Success Made to Last Legends Celebrates the great David Frizzell...You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma

Celebrating Any Which Way But Loose and You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma, enjoy hearing the origin stories of these songs and legends about David's brother Lefty. David Frizzell is a highly respected traditional country singer who charted a number of hits in the 1980s. He was a frequent duet partner of Shelly West, the daughter of country star Dottie West. He himself is the younger brother of the late, legendary Lefty Frizzell, the great honky-tonk singer who achieved the peak of his popularity during the 1950s. Lefty died in 1975. David’s expressive voice has often been compared with that of his brother.David Frizzell has been honored with several awards from the Country Music Association (CMA), Academy of Country Music (ACM), Billboard, and Music City News during his career. He continues to perform as well as to be engaged in various other creative projects today.Early life and careerDavid Frizzell was born on September 26, 1941, in El Dorado, Arkansas—13 years after his famous big brother. When Lefty was a major star in the mid-‘50s to early ‘60s, the youthful David would often perform as part of his brother’s stage show. David also began recording his own country and rockabilly songs for various labels in the late ‘50s.Photograph of David Frizzell and Shelly West discussing a song during a break at a reception held at the Willie Nelson Museum in Nashville, TN at the opening of the Frizzell-West exhibit.DAVID FRIZZELL AND SHELLY WEST DISCUSSING A SONG DURING A BREAK AT A RECEPTION HELD AT THE WILLIE NELSON MUSEUM IN NASHVILLE, TN AT THE OPENING OF THE FRIZZELL-WEST EXHIBIT.During the Vietnam War era of the 1960s, David served in the U.S. Air Force for four years. Afterward, he returned to his music career, seeking success as a solo artist. In 1970, he broke into the country top-forty for the first time with “I Just Can’t Help Believing” (the same song with which B. J. Thomas had a pop hit that same year). That would be Frizzell’s last highly charted song for several years. However, he kept making records, touring, and appearing on country television shows, hoping for his big break.Career success with Shelly WestThat big break finally came in 1980, when he teamed up with Shelly West, another singer with a famous country-music heritage. The two singers released an album together in 1981 titled Carryin’ On the Family Names. A duet from that album, “You’re the Reason God Made Oklahoma,” climbed to the number-one spot on the country charts. West and Frizzell were named the Vocal Duo of the Year by the CMA in 1981, and they received Top-Vocal-Duet honors by the ACM.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPFenEhqUIUShelly and David singing their huge hit “You’re the Reason God Made Oklahoma.”Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/success-made-to-last-legends--4302039/support.