Billy Grammer
Encyclopedia
Billy Wayne Grammer was an American
country music
singer and noted guitar player. He was known for the million-selling "Gotta Travel On", which made it onto both the country
and pop music
charts
in 1959.
. His father was a musician
; he played the violin
and trumpet
.
He served in the US Army
during World War II
, and upon discharge worked as an apprentice toolmaker at the Washington Naval gun factory at Shop No. 20. Grammer married his high school girlfriend, Ruth Burzynski, in 1944. Shortly after the war ended, 18,000 of a 24,000-strong workforce were laid off, including Grammer. The couple returned to their home in Franklin County, Illinois
.
in Nashville, Tennessee
, he scored with "Gotta Travel On", written
by Paul Clayton. The song peaked at No. 4 on the U.S. Pop Singles
chart and peaked at No. 5 on the country chart in 1959. That same year, he became a regular cast member on the Grand Ole Opry
. Grammer named his band after his most notable hit as The Travel On Boys. "Gotta Travel On" was used as the opening song by Buddy Holly
on his final tour in January and February 1959, which ended in tragedy. He recorded the first chart version of Mel Tillis
' "Detroit City", entitled "I Wanna Go Home". It hit the Billboard
country chart in early 1963.
Grammer founded RG&G (Reid, Grammer & Gower) Company in 1965 with Clyde Reid and J.W. Gower. RG&G made the Grammer guitar from 1965 until 1968, when a fire consumed the factory in downtown Nashville. The company was then sold to Ampeg, and a new factory was erected down the street from the old one. The company was renamed Grammer Guitar, Inc. (GGI). GGI produced the Grammer guitar until 1970. His guitar was installed into the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville on March 1, 1969.
On May 15, 1972, Grammer and the Travel On Boys played at the rally in Laurel, Maryland
where Alabama
governor George Wallace
was shot. Grammer and his band played the "Under the Double Eagle" march
as Wallace mounted the stage to speak. After he spoke, Wallace mingled with the crowd, and Arthur Bremer
shot a concealed handgun at the presidential candidate. The outcome was Wallace's paralysis
, leaving him using a wheelchair for the rest of his life. "I've said all along, if they wanted to do something like this, they do it under these circumstances," Grammer said, weeping, after the incident.
Grammer delivered the invocation for the Grand Ole Opry House opening on March 16, 1974. In 1990, he was inducted into the Illinois Country Music Hall of Fame, along with Tex Williams
, Lulu Belle and Scotty
, and Patsy Montana
.
Grammer suffered from a degenerative eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa
. and became completely blind. On February 27, 2009, he was honored by the Grand Ole Opry
for his 50 year membership.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer and noted guitar player. He was known for the million-selling "Gotta Travel On", which made it onto both the 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...
and pop music
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
charts
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
in 1959.
Biography
Grammer, the eldest of 13 siblings (nine boys and four girls), was born in Benton, IllinoisBenton, Illinois
Benton is a city in Franklin County, Illinois, United States. The population was 7,087 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Franklin County. The city is part of the Metro Lakeland area.- History :...
. His father was a musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
; he played the violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
and trumpet
Trumpet
The trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
.
He served in the US 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...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and upon discharge worked as an apprentice toolmaker at the Washington Naval gun factory at Shop No. 20. Grammer married his high school girlfriend, Ruth Burzynski, in 1944. Shortly after the war ended, 18,000 of a 24,000-strong workforce were laid off, including Grammer. The couple returned to their home in Franklin County, Illinois
Franklin County, Illinois
Franklin County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 39,561, which is an increase of 1.4% from 39,018 in 2000. Its county seat is Benton.-History:...
.
Music career
Signed by Monument RecordsMonument Records
Monument Records was an American record label, Washington, D.C. named for the Washington Monument, founded in 1958, by Fred Foster and Buddy Deane . Buddy Deane soon left the company, and in the early 60's bought KOTN in Pine Bluff, Arkansas where he retired to until his death...
in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, he scored with "Gotta Travel On", written
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
by Paul Clayton. The song peaked at No. 4 on the U.S. Pop Singles
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart and peaked at No. 5 on the country chart in 1959. That same year, he became a regular cast member on the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
. Grammer named his band after his most notable hit as The Travel On Boys. "Gotta Travel On" was used as the opening song by Buddy Holly
Buddy Holly
Charles Hardin Holley , known professionally as Buddy Holly, was an American singer-songwriter and a pioneer of rock and roll...
on his final tour in January and February 1959, which ended in tragedy. He recorded the first chart version of Mel Tillis
Mel Tillis
Lonnie Melvin Tillis , known professionally as Mel Tillis, is an American country music singer. Although he recorded songs since the late 1950s, his biggest success occurred in the 1970s, with a long list of Top 10 hits....
' "Detroit City", entitled "I Wanna Go Home". It hit the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
country chart in early 1963.
Grammer founded RG&G (Reid, Grammer & Gower) Company in 1965 with Clyde Reid and J.W. Gower. RG&G made the Grammer guitar from 1965 until 1968, when a fire consumed the factory in downtown Nashville. The company was then sold to Ampeg, and a new factory was erected down the street from the old one. The company was renamed Grammer Guitar, Inc. (GGI). GGI produced the Grammer guitar until 1970. His guitar was installed into the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville on March 1, 1969.
On May 15, 1972, Grammer and the Travel On Boys played at the rally in Laurel, Maryland
Laurel, Maryland
Laurel is a city in northern Prince George's County, Anne Arundel County, and Howard County, Maryland, United States, located midway between Washington, D.C. and Baltimore. Incorporated in 1870, the city maintains a historic district including its Main Street...
where Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
governor George Wallace
George Wallace
George Corley Wallace, Jr. was the 45th Governor of Alabama, serving four terms: 1963–1967, 1971–1979 and 1983–1987. "The most influential loser" in 20th-century U.S. politics, according to biographers Dan T. Carter and Stephan Lesher, he ran for U.S...
was shot. Grammer and his band played the "Under the Double Eagle" march
Josef Wagner (composer)
Josef Franz Wagner was an Austrian military bandmaster and composer. He is sometimes known by the sobriquet 'The Austrian March King'....
as Wallace mounted the stage to speak. After he spoke, Wallace mingled with the crowd, and Arthur Bremer
Arthur Bremer
Arthur Herman Bremer is an American convicted for an assassination attempt on U.S. Democratic presidential candidate George Wallace on May 15, 1972 in Laurel, Maryland, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life...
shot a concealed handgun at the presidential candidate. The outcome was Wallace's paralysis
Paralysis
Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
, leaving him using a wheelchair for the rest of his life. "I've said all along, if they wanted to do something like this, they do it under these circumstances," Grammer said, weeping, after the incident.
Grammer delivered the invocation for the Grand Ole Opry House opening on March 16, 1974. In 1990, he was inducted into the Illinois Country Music Hall of Fame, along with Tex Williams
Tex Williams
Sollie Paul Williams , known professionally as Tex Williams, was an American Western swing musician from Ramsey, Illinois....
, Lulu Belle and Scotty
Lulu Belle and Scotty
Myrtle Eleanor Cooper and Scott Greene Wiseman , known professionally as Lulu Belle and Scotty, were one of the major country music acts of the 1930s and 1940s, dubbed The Sweethearts of Country Music.-Career:Cooper was born in Boone, North Carolina; Wiseman was from Spruce Pine, North...
, and Patsy Montana
Patsy Montana
Ruby Rose Blevins , known professionally as Patsy Montana, was an American country music singer-songwriter and the first female country performer to have a million-selling single...
.
Grammer suffered from a degenerative eye disease called retinitis pigmentosa
Retinitis pigmentosa
Retinitis pigmentosa is a group of genetic eye conditions that leads to incurable blindness. In the progression of symptoms for RP, night blindness generally precedes tunnel vision by years or even decades. Many people with RP do not become legally blind until their 40s or 50s and retain some...
. and became completely blind. On February 27, 2009, he was honored by the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
for his 50 year membership.
Death
Grammer died on August 10, 2011, aged 85, at Benton Hospital, where had been receiving treatment for a long-term illness, which included suffering a heart attack seven months earlier.Singles
| Year | Single | Chart Positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
US R&B Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,... |
CAN Country | ||
| 1959 | "Gotta Travel On" | 5 | 4 | 14 | — |
| "The Kissing Tree" | — | 60 | — | — | |
| "Bonaparte's Retreat" | — | 50 | — | — | |
| 1963 | "I Wanna Go Home Detroit City "Detroit City" is a song made famous by country music singer Bobby Bare. Originally released in 1963, the song — sometimes known as "I Wanna Go Home" — was Bare's first Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart that summer, and became a country music standard.-About the song:Prior to... " |
18 | — | — | — |
| 1964 | "I'll Leave the Porch Light A-Burning" | 43 | — | — | — |
| 1966 | "Bottles" | 35 | — | — | — |
| "The Real Thing" | 30 | — | — | — | |
| 1967 | "Mabel (You Have Been a Friend to Me)" | 48 | — | — | — |
| 1968 | "The Ballad of John Dillinger" | 70 | — | — | — |
| 1969 | "Jesus Is a Soul Man" | 66 | — | — | 5 |