Artist:George Hamilton IV
Song:Abilene
Album:Abilene Plus More Great Folk Hits
George Hamilton IV started out as a teen idol in the 50s. He had his greatest success after switching to country music in 1959. The 1963 single Abilene is probably his signature song. He was born July 19, 1937 in Winston-Salem, NC. He was inspired by Gene Autry movies to learn the guitar and he had a band in high school. While attending the University of North Carolina, Hamilton met songwriter John D. Loudermilk who was just getting started in his Hall of Fame career. He took Hamilton into the recording studio and recorded A Rose and a Baby Ruth. The record reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 and ABC-Paramount picked up Hamilton's contract. Hamilton recorded two albums for ABC-Paramount, toured the rockabilly circuit with guys like Eddie Cochran and Gene Vincent and even hosted a variety show. He moved to Nashville in 1959 and signed with RCA Records and producer Chet Atkins. The 1963 single Abilene was Hamilton's only number one country hit and it reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was the biggest hit of his career. Abilene was written by country music legend Bob Gibson along with Lester Brown and John D. Loudermilk. Gibson said he wrote the song after watching the 1946 Randolph Scott western Abilene Town which is set in Abilene, KS. It was mistakenly believed that the song was about Texas. Collectables has reissued Abilene with bonus tracks including A Rose and a Baby Ruth. That's a nice bonus. The one really good George Hamilton IV comp is on the reissue label Bear Family. Sony has done a very poor job with Hamilton's music. Hamilton recorded for RCA until 1976. He became known as the International Ambassador of Country Music. After that Hamilton recorded a couple of gospel albums and toured with Billy Graham in the 80s. He continued to appear regularly on the Grand Ole Opry and recorded occasionally for Dave Moody's label Lamon Records. Hamilton suffered a heart attack and died on Sept. 17, 2014 at age 77. Here's George Hamilton IV performing Abilene on The Jimmy Dean Show.
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