Country Artist Jimmy Dean

Jimmy Dean became a national television personality starting on CBS in 1957. He rose to fame for his 1961 Country music crossover hit into Rock and Roll with “Big Bad John” and his 1963 television series The Jimmy Dean Show gave puppeteer Jim Henson his first national exposure with his character, Rowlf. He was the creator of the Jimmy Dean sausage brand as well as the spokesman for its TV commercials.

His acting career included appearing in the early seasons in the Daniel Boone TV series as the sidekick of the famous frontiersman played by star Fess Parker. Later he was on the big screen in a supporting role as billionaire Willard Whyte in the James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever (1971), starring Sean Connery.

Dean became best known for “Big Bad John”, his 1961 recitation song about a heroic miner. Recorded in Nashville, the record went to number one on the Billboard Pop chart and inspired many imitations and parodies. It sold over one million copies and was awarded a gold disc. The track peaked at number two in the UK Singles Chart. The song won Dean the 1962 Grammy Award for Best Country & Western Recording. He had several more top 40 songs, including a top 10 in 1962 with “PT-109”, a song in honor of President John F. Kennedy’s bravery in World War II, with the sinking of his PT-boat in the South Pacific Ocean by the Japanese.

Dean’s singing career remained strong into the mid-1960s; in 1965, he achieved a second number one Country hit with the ballad “The First Thing Ev’ry Morning (And the Last Thing Ev’ry Night)”, and he had a top 40 hit that year with “Harvest of Sunshine”. In 1966, Dean signed with RCA Victor and immediately had a top 10 hit with “Stand Beside Me”. His other major hits during this time included “Sweet Misery” (1967) and “A Thing Called Love” (1968). He continued charting into the early 1970s with his major hits, including “Slowly” (1971), a duet with Dottie West, and a solo hit with “The One You Say Good Morning To” (1972).

In 1976, Dean achieved a million-seller with another recitation song called “I.O.U.”, a tribute to his mother and mothers everywhere. The song was released a few weeks before Mother’s Day and quickly became a top 10 Country hit, his first in 10 years, and a top 40 Pop hit, his first in 14 years.