American country music songwriter and record producer
Bob Ferguson
|
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Bob Ferguson
|
|
Birth name
| Robert Bruce Ferguson
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Also known as
| Eli Possumtrot
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Born
| (
1927-12-30
)
December 30, 1927
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Origin
| Willow Springs, Missouri
,
United States
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Died
| July 22, 2001
(2001-07-22)
(aged 73)
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Genres
| Country
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Occupation(s)
| Singer, songwriter, actor, author, philanthropist
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Instrument(s)
| Vocals, guitar, steel string, piano
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Years active
| 1955?1978
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Labels
| RCA Victor
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Musical artist
Robert Bruce Ferguson
(December 30, 1927 – July 22, 2001) was an American
country music
songwriter
and
record producer
who was instrumental in establishing
Nashville, Tennessee
as a center of country music. He was also a movie producer, and
Choctaw
Indian
historian
. Ferguson is best known for writing the bestselling songs "
On the Wings of a Dove
" and "
The Carroll County Accident
".
[1]
The "Carroll County Accident" won the
Country Music Association
Song of the Year in 1969. In 1983 "
Wings of a Dove
" was featured in the movie
Tender Mercies
starring
Robert Duvall
. In 1987,
Broadcast Music Incorporated
(BMI) awarded Ferguson with the "million air" plays for the "Wings of a Dove."
The country song "Carroll County Accident", recorded by
Porter Wagoner
, made No. 2 on the
Billboard
country singles chart (No. 92 pop) and No. 1 on the
Cash Box
country singles chart. The tune was also recorded by Wagoner's longtime duet partner
Dolly Parton
. Ferguson married twice, first to
Harvie June Van
(1950s/60s) then to Martha Jean Lewis (1970 to 2001).
Biography
[
edit
]
Early life and education
[
edit
]
Ferguson was born in
Willow Springs, Missouri
, the third son of John Carl and Mary Willie Boles Ferguson. His brothers were John Carl,
Alan Claude
, and Paul Eugene. John Carl attended the
United States Naval Academy
and graduated in 1944. Alan Claude became a renowned forest ranger. Paul Eugene, as an enlisted sailor, witnessed many Pacific Proving Grounds atomic tests while aboard the
USS
Estes
. The Fergusons have a rich legacy including ancestors whom participated in the
American Revolution
.
While in high school, Ferguson was a typesetter at the local newspaper, a fire tower lookout for the
U.S. Forest Service
, and a member of the
Missouri State Guard
during
World War II
. After graduating from high school in 1945, he entered the
U.S. Army
. He attained the rank of
sergeant
and served as a
radioman
for two winters in Alaska. He tested military equipment under Arctic conditions. He went on to study at
Southwest Missouri State University
.
After discharge from the Army, Ferguson went out West and worked for the U.S. Forest Service as a fire tower lookout and trail crew boss. He also worked as a laborer in the wheat fields and a typesetter for the newspaper in
Moses Lake, Washington
. He led the Boy Scout Troop from that city to the
Boy Scout Jamboree
at
Valley Forge, Pennsylvania
, in 1950.
Ferguson then entered
Washington State College
,
Pullman, Washington
, under the
G.I. Bill
and earned a BS degree in Speech. He specialized in radio and television production.
While in college, Ferguson joined a
Marine Forces Reserve
unit. He was called to duty during the
Korean War
(1950?1952). Ferguson served as a
drill instructor
at the
Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego
and producer of Marine training motion pictures.
Tennessee Game and Fish Commission
[
edit
]
From about 1955-1961, Ferguson worked at the Tennessee Game and Fish Commission, headquartered in Nashville, where he produced films for the agency.
[2]
In 1959, Ferguson was to produce for the commission a 39 segment series on hunting, fishing, and wildlife subjects.
[3]
In 1960, the North American Wildlife Conservation Association named his production
The World Outdoors
the "Best Motion Picture of the Year."
The World Outdoors
influenced many wildlife television shows, most notably
Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom
series.
While working there, Ferguson also started in the music business. In 1958 he wrote his first multi-million seller song "On the Wings of a Dove". It was recorded by
Ferlin Husky
whom Ferguson met in
El Cajon, California
. It has since been recorded by many artists and in many languages around the world. It was featured in the movie
Tender Mercies
(1983), starring
Robert Duvall
. In 1987, "Wings of a Dove" received
BMI
's "One million airplays" Award.
Performing with Husky, Ferguson played a character called Eli Possumtrout in
The Good Old Days
, a motion picture produced by the Tennessee Game and Fish Commission.
Nashville record producer
[
edit
]
After graduation from college, Ferguson moved to
Nashville, Tennessee
, as manager for
Ferlin Husky
.
"Tex Ritter once explained that ... It would be impossible to point to just one example of good fortune, or good timing, and say 'Right there was my big break.'"
Burt & Ferguson-
So You Want To Be In Music!
, 1970
[4]
The success of his song "On the Wings of a Dove"
[5]
enabled Ferguson to turn full-time to music. He became a senior producer with
RCA Victor
, where he helped create the
Nashville Sound
of the 1950s and 1960s. He served as executive assistant to
Chet Atkins
until his retirement. While there, he produced records, many in
RCA Studio A
. He particularly worked with producing the acts of
Porter Wagoner
,
[5]
Dolly Parton
,
[5]
(from 1967 - 75 he produced nearly all of Wagoner and Parton's duet albums, as well as all of their respective solo releases during that time) and
Connie Smith
. He also produced records by
Floyd Cramer
,
Danny Davis
,
The Browns
,
Helen Cornelius
,
Lester Flatt
,
Homer and Jethro
,
Charlie Pride
and many others. With Atkins, he played a major role in the development of what was to become known as the
Nashville Sound
and elevated Nashville as the
country music
capital of the world. He also played a major role in developing the
Country Music Association
. His first successful single was with The Avons.
Ferguson developed a comedy role as "Grandpappy Eli Possumtrot", a name which he took from a crossroad community near his childhood home in
the Ozarks
. In that role, he recorded his own song, "Eli's Blue", a lament about a man who accidentally shot his dog.
Ferguson wrote several other songs, including the million seller, "Carroll County Accident",
[5]
first recorded by Porter Wagoner. In 1969 it received a Country Music Award for the "Song of the Year". In the 1960s Ferguson also wrote "Natividad", a Christmas song, and "Choctaw Saturday Night", a tribute to
Choctaw
Native Americans.
The country song "Carroll County Accident" was written when Ferguson passed through Carroll County when driving from Nashville to a concert for the Choctaw Indians in Philadelphia, Miss., according to an interview Ferguson granted with Steve Eng for the Wagoner biography
A Satisfied Mind
. He recounted that he passed a sign for Carroll County in Tennessee, which inspired the song's title, and when he saw a sign for Carroll County in Mississippi the song was a finished work. Wagoner took the song to No. 2 on the Billboard country singles chart (No. 92 pop) and No. 1 on the
Cash Box
country singles chart. The tune was also recorded by Wagoner's longtime duet partner Dolly Parton.
Writer
[
edit
]
With Jesse Burt as co-author, Ferguson wrote two books:
So You Want to be in Music
and
Southeastern Indians: Then and Now
.
So You Want to be in Music
is a book about the music industry for aspiring songwriting and recording professionals.
Southeastern Indians: Then and Now
is a general-interest book about
Native Americans
of the
Deep South
, covering the
Choctaw
,
Cherokee
,
Creek
,
Chickasaw
, and
Seminole
tribes.
Anthropology
[
edit
]
While working at RCA, Ferguson earned a Master's Degree in
anthropology
from
Vanderbilt University
. He served as volunteer Project Director and President of Southeastern Indian Antiquities Survey and in that role oversaw the survey, recovery, and preservation of remains and artifacts unearthed during construction in the Nashville area. One startling discovery was the remains of the first
saber-toothed tiger
found east of the Mississippi River. It was found during construction of the
Regions Center
, former First American Bank building, in downtown Nashville.
[6]
[7]
On September 25, 1997, the newly established hockey team, the
Nashville Predators
, adopted the head of a saber-toothed tiger as their logo.
Final years and death
[
edit
]
"In the rich tapestry of American life, ... the southeastern Indian and his brothers everywhere see their own special and beautiful heritage. They are Americans who happen to be Indians and are proud of it.'"
Burt & Ferguson-
Indians of the Southeast: Then and Now
, 1973
[8]
After his retirement from RCA, Ferguson moved his family to live near the reservation of the
Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
in
Philadelphia, Mississippi
. He had worked in various capacities with the tribe since the 1950s. There he served as editor of the
Choctaw Times
, and historian and audio- visual producer for the
Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians
. In that role, he helped establish the Museum of the Southern Indian (Choctaw Museum) in 1981. He also worked part-time as promotional director of the
Chucalissa Prehistoric Indian Village
in
Memphis, Tennessee
.
[9]
In 1983, he created the foundation for Choctaw Video Productions and created numerous tribal productions.
In 1987, Ferguson established WHTV as local cable service for Pearl River/Philadelphia, Mississippi. He retired from that position in 1998, when he was also named Tribal Historian
Emeritus
. He established the tribe's organic gardening program in 1978.
Ferguson died of
cancer
on Sunday, July 22, 2001 at 1:05 a.m. in the
University of Mississippi
Medical Center in
Jackson, Mississippi
. He was buried at Phillip's Cemetery in rural
Neshoba County
near
Philadelphia, MS
.
Legacy and honors
[
edit
]
"Jim Ed and I actually met in Studio B at RCA Records where we recorded many of our hits that followed the initial, “I Don't Want To Have To Marry You.” He had been an RCA artist for years and I had just been signed to the label, both of us were produced by Bob Ferguson ... Bob Ferguson played some of my demo tape recordings for Jim Ed, but he did not like my voice. Thank goodness Bob convinced him that we would blend, and that the song became a hit. It was the #1 song in the nation three months after we had met in the studio."
Country Stars Central-
Helen Cornelius Interview
, 2010
[10]
Ferguson was the recipient of many awards and recognitions during his multiple careers. He was also a member of
Mensa
, a
society of people with high I.Q.s
.
- 1960, the North American Wildlife Conservation Association named his production
The World Outdoors
the "Best Motion Picture of the Year."
- 1969, "Carroll County Accident", Country Music Award for the "Song of the Year".
- 1987, "Wings of a Dove" received BMI's "One million airplays" Award.
- 1987, receives the Iron Eyes Cody Peace Medal. Only 48 medals were made and awarded.
- 2012, honored with a Mississippi Country Music Trail marker
Selection of singles/albums
[
edit
]
Ferguson worked for nearly 30 years at RCA's Studio B producing hundreds of albums for artists such as Chet Atkins, Dolly Parton, and Porter Wagoner.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Morris, Edward.
"
"Wings of a Dove" Writer, Bob Ferguson, Dies at 73 in Mississippi"
. Retrieved
2008-05-13
.
- ^
"Bob Ferguson"
,
Clarionledger
, 23 Jul 2001, accessed 16 Mar 2009
- ^
Billboard
. 19 October 1959.
- ^
Ferguson, Bob; Jesse Burt (1970). "The "Big Break" Fallacy".
So You Want To Be In Music
. Abingdon Press. p. 42.
ISBN
0-687-39000-1
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Leverett-Crew, Libby (2003). "In The Circle of Family and Friends".
Saturday Nights With Daddy At The Opry
. Rutledge Hill Press. p. 123.
ISBN
1-4016-0114-6
.
- ^
Ingram, Tom (1971-10-02). "Specialists to Study Cave Bones".
Nashville Tennessean
. p. 7.
- ^
Guilday, John E. (July 1977). "Sabertooth Cat, Smilodon Floridanus (Leidy), and Associated Fauna From a Tennessee Cave (40DV40), the First American Bank Site".
Journal of the Tennessee Academy of Science
.
52
(3): 84?94.
- ^
Ferguson, Bob; Jesse Burt (1973).
"It's Happening with Southeastern Indian Youth"
.
Indians of the Southeast: Then and Now
. Abingdon Press. p.
271
.
ISBN
0-687-18793-1
.
- ^
"Bob Ferguson"
Archived
May 28, 2009, at the
Wayback Machine
,
Mississippi History Newsletter
, Sept. 2001, accessed 16 Mar 2009
- ^
Country Stars Central.
"Helen Cornelius Interview"
. Retrieved
2011-05-14
.
External links
[
edit
]
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1967?1970
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1971-1980
| |
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1981-1990
| |
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1991-2000
| |
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2001-2010
|
- "
Murder on Music Row
" -
Larry Cordle
, Larry Shell (2001)
- "
Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)
" -
Alan Jackson
(2002)
- "
Three Wooden Crosses
" -
Doug Johnson
,
Kim Williams
(2003)
- "
Live Like You Were Dying
" -
Tim Nichols
,
Craig Wiseman
(2004)
- "
Whiskey Lullaby
" -
Bill Anderson
,
Jon Randall
(2005)
- "
Believe
" -
Ronnie Dunn
,
Craig Wiseman
(2006)
- "
Give It Away
" -
Bill Anderson
,
Buddy Cannon
,
Jamey Johnson
(2007)
- "
Stay
" -
Jennifer Nettles
(2008)
- "
In Color
" -
Jamey Johnson
,
Lee Thomas Miller
,
James Otto
(2009)
- "
The House That Built Me
" -
Tom Douglas
,
Allen Shamblin
(2010)
|
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2011-2020
|
- "
If I Die Young
" -
Kimberly Perry
(2011)
- "
Over You
" -
Miranda Lambert
,
Blake Shelton
(2012)
- "
I Drive Your Truck
" -
Jessi Alexander
, Connie Harrington,
Jimmy Yeary
(2013)
- "
Follow Your Arrow
" -
Brandy Clark
,
Shane McAnally
,
Kacey Musgraves
(2014)
- "
Girl Crush
" -
Hillary Lindsey
,
Lori McKenna
,
Liz Rose
(2015)
- "
Humble and Kind
" -
Lori McKenna
(2016)
- "
Better Man
" -
Taylor Swift
(2017)
- "
Broken Halos
" -
Mike Henderson
,
Chris Stapleton
(2018)
- "
Beautiful Crazy
" -
Luke Combs
,
Wyatt Durrette
, Robert Williford (2019)
|
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2021-2030
| |
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International
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National
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Artists
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Other
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