Jerry Summers: Yodeling In The South And Elsewhere

Modern day country music stars such as Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw, George Strait and others have gotten away from the yodeling music of the 1920's that began in the South with Jimmie Rodgers (The Singing Brakeman).

 

Yodeling is a form of singing which involves "repeated and rapid changes of pitch between the low pitch "chest" voice and the high pitcher register or "falsetto." 

 

Rodgers in 1928 released his "Blue Yodel No.

1" which made the transition from Alpine yodeling to a combination of African American, blues and folk music and started a national craze for the musical style.  Rodgers was born in either Meridian, Mississippi, or Geiger, Alabama, and is normally known as the "Father of Country Music."  Although he died at the early age of 35, Rodgers' music has been covered by most of the leading artists over the years.  A contemporary yodeler of Rodgers was Cliff Carlisle from Kentucky who also was one of the first musicians to use the Hawaiian steel guitar in country music.

 

Hank Williams, generally recognized as the greatest country music star of all time, credited Jimmie  Rodgers with molding his career.  Like Rodgers he was from the South, being born in Mount Olive, Alabama and died at the early age of 29 from a combination of alcohol, drugs and back pain.  His "Lovesick Blues" was the song that launched his career from the Louisiana Hayride and displayed his yodeling talents.  

 

During the 1930's the singing cowboys who yodeled such as Gene Autry and Roy Rogers were a “transformation of Jimmie Rodgers Blue Yodel to the Cowboy Yodel” which was a staple in the B-movies of the 1030's and 1940's but by the 1950's the use of yodeling in country and western music had dwindled considerably. 

 

Canadian Hank Snow, who regularly performed at the Nashville Grand Ole Opry in the 1950's, was a fan of Jimmie Rodgers and became known as "The Yodeling Ranger." He claimed to have learned the style by listening to his mentor’s songs.  He admired Rodgers so much that he named his son Jimmie Rodgers Snow. 

 

Women were also a part of the yodeling history with credit generally going to The DeZunik Sisters from Minnesota who appeared regularly at the Grand Ole Opry in the 1940's.  A little-known fact is that one of Rodgers' recordings, Blue Yodel No. 9, was released in 1930 with Louis Armstrong playing trumpet and Armstrong's wife, Lil Hardin Armstrong, playing the piano.  

 

"Tennessee Plowboy," Eddie Arnold, born on a farm in Henderson, Tennessee, was ranked 22nd on Country Music Television's 2003 list of "The 40 Greatest Men of Country Music" and was also inducted in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1966.

 

His most famous yodeling would be "The Cattle Call" which was originally written and recorded by American songwriter and musician Tex Owens in 1934.  Arnold recorded the song in 1944 and it was voted by the Western Writers of America as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.  It has been covered by at least 18 artists and featured in at least four movies. 

 

Ricky Skaggs, born in Cordell, Kentucky, was the youngest member of the Grand Ole Opry at the time he was inducted in 1982.  His phenomenal music career continues today as a country and blue grass singer.  His live tribute to Hank Williams included his version of "Lovesick Blues" and its yodeling component. 

 

From Jimmie Rodgers to Ricky Skaggs yodeling sounds have been an important part of the development of country music and bluegrass in America. 

 

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