Johnny Paycheck Petition for the Hall of Fame
It’s rare you can pull out the term “Hard Country” and have it make sense and fit like a glove on an artist, but that is exactly what describes Johnny Paycheck. And he’s was an Outlaw too, in the truest sense of the word. Sure maybe he wasn’t as integral to the Outlaw scene as Willie, Waylon, Coe, or Kristofferson, but Paycheck fought Nashville when necessary, never settled, did things his way, and told it like it was.
In true Outlaw fashion, Paycheck started his solo career under his own label “Little Darlin’ Records.” When that folded he moved to epic, but while the “Nashville Sound” had moved to strings and choruses, Paycheck stuck with the true honky tonk style of heavy pedal steel guitar, fiddles, harmonies, and themes involving low living and real world issues.
If you ask me, the more an artist is reviled by Nashville, the bigger skin they have on the wall. Well when Hank Williams III went to release his last album Damn Right, Rebel Proud, it wasn’t a profanity-laced tribute to the infamous GG Allin that his label Curb Records decided to veto. No, it was a cover of Paycheck’s “Only Hell Momma Ever Raised.”
But Paycheck also comes with serious country music accolades, including 11 top 10 hits (including “Only Hell Momma Ever Raised”), a #1 hit in 1977 with “Take This Job and Shove It,” an Academy of Country Music Career Achievement Award from that same year, and he also was an inducted member of the Grand Ole Opry. Early in his career, Paycheck also worked as a tenor singer for George Jones, and is given credit for helping develop Jones’ unique lyrical phrasing.
It is for all of these reasons that Johnny Paycheck fans want him considered for the Country Music Hall of Fame, and have started an online petition.
Paycheck does come with some baggage. Numerous run ins with the law landed him in jail for long stints, and drug and alcohol abuse created financial issues for him and ended his career too early. Still, his impact on country music, especially Outlaw country and Hard Country (man, I just love the sound of those two words together) cannot be denied.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN THE PETITION
Jay G
June 29, 2009 @ 11:39 pm
I’d like to say one thing, DAC isn’t a member of the Grand Ole Opry…WHAT!?
The Triggerman
June 30, 2009 @ 10:25 am
It will happen.
Jonathan PayCheck
June 30, 2009 @ 12:15 pm
FACT: There has been a little confusion about the petition. Gary Hayes didn’t put the petition together, I did, Jonathan PayCheck (Johnny PayChecks son).
FACT: Donal Eugene Lytle was my fathers name but he did have it legally changed to Johnny PayCheck, thus the reason I have the last name PayCheck as my legal name. Believe me it was not easy growing up with the last name PayCheck and to this day I still get “Well that is an odd name, kinda like that singer. You probably don’t even know who that is…” Happens almost every day still.
FACT: Drugs and Alcohol may have ended his records deals early but my father did perform up until only a few years before he died. His music career never really ended, I mean this is how he always made his living. The drugs, bad business, and jail did however put a financial strain on the family, one which we never really recovered from while my father was alive.
My father had an amazing catalog of music which I hope will live on for many years to come. I hope that new country music fans will enjoy and appreciate his music writing ability and his outstanding voice.
Thanks for listening,
Jonathan PayCheck
President
PayCheck Entertainment, Ltd.
Please sign this petition to get my father into the Hall of Fame.
Online petition – Place Johnny PayCheck in the Country Music Hall of Fame
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/johnny-paycheck.html
To help support the induction of Johnny PayCheck into the Hall of Fame please add the below html code to your website.
The Triggerman
June 30, 2009 @ 2:38 pm
Thanks for the info Jonathan!
Saving Country Music » Blog Archive » Let’s Get Bill Monroe’s Mug on a Stamp!
July 8, 2009 @ 8:10 pm
[…] of things, whether it be the Reinstate Hank petition, or the petitions to get Gram Parsons and Johnny Paycheck into the Country Music Hall of […]
The Hillbilly Muslim
June 1, 2012 @ 11:24 pm
Thanks for your words, Jonathan. Much appreciated.
Michael
October 3, 2015 @ 5:09 am
Jonathan if you read this email me, I have a question. But 100% your dad should be in.
Larry Anklam
October 20, 2016 @ 2:49 pm
Paycheck, Jones, Jennings, Haggard, and DAC (The Very Best) Gary Stewart and Mel Street also Belong in The Country Music Hall of Fame.
Acca Dacca
October 20, 2016 @ 6:34 pm
Never realized you wrote this article, Trigger. Granted it was a bit before my time in regards to SCM, but I guess I never sought it out, either (interesting to see you claim that DAC will get into the Opry in the comments, whereas your perspective these days seems a bit different). As I’ve said on numerous occasions, I think a round of fresh reissues of Mr. Paycheck’s material would remind people of his contributions to this great format, but the Powers That Be either see no money in it or lack the means. I bet it’s a bit of both. I know that MOST of Paycheck’s material didn’t sell THAT greatly, aside from a few big records here and there. It also appears to me that his catalogue has some exclusivity issues regarding the rights as every other day a new bargain bin compilation shows up on Amazon or iTunes (with the same songs as all the others but a different label). Still, at least some of his best material isn’t hard to come by. “Old Violin” is probably my favorite song by him: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9Cn5u01teE
Larry Anklam
March 12, 2019 @ 12:07 pm
Nashville Big Shots,listen to us, the real traditional country fans ! JOHNNY PAYCHECK, GARY STEWART, and MEL STREET ALL BELONG IN THE COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME.