Talk:Jim Reeves

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Untitled[edit]

The crash that so tragically claimed the life of Jim Reeves and hais Manager Dean Manual wa in fact so severe that it had partially buried the engine of the Beechcraft Debonair that Reeves was piloting at the time and indeed Reeves was identified by his drivers licence at the scene.—Preceding unsigned comment added by 195.93.21.69 (talk) 15:58, 29 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Date[edit]

The date of birth is given variously in the main article.—Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.153.174.184 (talk) 13:38, 25 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Character[edit]

I do not mean to speak ill of the dead but I am curious about a quote I read.

In the book "The Book of Rock Quotes" compiled by Jonathan Green, published by Omnibus Press in 1977, there is the following quote:

"They think they know the real Jim Reeves from a bit of wax. This "Gentleman Jim" bit that suddenly came about - the perfect gentleman - he wasn't like this at all... The other side of his character is better left unsaid, the fans don't want to hear it." - David Bussey, secretary of the Jim Reeves fan club.

Anyone have any information on what Bussey was talking about? I am a fan of Jim Reeves but I am curious about Bussey was talking about. Maybe he was just full of sour grapes but I do not know.—Preceding unsigned comment added by DJParker39 (talk • contribs) 22:31, 21 July 2007 (UTC)[reply]

There was a documentary shown on British television about him in the 1990s which was critical of his personal life (allegations of serial infidelity and wife-beating ) as well as allegations of racism. I can't find any details of the programme but possibly the same sources/issues covered in the biography Like a Moth to a Flame: The Jim Reeves Story by Michael Streissguth (I haven't read it, but the reviews on Amazon indicate it's not a hagiography). Infidelity and wife-beating are also alluded to in the obituary of Jims wife[here] although this appears to be based on material from the Streissguth book. I would assume that these must be the same issues that David Bussey alludes to. Mighty Antar (talk) 02:52, 28 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Hello - this might appear to be a little late to the party (understatement of the century ?!!) but I was in contact with Dave Bussey during the late 1980's/early 1990's when I purchased some VHS tape material of Jim in concert. I will always remember one letter from him at the time saying please don't publicly broadcast this material as there are copyright issues and so on and so forth.... This I did, then the internet came along and....the rest is history. As a big fan of Jim Reeves I obviously come with bias. I've been a fan since the early 1980's so, hopefully, know what I'm talking about. Here we go - personally, I have never heard of any allegations about Jim being a wife beater (and I've read a lot about him) and neither have I heard about serial infidelity - for a man to be in the public eye so much from the early 1950's onwards, serial infidelity would have been difficult to get away with especially with a vibrant press and ever present journalists covering the music industry. I am also aware that Dave Bussey (no idea if he is still with us now or not) did make comments about Jim being no angel. However, this refers specifically to Jim walking off stage when on tour if the piano wasn't tuned correctly, there was something wrong with the stage set up and so on...this refers specifically to the tour of Ireland in 1963 (I think it was) which can only be called chaotic if nothing else. This was out of Jim's control as shows were often added to the schedule without his knowledge but he felt morally obliged to perform. And, without being offensive to the Irish (a country I have visited many times), the ireland of the early 1960's wasn't as developed as it was today - a much better transport infrastructure is now in place. I do believe the press did report these outbursts at the time as it does appear to contradict the personality Jim like to present - i.e. Gentleman Jim Reeves. And there's one thing I have read many times over these last 40 years - Jim was a perfectionist who liked to give 110% if not more - at each performance. Perhaps Dave Bussey is alluding to these stories. I can't confirm this as I haven't been in touch with him since the early 1990's when I purchased those VHS tapes from him.

The ones that had to be kept for personal use only...and then the internet came along...!!

I am more than happy to add any more info if need be. As said, I've been a massive fan of Jim's now for over 40 years so there is probably very little I don't know about him. More than happy to discuss further. Feel free to reply (if this thread is still live). First time I've commented on this section of Wikipedia so might need an email to say you have responded and would like any further info. Thanks for reading. Kind regards. BarlickKid1966 (talk) 18:56, 11 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Its been a long time since I added my original comment to this section. The documentary I mentioned appears to be Gentleman Jim Reeves: The Story Of A Legend directed by David Hutt, the original of which certainly does include the allegations of infidelity and racism. My original link to Mary Reeves obituary is now broken, but I believe that this is the same obituary [1] from The Independant. Mighty Antar (talk) 21:48, 11 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]
Hello...indeed it has !! Just when you thought no one was going to reply then, two come along in a week !! I have the Gentleman Jim Reeves show you refer to on VHS and have watched this a few times over the years. Again, I cannot comment on any stories of infidelity but I understand Larry Jordan does refer to some lady who lived over on the west coast of the USA (California) who Jim appeared close to and - according to Jordan - molded the 'Gentleman Jim' style of later years. If this was more than a business connection, I can't comment but Jordan does allude that this was something more serious than a professional relationship. As for racism, I do know Jim admired the South Africa of the 1960's and from what I've read in interviews with Mary Reeves, Jim did want to return to the country and make another picture there and possibly go and retire there once he believed his singing career was coming to a close. Jim was hugely popular is South Africa and had many fans amongst the Afrikaans, the non-Dutch white population as well as the black communities. I seem to recall a BBC Radio 2 (UK) programme in the early 1980's broadcast in 8 x 1 hour episodes about the life and time of Jim Reeves, where Jim was known as "King Jim" amongst the Zulu population !!

As far a I am aware, Jim did express support for South Africa on one of his LP's released in the 1960's (Yours Sincerely Jim Reeves) in which Jim talks about his life and times and sings a few songs in between. I have a couple of versions of this LP and - for some strange reason - one is much heavier than the other...no idea why and I'm not an expert in this field. No doubt doing a bit of research on the internet will reveal why.

As far as being explicitly racist - I personally have never heard - or seen in print - a racist comment made by Jim. And I will happily go to my grave and stand by that statement as true.

Again, and I reiterate, the very strong impression I got from Dave Bussey was that Jim could be very temperamental and did, indeed, walk off the stage during the 1963 Irish tour. As previously stated, this was due to unscrupulous promoters adding extra shows to the tour - often at the last moment - which Jim felt morally obliged to perform at. When arriving at these venues (naturally at the last minute) it was found the stage wasn't set up, the piano provided was hopelessly out of tune, the stage lighting was inferior and so on. As said, Jim was a perfectionist and these were far from perfect conditions - this said, it is probably understandable why he did walk off the stage - much to the delight of the reporters covering the event and in complete contrast to the Gentleman Jim image. Perhaps this is the dark side that Dave Bussey alludes to?

In closing, I also think it's important to clarify that, by 1964, Jim was the second highest paid performer in the country music genre (Johnny Cash was number 1). By then, Jim was earning around $350 000 a year which is worth about $3.5 million in 2024 prices. This ties in with Jim being a perfectionist and wanting to give his best performance for all his audiences, many of whom were ordinary folks in average paying jobs who were paying there hard earned cash to see him live - naturally he wanted a good piano, decent lighting, a well presented stage. Imagine the bad press and negative reviews if Jim was performing at a sub-par venue where things didn't go right and this is what Jim wanted to avoid.

Always remember that Jim came from a very poor background in East Texas where money was in short supply.

All this said, I stand by Dave Bussey's comments referring to the Jim walking off stage (no doubt with a few choice words !!) as alluding to a darker side of his character - which does, I concede, not reflect the Gentleman Jim Reeves persona which shines through from the many interviews and TV shows he gave during the course of his career.

I know there are some folks out there who always want to go deeper and find the evil, unspeakable demon in us all but, having read about Jim since the early 80's, I personally can say the above is what Dave Bussey is referring to.

One thing I will stand by to my dying day and, as God is my witness, I can sincerely and honestly state Jim was no Gary Glitter, Jimmy Savile or Bill Cosby. Of course he had faults and I strongly believe those faults are listed in my comments above.

I have enjoyed Jim's music for the last 40 plus years, and there is nothing on this earth that will put me off listening to his music (God willing) for another 40...

Again, thanks for your contribution and please post another comment if any of the above need further info or clarification. Kind regards. BarlickKid1966 (talk) 15:51, 18 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Fair use rationale for Image:Jimreevesorange.jpg[edit]

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Citations & References[edit]

See Wikipedia:Footnotes for an explanation of how to generate footnotes using the <ref(erences/)> tags Nhl4hamilton (talk) 04:46, 1 February 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Mexican Joe link leads to an irrelevant article[edit]

Just sayin' s'all. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.227.143.156 (talk) 03:36, 2 July 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Marty Robbins[edit]

There are several websites that claim that country musician Marty Robbins, who lived in Brentwood, actually heard the fatal plane crash.

An editor with knowledge of the crash and/or Robbins should favorably consider adding an appropriate passage to the article. 72.82.164.40 (talk) 10:01, 18 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Location of Death[edit]

The location of his death is given to be at the corner of Baxter Lane and Franklin Pike Circle. While this is very close to Brentwood, and therefore Williamson County, this intersection is actually just inside the Nashville city limits, or Davidson County. Should this be changed? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Hesterm77 (talk • contribs) 18:40, 20 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]

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