1. Claude King was an American country music singer and songwriter, best known for his 1962 million-selling hit, "Wolverton Mountain".
22 Facts About Claude King
1. 2.
Claude King purchased a guitar at the age of twelve, and although he learned to play, most of his time was devoted to sports.
3.
Claude King received a baseball scholarship to the University of Idaho at Moscow, Idaho.
4.
Claude King formed a band with his friends Buddy Attaway and Tillman Franks called the Rainbow Boys.
5.
Claude King joined the Louisiana Hayride, a television and radio show produced at the Shreveport Municipal Auditorium and broadcast throughout the United States and in the United Kingdom.
6.
Claude King was frequently on the same programs with Elvis Presley, Tex Ritter, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Webb Pierce, Kitty Wells, Jimmie Davis, Slim Whitman, Faron Young, Johnny Horton, Jim Reeves, George Jones, Tommy Tomlinson, and Lefty Frizzell.
7.
Claude King recorded a few songs for Gotham Records though none were successful.
8.
Claude King struck immediately, cutting "Big River, Big Man," both a country top 10 and a small pop crossover success.
9.
Claude King soon followed with "The Comancheros" inspired by the John Wayne film of the same name It was a top 10 country hit in late 1961 and crossed over into the popular chart.
10.
Claude King released his best-known recording in the spring of 1962.
11.
Claude King followed up with a song about the 1864 battle of Atlanta in the Civil War.
12.
In late 1962, Claude King recorded "I've Got The World By The Tail," which narrowly missed the country Top 10.
13.
Claude King's singles continued to make the country charts through 1972.
14.
Claude King left the label in 1973 after twenty-nine hits.
15.
In 1977, King recorded in some sessions for producer Howard A Knight, Jr.
16.
Besides a career in recording and touring, Claude King performed as an actor in several movies.
17.
On June 3,2003, Claude King released a CD called Cowboy in the White House, co-produced with Robin Vosbury and Tillman Franks and released by Sun Records.
18.
On February 11,2007, Claude King was inducted into the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce Walk of Stars.
19.
Claude King joined other celebrities with strong ties to the Greater Shreveport area in this honor, including Terry Bradshaw, Kix Brooks, Johnnie Cochran, Tom Jarriel, Joe Ferguson, Eddie Robinson, Hal Sutton, and David Toms, as well as his musical colleagues, James Burton, Jim Reeves, Faron Young, Jimmie Davis, Chris Aable, Elvis Presley, and Tillman Franks.
20.
In 2011, Claude King was named one of "Five Living Legends of Shreveport" by Danny Fox of KWKH radio.
21.
Claude King died suddenly at his home in Shreveport on March 7,2013, at the age of ninety.
22.
Claude King is survived by his wife, the former Barbara Coco, with whom he had celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary a month prior to his death.