PORTER WAGONER videos (opening for White Stripes)

Porter Wagoner plays with Grinderman & The White Stripes @ MSG tonight (July 24).

more Porter Wagoner (and Dolly Parton) below….

Porter Wagoner (born August 12, 1927, in West Plains, Missouri, in the Ozark Mountains) is an American country music singer. Famous for his flashy Nudie suits and blonde pompadour, Wagoner introduced a young Dolly Parton to his long-running television show. Together, “Porter and Dolly” were a well-known duet team for many years. After they split, Parton wrote the song “I Will Always Love You” about him.”

“His first band, The Blue Ridge Boys, performed on radio station KWPM from a butcher shop in West Plains, Missouri where Wagoner cut meat. Wagoner’s big break came in 1951, when he was hired as a performer by station KWTO in Springfield, Missouri. This led to a contract with RCA Records. With lagging sales, Wagoner and his trio played schoolhouses for the gate proceeds.” [Wikipedia]

“The Porter Wagoner Show ran on syndicated television from 1960 to 1979. There were 686 thirty minute episodes filmed, the first 104 being shot in black and white, the remainder in color. At its peak, it was featured in over 100 markets, with three million-plus viewers” [Wikipedia]

“Wagoner was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2002. His 81 charted records include “Misery Loves Company” (#1, 1962), “I’ve Enjoyed As Much of This As I Can Stand” (#7, 1962–1963), “Sorrow on the Rocks” (#5, 1964), “Green, Green Grass of Home” (#4, 1965), “Skid Row Joe” (#3, 1965–1966), “The Cold Hard Facts of Life” (#2, 1967), and “The Carroll County Accident” (#2, 1968–1969). Among his hit duets with Dolly Parton were a cover of Tom Paxton’s “The Last Thing on My Mind” (1967), “We’ll Get Ahead Someday” (1968), and “Better Move it on Home” (1970). He also won three Grammy Awards for gospel recordings.” [Wikipedia]

“On July 14, 2006, Wagoner was hospitalized and underwent surgery for an abdominal aneurysm. On June 05, 2007, Wagoner released his latest album called “Wagonmaster”. The album is produced by Marty Stuart for the Anti-label.” [Wikipedia]