Barbara Pittman
Barbara Pittman | |
---|---|
Born | April 6, 1938 |
Died | October 20, 2005 67) | (aged
Genres | Country, Rockabilly |
Occupation(s) | Singer |
Instruments | Vocals |
Years active | 1955–2005 |
Labels | Sun, Phillips |
Barbara Pittman (April 6, 1938 – October 29, 2005) was one of the few female singers to record at Sun Studio. As a young teenager, she recorded some demos of songs for others. Pittman's most popular recordings include "I Need A Man" on the Sun label and "Two Young Fools In Love", released on Sam Phillips' International label.
Biography
Barbara Pittman grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. As a child, she was friends and neighbors with Elvis Presley. She recalled to an interviewer, "I sang with him, I knew him, I lived down the street from him when we were kids in North Memphis. His mom and mine used to get together to have what they called Stanley parties. They call them Tupperware parties now. I practically lived out at Graceland in the 1950s before Elvis went into the service. He was going to take me on the road with him, and then he got drafted." [1] It was Elvis who first brought Barbara to Sun Studios.
Pittman spent time working in Lash LaRue's western shows in 1955–1956. When she returned, she began recording at Sun Records. Between 1956 and 1960, she would cut four different singles there as well as a host of material that was never released, including demo records. Her records did not achieve much commercial success; Pittman stated in interviews that this was due to a lack of promotion on the part of the label.[2][3]
After her time at Sun, she moved to California and appeared in several motorcycle films.
Discography
Singles
- "I Need A Man" / "No Matter Who's To Blame", Sun, 1956
- "I'm Getting Better All The Time" / "Two Young Fools In Love", Phillips, 1957
- "Everlasting Love" / "Cold Cold Heart", Phillips, 1958
- "Handsome Man" / "The Eleventh Commandment", Phillips, 1960
Compilation albums
- The Original Sun Sides, Rockhouse, 1983
- I Need A Man, Bear Family, 1989
- Getting Better All The Time, Charly, 1997
Live albums
- Texas Boogie - Recorded Live In Houston, Magnum, 1984
References
- ↑ Davis, Hank (2002). Memphis Belles: The Women of Sun Records. Hamberg, Germany: Bear Family Records. ISBN 3897958732.
- ↑ Pittman, Barbara. "Oral History Project". www.empmuseum.org/. No longer available online.
- ↑ Kennedy, Rick; McNutt, Randy (1999). Little labels--big sound: small record companies and the rise of American music. Indiana University Press. p. 103. ISBN 0-253-33548-5.
External links
- Rockabilly Hall of Fame
- Allmusic
- Partial discography
- Barbara Pittman Gone at Age 67
- Barbara Pittman & Elvis