Jacob Bazzel Mull ( in

Valdese, North Carolina Valdese ( ) is a town in Burke County, North Carolina, Burke County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 4,689 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Hickory, North Carolina, Hickory-Lenoir, North Carolina, Lenoir-Morganton, North Car ...

– ) was a

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

minister and religious broadcaster in

East Tennessee East Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee defined in state law. Geographically and socioculturally distinct, it comprises approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee. East Tennessee consists of 33 coun ...

Biography

Mull was the grandson of Wallace B. Mull, a circuit riding preacher in the 1800s. His parents and siblings had formed a

Gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is compo ...

group, The Valdese Sacred Band, and Mull played

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

in the group as a child. He had been legally blind since the age of 11 months, after an accidental fall into a fireplace had damaged his eyesight. He memorized verses from the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

as someone read them aloud. Mull began preaching in 1932. In 1939, Mull began preaching on radio stations in

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. In 1942 he began a Gospel music program on two AM radio stations 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 ...

, WROL and WNOX. He later bought an FM station in Knoxville, WJBZ, which he nicknamed ''Praise 96.3''. Mull syndicated the program on nighttime clear-channel megastation WWL 870 AM in

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

and consequently became known among nighttime truck drivers across the United States. Commonly he was master-of-ceremonies with his wife Elizabeth and used the familiar by-line "This is your old neighbour J. Bazzel hen her voiceand Mrs. Mull ack to his voicewith your Mull—''M-U-L-L''—Singing Convention." Recordings by The Chuck Wagon Gang were frequent. The Mulls also broadcast recordings by

Jimmie Davis James Houston Davis (September 11, 1899 – November 5, 2000) was an American singer, songwriter, and Democratic Party politician. After achieving fame for releasing both sacred and popular songs, Davis served as governor of Louisiana from ...

, whom they habitually introduced as "twice Governor of the great State of Louisiana." Mull would solicit orders for the recordings, emphasizing that they were "pressed by Columbia" and that his address was in

, lest it be confused with the larger

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 ...

, which in the public mind was probably more identified with the musical style. Mull branched into television in the 1950s. He hosted an hour-long Gospel music program, ''The Mull Singing Convention'', on Knoxville television, first on

WBIR-TV WBIR-TV (channel 10) is a television station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with NBC. Owned by Tegna Inc., the station maintains studios on Bill Williams Avenue in Knoxville's Belle Morris section, and its transmitter is lo ...

and later on

WVLT-TV WVLT-TV (channel 8) is a television station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with CBS and MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Gray Media alongside Crossville, Tennessee, Crossville-licensed dual The CW, CW/Telemundo affiliate WBXX-TV ...

. Mull's Gospel music program was also broadcast in

Chattanooga, Tennessee Chattanooga ( ) is a city in Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located along the Tennessee River and borders Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the south. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, it is Tennessee ...

, originally on WRGP-TV when that station went on the air in 1956. Mull's show moved to

WTVC WTVC (channel 9) is a television station in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with ABC and Fox. The station is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, and maintains studios on Benton Drive in Chattanooga; its transmitter is located ...

when it began broadcasting in 1959. He also used the Mull Singing Convention name on

shape note Shape notes are a musical notation designed to facilitate congregational and Sing-along, social singing. The notation became a popular teaching device in American singing schools during the 19th century. Shapes were added to the noteheads in ...

hymnals, still published today. Mull was a staunch Democrat even though he hailed from Republican

. As a minister and a Democrat he was known for his humorous comment that the Lord rode a donkey, not an elephant, into Jerusalem. On 26 September 2006 Mull was eulogized on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives by John J. "Jimmy" Duncan Jr., who said that Mull's most famous line was "Ain't that right, Mrs. Mull?" Mull was inducted into the Southern Gospel Hall of Fame in 2003.

References

External links

Columnist reminisces about Mull's program on Chattanooga TV

The Place of Jacob Bazzel Mull's Birth, which their gospel band was named after
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mull, J. Bazzel Evangelists American performers of Christian music Southern gospel performers American gospel singers Blind musicians Singers from Tennessee 1914 births 2006 deaths Tennessee Democrats Baptists from North Carolina 20th-century American singers People from Valdese, North Carolina 20th-century Baptists American blind people American musicians with disabilities