Ten Favorite River Songs: Nine-Tenths of the Tennessee River (#4)

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Here's the next song on my list of favorite songs that have "river" in the title. I'm doing two related countdowns right now, and the other deals with the other bodies of water mentioned in the title. This song won't beat the "other" song today, but this is still a favorite of mine. #4: Nine-Tenths of the Tennessee River - Moon Mullican Oh, goodie, I'm using Moon Mullican again, so I can mention how I think he should be in the Country Music Hall of Fame! No, that's not why this song made the list. It made it because it's my second favorite Moon song, after "Sweeter Than the Flowers." Billed as "the king of the honky-tonk piano players," you can hear Jerry Lee in Aubrey "Moon" Mullican's piano work. He rose to fame signed to Cincinnati's King Records. And, of particular interest to me (although I didn't know this until two years ago when I got the biography), Jim Reeves played in Mullican's band! There was a lot of flashes of what would become rock and roll in Mullican's music, even though his songs -- including this song about a lost love -- were unquestionably country. Here he sang about missing a lost love, showing that 90% of everything was affected by her departure (including the tag line of "nine-tenths of the Tennessee River are the tears that I've shed over you"). Moon Mullican was one of the unsung heroes in country music. Very few people remember him. I discovered him later in life (the only song of his I knew as a child was his "biggest hit," "I'll Sail My Ship Alone")...and I'm so glad I did. Nine-Tenths of the Tennessee River Written by Irving Gordon Recorded by Moon Mullican Released as a single, 1948 Nine-tenths of my heart still beats true: