Sometimes a songwriter toils for years to get their work noticed by the right artist. And sometimes a high school principal sets a historic U.S. battle to song to keep his students from falling asleep in class, and it turns into a number-one hit for country star Johnny Horton. Such was the case with Jimmy Driftwood, who wrote “The Battle of New Orleans” in 1936 as a history lesson for his Arkansas students. It was just one of more than 6,000 folk songs penned by Driftwood, born in Timbo, Arkansas, on this day (June 20) in 1907.
How Jimmy Driftwood Got His Name
Born James Corbett Morris, Jimmy Driftwood’s lifelong nickname resulted from a prank that his grandfather played on his grandmother shortly after the boy’s birth.
When the two arrived to visit their newborn grandson, Driftwood’s grandfather arrived first and wrapped a bundle of old sticks in a blanket. After his wife arrived, he handed her the bundle, prompting her to remark, “Why, it ain’t nothing but driftwood.”
As a child, Driftwood learned to play guitar on an instrument his grandfather had crafted using a fence rail, an old ox yoke, and the headboard of his grandmother’s bed. The instrument would become his trademark in later years.
Getting Discovered
Jimmy Driftwood dedicated much of his adulthood to teaching, confining songwriting to his spare time. However, his two passions collided when he noted that students seemed to respond better to history when he set that history to music. He became well-known across the Ozark region for his lyrical lessons.
Legally changing his name to Jimmy Driftwood in the 1950s, he began submitting his songs to publishers in Kansas City.
Eventually his work reached Ozark Jubilee star Don Warden, who had recently formed his own publishing company with Porter Wagoner. After hearing “The Battle of New Orleans”, Warden called RCA.
The singer recorded his first album, Jimmie Driftwood Sings Newly Discovered Early American Folk Songs, in 1958, backed on guitar by renowned producer Chet Atkins.
Country singer Johnny Horton also connected with “The Battle of New Orleans” after hearing it on the radio, and he reached out to Driftwood for permission to record it.
Horton’s version of “The Battle of New Orleans” rocketed up the charts, leading to Grammy Awards and Carnegie Hall performances for its songwriter.
Outside of Music
In addition to his musical legacy, Jimmy Driftwood became a fierce advocate for the history and ecology of his native Ozark region.
In his later years, he enjoyed performing free concerts for high school and college students until his death from a heart attack at age 91 on July 12, 1998, in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Featured image by Gai Terrell/Redferns/Getty Images
The post Born in Arkansas 119 Years Ago Today, the School Principal Turned Country-Folk Songwriter Who Penned This Humorous Historical Hit appeared first on American Songwriter.
Author: Erinn Callahan
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