Red Foley was one of the biggest stars in Country Music during the immediate post-war era.  Red was a silky-voiced singer who sold some 25 million records between 1944 and 1965 and whose popularity went far in making country music a viable mainstream commodity. Born Clyde Julian Foley on June 17, 1910, in Blue Lick, KY, he began playing guitar and harmonica at a young age, and by the time he was 17 had taken first prize in a statewide talent competition. While attending college in 1930, he was spotted by a talent scout from Chicago’s WLS radio and was tapped to sing with producer John Lair’s Cumberland Ridge Runners, the house band on the program for the popular National Barn Dance. 

Red Foley was born into a family that dearly loved music.  His father played the fiddle and encouraged Red to play an instrument and to sing.  In 1937, he became a regular on the famous Renfro Valley Barn Dance Show.  In 1941, he moved back to Chicago and co-starred with Red Skelton in the network country radio show “Avalon Time.”  It was about this time that he signed a recording contract with Decca Records.  His first release was a song he had written in 1933 about a dog he had owned as a child.  The German Shepherd was named, “Hoover,” but in the song he was “Old Shep.”

In those glorious days of Radio, an entertainer had to go where the most promising breaks occurred. After exiting the Renfro Valley Barn Dance, Foley returned for another seven-year stint at the National Barn Dance Show in Chicago. In 1941, the same year he made his film debut with Tex Ritter in the Western, “The Pioneers,” he signed a lifetime contract with Decca Records.  His first chart single in 1944 was “Smoke on the Water.” It topped the charts for 13 consecutive weeks; in 1945, he was the first major performer to record in Nashville.   This was the beginning of the mass country music corporation migration from New York that led to Nashville becoming the Country Music Capitol of the World.

Red Foley’s popularity grew throughout the war years, and in April 1946, he became a member of the Grand Ole Opry, replacing Roy Acuff as the star of NBC’s prestigious “Prince Albert Show.”  Over the next several years, Red established himself as one of the most respected and versatile performers in country music.  He would play “straight man” to such notable comedians as Rod Brasfield and Minnie Pearl, then vocalize any style of song.

In 1951, Red Foley lost his wife Eva. In order to devote the majority of his time to raising a family, he cut back considerably on his performing commitments, although he continued to release hit after hit in a variety of musical styles, including “(There’ll Be) Peace in the Valley (For Me).” A 1951 smash hit, it was the first record ever to sell one million copies on the gospel charts and became a classic.

In 1954, Red Foley moved to KWTO Springfield, Missouri as the host of the “Ozark Jubilee,” which, in 1956, became one of the first successful network television country shows.  Red hosted this show, which proved to be a training ground for some of the most popular entertainers of the day.  The list is long, but would include Porter Wagoner, Brenda Lee, and Hawkshaw Hawkins.  Yours truly did a guest performance for Red Foley on the Ozark Jubilee in 1955, singing “Hello Operator,” which was my first hit on Columbia Records.  The Jubilee enjoyed a long run, ending in 1961.

Between 1944-59, Red Foley charted 41 solo country entries of which 38 were Top 10 hits. He had six country number 1 hits, including his 1950, million-selling “Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy,” which also topped the pop charts. Several others achieved crossover pop chart success. During this time he also had many major hit duets with various artists including Evelyn Knight, his daughter Betty Foley, Ernest Tubb, (Goodnight Irene) and six with Kitty Wells, including the number 1 hit, “One By One,” which remained on the charts for 41 weeks.

Although Red Foley continued recording throughout most of the 1960s, his hit-making days were largely behind him. His importance to the country music scene is often overlooked and little has been written about him, but he was rightfully elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1967.  The Foley family was very much involved in show business.  His daughter Betty was a popular country vocalist in her own right, and another daughter Shirley became the wife of pop crooner Pat Boone. 

Red Foley was headlining a touring Opry show that included a young Hank Williams, Jr., when, after playing the matinee and evening shows, Foley suffered a heart attack and died in his sleep at Fort Wayne, Indiana, on 19 September 1968. This prompted Hank Jr., the last person to speak to him, to write and record, as Luke The Drifter, Jr., the tribute narration “I Was With Red Foley (The Night He Passed Away),” which charted for him in November 1968. In the song, Hank Jr. relates, that after reminiscing about the problems faced by a country singer, such as himself and Hank Sr., Red’s final words were “I’m awful tired now, Hank, I've got to go to bed.”

Dusty Owens
TCM Radio News