Nashville's First Professional Songwriters
Today, on what would have been her 100th birthday, we celebrate and remember the light that was Felice Bryant.
Her talent was incomparable. Her love for life and those around her was insurmountable. Her presence in a word: unforgettable.
Felice is missed everyday, but her legacy is kept alive through the countless number of beloved songs she left behind.
This is one of our favorite photos of Felice, seen here with her pal Minnie Pearl and singer Demetriss Tapp in 1971!
#boudleauxbryant #felicebryant #nashvillesfirstprofessionalsongwriters #amylee #davestewart #Eurythmics #Evanescence #lovehurts
It is always so special to hear reinterpretations of some of our favorites. We are loving this take on “All I Have to do is Dream” performed by Pretty Gritty.
The season of love needs a soundtrack. And Nashville doesn’t need to listen any further than historic songwriting couple Boudleaux and Felice Bryant.
Thursday at the Schermerhorn Center, acclaimed performers in soul, country and Americana teamed with the Nashville Symphony for a one-night celebration of Music City’s first songwriting duo.
A 21st century tribute to the Bryant legacy — including Everly Brothers’ “Bye Bye Love,” rock giant “Love Hurts” and Tennessee state song “Rocky Top” — comes on the 100th anniversary of Boudleaux Bryant’s birth and a day before the 75th anniversary of the couple’s meeting.
“There’s something for everyone in tonight’s program” said Del Bryant, show emcee and son of Felice and Boudleaux. “We have rare photos and family footage, award-winning musicians, award-winning recording artists … and we have great, great, great songs.”
It’s been quite a year for the legacy of Nashville songwriters Boudleaux and Felice Bryant.
Ken Burns introduced PBS viewers this fall to the the couple — known best as Nashville’s first full-time songwriting team — during his 16-hour documentary epic “Country Music.”
As Burns spread their story to nearly 35 million “Country Music” viewers, the Country Hall of Fame and Museum readied to open an exhibit illustrating the rich Bryant songwriting history — from penning Everly Brothers standards “All I Have To Do Is Dream” and “Bye Bye Love” to state song “Rocky Top” and hundreds more.
And now, country music faithful get a stocking full of unreleased holiday music from Boudleaux and Felice Bryant.
Listen below to “No Place Like Home On Christmas” and “Holiday March,” previously unreleased demos performed by the Bryants.
Watch the Video:
Operating under the guise of our motto here at “Trivially Speaking” — Educate, Inform, Entertain (or best two out of three) — here is a cultural awareness quiz.
Do you recognize the name, Felice Scaduto? No, what about Boudleaux Bryant? She became Felice Bryant at age 19.
Boudleaux and Felice Bryant collaborated to become one of the most prolific and successful songwriting teams of the 1950s (and all-time). But that’s getting ahead of the story — I am listening to several of their hits they wrote for the Everly Brothers as I type.
Boudleaux was born into a musical family and learned classical violin and piano from age 5.
He played with the Atlanta Philharmonic Orchestra when he was 19 but he had more interest in country fiddling so joined Hank Penny and his Radio Cowboys.
His group performed at a hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1945 where he met Matilda Genevieve Scaduto (he called her Felice).
Nashville’s Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum celebrated its newest exhibit, We Could: The Songwriting Artistry of Boudleaux and Felice Bryant, on Sept. 26. The event, held ahead of the exhibit’s official opening on Sept. 27, was filled with speakers and tribute performances from Nashville stars.
The husband-and-wife Hall of Famers (inducted in 1991) were Music City’s first career songwriters, penning more than 1,500 songs for artists such as the Everly Brothers, Little Jimmy Dickens and Roy Orbison. “It’s fair to say that, in the Nashville music industry, the Bryants invented the occupation of full-time professional songwriter, making a living crafting songs for others,” Vice President of Museum Services Brenda Colladay said.
After a performance of “Country Boy” — the Bryants’ first hit thanks to Fred Rose of Acuff-Rose Publishing — from Old Crow Medicine Show‘s Ketch Secor and Critter Fuqua, Colladay highlighted the couple’s beginnings in music. Boudleaux Bryant was a violin prodigy who later became a fiddle player, while Felice Bryant held a love for poetry and grew up singing and acting on the radio. When the two combined their talents and moved to Nashville, they created a unique recipe for songwriting that carried on for decades.
Speaking of their early days working from their trailer on Dickerson Road in Music City, Colladay quoted something Boudleaux once told a newspaper reporter: “Inspiration is a misused word. Writing a song is something like writing a letter. You sit down, you compose your thoughts and you write.”
Of the dozens of tales told in Ken Burns’ epic “Country Music” documentary, its sweetest love story is about a couple you may have never heard of.
But you’ve definitely heard their songs.
The husband-and-wife duo of Boudleaux and Felice Bryant met by chance in 1945. He was a touring jazz musician, and came to perform at a Milwaukee hotel where she worked as an elevator operator. Within days, they ran away together, and married that same year.
Soon, Boudleaux and Felice found out they were an incredible songwriting team.
They’d move to Nashville, and go on to write “Bye Bye Love,” “Love Hurts” and other classics for the Everly Brothers, as well as one of Tennessee’s state songs, “Rocky Top,” among thousands of other compositions.
Now, their songs and story are on display in a new exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum: “We Could: The Songwriting Artistry of Boudleaux and Felice Bryant.”
ATLANTA, Sept. 20, 2019—Explore Georgia, a division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), and Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB), join forces to celebrate the Boudleaux Bryant Festival in Shellman, Georgia on Oct. 11 and 12, 2019. Bryant, a native of Shellman, and his wife, Felice, are songwriting hall of famers. They’ve composed more than 6,000 songs, 900 of which have been recorded by a variety of artists from different genres, and sold over half a billion records. The couple, known as the first professional songwriters of Nashville, are featured prominently in Ken Burns’ latest epic documentary, Country Music, which will continue Sept. 22 through Sept. 25 on GPB and can be streamed on gpb.org.
Commemorating the documentary and what would have been Bryant’s 100th birthday in February, the City of Shellman and Shellman Beautification Association hosts two days of free events including live music, a fiddling contest, a BBQ competition, cornhole tournament, food vendors, arts and crafts, kids’ activities and more. GPB will be on site showing excerpts of Country Music throughout the day.
“The songs of Georgia native Boudleaux Bryant and his wife Felice have been part of popular culture for decades, but to share the story of the couple behind the music with millions through Ken Burns’ documentary is extraordinary,” said Lisa Love, Interim Deputy Commissioner of Explore Georgia at the Georgia Department of Economic Development. “Just as wonderful, however, is the opportunity to have locals and visitors come together to celebrate a musician in his rural hometown 100 years after his birth.”
“GPB is proud to join with Explore Georgia to celebrate the phenomenal talents of Boudleaux and Felice Bryant,” said Emmalee Hackshaw, Director of Community Engagement for GPB. “As Country Music has shown us, they’ve played a central role in the genre’s success, and we’re honored to pay tribute to their legacy.”
“I too am from South Georgia,” said Del Bryant, Boudleaux and Felice’s youngest. “My father was always excited when he was coming home. I’m also thrilled to be South Georgia bound once again. Thank you Shellman for honoring one of your favorite sons who loved you so.”
“Thank you Shellman for keeping the Boudleaux Bryant story alive,” said eldest son Dane. “Boudleaux wanted to be remembered as a songwriter and musician. You have helped make that happen. Thank you.”
The free Boudleaux Bryant Festival kicks off Friday night, Oct. 11 at 8 p.m. with a performance by the Bo Henry Band and on Sat. Oct. 12, the festivities run from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. with Virginia Prescott, host of GPB’s On Second Thought, hosting a discussion with Del Bryant at 11 a.m. followed by the fiddling contest at noon. Artists performing throughout the day include Matt Rogers Band, Few Miles South, Back in the Saddle and Lee Pilcher.
About Boudleaux Bryant: Born in Shellman and raised in Moultrie, Georgia, Boudleaux Bryant is recognized, along with his wife Felice, as one of America’s most prolific songwriters with a catalog of hits including “Bye Bye Love,” “Wake Up Little Susie,” “All I Have To Do Is Dream,” “Love Hurts,” “Come Live With Me” and the bluegrass standard “Rocky Top.” From a musical family, Boudleaux studied classical violin from ages five through 18, when he joined the Atlanta Philharmonic for a season. For two years after that, he played hillbilly fiddle and performed regularly on WSB in Atlanta as a member of Hank Penny’s Radio Cowboys. Then, while touring the country with a jazz group, he met his future wife, Felice, in Milwaukee, Wis., married her and brought her home to Moultrie, where they began to pair her poems and lyrics with his melodies and send them to publishers. The Bryants’ first break came when Little Jimmy Dickens recorded their song “Country Boy” and it became a Top Ten folk/country hit in 1949. A year later, the couple moved permanently to Nashville and embarked on a songwriting career that led to work with artists including Jimmy Dickens, Carl Smith, Eddy Arnold, Kitty Wells, Chet Atkins, Roy Orbison and other Nashville legends. Their songs were cut by a diverse number of artists including Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, Ray Charles, Count Basie, Bob Dylan, the Grateful Dead, the Beatles, and many, many, many more. The Bryants are members of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, as well as the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame. The pair will also be honored with a 10-month exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum in Music City, which opens Sept.27. Listen to their music here.
About the Artists: For more than 20 years, the Albany-based Bo Henry Band has been a staple in the Southeast, playing soul, blues and Southern Rock through the lens of a laid-back, South Georgia jam band. Steeped in the tradition of Georgia’s successful country singer/songwriters, Matt Rogers has spent the last few years touring constantly, building a devout fan base while earning accolades including Music City SongStar winner, NSAI Top-40 Songwriter and Georgia Country Awards Overall Artist of the Year. His 2018 single, “Peaches and Pecans,” pays homage to his home state and was played at all of the University of Georgia home games at Sanford Stadium during their 2018 season. United by their love of the songs of the Great American West, Atlanta’s Back in the Saddle plays classic cowboy and western swing music. Led by veteran Atlanta singers “Frenchy” Berne Poliakoff and “Gallopin’” Gwen Hughes, the band features vocal harmonies, stellar musicianship and rollicking humor and fun. Singer/songwriter Lee Pilcher grew up in Ellaville and brings all the influences of his South Georgia upbringing, from country and blues to funk and soul, to his songs.
About the Boudleaux Bryant Fiddling Contest: All styles of fiddling are welcome; the categories are Youth (up to 12 years old); Junior (13-17); Adult (18 and up) with cash prizes ranging from $25 to $500. The contest, which is free to enter, will be held at 12 noon on Sat. Oct. 12. Fiddlers can register online at georgiamusicfoundation.org or register on site between 10-11:30 a.m.
About GDEcD
The Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) plans, manages and mobilizes state resources to attract new business investment to Georgia, drive the expansion of existing industry and small business, locate new markets for Georgia products, inspire tourists to visit Georgia and promote the state as a top destination for arts events and film, music and digital entertainment projects. www.georgia.org
About Georgia Public Broadcasting
As one of the largest PBS stations in the nation, Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB Media) has been creating content worth sharing for over 50 years. With nine television stations, 18 radio stations and a multi-faceted digital and education division, GPB strives to educate, entertain and enrich the lives of our viewers and listeners with programming that includes statewide radio news, current affairs, high school sports, educational resources for teachers and students and enlightening programs about our state like Georgia Outdoors, A Seat at the Table, On Second Thought, Political Rewind and more. For more information, visit www.gpb.org.
Contacts:
Explore Georgia:
Emily Murray
emurray@georgia.org, 404-962-4078
Georgia Public Broadcasting:
Mandy Wilson
mwilson@gpb.org, 404-685-2427
House of Bryant Publications PR:
Amber Williams, Beaucoup Media
amber@beaucoupmedia.co, 615-513-3222