William Toliver Carlisle (December 19, 1908 – March 17, 2003), better known as Bill Carlisle and Jumpin' Bill Carlisle, was an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

singer, songwriter, comedian, and guitarist popular in the late 1940s and 1950s but who influenced the genre for more than 50 years. He is a member of the

Country Music Hall of Fame The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the world's largest museums and research centers dedicated to the preservation and interpretation of American vernacular music. Chartered in 1964, the museum has amass ...

Biography

Carlisle was born in

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

, Kentucky southeast of

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

. He performed in the 1920s with his older brother, Cliff Carlisle, on radio stations WLAP-AM in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

, and WNOX-AM in

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...

. His first solo single and hit was the 1933 recording of "Rattlesnake Daddy," released on ARC Records. That year he formed the Carlisle Brothers with Cliff, and in 1938 they signed with

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

and continued performing on Kentucky country radio programs. He created an

alter ego An alter ego (Latin for "other I") means an alternate Self (psychology), self, which is believed to be distinct from a person's normal or true original Personality psychology, personality. Finding one's alter ego will require finding one's other ...

for the WNOX's ''Mid-Day Merry-Go-Round'' and ''Tennessee Barn Dance'' shows called Hot Shot Elmer, a bumbling buffoon in costume who would "interrupt" Carlisle's own performances. His leaps on stage won him the moniker "Jumpin' Bill." Carlisle's guitar style was noted for its precision and speed, and he employed yodeling as a vocalist. Like his brother, he released many songs which included humorous, veiled references to sexuality. The duo signed with King Records after World War II, and hit big with the

Ernest Tubb Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), marked ...

cover, "A Rainbow at Midnight", in 1946. Carlisle had a solo hit in 1948 with "Tramp on the Street". Cliff retired from the business about 1950, and Bill put together a backing ensemble, The Carlisles, though none of them was related to him. Among its members were singer Martha Carson and songwriter Betty Amos. Carlisle signed with

Mercury Records Mercury Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It had significant success as an independent operation in the 1940s and 1950s. Smash Records and Fontana Records were sub labels of Mercury. Mercury Records released ...

and continued to release

novelty song A novelty song is a type of song built upon some form of novel concept, such as a gimmick, a piece of humor, or a sample of popular culture. Novelty songs partially overlap with comedy songs, which are more explicitly based on humor, and w ...

hits in the 1950s, such as "Too Old to Cut the Mustard", a top ten country hit in 1951 later covered by artists including

Rosemary Clooney Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American singer and actress. She came to prominence in the early 1950s with the song "Come On-a My House", which was followed by other pop numbers such as "Botch-a-Me (Ba-Ba-Baciami Piccin ...

and

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however, Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

. Other hits included the number one smash "No Help Wanted" (their biggest) and the top ten "Taint Nice (To Talk Like That)", both 1953. That year the Carlisles were invited to join the

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 ...

. In the mid-1950s, Carlisle was a regular performer on ABC-TV's '' Ozark Jubilee''. He also wrote the gospel song "Gone Home," which has been recorded by Flatt & Scruggs, Ricky Skaggs, and the Jerry Garcia Acoustic Band. Carlisle said he never recorded the song himself because he "just did so much better with the novelty stuff."

Personal life

In 1953, Carlisle, his wife, and children, Bill Jr. (born 1942), and Sheila, moved to

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the largest town in population between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district () of Minden-Lübbecke, situated in the cultural region ...

in Webster Parish, Louisiana, to be near the Louisiana Hayride in

Shreveport Shreveport ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, third-most populous city in Louisiana after New Orleans and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The bulk of Shreveport is in Caddo Parish, Lo ...

. At the time Tillman Franks of Shreveport was his manager."Nationally Famous Folk Song Writer Moves to Minden", ''Minden Press'', October 2, 1953, pp. 1, 16 His children became members of The Carlisles group in the 1960s; his last hit was "What Kinda Deal Is This", released in 1965. After his fame receded, he continued as a regular at the Opry, appearing less than two weeks before his death on March 17, 2003, in

Nashville 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 ...

, Tennessee.

Legacy

Carlisle was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in September 2002.

Chart singles

References

External links

Bill Carlisle biography at CMT.com

Bill Carlisle recordings
at the

Discography of American Historical Recordings The Discography of American Historical Recordings (DAHR) is a database catalog of master recordings made by American record companies during the 78rpm era. The 78rpm era was the time period in which any flat disc records were being played at ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Carlisle, Bill 1908 births 2003 deaths American country singer-songwriters American country guitarists American male guitarists Grand Ole Opry members Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Members of the Country Music Association Country musicians from Kentucky People from Spencer County, Kentucky People from Minden, Louisiana King Records artists Decca Records artists RCA Victor artists Mercury Records artists Columbia Records artists Hickory Records artists 20th-century American singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Kentucky 20th-century American guitarists Baptists from Louisiana Singer-songwriters from Louisiana Guitarists from Kentucky Guitarists from Louisiana Baptists from Kentucky Country musicians from Louisiana 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century Baptists American male singer-songwriters American yodelers