Hoyt Wayne Axton (March 25, 1938 – October 26, 1999) was an American folk music singer-songwriter, guitarist, and a film and television actor. He became prominent in the early-1960s, establishing himself on the West Coast as a folk singer with an earthy style and powerful voice. As he matured, some of his songwriting became well known throughout the world. Among
them were "Joy to the World", "The Pusher", "No No Song", "Greenback Dollar", "Della and the Dealer", and "Never Been to Spain".
Born in Duncan, Oklahoma, Axton spent his pre-teen years in
Comanche, Oklahoma, with his brother, John. His mother, Mae Boren Axton, a
songwriter, co-wrote the classic rock 'n' roll song "Heartbreak
Hotel", which became the a major hit for Elvis Presley. Some of Hoyt's own
songs were also later recorded by Presley. Axton's father, John Thomas Axton,
was a naval officer stationed in Jacksonville, Florida; the family joined him
there in 1949.
As a child, Axton learned classical piano but, as his mother
recalled, "he would start playing boogie in the middle of a lesson".
The teenage Axton was swept up in the folk music revival and was inspired by
Woody Guthrie.
Axton graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in 1956 and
left town after Knauer's Hardware Store burned down on graduation night, a
prank gone wrong. He attended Oklahoma State University on a scholarship, and
he played football for the school, but he left to enlist in the US Navy.
After his discharge from the navy , he played guitar and
sang in San Francisco and Los Angeles clubs before making his first album, The
Balladeer, in 1962. It was a year later that he enjoyed his first commercial
success, when the Kingston Trio recorded Greenback Dollar, although their
version omitted the word "damn" in the chorus.
For Axton, it was the prelude to a lucrative period as a
songwriter. In 1964, John Kay, leader of Canadian rock band Steppenwolf, heard
Axton perform his anti-drug song The Pusher. Steppenwolf 's version was a hit
and later used in the film Easy Rider. Even greater success came in 1970 when
Three Dog Night recorded his
infectious, lightweight Joy to the World and Never Been to Spain (which Presley also recorded). Joy to the World was top of the American hit parade for six weeks. Axton toured America with Three Dog Night and treated audiences to his views on the then US president Nixon.
infectious, lightweight Joy to the World and Never Been to Spain (which Presley also recorded). Joy to the World was top of the American hit parade for six weeks. Axton toured America with Three Dog Night and treated audiences to his views on the then US president Nixon.
In 1975, Axton's humorous No No Song was a hit for Ringo
Starr and he provided numerous songs for country singers such as Lynn Anderson,
Glen Campbell and Tanya Tucker in the 1960s and 1970s. His compositions were
equally popular with Joan Baez, Tiny Tim and BB King. Axton maintained a
parallel career as a singer-songwriter where his idiosyncratic and
anti-establishment vision flourished.
He made definitive recordings of the satire You're The
Hangnail In My Life; another anti-drug piece, Snowblind Friend; the narrative
ballad Delta and the Dealer; and Boney Fingers, a nonsense song in the Guthrie
mould. He also worked for the United Nations Children's Fund and for the
prisoners' charity Bread and Roses.
Axton also performed from the mid-1960s onwards as a
character actor, playing "good old boy" types. He appeared in 20
films including The Black Stallion (1979) and Gremlins (1984). His final role
was in King Cobra, released during 1999. His television credits included guest
appearances in the series McCloud and The Bionic Woman and as Aaron Southworth
in Dallas: The Early Years.
He recorded more than 20 albums of his own work, of which
the best was probably Road Songs (1977) where he duetted with Linda Ronstadt.
In the 1980s he issued his recordings on his own Jeremiah label. His final
albums were Spin of the Wheel, issued in 1991, and Jeremiah Was A Bullfrog, a
collection of songs for children.
In 1996 Axton suffered a severe stroke which hampered his
mobility. He had to use a wheelchair much of the time afterwards. He died of
heart failure on October 26, 1999, at the age of 61 at his home in the
Bitterroot Valley near Victor, Montana. Two weeks prior to his death, he
suffered a heart attack at his home and another while undergoing surgery.
On November 1, 2007, Axton and his mother were both inducted
posthumously into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in Muskogee, Oklahoma.
(Edited from the Guardian & Wikipedia)
7 comments:
For “Hoyt Axton – Gold” go here:
https://www.upload.ee/files/9745687/HAG.rar.html
1 Never Gonna Work
2 Bring Your Lovin'
3 Tiger In The Closet
4 Red, White And Blue
5 L.A. Town
6 Heartbreak Hotel
7 Big Red
8 Look Down That Lonesome Road
9 I'll Be There
10 Double Dare
11 ABC (Put On)
12 Young Man
13 Greenback Dollar
14 Thunder 'N Lightnin'
15 This Little Light
16 Trombone Cholly
17 Ox Driver's Song
18 Gamblers Blues
19 We'll Sing In The Sunshine
20 Five Hundred Miles
21 Grizzly Bear
22 Hoochie Coochie Man
23 They've Been On Their Jobs Too Long
24 Voodoo Blues
AllMusic Review by Al Campbell
Singer/actor/songwriter Hoyt Axton's peak period was unquestionably the early to mid-'70s; he wrote a number of hits in that era, including "Snowblind Friend," "Never Been to Spain," "No No Song," "Joy to the World," and "The Pusher," not to mention his own laid-back baritone vocal on the chart-topping "Boney Fingers" and "Della & the Dealer." In contrast, Gold provides an interesting yet non-essential glimpse into the pre-country-pop of Axton's early, developing material. Performed mainly in the folk style of the early '60s, these 24 tracks were originally recorded for Vee-Jay Records. Early hits like "Greenback Dollar" and "Thunder N' Lightnin'" are included, along with a version of "Heartbreak Hotel" which was co-written by Axton's mother, Mae.
Thank you!
Thank you.
BB.......please re-post Hoyt Axton. Didn't realize I had not one album by him. This one looks good!
Thanks,
D
u da man....thanks
Hey boppin Bob, I was too late for your re-up. any chance of a re-up of the re-up?
Hello RR, Here's Hoyt..
https://www.imagenetz.de/dimDi
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