Kenneth Edward Mellons (born July 10, 1965) is an American country music artist who released his self-titled debut album in 1994. This album produced the single "Jukebox Junkie", a Top Ten hit on the Hot Country Songs charts. Mellons followed up his debut album with three more albums – 1995's Where Forever Begins, 2001's The Best of Ken Mellons and 2004's Sweet — in addition to charting six more singles on the country charts.
Ken Mellons | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Kenneth Edward Mellons |
| Born | July 10, 1965 |
| Origin | Kingsport, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupation | Singer-songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1993–present |
| Labels | Epic, Curb, Home |
| Website | http://www.kenmellons.net |
Biography
editMellons was born in Kingsport, Tennessee. He has been a native of Nashville, Tennessee since the age of 3. He entered in many talent shows in high school, and played at various clubs around Nashville to help perfect his skill, while working day jobs to pay the bills.[1] In 1989, Ken earned a spot at a show called Country Music USA at Opryland USA, a theme park in Nashville. Later, he was signed to Epic Records in 1993.[1] His debut, self-titled album produced a Top 10 single in "Jukebox Junkie", a song which also received ASCAP and BMI awards for surpassing one million spins on radio. His second album, Where Forever Begins, failed to produce any successful singles, and by 1997, Mellons left Epic Records.[2]
Shortly after leaving Epic, Mellons signed to Curb Records. He released two non-charting singles and one album (The Best of Ken Mellons) during his six-year tenure with Curb. He became frustrated with the label and asked out of his record deal with them in 2003.[2] Mellons then moved to the independent Home Records, releasing the album Sweet in 2004. The album featured "Paint Me a Birmingham", which became a Top 5 country hit for Tracy Lawrence in the first half of 2004. Mellons also co-wrote the songs "Honk If You Honky Tonk" on George Strait's "Honkytonkville" album and "I Bought The Shoes" on Dierks Bentley's self-titled debut album.
Mellons continues to perform throughout the US and recorded a bluegrass album titled Rural Route in 2009.
Discography
editAlbums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [3] |
US Heat | ||
| Ken Mellons |
|
42 | 8 |
| Where Forever Begins |
|
— | — |
| The Best of Ken Mellons |
|
— | — |
| Sweet |
|
— | — |
| Rural Route |
|
— | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||
Singles
edit| Year | Single | Peak chart positions |
Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country [4] |
CAN Country [5] | |||
| 1994 | "Lookin' in the Same Direction" | 55 | 52 | Ken Mellons |
| "Jukebox Junkie" | 8 | 6 | ||
| "I Can Bring Her Back" | 42 | 49 | ||
| 1995 | "Workin' for the Weekend" | 40 | 40 | |
| "Rub-a-Dubbin'" | 39 | 65 | Where Forever Begins | |
| "Stranger in Your Eyes" | 55 | 89 | ||
| 1998 | "Ladies Night"[6] | — | — | Non-album singles |
| "Bundle of Nerves"[7] | — | — | ||
| 2003 | "Paint Me a Birmingham" | 54 | — | Sweet |
| 2004 | "Climb My Tree" | — | — | |
| 2009 | "Still They Call Me Love" | — | — | Rural Route |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||
Music videos
edit| Year | Video | Director |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | "Lookin' in the Same Direction" | Marc Ball |
| "Jukebox Junkie" | ||
| "I Can Bring Her Back" | Jeffrey Phillips | |
| 1995 | "Rub-a-Dubbin'" | Jon Small |
| 1998 | "Ladies Night" | chris rogers[8] |
References
edit- ^ a b allmusic ((( Ken Mellons > Biography )))
- ^ a b Ken Mellons Biography: OLDIES.com
- ^ "Ken Mellons Album & Song Chart History – Country Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ "Ken Mellons Album & Song Chart History – Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ "Results – RPM – Library and Archives Canada – Country Singles". RPM. Retrieved December 11, 2010.
- ^ "Going for airplay" (PDF). Country Airplay Monitor: 17. June 19, 1998.
- ^ "Singles" (PDF). Billboard. November 7, 1998. Retrieved November 7, 2021.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ "Production notes". Billboard. July 11, 1998. p. 81.