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Article Contents
- Introduction
- Early Years
- Contest Winnings
- Radio Days
- Coon Huntin'
- Later Years
Newspaper
Clippings
Photos of the Sheriff and his contemporaries
78 rpm disc recordings
Partial list of tunes George Morris played
Hear George's voice
Missouri
Fiddlin' History
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My experiences with the
fiddle began 10 years ago while I was still attending Hallsville High
School. Although I started out playing with folks my own age, I was soon
introduced to a fine old-time fiddler, Taylor McBaine of Columbia.
Taylor was a true veteran, having played for more than 60 years in his
native Boone County.
Besides sharing the skill
and tunes he had acquired over a lifetime, my informal education also
included the lore and history of fiddling in central Missouri. One name
that stood out above all others in Taylor's reminiscences was that of
"The Fiddlin' Sheriff," George Morris. George had gained
considerable local notoriety from his several years of performing at
KFRU-Radio in Columbia. George had moved from Boone County many years
before I began playing. Many of his former acquaintances had lost track
of him.
Apparently he had moved to
the St. Louis area, but no one seemed to know how to reach him. Some
said that contacting The Sheriff would be fruitless since he was too
feeble to play anymore. I was quite surprised and excited to meet the
then 86 year old Morris in the museum of the Gateway Arch in St. Louis
at a fiddler's and thresher's reunion in May of 1980. George was a
participant in a workshop on Missouri fiddling. After the program I
introduced myself as a fiddler from Hallsville and we hit it off
immediately (George had been raised very near Hallsville).
I saw George again in the
summer of 1981 at a fiddler's contest in Olivette, Missouri. I was
placed in the position of having to judge his playing. The Sheriff took
second in the senior division. In September of 1981 I visited George for
the first time at his home in Afton, Missouri, in south St. Louis
County. George was living by himself at the time. Although he was
visited frequently by nearby relatives, George was nearly a shut-in.
When I arrived at his door
there was some very loud music coming from inside. I had to knock
hard as George was a little hard of hearing. Upon entering George
yelled out, "That's Venuti boy!" He was listening to a
Joe Venuti LP on his record player an ear-splitting volume.
Wow! Here was this venerated old-time fiddler listening to and
loving the playing of one of the world's great jazz violinist.
This was without question a revelation for me. My association with
George definitely sparked my interest in learning not just tradition
tunes but also "hot" fiddling, as well.
In
that session George played for me, permitted an extensive interview, and
allowed me to record some 78 rpm home discs which he had cut in Columbia
in 1952.
I visited George again in
March, 1982. George's health seemed to be considerably declined from the
previous fall. He was still more than willing to talk and even played a
few pieces. The Fiddlin' Sheriff passed away on May 4, 1983 at age 89. I
never got back to see him before then.
From the two interviews with
George, and discussions with N.C. Ficklin (a former member of one of
George's KFRU bands) and mid-Missouri fiddlers, Taylor McBaine, Jake
Hockemeyer, and Pete McMahan, the use of various public records, and the
invaluable assistance of George's nephew, George McCrary, I have pieced
together the story of George Morris' life.
Besides having been a
remarkable musician and an interesting person, George's life has
importance for anyone interested in Missouri fiddling. He is an
important example of a fiddler who, with a minimum of formal
instruction, gained the skill necessary to play what he called
"semi-classics." Through the medium of radio, George
disseminated his vast repertoire to all of Mid-Missouri. Many of the
"pop" and "book" tunes George played have become a
part of the local tradition in Boone and surrounding counties. In a way,
such pieces and the techniques employed in playing them are in large
part what makes central Missouri fiddling unique.
I hope this article will
serve as a proper tribute to one of the most influential Missouri
fiddlers of this century.
Early Years
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George Wesley Morris was
born on June 27, 1893, near the Boone County community of Brown's
Station, Missouri. The Morris family lived on what was known as the
"old Pigg family farm" a few miles northeast of Columbia.
George was the second youngest in a family of seven children, 4 girls
and 3 boys. His father was David H.Morris and his mother was Dulcenia.
The Morris clan had been in Missouri since before 1846, George's
grandfather and grandmother having immigrated to the Show-Me state from
Kentucky and Virginia, respectively.
George first started playing
the fiddle when he was only seven years old:
I
swiped my dad's fiddle out and started fiddlin'. They didn't know I was
playin'. Then some of the fellas said (to my dad), "You oughta hear
George play the fiddle." Boy, I was really cuttin'. I was really
sawin' fiddle then.
He started out playing the
various hoedowns that were popular locally. His dad and older brother,
Ernie, both played and were undoubtedly among his earliest influences.
With his younger brother, Dave, George would ride horseback to play for
dances in the area.
Dave would accompany him on
the banjo or guitar. Later, Dave became a competent fiddler himself,
particularly on the old breakdowns. The Morris brothers became a most
formidable combination at fiddler's contests in later years.
George played in his first
fiddler's contest in Columbia in 1906 when he was thirteen years old.
Daniel Boone Jones of Stephens won first, John A. Hill of Hallsville got
second, George won third, and Aaron Oliver of Columbia took fourth.
That
was my first prize. I believe I got ten dollars. I never saw so much
money in my life. Boy, that was spendin' money. A dollar looked like a
cartwheel then. I went out and bought some new boots.
George described Aaron
Oliver's fiddling as "tough". He remembered Daniel Boone
Jones:
...played
a good fiddle and he (was) a very popular man. And I remember the tune
he played was 'Marmaduke's Hornpipe' which later became a very famous
tune, 'Marmaduke'.
His acquaintance with John
A. Hill, the second place winner, marked a turning point in his musical
career. Hill was "only the best fiddler I ever heard."
George recalled, "I haven't heard anyone could even pack his
bow." George was seventeen when he began to study intensively
with John Hill.
George described his
experiences with Hill:
I'd
go back and forth, stay two or three days or a week with him and we'd
fiddle and talk. But he was so much better than me that I wouldn't pick
up the fiddle around him. That's how good Mr. Hill was. ...he was
teaching me to play the fiddle. I sent to Carl Fisher for an instruction
book, but I played the fiddle by ear until I was seventeen. ...he was a
great big man, oh, I guess about six-foot tall. He said a man ought to
be six-foot tall to keep his butt up out of the snow. ...he was an old
time fiddler and he could play modern music if he wanted, too. He played
all the standard waltzes and what-have-you."
John A. Hill, 59 at the time
he began teaching George, lived and farmed north of Hallsville about
halfway to Sturgeon. He was born in Ohio in 1851. He lived for a time in
Iowa, and moved to Missouri sometime in the 1890s. His name appears in
the Missouri census no earlier than 1900.
R. P. Christeson of
Auxvasse, author of The Old-Time Fiddler's Repertory (University of
Missouri Press, 1973) believes Hill was the school violin teacher in
Hallsville. Taylor McBaine indicated that Hill was often referred to as
"Doc Hill" and he believes Hill was a highly educated man.
There is little doubt that
Hill could read music. Much of George Morris' repertoire, particularly
the many hornpipes he played, were learned from Hill as he played from
Ryan's Mammoth Collection. In spite of their productive
master-apprentice relationship, Morris and Hill had a parting of the
ways while George was still a young man:
There's
something more I should tell you about Mr. John A. Hill...they had a
contest in Hallsville, and I was unfortunate enough to beat him...he was
never friendly to me anymore, so that ended our friendship. I guess
(that was) the worst thing that happened to me, 'cause I couldn't touch
old man Hill when it came to playing the fiddle. I was playing
'Marmaduke's Hornpipe' and he was playing 'Money Musk'.
Contest Winnings
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During the 1920s George
Morris's personal and musical reputation grew. He played at WOS radio in
Jefferson City on a few occasions. Surprisingly, he is not pictured in a
group photo of fiddlers who participated in the WOS Radio 1925 State
Championship held at the State Capitol. Although George did not recall
playing in this contest, legend has it that he was disqualified after
stating over the air the complete and uncensored title to the tune
"Rye Straw". This title contains a reference to canine
excrement which no doubt would have offended the sensibilities of the
contest promoters and listeners.
Although the details are
somewhat fuzzy, it is worth mentioning that George played in a big
"national" contest in Joplin, Missouri, sponsored by the Ozark
Playground Association in the mid-Twenties. George remembered that it
lasted two days and there were 102 fiddlers involved. Apparently, the
contest was held to select a fiddler to compete in a state contest to be
held at Paris, Missouri later that year.
My
brother, Davy, begged me to come. So he got me a room at the Connors
Hotel, which was a top hotel then. He finally talked me into coming.
The trip down to Joplin from
Boone County was not without incident. George and his companion
over-extended themselves and ended up with their Ford car tangled in a
barbed-wire fence. A local farmer came along, extricated their vehicle,
and sent them on their way.
Upon his arrival, George was
confronted by another fiddling champion:
Well,
this fella come to me,...I was playin' around a music store, and they
had a good piano player. He come to me and we talked. He says, "I
hear you already got it won." That's the way it goes, isn't it. I
said, "I tell you." That's the words I said to him. I was a
young man then, I says, "I'm sure in hell goin' to try to win
it!"
This outspoken rival fiddler
was none other than Thomas Jasper Massie of Nevada, Missouri, the winner
of the 1925 State Championship held at Jefferson City and broadcast over
WOS Radio.
I
went and got him a room and we played up there and he says, "There
aint no use for me to play in this contest." He was as feeble as I
am (now) and he said, "I believe I'll go back to Nevada."
It's
held in a great big building. Well, I went over there and they says its
going to be decided by applause. Hell, I didn't want to go there. So my
brother's wife and another fella from Columbia happened to be there and
they talked me into going. Well, this old man (Massie) couldn't hardly
hold up his fiddle and darned if they didn't tear the house down for him
and me, too. The man (running the contest) came and said, "George,
I don't know if it would be fair to say who won or who didn't. I can't
send him (to Paris), he can't play the fiddle." So we just kept
trying.
Finally,
I went to Paris. I won first prize and fiddlin' Sam Long was there,
also. I believe he had played in that there contest at Jeff City. He was
a fiddler from Oklahoma. After the contest, a booking agent booked us in
at the Electric Theater. We was there three days and three nights. Then
I signed a contract with the Gennett Recording Company to make some
records. Sam Long made some, but I never took the time.
In
the papers down there I was called "Gentleman George". Boy, I
was a long way from a gentleman though. Well, boys will be boys, I
guess.
In addition to all this
contest playing, George was in demand as a dance fiddler. His band
included Roy Ethington on piano, and N. C. Ficklin on guitar. Often, a
saxophone or other wind instrument would be included along with a bass
fiddle. For most of the dance jobs, the group would perform popular
songs as well as traditional melodies. A favorite gathering spot was at
Midway, Missouri, just west of Columbia. At one time their were numerous
roadhouses and dance halls in this tiny community and many local
fiddlers (George Morris among them) played in these
establishments.
Radio Days
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George Morris was perhaps best known as a radio
performer. In the 1930s and early 1940s, a "circuit" of radio
stations existed which featured many fine fiddle players. George played
at numerous stations during this era including KMBC, Kansas City; WHO,
Des Moines and KXOK, St. Louis. He did most of his playing at KFRU in
Columbia.
KFRU began operation at
Stephens College in the late 20s but soon came under private ownership.
George Morris was among the early performers at KFRU. He played there
from as early as 1933. His first radio group was dubbed the "Blue
Goose String Band". To begin each program one of the band members
would make a sound like a goose. The name was shortly changed to
"Rural Ramblers," however.
N.C. Ficklin, now retired
from of the University of Missouri-Columbia and living in Arkansas, got
his start playing guitar and singing at KFRU. He eventually wound up
playing bass and rhythm guitar for the Rural Ramblers both over the air
and at dances. Everyone in the group had a radio name. George Morris was
the "Fiddlin' Sheriff", Ficklin was "Cornfield
Canary," Lou Martin was "Granpappy," Gordon Goodwin was
"Snuffy Smith," and the announcer was Bill Edmonds. Also, an
accordion player, Dan Foster, often sat in with the group.
Ficklin remembered his
experiences at KFRU well and those involving George, in particular:
I
made my first dollar singing songs for Central Dairy with Roger
Whitesides. Somebody else would do the advertising and the talking.
They'd say, 'Here's N. C. Ficklin and Roger Whitesides gonna sing one.'
It was in a room with all the equipment and everything else. They didn't
have any studio. You just sat in there with the announcer in front of a
big microphone. George was considerably older than everybody else down
there (at KFRU) that played with him. He'd come on in the morning.
Sometimes he'd get there on time, sometimes he
wouldn't. Most of the time he would if he was playing the early morning
program. Old George would come in, his old coon dogs out in the car and
his old stinking, smelly clothes on. Nobody saw it, of course. He'd been
out coon huntin' all night with the old coon hounds. That car was a dog
kennel. He'd do that two or three times a week. Fiddlin' and coon huntin'
was all he lived for.
Coon Huntin'
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There is no doubt that
George had a passion for coon hunting. His two dogs, Red and Rowdy, were
locally famous and he was very proud of them. At 88 years old George
himself remarked:
What
a fine pair of dogs. They became better known than I was. I've had some
other fine dogs. 'Course, coon dogs, and huntin' and fiddlin' have been
my life. Every time I wasn't fiddlin' somewhere, I was coon huntin'.
I still try to fiddle, but my coon huntin' days are over.
George's coon hunting was
featured in a Columbia Missourian front page article February 10, 1939:
FIDDLES
ALL DAY, HUNTS COONS ALL NIGHT. GEORGE MORRIS, KFRU ENTERTAINER MAKES
BIG CATCH.
The
only thing George Morris likes better than playing the fiddle is coon
huntin', and he likes that better than sleep. At least, his friends say
the "Sheriff" fiddles all day and hunts coons all night, but
no one knows when he sleeps. Morris is no ordinary
sheriff, but KFRU's famed "Fiddlin' Sheriff."
The
Sheriff's ardor for this sport has brought him good results. His latest
coup, "Old Peg Leg," big, fat, and weighing twenty pounds, was
the largest coon to come to town this year. The Sheriff says he's
forgotten all about the other eighteen coons he got this year since the
thrill of bagging this one. He so named the coon because part of one leg
was gone as well as an ear--probably lost in a trap or fight he figures.
He's
mighty proud of his two dogs, Red and Rowdy, and justly too, for they
are a beautiful pair of coon hounds. He couldn't be more proud of a
Stradivarius fiddle if he owned one.
Since
the Sheriff has to be on the air at 6 o'clock in the morning,
and the show must go on, he usually quits hunting around 3 o'clock.
Sometimes by prearrangement Jimmy Campbell, KFRU announcer, will do his
fiddlin' for him. Campbell is a coon hunting enthusiast, too, and often
accompanies Morris.
Once
one of the Sheriff's dogs was running a track when suddenly his master
realized it was time for him to get back to his program. But the dog
wouldn't leave the track in spite of his calling and whistling. Morris
left, went on the air at 6 o'clock, and then came back at 9:30. After a
little while he found the dog sitting under a tree. The coon was in it.
Later Years
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It cannot be determined when
George retired from performing at KFRU. However, he continued to play in
fiddlers contests in and around Columbia with his brother, Dave. The
Morris brothers were tough competition at any fiddlers contest. N. C.
Ficklin recalled:
George
played hornpipes like nobody could. Always in B-flat. I will never
forget one time we were playing 'round at a fiddler's contest and
somebody made the remark, "If George doesn't win, it's
crooked!" At that time, George was the best. George always won
every contest there was. Nobody could touch George.
Concerning Dave Morris,
Taylor McBaine commented:
He
set down an awful heavy type of beat. He'd play - "Dusty
Miller" and "Sally Goodin" and tunes like that. Neither
him or George played those hornpipes in the contest. Judges didn't like
'em. Just old, old fiddle tunes.
An undated newspaper
clipping from the Morris scrapbook describes the action at a typical
Boone County fiddlers contest, circa 1950:
BROTHERS
WIN FIRST AND SECOND IN CALDWELL'S FIDDLING
CONTEST.
Two
brothers won first and second prizes as nine men played for the title of
"grand champion fiddler" last night in the Jefferson Junior
High School auditorium. About 300 persons, including the crippled
children from Noyes Hospital, listened to the
contest sponsored by Luther Caldwell, one-armed fiddler.
Five
prizes were awarded. Dave Morris, St. Louis, won the $50 first prize.
His brother, George Morris, Hallsville, won $35 as second, and a
Columbian, Pete McMahan, won a $15 third prize. Fourth and fifth prizes,
merchandise contributed by Columbia merchants, were won by George
McCleary (McCrary), St. Louis, a cousin (nephew) of the Morrises, and
Charles Cook, Columbia.
The
program opened with a show by the Melody Ramblers and Caldwell, who had
announced that they would donate their talent to any program for the
benefit of crippled children. Caldwell played "Up the Lazy
River," the first piece he learned after receiving the mechanical
contrivance which moves the bow.
According
to contest rules, each man played one warm-up tune which could be any
style. Then they played a square dance or "hoe down" tune and
a waltz, polka, or other old-fashioned tune. "Over the Waves"
was a choice of several.
One
of the features of the evening was a performance by James A. Oliver, 68.
He was introduced as the oldest fiddler attending and in response to
popular demand played a tune. He told the audience that he played the
same violin 51 years ago in a contest in the University Auditorium and
won fourth prize. He said, "I love the old time fiddle music. It
will live forever."
Judges
were Wayne Crane and Clarence Acton, Columbia, and Leon Burkey and J. P.
Turner, Hallsville. Other fiddlers who participated were Nolan Boone,
Mexico; Huey Garrison, Clarksburg; Earl Moore, California; and Walter
Bone, McDonald County.
George continued to play in
fiddlers contests until he was well into his eighties. He recalled that
the only people to ever beat him in a fiddling contest were his brother
Dave; his nephew, George McCrary; and Jimmy Gilmore of Jefferson City.
Sometime in the early 1950s
George moved to Afton, Missouri, in south St. Louis County. He played on
a few occasion with Wade Ray, a renowned radio fiddler and singer in the
St Louis area. George complimented Wade Ray's playing, describing it as
"wicked." In a phone conversation Ray recalled that he learned
many fine hoedowns from the Sheriff.
George worked for a time at
a St. Louis area mental institution and then retired in the late
fifties. He spent the rest of his days in St. Louis County. He died at
home on May 4, 1983, 89 years and 10 months old.
George Morris has left
Missourians a considerable legacy in his personal anecdotes as described
above, and also in tunes and techniques. The "Sheriff" is
particularly responsible for there being so much popular music in the
repertoires of mid-Missouri fiddlers. Around Columbia, tunes such as
"Sweet Georgia Brown" and "Kiss Me Again" became as
much a part of the local tradition as the more ancient melodies like
"Liberty" and "Soldier's Joy."
George Morris can be
directly credited for infusing so many of the nineteenth century
hornpipes into the playing of the region. Such tunes as "Thunder
Hornpipe, "High Level," and "Liverpool" can be
traced from the pages of Ryan's Mammoth Collection, to John A. Hill, the
mysterious music reading fiddler from Hallsville, to the Sheriff, out
over the KFRU airwaves and eventually into the local fiddle tune
tradition of Boone County. This is the legacy of George Morris, the
"Fiddlin' Sheriff", perhaps the most influential mid-Missouri
fiddler of the 20th Century.
Charlie Walden, March 20,
1984. This Article was
originally published by the Missouri State Old Time Fiddlers
Association. Columbia, MO. |