James Garnett Morrison (1927-1993) was a former rockabilly rebel who began recording back in the late 1950s, under the name Curley Jim, cutting a couple of "hot" singles that became fetish items for the retro crowd. Born in Kentucky, Mr. Morrison was an Air Force veteran who served in World War Two, Korea and in Vietnam(!) and was stationed all across the country during peacetime, including stints in California and Florida, though he seems to have spent most of his life in Forth Worth, Texas. He produced a steady stream of singles on various indie labels, including several that were his own private imprints. He started his own label, Curley Q Records, sometime in the early 'Sixties, and continued to record at least into the mid-1970s. Morrison used a variety of stage names and permutations of his own name, which is what led me to post this page in an effort to stitch them all together. At various times he called himself Curley Jim, Jim Morrison, J. G. Morrison or Jim Garnett... Here's a quick (and doubtless incomplete) look at his work...
Jim Morrison "Songs For And About You" (Curley Q Records, 19--?) (LP)
After settling in Fort Worth, Jim Morrison started his own label, Curley Q Records, sometime in the early 'Sixties. He produced a steady stream of singles, material that seems to form the core of this LP, which was released while he was living in Fort Worth, Texas. Included is a version of his early hit, "Air Force Blues," as well as other originals such as "Ace In The Hole," and a version of the old folk standard, "Bill Bailey." Almost all the music is credited to Morrison, with one song by Jack Rhodes and another co-written with Eddie Manney. There are no musician credits, alas, though there is a shout-out to drummer Fred C. Albee. Assuming that many of these tracks are re-releases of Morrison's old singles, some blanks may be filled in by a long post on the Hillbilly Country blog which documents much of Morrison's career and mentions some of the musicians he may have played with.
Curley Jim & The Billey Rocks (Metro/Mida Records, 1958-?) (#100) (7")
A: "Rock And Roll Itch" (c: James Morrison)
B: "Air Force Blues" (c: James Morrison)
(Producer not identified)
Curley Jim & The Billey Rocks (Mida Records, 1959-?) (#108) (7")
A: "Didn't I Tell You" (c: James Morrison)
B: "Sloppy, Sloppy Suzie" (c: James Morrison)
(Producer not identified)
J. G. Morrison (Reena Records, 1961-?) (# 1050) (7")
A: "Air Force Blues" (c: James Morrison)
B: "Didn't I Tell You" (c: James Morrison)
(Producer not identified)
Jim Garnett (Manco Records, 1962-?) (#ML-1029) (7")
A: "Little John" (c: James G. Morrison)
B: "I Could Be Had" (c: James G. Morrison)
(Producer not identified)
Jim Morrison (Curley Q Records, 1963-?) (#QC-001/002) (7")
A: "Ace In The Hole" (c: James Morrison)
B: "Bill Bailey" (c: James Morrison)
(Producer not identified)
Jim Morrison (Curley Q Records, 1964-?) (#5707) (7")
A: "The Used Car Blues" (c: Jas. Morrison)
B: "My Old Stand By" (c: Jack Rhodes)
(Producer not identified)
Jim Morrison (Curley Q Records, 1964-?) (#5712) (7")
A: "He Gave Me You" (c: James Morrison & Eddie Manney)
B: "My Three Friends And Me" (c: James Morrison)
(Producer not identified)
Jim Morrison (Curley Q Records, 1965-?) (#5715) (7")
A: "Cheating Heart" (c: Hank Williams)
B: "Jambalaya" (c: Hank Williams)
(Producer not identified)
When in doubt, it's hard to go wrong with a couple of old Hank Williams tunes... Of particular interest here is the label address in Edwards, California, aka Edwards Air Force Base, where Mr. Morrison was apparently stationed in the mid-1960s.
J. G. Morrison (Reena Records, 1965-?) (#1050) (7")
A: "Old Man Honest" (c: James Morrison)
B: "Ace In The Hole " (c: James Morrison)
(Producer not identified)
Jim Morrison (Brave Records, 1969-?) (#1029) (7")
A: "Big John's Son" (c: James Morrison)
B: "My Three Friends (And Me)" (c: James Morrison)
(Produced by Fritz Brading)
Jim Garnett (Maridene Records, 1970-?) (#M-101) (7")
A: "Ace In The Hole" (c: Jim Morrison)
B: "Vienna" (c: )
(Producer not identified)
One of several personas used by Mr. Morrison throughout his career... I believe "Jim Garnett" is the first part of his whole name, James Garnett Morrison. Alas, there's no composer credit for the B-side, though there's a pretty good chance it was one of his own originals, like most of his work.
Jim Morrison (Maridene Records, 1970-?) (#M-103-A/B) (7")
A: "Soul Of A Man" (vocal) (c: B. Skel & B. Smith)
B: "Soul Of A Man" (instrumental) (c: Bobby Skel & Bill Smith)
(Producer not identified)
Intriguingly, here Morrison covers an R&B tune by Texas-born, Georgia-raised soul singer Bobby Skelton (aka Bobby Skel) who cut several singles in the 'Sixties and also worked as a studio musician in Atlanta, Georgia. The B-side is an instrumental version of Skel's sizzler, "Soul Of A Man." [Note: Discogs places this as a 1968 release, but that seems unlikely since the Bobby Skel original came out in '69, and another Maridene single with an earlier catalog number (#101, above) is credited as a 1970 release. Then again: who really knows with these old indie records?]
Jim Morrison (American Pla-Boy Records, 1974) (#AP-1982) (7")
A: "Thanks, Mr. President" (c: James Morrison)
B: "That Ace In The Whole" (c: James Morrison)
(Produced by Jim Morrison)
