ROOTS of Country Music

The Professional Work of Jerry Wallace

(Dec. 15, 1928 - May 5, 2008)

Career Highlights

Barn Dance Affiliate: Louisiana Hayride

Stage Name: Mr. Smooth

Film, Night Club, Radio & TV

• Ed Sullivan Show, 4
• Ernest Tubb’s  Midnight Jamboree, 3
• Flipper's New Adventure, 4
• Goodbye Charlie, 4
• Hec Ramsey, 4
• Hee Haw, 4
• Nashville Now, 4
• Pop Goes the Country, 4
• The Glen Campbell Goodtime Hour, 4
• The Johnny Cash Show, 4
• The Porter Wagoner Show, 4
• The Statler Brothers Show, 4
• The Wilburn Brothers Show, 4 

1-Film, 2-Night Club, 3-Radio, 4-TV 

Billboard Chart Data 

• No. 1 Singles: 1
• Top-20 Singles: 8
• Crossover Singles: 0
• Charted Singles: 35
• Chart Years Active: (1965-1980)

Career Labels:

• Mercury Records (1965-1966)
• Liberty Records (1967 -- 1970)
• Decca / MCA Records (1971 -- 1974)
• MGM Records (1975 -- 1976)
• BMA Records (1977 -- 1978)
• 4 Star Records (1978 -- 1979)
• Door Knob Records (1979 -- 1980) 

Billboard Top-20 Singles 

1. The Morning After -1971
2. To Get to You -1972
3. If You Leave Me Tonight I'll Cry*#
4. Do You Know What It's Like to Be Lonesome
5. Don't Give Up on Me -1973
6. Guess Who -1974
7. My Wife's House
8. I Wonder Whose Baby (You Are Now)

*-No. 1 Chart Single

#-Biggest Chart Single

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------If You Leave Me Tonight I'll Cry: The Jerry Wallace Story

Dubbed Mr. Smooth for his warm, velvety vocal approach, Jerry Wallace scored a pair of pop hits during the late 1950s before enjoying even greater commercial success as a country singer.

Wallace began his music career with Challenge Records (1957) and had his best known pop hit with Primrose Lane (with backing group the Jewels) in 1959. As a pop singer, between 1958 and 1964, Wallace charted nine hits on the Billboard Hot 100.

Born in Guilford, Missouri and raised in Glendale, Arizona, Wallace was the son of a grocery store owner. After a brief stay in Arizona he settled in Hollywood and following a U.S. Navy stint, he signed to the Allied label(1951) to cut a series of little-noticed singles including Little Miss One, That's What a Woman Can Do and Runnin' After Love. Upon signing to the Challenger label (1959), Wallace notched a top-20 pop hit, How the Time Flies, followed a year later by the million-selling Primrose Lane.

His other top-40 hits included Shutters and Boards (1963) and In The Misty Moonlight (1964). Wallace had his biggest success when he was convinced to switch to country music. He made his debut on the country music charts in 1965, entering it thirty-five times between then and 1980. In that times pan, Wallace charted within the country top-10 four times. His only Number One was If You Leave Me Tonight I'll Cry (No. 1, 1972).

On the country charts, he had more than thirty-five hits, including Do You Know What It's Like to Be Lonesome (No. 2, 1972), Don't Give Up On Me (No. 3, 1973), My Wife's House (No. 9, 1974) and a Grammy nomination for Best Male Vocalist of the Year in 1972, for his song To Get To You (No. 12, 1972). Also in 1972, his song, If You Leave Me Tonight, I'll Cry, was prominently featured in an episode of the Rod Serling television series Night Gallery. The song not only became a number one country single, but kept him at the forefront of country radio playlists during the mid-1970s.

In 1974, Wallace left Decca and lingering litigation against his management derailed his commercial momentum. Wallace began hop-scotching from label to label in a failed attempt to jump-start his career. The 1980 single If I Could Set My Love to Music proved to be his final chart entry and outside of the occasional live performance he spent the remainder of his life outside the public eye.

In all, Wallace charted eighteen top-40 singles. Wallace recorded for Challenge (1957 -- 1969), Mercury (1966), Liberty / United Artists / (1968 -- 1975), Decca / MCA / (1971 -- 1974), MGM (1975 -- 1976), BMA (1977 -- 1978), 4 Star (1978 -- 1979) and Door Knob (1979 -- 1980).

In addition to his music endeavors, Wallace acted in several television programs and did voice-overs for commercials. Wallace appeared in two 1964 features, Flipper's New Adventure and Goodbye Charlie and in 1972, he appeared in Hec Ramsey.

In 1972, Wallace gained nomination for the Country Music Association Award as Male Vocalist of the Year and his song To Get to You gained nomination for Single of the Year. Wallace died on in Corona, California, after suffering congestive heart failure.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Researched, written and compiled by Richard Bell. Roots of Country Music. Oct. 15, 2011.