Joe Dowell

Born in Bloomington, Indiana, pop singer Joe Dowell experienced what he describes as his "fourteen-and-a-half-minutes of fame" after his debut recording session produced the 1961 chart-topping single "Wooden Heart." The track, a centuries-old German folk tune, had appeared on Elvis Presley’s film soundtrack GI Blues and achieved major success across Europe, yet RCA Victor never issued it as a single stateside. At the urging of country producer Shelby Singleton, Dowell cut his own rendition, with Ray Stevens contributing organ, and the result proved an immediate sensation. Issued as the inaugural release on Mercury’s Smash subsidiary, "Wooden Heart" ascended to the number-one position on the Billboard charts in just ninety days. A follow-up, "Little Red Rented Rowboat," later peaked at number twenty-three during the summer of 1963, but Dowell soon encountered the less savory realities of the music business. Though he viewed himself as a "singer-songwriter," Mercury compelled him to record substandard songs the label controlled, leaving his first album, Wooden Heart, as an uninspired collection of forgettable cover material. His objections led to the termination of his contract. Having played guitar and composed songs since age thirteen, Dowell had made his first public appearance at a ninth-grade amateur talent show and was still a senior at the University of Illinois when "Wooden Heart" reached the top of the charts. The enduring appeal of his version enabled him to sustain a performing career, eventually founding a radio commercial production company that established him as a prominent spokesperson for banks and financial institutions nationwide. Among his upcoming projects is a new recording of "Wooden Heart" featuring an all-star ensemble of guest musicians, while the German archival label Bear Family plans to issue a comprehensive collection of his complete recorded output.