Dick Curless
Encyclopedia
Richard William Curless (March 17, 1932 – May 25, 1995) was an American
country-music singer, a pioneer of the trucking music genre, commonly known as the "Baron of Country Music." He was easily distinguished because of the patch he usually wore over his right eye.
, Maine
, and moved with his family to Massachusetts
at the age of eight. In 1948, Curless began his music career in Ware
, Massachusetts, where he hosted a radio show and toured with a local band called the "Trail Blazers." He married his wife, Pauline, in 1951, and only six months after the wedding, he was drafted into the army
. He served in the Korean War
from 1952 to 1954 first as a truck driver
and later as a radio host with the stage name "Rice Paddy Ranger."
He returned home to Maine in 1954 and continued performing on radio shows, but he spent much of the following year, 1955, in the privacy of his home due to a chronic illness. In 1956, Curless returned to the public spotlight and appeared on the CBS
television show Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts
. He spent much of the late 1950s performing in clubs in California
and Las Vegas
but occasionally returned home to Maine to recover from periods of illness and fatigue.
In 1965, Curless recorded one of the biggest hits of his career, "A Tombstone Every Mile," which cracked the top-5 on the Billboard country charts
and propelled him to national fame. From 1966 to 1968, he toured the nation with the Buck Owens All American Show. The pinnacle of his career came in the late 1960s with eleven top-40 hits, including "Six Times a Day (the Trains Came Down)." Altogether, he recorded twenty-two Billboard top-40 hits throughout his career.
After his success in 1970 with the hits "Big Wheel Cannonball
" and "Hard, Hard Traveling Man," he recorded infrequently until he released the albums Welcome To My World and It Just A Matter Of Time in Norway
in 1987. The albums were successful in Europe
, especially in Norway and Germany
.
Curless recorded an album with German country musician Tom Astor
in 1991. During the later part of his life, he performed often at the Cristy Lane Theater in Branson
, Missouri
. He died of stomach cancer
in 1995.
His song 'Bury the Bottle With Me' is referenced in the 1975 Stephen King
novel 'Salem's Lot. Recently, Curless was referenced in the comic, Ghost Rider
, when a demonic trucker, with a striking resemblance to Curless himself, plays a 8-track of Tombstone Every Mile while battling one of the Ghost Riders.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country-music singer, a pioneer of the trucking music genre, commonly known as the "Baron of Country Music." He was easily distinguished because of the patch he usually wore over his right eye.
Biography
Curless was born in Fort FairfieldFort Fairfield, Maine
Fort Fairfield is a town in Aroostook County, Maine, United States. The population was 3,496 at the 2010 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 78.4 square miles , of which, 76.6 square miles of it is land and 1.7 square miles ...
, Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, and moved with his family to Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
at the age of eight. In 1948, Curless began his music career in Ware
Ware, Massachusetts
Ware is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 9,707 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.Part of the town comprises the census-designated place of Ware....
, Massachusetts, where he hosted a radio show and toured with a local band called the "Trail Blazers." He married his wife, Pauline, in 1951, and only six months after the wedding, he was drafted into the army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. He served in the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
from 1952 to 1954 first as a truck driver
Truck driver
A truck driver , is a person who earns a living as the driver of a truck, usually a semi truck, box truck, or dump truck.Truck drivers provide an essential service to...
and later as a radio host with the stage name "Rice Paddy Ranger."
He returned home to Maine in 1954 and continued performing on radio shows, but he spent much of the following year, 1955, in the privacy of his home due to a chronic illness. In 1956, Curless returned to the public spotlight and appeared on the CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
television show Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts
Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts
Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts is an American radio and television variety show which ran on CBS from 1946 until 1958...
. He spent much of the late 1950s performing in clubs in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
but occasionally returned home to Maine to recover from periods of illness and fatigue.
In 1965, Curless recorded one of the biggest hits of his career, "A Tombstone Every Mile," which cracked the top-5 on the Billboard country charts
Billboard charts
The Billboard charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs or albums in the United States. The results are published in Billboard magazine...
and propelled him to national fame. From 1966 to 1968, he toured the nation with the Buck Owens All American Show. The pinnacle of his career came in the late 1960s with eleven top-40 hits, including "Six Times a Day (the Trains Came Down)." Altogether, he recorded twenty-two Billboard top-40 hits throughout his career.
After his success in 1970 with the hits "Big Wheel Cannonball
Big Wheel Cannonball
Big Wheel Cannonball was the title of a song written by Vaughn Horton and recorded by American country music artist Dick Curless. It follows the same notes as the hit song "Wabash Cannonball"...
" and "Hard, Hard Traveling Man," he recorded infrequently until he released the albums Welcome To My World and It Just A Matter Of Time in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
in 1987. The albums were successful in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, especially in Norway and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Curless recorded an album with German country musician Tom Astor
Tom Astor
Tom Astor is a German singer and composer. He is noted for his extensive country and western recordings.He has worked with Charlie McCoy.- Albums :*Grand Prix 1976*Asphalt Cowboy 1980*Hallo Trucker 1981...
in 1991. During the later part of his life, he performed often at the Cristy Lane Theater in Branson
Branson, Missouri
Branson is a city in Taney County in the U.S. state of Missouri. It was named after Reuben Branson, postmaster and operator of a general store in the area in the 1880s....
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. He died of stomach cancer
Stomach cancer
Gastric cancer, commonly referred to as stomach cancer, can develop in any part of the stomach and may spread throughout the stomach and to other organs; particularly the esophagus, lungs, lymph nodes, and the liver...
in 1995.
His song 'Bury the Bottle With Me' is referenced in the 1975 Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
novel 'Salem's Lot. Recently, Curless was referenced in the comic, Ghost Rider
Ghost Rider (comics)
Ghost Rider is the name of several fictional supernatural antiheroes appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. Marvel had previously used the name for a Western character whose name was later changed to Night Rider and subsequently to Phantom Rider.The first supernatural Ghost Rider is...
, when a demonic trucker, with a striking resemblance to Curless himself, plays a 8-track of Tombstone Every Mile while battling one of the Ghost Riders.
Albums
| Year | Album | US Country | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1959 | Songs of the Open Country | — | Tiffany |
| 1961 | Singing Just for Fun | — | |
| 1962 | I Love to Tell the Story | — | |
| 1965 | A Tombstone Every Mile | 12 | Tower |
| Hymns | — | ||
| 1966 | The Soul of Dick Curless | — | |
| Travelin' Man | — | ||
| At Home with Dick Curless | — | ||
| A Devil Like Me Needs an Angel Like You (w/ Kay Adams) | 16 | ||
| 1967 | All of Me Belongs to You | — | |
| Ramblin' Country | — | ||
| 1968 | The Long Lonesome Road | 43 | |
| The Wild Side of Town | — | ||
| 1970 | Hard, Hard Traveling Man | — | Capitol |
| 1971 | Doggin' It | 42 | |
| Comin' On Country | 43 | ||
| 1972 | Stonin' Around | — | |
| 1973 | Live at the Wheeling Truck Driver's Jamboree | 37 | |
| The Last Blues Song | — | ||
| 1974 | End of the Road | — | Hilltop |
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
CAN Country | |||
| 1965 | "A Tombstone Every Mile A Tombstone Every Mile "A Tombstone Every Mile" is the title of a song written by Dan Fulkerson and recorded by American country music artist Dick Curless. It was released in January 1965 as the lead single from the album of the same name. The song stayed at number five for two weeks and spent a total of seventeen weeks... " |
5 | — | A Tombstone Every Mile |
| "Six Times a Day (The Trains Come Down)" | 12 | — | ||
| "'Tater Raisin' Man" | 42 | — | Travelin' Man | |
| 1966 | "Travelin' Man" | 44 | — | |
| "Highway Man" | — | — | single only | |
| "A Devil Like Me Needs an Angel Like You" (w/ Kay Adams) | — | — | A Devil Like Me Needs an Angel Like You | |
| "The Baron" | 63 | — | All of Me Belongs to You | |
| 1967 | "All of Me Belongs to You" | 28 | — | |
| "House of Memories" | 72 | — | ||
| "Big Foot" | 70 | — | Ramblin' Country | |
| 1968 | "Bury the Bottle with Me" | 55 | — | The Long Lonesome Road |
| "I Ain't Got Nobody" | 34 | — | ||
| "All I Need Is You" | — | — | single only | |
| 1969 | "The Wild Side of Town" | — | — | The Wild Side of Town |
| 1970 | "Big Wheel Cannonball Big Wheel Cannonball Big Wheel Cannonball was the title of a song written by Vaughn Horton and recorded by American country music artist Dick Curless. It follows the same notes as the hit song "Wabash Cannonball"... " |
27 | 18 | Hard, Hard Traveling Man |
| "Hard, Hard Traveling Man" | 31 | — | ||
| "Drag 'Em Off the Interstate, Sock It to 'Em, J.P. Blues" | 29 | — | ||
| 1971 | "Juke Box Man" | 41 | — | Doggin' It |
| "Loser's Cocktail" | 36 | — | Comin' On Country | |
| "Snap Your Fingers Snap Your Fingers "Snap Your Fingers" is a song written by Grady Martin and Alex Zanetis. It was originally recorded by gospel singer Joe Henderson in 1962, whose version peaked at #2 on the R&B charts and at #8 on the Hot 100 .-Cover versions:... " |
40 | — | ||
| 1972 | "January, April and Me" | 34 | — | Stonin' Around |
| "Stonin' Around" | 31 | 35 | ||
| "She Called Me Baby She Called Me Baby "She Called Me Baby" is a country song written in 1961 by Harlan Howard which despite a number of recorded versions did not appear in the Top 20 of the C&W chart in Billboard until 1974 when a mid-60s recording by Charlie Rich was belatedly released to reach #1 C&W... " |
55 | — | ||
| 1973 | "Chick Inspector (That's Where My Money Goes)" | 54 | — | Live at the Wheeling Truck Driver's Jamboree |
| "China Nights (Shina No Yoru)" | 80 | — | Stonin' Around | |
| "The Last Blues Song" | 65 | — | The Last Blues Song | |
| 1974 | "Swingin' Preacher" | — | — | |
| "Brand New Bed of Roses" | — | — | single only |
External links
- [ Dick Curless: Allmusic Overview]