The Resume

(April 6, 1883-September 14, 1948)
Born in Jefferson, Texas
Birth name was Marion Try Slaughter
Moved to New York City
Appeared in ‘Girl of the Golden West,’ ‘Madama Butterfly’ and ‘HMS Pinafore’
Recorded the single ‘The Wreck of the Old 97’ (1924)
Inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame (1981)

Why he might be annoying:

From operas and operettas to country is not a typical musical career path.
He recorded under as many as 100 pseudonyms for Edison Records.
He came up with his best-known stage name by combining the names of two towns in Texas.
His career cooled off in the 1930s as country fans turned to more ‘authentic’ acts like Jimmie Rogers and the Carter Family.

Why he might not be annoying:

He was a cowboy in his teens.
’The Wreck of the Old 97’ was the first country song to become a hit nationwide instead of just in the South.
’The Wreck of the Old 97’ sold over 7 million copies, making it the best-selling non-holiday single of the pre-rock era.

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 63]
• Country Music Hall of Fame (Ranked: 1981)
• Country Music Stars
• I Died in 1948 (Ranked: 64)
• Johnny Cash Covered My Song
• My Song was Inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame (Ranked: 1998)
• Opera Singers and Composers
• Profiles 38251-38500 (Ranked: 38287)

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 16 Votes: 43.75% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 0% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 9 Votes: 44.44% Annoying
In 2020, Out of 20 Votes: 65.00% Annoying
In 2019, Out of 38 Votes: 63.16% Annoying
In 2018, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
In 2017, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
In 2016, Out of 17 Votes: 76.47% Annoying