Ten Favorite Southpaw Musicians: Lefty Frizzell (#10)

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Sunday (8/13) was International Lefthanders Day. As Marty Brennaman, the Ford C. Frick Baseball Hall of Fame announcer for the Cincinnati Reds, said, "There ain't no international right-handers day!" The number of southpaws is estimated to be between eight and fifteen percent of the population. Why don't they know? Well, there was (and still is in some places, like Catholic elementary schools) a stigma attached to being left-handed (the word sinister comes from the root meaning "left-handed"), so a number of southpaws were forced to become right-handed (such as former president Ronald Reagan). Needless to say, if I'm celebrating, I'm a lefty. So here's a countdown of my favorite southpaw musicians. Not all of these people play left-handed (in fact, most of them don't). And yes, the obvious one is on the countdown. But let's start here. #10: Lefty Frizzell With a name like "Lefty" you know he wasn't right-handed! William Frizzell took the nickname "Lefty" and the record company, always hot for good press no matter how big a lie it was, said it was not from singing or guitar playing (he played right handed), but from boxing. His Hall of Fame career began in the late 40s, and he became one of the great voices in the "golden era" of country music. His hits were numerous: "I Love You a Thousand Ways" (that's on his grave marker), "Always Late (With Your Kisses" (later covered by Dwight Yoakam)," "If You've Got the Money (I've Got the Time)" (later covered by Willie Nelson), and "Mom and Dad's Waltz." In 1959 he recorded the Danny Dill song "The Long Black Veil" and turned it into one of the greatest songs in country music history and one of the most enduring songs in American music. It has been recorded countless times by people ranging from The Band to Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds to Johnny Cash. There's something unbelievable about Frizzell's version, though: the simplicity of just Frizzell and a guitar adds to the brilliance and mystique of the song. Frizzell had a terrible alcohol problem and died an old, old man -- the age of 47 -- of a stroke in 1975. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. He's also been immortalized in songs: George Strait had a hit with a song called "Lefty's Gone," and in "Yesterday Once More" by Moe Bandy (no relation to the Carpenters song), the opening verse refers to "a lot of Leftys now with different names," referencing the people who have the heavy drawl that Frizzell sang with (among them: Merle Haggard, Keith Whitley, and Randy Travis). His brother, David Frizzell, had hits in the 80s with songs like "I'm Gonna Hire a Wino to Decorate Our Home." Frizzell was one of the greatest singers of the 50s and 60s, and his music still rings true today. Lefty Frizzell Born William Orville Frizzell, March 31, 1928, Corsicana, Texas Died July 19, 1975, Nashville, Tennessee (stroke), age 47 Here's my favorite Frizzell song, the classic "The Long Black Veil":