Red Sovine (full name: Woodrow Wilson Sovine) (Charleston (West Virginia), 1918 - July 17, Nashville (Tennessee), april 4, 1980) was an American country music singer.
Sovine learned to play guitar by his mother. The first steps in the music was the creation of "Smiley and Red, the Singing Sailors" together with his childhood friend Johnnie Bailes. After he sang regularly Sovine was married on "Charleston Radio" while working as a supervisor in a knitwear factory. In 1947 he formed The group "The Echo Valley Boys". In 1949, he signed a contract with MGM Records and spent the next four years 28 singles, which had little success on the charts.
Country singer Webb Pierce convinced Sovine to lead his "Wondering Boys band" and helped him in 1954 to a contract with Decca Records. The following year Sovine had a first small success with "Are You Mine?", a duet with Goldie Hill. And in 1956 he had a first number one hit with "Why Baby Why", a duet with Webb Pierce. Two more top-5 singles brought him at the Grand Ole Opry. After almost 50 recordings with Decca in 1959, Sovine stepped over to Starday Records and began touring solo.
Sovine found In 1965 in the niche are trucker music when he recorded "Giddyup Go". The song was written together with Tommy Hill and was nominated, accompanied by music. The single reached the first place on the Billboard Hot Country Songs and a 82nd place in the Billboard Hot 100. This was followed by even more "trucker songs" such as "Phantom 309" (1967), "Teddy Bear" (No. 1 Hot Country Songs in 1976) and "Little Joe" (1976).
On 4 april 1980 Sovine got a heart attack while he was driving his car in Nashville, which he crashed. He later died of his injuries and the effects of the heart attack and was buried beside his wife Norma (d. 1976).
Albums[Edit][]
- Red Sovine (MGM)-1956
- The One and Only (Starday)-1961
- The Golden Country Ballads of the 60s (Starday)-1962
- Red Sovine (Decca)-1963
- The Heart Rending Little Rosa (Starday)-1965
- Country Music Time (Decca)-1966
- Giddy Up Go (Starday)-1966
- The Sensational Red (Starday)-1966
- The Nashville Sound -1956
- I Didn't Jump the Fence (Starday)-1967
- Dear John Letter (Starday)-1967
- The Country Way (Vocalion)-1968
- Phantom 309 (Starday)-1968
- Tell Maude I Slipped (Starday)-1968
- Sunday with Sovine (Starday)-1968
- Anytime (Starday)-1968
- Classic Narations (Starday)-1969
- Closing Time Till Dawn (Starday)-1969
- Who Am I (Starday)-1969
- Ruby don't Branch Your Love to Town (Starday)-1969
- I Know you're Married (Starday)-1970
- Greatest Grand Ole Opry (Chart)-1973
- Itt'll Come Back (Chart)-1974
- Teddy Bear (Starday)-1976
- Woodrow Wilson Sovine (Starday)-1977
- Christmas with Red Sovine (Starday)-1978
- 16 New Gospel music (Gusto)-1978