James Joseph Paulsen (September 25, 1943 – October 25, 2019), known professionally as Joe Sun, 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. Recording for the Ovation and

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

labels, Sun charted fourteen

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

on the

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

charts. His highest was his 1978 debut single, the No. 14 "

Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" is a country song written by singer-songwriter Pebe Sebert and Hugh Moffatt. It was a number 14 U.S. country hit for Joe Sun in 1978, and a number 86 hit for Brian Collins the same year. It was later cov ...

Biography

He was born in

Rochester, Minnesota Rochester is a city in Olmsted County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. It is located along rolling bluffs on the Zumbro River's south fork in Southeast Minnesota. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a popul ...

, United States. He spent his youth in college and then in the

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

. He did various jobs, such as working as a DJ at Radio

WMAD WMAD (96.3 FM broadcasting, FM "96-3 Star Country") is a commercial radio, commercial radio station city of license, licensed to Cross Plains, Wisconsin, and serving the Madison metropolitan area. It broadcasts a country music radio format and ...

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

and at a

Key West, Florida Key West is an island in the Straits of Florida, at the southern end of the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Sigsbee Park, Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Islan ...

rock station and he spent two years with a computer firm in Chicago. While in Madison, he sang with a variety of semi-pro bands, working under the name "Jack Daniels". He acquired his style listening to southern music on country's 50,000 watt WSM and rhythm and blues

WLAC WLAC (1510 AM broadcasting, AM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station in Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America. Owned by iHeartMedia, it broadcasts a talk radio radio format, format. The radio studio, studios are in Nashvill ...

radio. In 1972, he made his way to

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 ...

, giving himself five years to "make it" as a musician. For a time, he ran a small graphics business called The Sun Shop, then took up independent record promotions, which led to signing with the

Ovation Records Ovation Records was an American independent record label based in Glenview, Illinois. The label was founded in 1969 by Dick Schory, who had been on RCA Records with his Percussion Pops Orchestra and had helped create the Dynagroove process used ...

label towards the end of 1977. Joe Sun's debut and his first single on Ovation Records " Old Flames (Can't Hold A Candle To You)" was released in May 1978 and climbed steadily up the country charts, reaching the Top 20. Further hits followed on Ovation Records with "High And Dry" (1978), "On Business For The King" (1979), "Blue Ribbon Blues" (1979), "Out Of Your Mind" (1979/1980), "What I Had With You" (1980), "Shotgun Rider" (1980), "Bombed, Boozed, And Busted" (1980), and "

Ready For the Times to Get Better "Ready for the Times to Get Better" is a song written by Allen Reynolds, and recorded by American country music artist Crystal Gayle. The song first appeared on Gayle's album ''Crystal'' in 1976 and was released as a single in January 1978. It was ...

" (1980), an innovative re-make of

Crystal Gayle Brenda Gail Webb (born January 9, 1951), known professionally as Crystal Gayle, is an American country music singer widely known for her 1977 hit " Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue". Initially, Gayle's management and record label were the same ...

's 1978 No. 1 hit. By the time his third album, ''Livin' On Honky Tonk Time'' was released, the record company Ovation closed down. Sun signed with Elektra, who purchased Ovation in 1981. At that time he recorded "I Ain't Honky Tonkin' No More". The album ''Best of Joe Sun'' was released by Elektra. Sun recorded ''The Sun Never Sets'' for Sonet in 1987, followed by ''Twilight Zone'' with Dixiefrog in 1986 and ''Hank Bogart Still Lives'' with Dixiefrog in 1989. This album was outsold in France only by

Randy Travis Randy Bruce Traywick (born May 4, 1959), known professionally as Randy Travis, is an American country and gospel music singer and songwriter, as well as a film and television actor. Active since 1979, he has recorded over 20 studio albums and ...

. In 1991, Dixiefrog released ''Out on the Road'', after Sun's five-month European tour. Sun's first solo album effort, the 1992 ''Dixie and Me'', made its debut on

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

's Crazy Music. Its response prompted the 1994 CD release of ''Some Old Memories'' by the same record label. An album and a video for ''Some Old Memories'' were released in 1994 by Crazy Music and was broadcast on SF1, a Swiss television station and 3SAT, a German/Austrian/Swiss television station. Sun released the ''Heartbreak Saloon'' CD in 1991 with Dixiefrog. He wrote twelve of the fifteen songs on the album. Sun released 15 albums and performed in the United States and Europe. He also recorded national radio spots for

Budweiser Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, a brand of Belgian company AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States. Budweiser is a filte ...

and Timberline Boots. Besides being featured on television shows, having produced two

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

-nominated foreign albums in 1989 and 1990, Sun also acted as Tommy Fratter in the film ''

Marie Marie may refer to the following. People Given name * Marie (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name ** List of people named Marie * Marie (Japanese given name) Surname * Jean Gabriel-Marie, French compo ...

'' alongside

Sissy Spacek Mary Elizabeth "Sissy" Spacek (; born December 25, 1949) is an American actress and singer. She has received List of awards and nominations received by Sissy Spacek, numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over five decades, including ...

Jeff Daniels Jeffrey Warren Daniels (born February 19, 1955) is an American actor. He is known for his work on stage and screen playing diverse characters switching between comedy and drama. He is the recipient of several accolades, including two Primetime ...

and

Morgan Freeman Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, producer, and narrator. In a career spanning six decades, he has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award, as well as a nomination for a Tony ...

. Sun died in

Palm Bay, Florida Palm Bay is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The city's population was 119,760 at the 2020 United States census, up from 103,190 at the 2010 census, making it the most populous city in the county and the largest by land mass. T ...

, on October 25, 2019.

Discography

Albums

Singles

Guest singles

References

External links

Joe Sun's albums Dixie and Me, Some Old Memories

Joe Sun's videos
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sun, Joe 1943 births 2019 deaths People from Rochester, Minnesota Military personnel from Minnesota Elektra Records artists American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters Singer-songwriters from Minnesota Ovation Records artists American people of Danish descent 20th-century American singer-songwriters 20th-century American male singers 21st-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American male singers