Ronnie McDowell
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| Ronnie McDowell | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 26, 1950 |
| Origin | Fountain Head, Tennessee, United States |
| Genre(s) | Country |
| Occupation(s) | singer |
| Instrument(s) | vocals |
| Years active | 1977-present |
| Label(s) | Scorpion, Epic, MCA, Curb |
| Associated acts | Elvis Presley Conway Twitty |
| Website | Official website |
Ronnie McDowell (born March 26, 1950) is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1977 with the song "The King Is Gone", a tribute to Elvis Presley, who had died not long before the single's release.
From that single to the present day, McDowell has charted more than thirty Top 40 hits on the Billboard country music charts. He has also released more than twenty studio albums to date, primarily on major labels.
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[edit] Career
Following the death of Elvis Presley in 1977, McDowell had a one-off hit with his self-penned tribute song "The King Is Gone," which he recorded on the independent Scorpion record label. The record took off immediately, gaining airplay on country and pop radio stations across the United States and around the world. To date, "The King Is Gone" has sold more than 5 million copies.
Suddenly, the young man from Portland, Tennessee was a star and he quickly proved that he was not a fluke. McDowell scored a second hit for the Scorpion label entitled "I Love You, I Love You, I Love You" before being signed by CBS Records Epic in 1979.
McDowell charted a string of hit singles and albums for Epic between 1979 and 1986. Every single release, with the exception of one, became a Top 10 hit, including the chart-toppers "Older Women" and "You're Gonna Ruin My Bad Reputation." Other hits during his Epic years included "Watching Girls Go By," "Personally," "You Made A Wanted Man Of Me," "All Tied Up," and "In A New York Minute."
McDowell toured constantly to support each album release, and consequently built a large fan base throughout the country. He sought the advice of artists such as Conway Twitty, who became his mentor and friend. Twitty helped the young singer with advice about touring, recording and entertaining the fans.
Moving to Curb Records in 1986, (his current label), McDowell scored a Top 10 hit with "It's Only Make Believe," a duet with Conway Twitty on what had been Twitty's breakthrough rock and roll hit in 1958. Two years later, McDowell teamed up with Jerry Lee Lewis for a duet that McDowell wrote, entitled "You're Never Too Old To Rock N' Roll." He also recorded yet another Top 10 hit with his cover version of the pop standard "Unchained Melody," which also became a #1 country music video. He started appearing in larger venues and touring with artists such as Conway Twitty, Tammy Wynette and Loretta Lynn before headlining his own shows.
Two of McDowell's most recent projects on Curb Records include an album of beach music with Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters, entitled, "Ronnie McDowell with Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters". The second project is a new country album, entitled "Ronnie McDowell Country", a collection of six new McDowell penned songs and a few country standards by such legendary country singers and writers as Buck Owens, Harlan Howard and Dallas Frazier.
McDowell often tours with Elvis Presley's original sidemen, Scotty Moore and D.J. Fontana, along with The Jordanaires and Millie Kirkham. They stage a tribute to Presley's music and life. McDowell sang thirty six songs on the soundtrack, "Elvis," the Dick Clark-produced television movie which featured Kurt Russell as the performer. He also was the singing voice for the television movie "Elvis And Me", the ABC television series about the early years of Presley's' career, "Elvis," and the 1997 Showtime special, "Elvis Meets Nixon." McDowell continues to tour the road, selling out shows all across America to this day.
[edit] Personal life
Ronnie McDowell currently resides in Nashville, Tennessee. Along with touring, he paints in what spare time he has. A recent painting of his features a young Elvis with a guitar looking into a mirror and seeing his reflection as the Elvis we usually see.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- I Love You, I Love You, I Love You (1978)
- A Tribute to the King (1979)
- Elvis (1979)
- Rockin' You Easy, Lovin' You Slow (1979)
- Love So Many Ways (1980)
- Good Time Lovin' Man (1981)
- Greatest Hits (1982)
- Country Boy's Heart (1983)
- Personally (1983)
- Willing (1984)
- In a New York Minute (1985)
- All Tied Up in Love (1986)
- Older Women and Other Greatest Hits (1987)
- I'm Still Missing You (1988)
- American Music (1989)
- The Best of Ronnie McDowell (1990)
- Your Precious Love (1991)
- Unchained Melody (1991)
- When a Man Loves a Woman (1992)
- Country Dances (1993)
- Greatest Hits (1994)
- Great Gospel Songs (1996)
- Elvis: A Tribute to the King (1997)
- Now & Again: The Best of Ronnie McDowell (1998)
- Ronnie McDowell Country (2002)
- Ronnie McDowell with Bill Pinkney's Original Drifters (2002)
- Live at Church Street Station (2006)
[edit] Singles
| Year | Title | US Country | US Hot 100 | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1977 | "Only the Lonely" | The King Is Gone | ||
| "Naturally" | ||||
| "The King Is Gone" | 13 | 13 | ||
| 1978 | "I Love You, I Love You, I Love You" | 5 | 81 | I Love You, I Love You, I Love You |
| "Here Comes the Reason I Love" | 15 | |||
| "This Is a Holdup" | 39 | |||
| "I Just Wanted You to Know" (w/ The Jordanaires) | 59 | |||
| "Animal" (w/ The Jordanaires) | 59 | |||
| "Bridge Washed Out" | ||||
| 1979 | "World's Most Perfect Woman" | 18 | Rockin' You Easy, Lovin' You Slow | |
| "Love Me Now" | 26 | |||
| "He's a Cowboy from Texas" | 68 | |||
| "Kiss and Say Goodbye" | ||||
| "Knight in Faded Blue Jeans" | ||||
| 1980 | "Never Seen a Mountain So High" | 29 | Rockin' You Easy, Lovin' You Slow | |
| "Lovin' a Livin' Dream" | 37 | Love So Many Ways | ||
| "How Far Do You Want to Go" | 80 | |||
| "Gone" | 36 | Going, Going, Gone | ||
| 1981 | "Wandering Eyes" | 2 | ||
| "Older Women" | 1 | Good Time Lovin' Man | ||
| "Watchin' Girls Go By" | 4 | |||
| 1982 | "I Just Cut Myself (On a Piece of Her Broken Heart)" | 11 | Country Boy's Heart | |
| "Step Back" | 7 | |||
| 1983 | "Personally" | 10 | Personally | |
| "You're Gonna Ruin My Bad Reputation" | 1 | |||
| "You Made a Wanted Man of Me" | 3 | |||
| 1984 | "I Dream of Women Like You" | 7 | Willing | |
| "I Got a Million of 'Em" | 8 | |||
| 1985 | "In a New York Minute" | 5 | In a New York Minute | |
| "Love Talks" | 9 | |||
| 1986 | "All Tied Up" | 6 | All Tied Up in Love | |
| "When You Hurt, I Hurt" | 37 | |||
| "Lovin' That Crazy Feelin'" | 30 | |||
| 1987 | "Make Me Late for Work Today" | 55 | ||
| 1988 | "It's Only Make Believe" (w/ Conway Twitty) | 8 | I'm Still Missing You | |
| "I'm Still Missing You" | 36 | |||
| "Suspicion" | 27 | |||
| 1989 | "Never Too Old to Rock 'n' Roll" (w/ Jerry Lee Lewis) | 50 | ||
| "Sea of Heartbreak" | 39 | American Music | ||
| "Who'll Turn Out the Lights" | 69 | |||
| 1990 | "She's a Little Past Forty" | 50 | The Best of Ronnie McDowell | |
| "Unchained Melody" | 26 | Unchained Melody | ||
| 1993 | "Yippy Ti-Yi-Yo" | Country Dances | ||
| 1994 | "I'll Make Love to You" | |||
| "What's It Gonna Take" | Greatest Hits | |||
| 1997 | "Love Me Tender" (w/ The Elvis Originals) | Elvis: A Tribute to a King | ||
| "Tupelo's Too Far" (w/ The Elvis Originals) |
