Zeke Clements (September 6, 1911 – June 4, 1994) was an American country musician often dressed in a Western outfit. He was known as "The Dixie Yodeler."

Biography

Clements was born near Empire, Alabama. In 1928, his career began when he joined Otto Gray and his Oklahoma Cowboys touring show and was signed to the

National Barn Dance ''National Barn Dance'', broadcast by WLS (AM), WLS-AM in Chicago, Illinois starting in 1924, was one of the first American country music radio programs and a direct precursor of the ''Grand Ole Opry''. ''National Barn Dance'' also set the stag ...

at WLS in Chicago.Carlin 2003, p. 68. In 1930, he performed on WSM

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a regular live country music, country-music Radio broadcasting, radio broadcast originating from Nashville, Tennessee, Nashville, Tennessee, on WSM (AM), WSM, held between two and five nights per week, depending on the ...

for the first time.Plantenga 2004, p. 205. In 1933, he became a member of the Bronco Busters, led by Texas Ruby. Zeke Clements and the Bronco Busters became members of the Opry in the 1930s. In the 1930s and 1940s, Clements appeared as a singing cowboy in several of Charles Starrett's B-Westerns.Noles 2002, p. 106. During this time, he also provided the voice of Bashful, the yodeling dwarf, in

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney ( ; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the Golden age of American animation, American animation industry, he introduced several develop ...

's ''

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs "Snow White" is a German fairy tale, first written down in the early 19th century. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection ''Grimms' Fairy Tales'', numbered as Tale 53. The original title was ''Sneewittch ...

''. Clements formed the Western Swing Gang and returned to the Opry in 1939. He had his first major country hit with "

Smoke on the Water "Smoke on the Water" is a song by English rock band Deep Purple, released on their 1972 studio album '' Machine Head''. The song's lyrics are based on true events, chronicling the 1971 fire at Montreux Casino in Montreux, Switzerland. It is ...

". The song was recorded by

Red Foley Clyde Julian "Red" Foley (June 17, 1910 – September 19, 1968) was an American musician who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II. For more than two decades, Foley was one of the biggest stars of the gen ...

in 1944 and became the No. 1 country recording of 1945.Carlin 2003, p. 69.Kavanaugh 2000, p. 40. Also in 1945, he started Liberty Records in Southern California. It was later renamed Blazon Records.Haslam, Russell, Chon 2005, p. 96. After a short stint on the

Louisiana Hayride ''Louisiana Hayride'' is a radio and later television country music show that was broadcast from the Shreveport Municipal Memorial Auditorium in Shreveport, Louisiana; during its heyday from 1948 to 1960, it helped to launch the careers of some ...

in the later 1940s, he appeared on several radio stations in the South. In the 1960s, he moved to Florida and joined a

Dixieland Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ( ...

band as banjo player. He died in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

in 1994.

Footnotes

References

* Carlin, Richard (2003) ''Country Music: A Biographical Dictionary'', Taylor & Francis * Haslam, Gerald W., Alexandra Haslam Russell, Richard Chon (2005) ''Workin' Man Blues: Country Music in California'', Heyday Books * Kavanaugh, Barbara (2000) ''Devotions from the World of Music'', David C. Cook * Noles, Randy (2002) ''Orange Blossom Boys: The Untold Story of Ervin T. Rouse, Chubby Wise...'', Hal Leonard Corp. * Plantenga, Bart (2004) ''Yodel-ay-ee-oooo: The Secret History of Yodeling Around the World'', Routledge {{DEFAULTSORT:Clements, Zeke 1911 births 1994 deaths People from Empire, Alabama Country musicians from Alabama American country singer-songwriters Grand Ole Opry members 20th-century American singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Alabama