“Poppa” John Gordy was a popular Dixieland jazz leader who recorded with Chet Atkins and even opened for Elvis Presley in Tupelo, Mississippi.
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John Thomas Gordy was born on October 20 1904, in Pine Bluff, Arkansas to Thomas Lucian Gordy and Lillian Eleanor Mulvey. Raised in Pine Bluff, Gordy demonstrated an early fascination with the piano, playing ragtime and New Orleans' style jazz.
During his twenties, he followed a traditional jazz band around the country. He befriended many piano players and sometimes even got the chance to play piano with jazz bands. On February 2,1928, he married Margaret Ruth Poe in Garland, Arkansas. Their son John Thomas Gordy Jr., would later play professional football for the Detroit Lions from 1957 to 1967.
By the mid 1930s to 1940s, Gordy had developed into an exceptional rhythm player for jazz and country bands. He played at a variety of venues from hotels to high school dances. He even played on a few recordings, though he didn’t receive credit for them.
In 1946, Jim Bulleit founded Bullet Records in Nashville, and Gordy joined him as a session pianist. As a session pianist he played with artists like the duo Homer and Jethro (Henry D. "Homer" Haynes and Kenneth C. "Jethro" Burns) and Chet Atkins, who would go on to become famous country singers. He also played piano for the Chet Atkins shows.
In the latter half of 1948, Gordy became known as "Poppa" John. His signature Salty Dog Rag style was soon covered by many country artists. Gordy’s style bridged the gap between the down-home Nashville style and the more sophisticated near-jazz arrangements of Lou Busch.
In 1954 or 1955, he migrated to RCA Records at the urging of Chet Atkins. On August 1st, 1955, he was one of the opening acts at the Mississippi Alabama Fairgrounds in Tupelo, Mississippi, as Elvis Presley returned as a 21-year-old star to establish the reunion concerts at his birthplace.
In 1955, Gordy recorded an LP that integrated songs from his previous recordings. In 1957, he recorded a second LP. On February 5 1961, he died in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 56. His final record compilation was released after his death in 1961.
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Written by: Ninfa O. Barnard