Biography
Neil Morris, whose given name appears as “Neal” in certain references, originated in the Richwoods community lying south of Mountain View, Arkansas. Although he earned his keep as a farmer and horse trader, local audiences—and eventually listeners across a wider region—celebrated him as an exceptional instrumentalist and balladeer. The distinctive rapport he enjoyed with listeners was absorbed during boyhood by his son, James Corbett Morris, later celebrated under the name Jimmie Driftwood (occasionally rendered “Jimmy”), who rose to national prominence as a folksinger and songwriter. Whereas the younger man cut both individual singles and complete albums for major American labels, Morris’s own performances survived chiefly through field recordings and similarly noncommercial channels, one of which reached the public via Atlantic’s four-CD Sounds of the South compilation.
Singles
