and
rightly so!
All of Gene's Peers who were contacted in 2006 were most gracious with their
time & words. It is here, within this special part of gene-watson.com, that
you have an opportunity to read a quote from
Vern Gosdin, which he
submitted to this site on Thursday 12 October 2006.
Sean Brady would like to take this opportunity to say 'thank you' to
Vern Gosdin who has made
a special contribution to a unique part of this online 'celebration of a
Lone Star Hero'.
Vern Gosdin
This quote was submitted on Thursday 12 October 2006
'Gene Watson is truly one of the great voices in
country music.
His unique style sets him apart from all others & defines the true meaning
of country music & what it stands for in our hearts & lives'.
Thank you, Vern Gosdin,
for your support of Gene Watson.
About Vern Gosdin...
Vern Gosdin was born in
Woodland, Alabama & is known as 'The Voice'. Vern idolised the Louvin
Brothers & the Blue Sky Boys as a young man & sang in a gospel quartet
called the Gosdin Brothers.
When Vern was in his late teens, his family moved to Birmingham & began
hosting the Gosdin Family Gospel Show on a local radio station WVOK. Vern &
his brother Rex moved to Long Beach, California in 1961 & began performing
bluegrass music, joining a group called The Golden State Boys that evolved
into The Hillmen, featuring future Byrds' member
Chris Hillman.
Vern & Rex teamed up to sing country music as The Gosdin Brothers, enjoyed a
Top 40 country hit in 1967 with 'Hangin' on' & opened for The Byrds on
occasion.
Vern moved to Atlanta, Georgia in 1972, raised a family & ran a retail shop.
However, he never gave up on music completely, performing at local clubs &
eventually gravitated toward Nashville. In 1976, Vern & Emmylou Harris cut a
demo single consisting of 'Hangin' on' backed with a newly written song
called 'Yesterday's gone'.
As a consequence, Vern Gosdin was signed to the Elektra
Records label & both songs cracked the country Top 20. In the late 1970s, he
notched up several major hits, including 'Till the end' (with
Janie Fricke),
'Mother country music' & a remake of The Association's 'Never my love'.
In 1980, following the demise of Elektra's country division, Vern quickly
moved through several contracts & landed with the independent Nashville
label Compleat. He made the Top Ten consistently in the early 1980s & hit
his stride when he teamed up with Max D Barnes as a song-writing
collaborator.
In 1983, Vern enjoyed two Top Five hits, 'If you're gonna do me wrong (do it
right)' & 'Way down deep'. In 1984, he achieved his first No.1 single with
'I can tell by the way you dance (you're gonna love me tonight'), which was
No.1 for one week in late June/early July of that year. Vern also achieved
two Top Ten hits ('What would your memories do' & 'Slow burning memories'),
both of which peaked at No.10.
The Compleat Records label folded in 1986 & Vern found himself without a
record label. In 1987, he was approached by
Merle Haggard, but Merle's
friend & sometimes co-writer Hank Cochran steeped in & brought Vern to the
attention of producer Bob Montgomery at Columbia Records.
Columbia advanced some money to cut some tracks with Vern, the result of
which was 'Do you believe me now', which reached No.8 in early 1988. Vern's
first album for Columbia - 'Chiseled in Stone' - was released shortly
afterwards & Vern achieved a No.1 hit with 'Set 'em up, Joe' (No.1 for one
week in July 1988).
The title track of the 'Chiseled in Stone' album, which as co-written with
Max D. Barnes (RIP), reached No.6 in November 1988 & was cited as the 'Song
of the Year' by the Country Music Association on 9 October 1989.
It was in 1989 that Vern's second Columbia Records album was released.
'Alone' was a concept album in a traditional country music style which
chronicled the dissolution of Vern's marriage. The first track released as a
single from the album, 'I'm still crazy', spent one week at No.1 in
September 1989.
Between 1989 & 1991, Vern Gosdin released a number of songs & three more
made the Billboard Top 10: 'Right in the wrong direction', 'That just about
does it' & 'Is it raining at your house'. In 2003, 'Is it raining at
your house' was recorded by Brad Paisley & included on 'Mud on the Tires' (Arista
Nashville, 2003).
In 2008, Vern Gosdin released '40 Years of the Voice', a four-CD career
retrospective. The box set, released on VGM Records, featured
one-hundred-and-one songs, including fourteen previously unreleased tracks
recorded thirty-five years previously; the collection also offered eleven
newly recorded songs.
Sadly, Vern Gosdin, who was known affectionately as 'The Voice', passed away
on Tuesday 28 April 2009 following a stroke he suffered earlier in the
month.
Vern Gosdin (5 August 1934 - 28 April 2009) RIP
Visit Vern Gosdin's Official
Site
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