He was performing very much in the rock n roll piano style of his cousin Jerry Lee Lewis (and another cousin, the Reverend Jimmy Swaggart). He formed his own label, Astro in 1964 and cut an album named after a Lewis success "Down the Line". Re-issued on Paula, the album was a regional hit. The big time, however, continued to elude him although he had a minor hit with "Now I Can Live Again" from the album. At an Astro session he laid down a version of George Morgan's old hit "Room Full of Roses" which attracted airplay locally and was picked up for national release by Hugh Heffner's Playboy label. It hit No. 1 in the Country charts. After 12 further hits with the label, Playboy was taken over by Epic and Gilley moved there for his most consistent run of album and singles success.
He was now performing straight-up piano-led Country material. Gradually, he moved towards a more pop-orientated sound in the 1980s, which brought him further success on not just the Country charts, but also the Pop charts. Before that, however, he had a string of Country hits throughout the 70s, often revivals like "I Overlooked An Orchid" (Carl Smith - No. 1, 1974), "City Lights" (Bill Anderson - No. 1 1975), "Window Up Above" (George Jones - No. 1 1975), "Bring It On Home" (Sam Cooke - No. 1 1976). His mix of rockabilly, honky tonk and uptown Country provided more hits with "Chains of Love" (No. 9, 1977) "Honky Tonk Memories" (No. 4, 1977) and "Here Comes The Hurt Again" (No. 9,1978).
In all, Gilley had 33 Top 10 singles, 17 of which reached No. 1, on the US Country chart between 1974 and 1986. Amongst the biggest hits were "Don't the Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time,"(No. 1) "Overnight Sensation" (No. 7, both 1976), remakes of the Ben E King hit "Stand By Me" and Buddy Holly's "True Love Ways" (both No. 1s in 1980).
In 1971 he lent his name to the opening the famous country nightclub Gilley's in Pasadena, Texas. His career received a big boost when both the club and his music featured prominently in the 1980 film "Urban Cowboy". The soundtrack included the Buddy Holly cover which went to No. 1. The club closed in 1989 and the building was heavily damaged by arson later that year. A new Gilley's club opened in 2003 in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. And Gilley's Theatre and Diner in Branson saw the singer take up a successful residency in that Missouri city.
His most recent successful recording activity was in 1988 when he released "Chasin' Rainbows" on Airborne which produced his last Top 40 single to date when "She Reminded Me Of You" reached No 23 in the Country charts.
In July 2009, Gilly suffered a back injury in a fall and was airlifted to Houston for medical treatment but subsequently returned to Branson and performing in his theatre there. He has a Facebook information page on which he sends regular video messages to members. A recent joint biography about the three cousins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Jimmy Swaggert and Mickey, called "Unconquered" by J D Davis is a must for any fan of their music, rock n roll, Country and gospel music.
Joy to the World
Mickey Gilley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him a room,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven and nature sing,
And heaven, and heaven and nature sing.
Joy to the world! The Savior reigns;
While fields and floods,
Rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessing flow
For as the curse is found,
For as the curse is found,
For as, for as the curse is found.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And the wonders of His love,
And the wonders of His love,
And the wonders, wonders of His love.
Joy to the world! The Lord is come...
The song “Joy to the World” by Mickey Gilley is a classic Christmas carol that celebrates the coming of Jesus Christ to the world. The song begins with a declaration of His arrival and urges the earth to receive Him as the King. The next line calls on humanity to prepare a space for Him in their hearts, while also encouraging heaven and nature to join in the hymn of joy. As the chorus resounds, listeners can almost feel the joy bursting forth from every being, and the natural world joins with humanity in this expression.
The second verse speaks of Jesus’s reign as the savior, calling on all men to join in singing His praises. It is envisioned that even the fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains add their voices to the hymn because of the depth of joy that fills their hearts. The third verse describes how Jesus comes to the world to overcome sin and sorrow and bring His blessings upon the earth. The curse that fell upon the earth is being overturned by His coming and the restoration of creation is taking place.
The final verse testifies to Jesus's rule over the world, characterized by compassion, mercy, and love. His truth and grace govern everything in the world, and His love is the basis for all things. The song concludes by repeating the first verse with the wonders of His love sung in wonder and amazement.
Line by Line Meaning
Joy to the world! The Lord is come;
Let us all be joyful as the Lord has arrived;
Let earth receive her King;
Let us all welcome Him as the King of earth;
Let every heart prepare Him a room,
Let us make space in our hearts for Him to reside in;
And heaven and nature sing,
Even heaven and nature are singing in joy for His arrival;
And heaven and nature sing,
Both heaven and nature are celebrating in joy;
And heaven, and heaven and nature sing.
Even heaven itself is filled with joy and singing;
Joy to the world! The Savior reigns;
Let us all be joyful as the Savior reigns;
Let men their songs employ;
Let all men sing of His arrival;
While fields and floods,
Even the fields and floods are joining in the celebration;
Rocks, hills and plains
And the rocks, hills, and plains are also singing;
Repeat the sounding joy,
All of creation is spreading the joy of His arrival;
Repeat the sounding joy,
The celebration continues to spread joy everywhere;
Repeat, repeat the sounding joy.
Let us all keep singing and spreading the joy that His arrival has brought;
No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Let us all strive to avoid sins and sorrows;
Nor thorns infest the ground;
Let us remove all obstacles and thorns from our lives and surroundings;
He comes to make His blessing flow
He has arrived to bless us all with His grace and love;
For as the curse is found,
He will bless us all, regardless of the curse we may carry;
For as the curse is found,
He has come to bless us all, despite any curses we may be under;
For as, for as the curse is found.
He will bless us all, no matter what our situation may be.
He rules the world with truth and grace,
He is the ruler of the world with a combination of truth and grace;
And makes the nations prove
He is proving to all nations the wonders of His love;
The glories of His righteousness,
He is showcasing the gloriousness of His righteousness;
And the wonders of His love,
And the wonders of His love are being made apparent to all;
And the wonders of His love,
And His love is so wondrous that it must be celebrated;
And the wonders, wonders of His love.
Let us all be in awe of the wonders of His love.
Contributed by Tristan O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Marryann Lamb
Awesome song Dan thanks