Mac Davis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mac Davis | ||
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Scott Davis | |
| Born | January 21, 1942 | |
| Origin | Lubbock, Texas | |
| Genre(s) | Country Music/Pop Music | |
| Occupation(s) | singer/songwriter/actor | |
| Years active | 1972-Present | |
| Label(s) | MCA Records | |
| Associated acts |
Kenny Rogers, Elvis Presley, Crystal Gayle | |
Mac Davis (Born Scott Davis January 21, 1942 in Lubbock, Texas) is a country music singer and songwriter, who has enjoyed much pop music crossover success. He became one one of the most successful Country singers of the 1970s and 80s and also was an actor.
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[edit] Career As a Songwriter
Mac Davis initally rose to fame as a working songwriter. He seemed to be quite gifted in songwriting, writing the 1969 hit song for Elvis Presley called "In the Ghetto". He later proved to the public that he was more than just a songwriter, but also a Country singer. Especially in the 1970s, many of his songs found success on the country and pop charts alike, including the number-one smash "Baby, Don't Get Hooked On Me," "One Hell of a Woman," and "Stop and Smell the Roses". In the 1970s, he also was active as an actor, hosting his own variety show during this time and also appearing in several movies.
Mac Davis was born in 1942 in Lubbock, Texas. In his early years, he lived for a time in Atlanta, Georgia. In Atlanta, he played Rock'n Roll music. He also worked for the Vee Jay record company (home to R&B stars such as Gene Chandler, Jerry Butler and Dee Clark) as a regional manager, and later also served as a regional manager for Liberty Records. In the meantime, Davis was also writing songs. One of the songs he wrote in 1968, called "A Little Less Conversation," was recorded by Elvis Presley (and would become a posthumous hit for Presley many years later). Shortly after, Elvis recorded Davis' song "In the Ghetto" in his sessions in Memphis. The song became a hit for Elvis and he continued to record more of Mac's material, like "Memories" and "Don't Cry Daddy". Bobby Goldsboro also recorded some of Mac's songs, like "Watching Scotty Grow," which became a number one Adult Contemporary hit for Goldsboro in 1971. Other artists that recorded his material included O.C. Smith and Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. "I Believe In Music," often considered to be Davis' signature song, was recorded by several artists (including Marian Love and Davis himself) before it finally became a hit in 1972 for the group Gallery.
[edit] His Success As a Singer
Mac soon decided to pursue a career in Country music. He was soon signed to Columbia Records in 1970. His big success came two years later in 1972 when he topped the Country and Pop charts with the hit song "Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me".
Mac's work in music seemed sometimes to be overtly sexual. For example, "Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me" (in which he pleads with a woman not to get too attached to him because he doesn't want to commit to a full-time relationship with her) was one of them, as well as other hit songs like "Naughty Girl" and "Baby Spread Your Love On Me". He wasn't alone in this; many country songs popular in the 1970s and 1980s featured sexual overtones.
In 1974, Mac was awarded the Academy of Country Music's Entertainer of the Year award. Some of Davis' other hits included "Stop and Smell the Roses" (a number one Adult Contemporary hit in 1974), "One Hell of a Woman," and "Burnin' Thing". At the end of the 1970s, he moved to Casablanca Records, known primarily for its success with disco diva Donna Summer. Here, he achieved other hit songs like "Texas In My Rear View Mirror" and "Hooked On Music". In 1985, he recorded his very last Top Ten country hit with the song "I Never Made Love (Till I Made Love With You)".
[edit] Television Career
From 1974 to 1976, Davis had his own television variety show on NBC, The Mac Davis Show. He made his feature film debut opposite Nick Nolte in the football film, North Dallas Forty (1979) and as a result, was listed as one of twelve "Promising New Actors of 1979" by Screen World magazine. This proved that Mac could have success in not just singing and songwriting, but also as an actor. He soon became well known for all three of these careers.
Mac Davis played Will Rogers in the Broadway production of The Will Rogers Follies. Mac Davis was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2000. For his contribution to the recording industry, he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7080 Hollywood Blvd. At this point there seemed that there was nothing that Mac Davis couldn't do.
[edit] Decline & Comeback
By the mid 1980s, his career in music was declining. His chart success was falling rapidly; Davis was one of many Country singers who had Pop music crossover success in the 70s and 80s whose careers slowed down to make way for artists like Garth Brooks and Clint Black. After Casablanca Records closed down, Davis recorded for a short period of time with MCA Records in the mid 1980s. In 1990, he gained attention when he helped write the hit song for Dolly Parton called "White Limozeen". That same year, he also was on Broadway, performing in the show The Will Rogers Follies. Mac Davis was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame on June 15, 2006, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City.
[edit] Some Famous Quotes
- "Elvis was just like a big old kid. It was like he never got past 19, I don't think, in a lotta ways."
- "Don't Cry Daddy" is a pretty sad song. He got to the end of it and it ws just real quiet when Elvis says, I'm gonna cut that someday for my daddy. And, by God he did. He lived up to his word."
[edit] Discography
[edit] Selected Hit Singles
| Year | Single | Album | U.S. Country | U.S. Pop | |
| 1970 | "I'll Paint You a Song" | Mac Davis | #68 | - | |
| 1970 | "Whoever Finds This I Love You" | Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me | #43 | #53 | |
| 1971 | "Beginning to Feel the Pain" | Mac Davis | - | #92 | |
| 1972 | "Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me" | Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me | #26 | #1 | |
| 1972 | "Everybody Loves a Love Song" | Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me | - | #63 | |
| 1973 | "Dream Me Home" | Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me | #47 | #73 | |
| 1974 | "One Hell of a Woman" | Stop and Smell the Roses | #11 | - | |
| 1974 | "Stop and Smell the Roses" | Stop and Smell the Roses | #40 | #9 | |
| 1975 | "Burnin' Thing" | Greatest Hits | #31 | #53 | |
| 1975 | "Rock'N Roll (I Gave You the Best Years of My Life)" | All the Love In the World | #29 | #15 | |
| 1976 | "Forever Lovers" | Forever Lovers | #17 | #76 | |
| 1978 | "Music In My Life" | Fantasy | #92 | - | |
| 1980 | "It's Hard to Be Humble" | It's Hard to Be Humble | #10 | #43 | |
| 1980 | "Texas In My Rearview Mirror" | Texas In My Rearview Mirror | #9 | #51 | |
| 1981 | "Hooked On Music" | Texas In My Rearview Mirror | #2 | - | |
| 1981 | "Secrets" | Texas In My Rearview Mirror | #47 | #76 | |
| 1982 | "Rodeo Clown" | Texas In My Rearview Mirror | #37 | - | |
| 1982 | "You're My Bestest Friend" | Midnight Crazy | #5 | - | |
| 1984 | "Most of All" | Soft Talk | #41 | - | |
| 1985 | "I Feel the Country Callin' Me" | Till I Made It With You | #34 | - | |
| 1985 | "I Never Made Love (Till I Made It With You)" | Till I Made It With You | #10 | - | |
| 1986 | "Sexy Young Girl" | Till I Made It With You | #46 | - |
[edit] Selected Albums
| Year | Album | U.S. Country | |
| 1970 | Song Painter | #35 | |
| 1972 | Baby Don't Get Hooked On Me | #27 | |
| 1973 | Mac Davis | #19 | |
| 1974 | Stop and Smell the Roses | #2 | |
| 1975 | All the Love In the World | #6 | |
| 1975 | Burnin' Thing | #9 | |
| 1976 | Forever Lovers | #11 | |
| 1977 | Thunder In the Afternoon | #38 | |
| 1978 | Fantasy | #43 | |
| 1980 | Greatest Hits | #44 | |
| 1980 | It's Hard to Be Humble | #3 | |
| 1981 | Texas In My Rearview Mirror | #12 | |
| 1982 | Midnight Crazy | #19 | |
| 1985 | Till I Made It With You | #48 | |
| 2000 | Country Spotlight | - | |
| 2000 | The Best | - |
[edit] Selected Filmography
Mac Davis played small roles in the following TV shows and movies:
- 1979: North Dallas Forty
- 1979: Kenny Rogers and the American Cowboy
- 1980: Cheaper to Keep Her
- 1983: STING II - Lead role opposite Jackie Gleason
- 1995: Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
- 1996: Daytona Beach
- 2000: That 70s Show
- 2004: 8 Simples Rules For Dating My Teenage Daughter
[edit] Sources
- Country Music:The Rough Guide; Wolff, Kurt; Penguin Publishing
- All Music Guide
