Johnny Ace (June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), born John Marshall Alexander… Read Full Bio ↴Johnny Ace (June 9, 1929 – December 25, 1954), born John Marshall Alexander, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee, the son of a preacher. He was one of the stars of U.S. rhythm and blues singing.
Career
After serving in the navy during WWII, Alexander joined Adolph Duncan's Band as a pianist. He then joined the B. B. King band. Soon King departed for Los Angeles and Bobby Bland joined the army. Alexander took over vocal duties and renamed the band The Beale Streeters,[1] also taking over King's WDIA radio show.
Becoming "Johnny Ace", he signed to Duke Records (originally a Memphis label associated with WDIA) in 1952 . My Song, his first recording, topped the R&B charts for 9 weeks in September. (My Song was covered in 1968 by Aretha Franklin.)
Ace began heavy touring, often with Willa Mae "Big Mama" Thornton. In the next two years, he had eight hits in a row, including "Cross My Heart," "Please Forgive Me," "The Clock," "Yes, Baby." and "Never Let Me Go." In December, 1954 he was named the Most Programmed Artist Of 1954 after a national DJ poll organized by U.S. trade weekly Cash Box.
Ace's recordings sold very well for those times. Early in 1955, Duke Records announced that the three 1954 Johnny Ace recordings, along with Thornton's "Hound Dog", had sold more than 1,750,000 records.
Death
After touring for a year, Ace had been performing at the City Auditorium in Houston, Texas on Christmas 1954. During a break between sets, a drunken Ace allegedly decided to play a game of Russian Roulette. He aimed a .45 caliber revolver at his girlfriend, Olivia Gibbs, and pulled the trigger. He then attempted to shoot her friend, Mary Carter. Both times, the hammer fell on an empty chamber. He then swiftly turned the gun on himself and ended his life.
The official story has always been that Ace killed himself playing Russian roulette, but there have been rumors that Johnny Ace was murdered by Don D. Robey. The only official witnesses were record company owner Don D. Robey, who Ace had been trying to renegotiate his contract with, and singer Big Mama Thornton. Both Robey and Thornton testified that Ace killed himself; both went to their graves without ever changing their story — and without convincing many insiders that Johnny hadn't been murdered.
Big Mama Thorton in a written statement (included in the book The Late Great Johnny Ace) said during the investigation that Ace had been playing with the gun, but not playing Russian Roulette. According to Thornton, Ace pointed the gun at his girlfriend and another woman who were sitting nearby, but did not fire. He then pointed the gun toward himself. The gun went off, shooting him in the side of the head.
Ace's January 2, 1955 funeral at Memphis' Clayborn Temple AME church was attended by an estimated 5000 people.
Tributes
Paul Simon wrote a song called "The Late Great Johnny Ace" (on his Hearts and Bones album) that references Johnny Ace's death as well as John Lennon's and John Kennedy's. He performed the song solo during a reunion concert with Art Garfunkel in Central Park in 1981. A fan rushed the stage during the song and was quickly arrested. Simon then completed the song. The incident was shown on the concert video on HBO, but the song was excluded from the live album from that concert.
Rock band Dash Rip Rock has written, recorded & released a song named "Johnny Ace" which tells the story of Johnny Ace's life and death.
Will Oldham (as Palace Music) released a 45 "Gezundeit/Let the Wires Ring" in 1995, "Let the wires ring" last verse mentions Johnny Ace's death.
"Next wave wash your pretty face/ And keep in mind that Johnny Ace/ Was drunk, was fucked, was not on stage/ When he made that silly move he made/ And only after once dead we/ Adore him more, adore that money/ After when his corpse was cool/ That ugly memorable fool/ Who shot the Christmas spirit down/ And lit a fame, that half-made clown."
(full lyrics: http://pry.com/pulpit/lyrics/wiresring.html)
His biggest song, the haunting Pledging My Love, became a hit posthumously in 1955 . His single sides were compiled and released as The Johnny Ace Memorial Album.
David Allan Coe released his tribute version of "Pledging My Love" first on the 1981 album 'Tennessee Whiskey' and then later on his 1990 album 'Headed For The Country'.
Johnny Ace and "Pledging My Love" are mentioned in the early Sam Shepard one-act play Cowboy Mouth.
An early scene in Charles Burnett's 1977 film, Killer of Sheep, includes the line "Going out like Johnny Ace."
He is one of the names mentioned in the television adaptation of Stephen King's short story You Know They Got a Hell of a Band from Nightmares & Dreamscapes. Ace is one of the late musical legends set to appear on stage.
"The Night Johnny Ace Died," short fiction by James Lee Burke, appears in the March 2007 issue of Esquire magazine.
Discography
1952 Remember I Love You (SUN, unissued)
1952 I Cried Last Night (SUN, unissued)
1952 My Song / Follow the Rule (Duke 102) - with Beale Streeters
1953 Cross my Heart / Angel (Duke 107) - with Beale Streeters
1953 The Clock / Aces Wild (Duke 112) - Ace playing piano
1954 Midnight Hours Journey / Trouble And Me (Earl Forrest) (rerelease of 1951 Flair 1015)
1954 Saving my Love for You / Yes, Yes, Baby (Duke 118)
1954 Please Forgive Me / You've Been Gone So Long (Duke 128)
1954 Never Let Me Go / Burley Cutie (Duke 132)
1954 Pledging My Love / No Money (Duke 136) (posthumous release, 12 Feb 1955) - #1 on R&B charts for 10 weeks, US pop charts #17.
1955 Anymore / How Can You Be So Mean (Duke 144) - 10" 78rpm
1956 So Lonely/ I'm Crazy Baby (Duke 148)
1956 Don't You Know / I Still Love You So (Duke 154)
1955 Johnny Ace Memorial Album (Duke LP-70) - 10" EP
1974 Johnny Ace Memorial Album (ABC/Duke DLPX71)
Career
After serving in the navy during WWII, Alexander joined Adolph Duncan's Band as a pianist. He then joined the B. B. King band. Soon King departed for Los Angeles and Bobby Bland joined the army. Alexander took over vocal duties and renamed the band The Beale Streeters,[1] also taking over King's WDIA radio show.
Becoming "Johnny Ace", he signed to Duke Records (originally a Memphis label associated with WDIA) in 1952 . My Song, his first recording, topped the R&B charts for 9 weeks in September. (My Song was covered in 1968 by Aretha Franklin.)
Ace began heavy touring, often with Willa Mae "Big Mama" Thornton. In the next two years, he had eight hits in a row, including "Cross My Heart," "Please Forgive Me," "The Clock," "Yes, Baby." and "Never Let Me Go." In December, 1954 he was named the Most Programmed Artist Of 1954 after a national DJ poll organized by U.S. trade weekly Cash Box.
Ace's recordings sold very well for those times. Early in 1955, Duke Records announced that the three 1954 Johnny Ace recordings, along with Thornton's "Hound Dog", had sold more than 1,750,000 records.
Death
After touring for a year, Ace had been performing at the City Auditorium in Houston, Texas on Christmas 1954. During a break between sets, a drunken Ace allegedly decided to play a game of Russian Roulette. He aimed a .45 caliber revolver at his girlfriend, Olivia Gibbs, and pulled the trigger. He then attempted to shoot her friend, Mary Carter. Both times, the hammer fell on an empty chamber. He then swiftly turned the gun on himself and ended his life.
The official story has always been that Ace killed himself playing Russian roulette, but there have been rumors that Johnny Ace was murdered by Don D. Robey. The only official witnesses were record company owner Don D. Robey, who Ace had been trying to renegotiate his contract with, and singer Big Mama Thornton. Both Robey and Thornton testified that Ace killed himself; both went to their graves without ever changing their story — and without convincing many insiders that Johnny hadn't been murdered.
Big Mama Thorton in a written statement (included in the book The Late Great Johnny Ace) said during the investigation that Ace had been playing with the gun, but not playing Russian Roulette. According to Thornton, Ace pointed the gun at his girlfriend and another woman who were sitting nearby, but did not fire. He then pointed the gun toward himself. The gun went off, shooting him in the side of the head.
Ace's January 2, 1955 funeral at Memphis' Clayborn Temple AME church was attended by an estimated 5000 people.
Tributes
Paul Simon wrote a song called "The Late Great Johnny Ace" (on his Hearts and Bones album) that references Johnny Ace's death as well as John Lennon's and John Kennedy's. He performed the song solo during a reunion concert with Art Garfunkel in Central Park in 1981. A fan rushed the stage during the song and was quickly arrested. Simon then completed the song. The incident was shown on the concert video on HBO, but the song was excluded from the live album from that concert.
Rock band Dash Rip Rock has written, recorded & released a song named "Johnny Ace" which tells the story of Johnny Ace's life and death.
Will Oldham (as Palace Music) released a 45 "Gezundeit/Let the Wires Ring" in 1995, "Let the wires ring" last verse mentions Johnny Ace's death.
"Next wave wash your pretty face/ And keep in mind that Johnny Ace/ Was drunk, was fucked, was not on stage/ When he made that silly move he made/ And only after once dead we/ Adore him more, adore that money/ After when his corpse was cool/ That ugly memorable fool/ Who shot the Christmas spirit down/ And lit a fame, that half-made clown."
(full lyrics: http://pry.com/pulpit/lyrics/wiresring.html)
His biggest song, the haunting Pledging My Love, became a hit posthumously in 1955 . His single sides were compiled and released as The Johnny Ace Memorial Album.
David Allan Coe released his tribute version of "Pledging My Love" first on the 1981 album 'Tennessee Whiskey' and then later on his 1990 album 'Headed For The Country'.
Johnny Ace and "Pledging My Love" are mentioned in the early Sam Shepard one-act play Cowboy Mouth.
An early scene in Charles Burnett's 1977 film, Killer of Sheep, includes the line "Going out like Johnny Ace."
He is one of the names mentioned in the television adaptation of Stephen King's short story You Know They Got a Hell of a Band from Nightmares & Dreamscapes. Ace is one of the late musical legends set to appear on stage.
"The Night Johnny Ace Died," short fiction by James Lee Burke, appears in the March 2007 issue of Esquire magazine.
Discography
1952 Remember I Love You (SUN, unissued)
1952 I Cried Last Night (SUN, unissued)
1952 My Song / Follow the Rule (Duke 102) - with Beale Streeters
1953 Cross my Heart / Angel (Duke 107) - with Beale Streeters
1953 The Clock / Aces Wild (Duke 112) - Ace playing piano
1954 Midnight Hours Journey / Trouble And Me (Earl Forrest) (rerelease of 1951 Flair 1015)
1954 Saving my Love for You / Yes, Yes, Baby (Duke 118)
1954 Please Forgive Me / You've Been Gone So Long (Duke 128)
1954 Never Let Me Go / Burley Cutie (Duke 132)
1954 Pledging My Love / No Money (Duke 136) (posthumous release, 12 Feb 1955) - #1 on R&B charts for 10 weeks, US pop charts #17.
1955 Anymore / How Can You Be So Mean (Duke 144) - 10" 78rpm
1956 So Lonely/ I'm Crazy Baby (Duke 148)
1956 Don't You Know / I Still Love You So (Duke 154)
1955 Johnny Ace Memorial Album (Duke LP-70) - 10" EP
1974 Johnny Ace Memorial Album (ABC/Duke DLPX71)
No Money
Johnny Ace Lyrics
We have lyrics for 'No Money' by these artists:
Alida Oh baby, you're so beautiful to me I can barely breath …
As December Falls I've been doing well at Pretending that I'm happy I'm good a…
B.'ill Well, my bad luck is falling Falling down like rain Bad luck…
Big Engine Late night TV's blarin' The nights seem so uncarin' I…
c-flo Scribbling writing Faster pacing Almost waiting for this to …
C.B.H. Well, my bad luck is falling Falling down like rain Bad lu…
Cahoots feat. Roomie I've learned to pay the bills with this guitar been educated…
Corcovado Frequency Sorry I ain't got no money I'm not trying to be…
D.a.v.e. the Drummer Tutuntuh no money no love No love no love No money no…
El Crok No Money Coro. No Money No Mami, No Money No Mami,…
Enth NO MONEY NO CASH TO PAY おれがいつまでも笑ってると 思うなよ I DONT WANNA PAY …
Galanti Sorry I ain't got no money I'm not trying to be…
Galantis vs Tom & Jame The place that I come from still compares to none We…
GPF & D-Fence Tutuntuh no money no love No love no love No money no…
Hassan Bohmide No money, no sister No house, no No flower No lover Ma andi…
J Slught Aiii aiii OOO... No money in my pocket Owey ooo But I do thi…
J.A.R. Composed by:Mone G LIM J No money no life 没有钱没有生活 High price…
Jacob Tillberg Ooh, I got the money in my pocket, but I'm happy…
Joe Hertler & the Rainbow Seekers I said, Baby need a place to stay. Ain't got no money,…
K.I. I wake up the mothafuckn' rent is due Rent is due Pockets…
Kayna Samet On a tous déserté les bancs de l'école J'voudrais réussir ma…
Kings of Leon Wants to kill me something He wants to kill me off…
Kings Of Leonࠀ Wants to kill me something He wants to kill me off…
Krokot Я остался на светлой тропе, чтоб немного понять себя Уйти на…
M.C. Dee Scribbling writing Faster pacing Almost waiting for this to …
M.i & Tyler Keyes (That's Chucks) Sleepy eyes, heavy heart with a heavy mind …
Madness She'd gotten used to the idle life Following the sun…
Mighty Sparrow Ivy pack up she clothes to leave Because John was…
Natty Bong Sorry I ain't got no money I'm not trying to be…
Psycore I penetrate your weakened mind I take your world from behin…
R. Kelly & Jay-Z Feat. Twista Gave you my heart But you gave it back I gave it…
Rees Finley If I had the words to tell you Then what else…
Rhythm and Poetry Hard to come by but easy go The money leaves but…
Romain Virgo Mi nah have no money As you aks mi you think…
S.M.N. (That's Chucks) Sleepy eyes, heavy heart with a heavy mind …
The Boys I’ve gone and sold everything I own The GPO wanna…
The Common Chaps Not this time (This time I ain′t gonna run away) Sorry, I…
The Evens You've lost control The difference is on your head Keep wh…
The Jellybricks I wanna love you honey but I've run out of…
The Seatbelts No money, no sister, no house, no..... no flower no lov…
The Tiny No money left for me I spent it all on things No…
The Weather Living in a wasteland Just because it feels right Never hear…
Toby Sebastian Honey never spoke to me She′s a live wild fire Living in…
Tragicomi-K Money, money You need money We need the money Give me the mo…
Vapi Sorry I ain′t got no money I'm not trying to be…
Working Vibes Non ne vale la pena solo per il denaro! Cerca intra…
Galantis Sorry I ain’t got no money I’m not trying to be…
We have lyrics for these tracks by Johnny Ace:
Angel You may not know, but I love you You may not…
Anymore Now darling, I proved I really love you And I've always…
Cross My Heart I cross my heart And I hope to die If I should…
My Song You told me, That you would leave me here in tears. But…
Never Let Me Go Just let me love you tonight. Forget about tomorrow. My da…
Please Forgive Me Please forgive me, I've been wrong all my life. Please forg…
Pledgin My Love Forever my darling our love will be true Always and forever…
Pledging My Life Forever my darling our love will be true Always and forever…
Pledging My Love Forever my darling our love will be true Always and forever…
Pleding My Love Forever my darling our love will be true Always and forever…
Saving My Love For You You said you want me, baby, I'm glad I feel so…
The Clock I looked at the face of the clock on the…
The lyrics are frequently found in the comments by searching or by filtering for lyric videos
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trevor empty
Solid gold i should have played this when i was homeless
Mike Keeping
Nick Tosches brought me here.