Johnny Wright is one of the pioneers of Country Music as we know it today. He picked up a guitar at the age of sixteen and a dream was born. in 1933 Johnny moved to Nashville,where country music was beginning to emerge, from nearby Mt. Juliet. It was here that Johnny met another youngster, Jack Anglin, and while neither of them relalized it at the moment, it was the beginning of one of the great unforgettable teams of all time.... Johnny and Jack.
Johnny soon met a young girl from Nashville, Murial Deason and shortly there after she became Mrs. Wright and also to the nom-de-stage Kitty Wells.
The first professional experience for Johnny and Jack was an early morning radio show on WSIX in Nashville, “The Dixie Early Birds.” In 1940 their first big break came from George Peek, country music promoter, in Greenville, NC on WBIG radio.
From Greensboro they moved to WNOX radio in Knoxville and the “Mid Day Merry-Go-Round.” In 1958 a country and western radio program was developing in Shreveport, Louisiana Johnny and Jack and Kitty moved to Louisiana and became stars of the now legendary “Louisiana Hayride.” Their success there led to an opportunity to join WSM’s Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee. Moving back to Nashville in l952, Johnny and Jack and KItty joined the Opry and were regular members for 15 years.
Johnny and Jack continues to record duets and signed with Apollo Records. Such hits as “Little Paper Boy” and “John Bion” were on that first label. Apollo was primarly a rhythm and blues company. Johnny and Jack were country artists, so they moved to RCA.
While at RCA, Johnny and Jack won the best duo of the year for five years in a row, 1953-1956, with such record hit as “Poison Love,” I Can’t Tell My Heart That,” “Ashes of Love,” “Crying Heart Blues,” “Oh Baby Mine,” “Goodnight Sweetheart,” “Lonesome,” and “Stop theWordl and Let Me Off.”
Johnny is also a songwriter. In collaboration with Jack Anglin, he wrote such hits as “Ashes of Love,” “Lonesome,” “I Can’t Tell My Heart That,””One by One,” and “You and Me.”
Since 1963, Johnny Wright has recorded as a single. The flow of hits continues and his recent successes include “Hello Vietnam,” “Old Honky Tonk,””Nickles, Quarters and Dimes,” “Don’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes,” “Peanut Special,” and “As Long As I Live.”
Together since 1937, only in recent years have Johnny and Kitty recorded together. Two of their greatest duets are “God Put a Rainbo in the Clouds,” and “We’ll Stick Together.”
Johnny Wright is a professional entertainer perfectly at ease on any stage whether it be the Palace Theatre in New York City, the stage of the Grand Ole Opry, the concert stage at home or abroad, or the television stage of “Night Life” in New York City. Since 1959, Johnny and Kitty have starred in their own Kitty Wells-Johnny Wright Family Show.
Johnny Wright could best be described as an artist who pioneered many “firsts” and do all the things well. One of his song titles, “Love Everybody and Everybody Will Love You,” best tells the story of the many friends and fans he has won along the way.
