Leon Payne

Leon Payne (June 15, 1917–September 11, 1969), "the Blind Balladeer", was a country music singer and songwriter.

Life

Leon Roger Payne was born in Alba, Texas on June 15, 1917. He was blind in one eye at birth, and lost the sight of the other eye in early childhood.Fact|date=August 2008 He attended the Texas School for the Blind from 1924 to 1935, where he met his future wife, Myrtie Velma Courmier.Fact|date=August 2008 They had two children together, as well as two children from Myrtie's previous marriage. Leon Payne died in 1969 in San Antonio, Texas. His wife Myrtie died in San Antonio in 2008, and Leon's composition "I Love You Because" was played at her funeral service.

Career

Leon wrote hundreds of country songs in a prolific career that lasted from 1941 until his death in 1969. He is perhaps best known for his hits "I Love You Because," and "You've Still Got A Place In My Heart." He began his music career in the mid-1930s, playing a variety of musical instruments in public, and later performing on KWET radio in Palestine, Texas, starting in 1935. He also had a stint playing with Bob Wills' Texas Playboys in 1938. He eventually formed his own group, the Lone Star Buddies, in 1949, and performed regularly on the Louisiana Hayride show in Shreveport, Louisiana.Fact|date=August 2008 He was later on the Grand Ole Opry.Fact|date=August 2008 Much of his musical legacy is in the form of recordings of his songs by other artists, perhaps most famous of which are two of his songs recorded by Hank Williams: "Lost Highway" and "They'll Never Take Her Love From Me," which were both minor hits.Fact|date=August 2008

Recordings and covers by other artists

*Hank Williams recorded "Lost Highway" and "They'll Never Take Her Love From Me."
*Elvis Presley recorded "I Love You Because" for Sun Records in 1954.
*Johnny Horton recorded "Lost Highway" and "They'll Never Take Her Love From Me."
*Johnny Cash recorded "I Love You Because" for Sun Records in 1958.
* Elvis Costello released a live version of Payne's song "Psycho."
*Classic Australian blues/rock band The Beasts of Bourbon also released a cover of "Psycho".
* Elliott Smith played Payne's song "They'll Never Take Her Love From Me" live on more than one occasion.
* Doug Sahm played Payne's song "They'll Never Take Her Love From Me" on his album "The Return of Wayne Douglas".
* Jeff Buckley played "Lost Highway" live. It was released posthumously on the re-release of his debut album "Grace".
* Mekons played "Lost Highway" on his album "Fear and Whiskey".
*Kurt Nilsen recorded "Lost Highway" as a duet with Willie Nelson in 2008.

George Jones recorded an album of all Leon Payne songs in 1971 called "George Jones Sings the Great Songs of Leon Payne".

John Prine recorded "The Blue Side of Lonesome" and "I Love You Because" for his Standard Songs for Average People in 2007.

External links

* http://www.talentondisplay.com/LeonPayne.html
* http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/PP/fpa59.html