Artist:Mickey GilleySong:Stand By Me
Album:Ten Years Of Hits
Though Mickey Gilley grew up in the shadow of his cousin Jerry Lee Lewis, he became very successful in his own right in the 70s and into the 80s with the Urban Cowboy movement. His cover of Stand By Me was in the film Urban Cowboy and was Gilley's biggest crossover hit. He was born Mar. 9, 1936 in Natchez, MS and grew up playing piano with cousins Jerry Lee Lewis and evangelist Jimmy Swaggart. Lewis' success convinced Gilley to become a singer. He performed in clubs through the 60s and bought into Shelley's in Pasadena, TX in 1970 and renamed it Gilley's. In 1974, he released a cover of the George Morgan hit Room Full Of Roses and that got him a record deal with Playboy Records. Yes, it was owned by Hugh Hefner. His girlfriend at the time Barbi Benton was a country singer and a Hee Haw regular. Gilley had a string of number one country hits on Playboy. Epic Records bought his contract when Playboy closed in 1978. Gilley's recordings were slipping a bit because of the rise of country pop crossover artists like Kenny Rogers. So he adjusted his sound and got a big boost when Gilley's was used as the main setting for the 1980 hit film Urban Cowboy. Gilley appeared in the film and several of his recordings were used in the soundtrack. His cover of the Ben E. King classic Stand By Me topped the country music singles chart and reached #22 on the Billboard Hot 100. I don't think trying to cross over to the pop charts worked as well for Gilley as some other artists and he had faded by the mid-80s. He left Epic in 1987 and also was forced to close Gilley's. It burned down in 1990. This 1984 budget comp was originally released on 2LPs but it's now a single CD and very inexpensive. Mickey Gilley was one of the first artists to open a theater in Branson, MO. His first club burned down in 1994 but he opened another one and still performs every night at Gilley's Texas Cafe in Branson. Mickey Gilley had 17 number one country hits so he did have a good run. Here's Mickey Gilley performing Stand By Me on Branson Jam.
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