The Fendermen were an American pop/rockabilly duo, comprising Jim Sundquist and Phil Humphrey, active in the early 1960s. The duo had one hit single, “Mule Skinner Blues”, released in 1960 on the Cuca Records label which was picked up for national distribution by Soma Records. The song hit No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 32 in the UK Singles Chart in September 1960, and No. 2 in Canada. The duo called themselves “the Fendermen” because they played Fender guitars (a Telecaster and a Stratocaster), and they connected them both to the same amplifier. These guitars were the only instruments used in the recording of “Mule Skinner Blues”. (More from Wikipedia)
While not a surf band (though they have a guitar-driven sound), the Fendermen are a long-time favorite of mine that also hit in 1960. Jim Sundquist and Phil Humphrey came from two different towns and had the same birthday; they met when they were teenagers. The name is taken from the Fender guitars that each man played, both plugged into the same amplifier. An amped-up version of a song by the country & western foundational musician Jimmie Rodgers (“The Singing Brakeman”, not the Jimmie Rodgers who recorded “Honeycomb”) was their most popular song. The song is called “Mule Skinner Blues” (originally named “Blue Yodel #8”), and they were convinced to record the song with just the two of them, with no bass guitarist or drummer. The vocals are little more than a grumble; what really comes through are the gleeful laughs. Though the song was all rock and roll to me, I used to hear this version of “Mule Skinner Blues” occasionally on country music radio stations also. Unaccountably, the performance became a hit and made the Top Ten.
“Mule Skinner Blues” has been recorded by many others over the years, notably by Dolly Parton; when she states flatly mid-song “I want to be a mule skinner”, you can almost believe her.
(December 2014)
