Singers & Musicians Who Have Made Westerns
by joe_538 | created - 10 May 2015 | updated - 10 May 2015 | PublicFocusing on entertainers who were more famous as musicians than actors and some who were equally famous for both.
1. Ringo Starr
Actor | A Hard Day's Night
Ringo Starr is a British musician, actor, director, writer, and artist best known as the drummer of The Beatles who also coined the title 'A Hard day's Night' for The Beatles' first movie.
He was born Richard Starkey on July 7, 1940, in a small two-storey house in the working class area of Liverpool...
Blindman
2. Ricky Nelson
Actor | The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet
Ricky Nelson was born on May 8, 1940 in Teaneck, New Jersey, USA as Eric Hilliard Nelson. He was an actor, known for The Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet (1952) and Rio Bravo (1959). He was married to Kristin Harmon. He died on December 31, 1985 in De Kalb, Texas, USA.
Rio Bravo The Over-The-Hill-Gang
3. Frankie Avalon
Soundtrack | Grease
One of a spate of teen idols to come out of Philadelphia in the 1950s and 1960s, Frankie Avalon--unlike many of the others--actually had a musical background, having been taught to play the trumpet at a very young age by his father. As a youth Avalon performed in local clubs and theaters. He won a ...
The Alamo Guns of the Timberland
4. Mel Tormé
Soundtrack | Gangster Squad
A professional singer at the age of three, Mel Torme was a genuine musical prodigy. As a teenager, he played the drums in Chico Marx's band and earned the nickname "The Velvet Fog" because of his smooth, mellow tenor voice. In the 1940s, he formed his own group, the Mel-Tones, one of the first ...
Walk Like a Dragon
5. Bing Crosby
Actor | White Christmas
Bing Crosby was born Harry Lillis Crosby, Jr. in Tacoma, Washington, the fourth of seven children of Catherine (Harrigan) and Harry Lincoln Crosby, a brewery bookkeeper. He was of English and Irish descent. Crosby studied law at Gonzaga University in Spokane but was more interested in playing the ...
Stagecoach (1966)
6. Bob Dylan
Soundtrack | Renaldo and Clara
Robert Allen Zimmerman was born 24 May 1941 in Duluth, Minnesota; his father Abe worked for the Standard Oil Co. Six years later the family moved to Hibbing, often the coldest place in the US, where he taught himself piano and guitar and formed several high school rock bands. In 1959 he entered the...
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid
7. Elvis Presley
Soundtrack | Girls! Girls! Girls!
Elvis Aaron Presley was born on January 8, 1935 in East Tupelo, Mississippi, to Gladys Presley (née Gladys Love Smith) and Vernon Presley (Vernon Elvis Presley). He had a twin brother who was stillborn. In 1948, Elvis and his parents moved to Memphis, Tennessee where he attended Humes High School. ...
Love Me Tender Flaming Star Charro!
8. Willie Nelson
Soundtrack | The Dukes of Hazzard
This versatile, eclectic, rather wanderlust country crossover star known for his classic ballads ("Always On My Mind"), autobiographical road songs ("On the Road Again") and catchy rhythms ("Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys") started out life as Willie Hugh Nelson on April 30, ...
Barbarosa Red Headed Stranger Stagecoach (1986) The Last Days of Frank and Jesse James Once Upon a Texas Train Outlaw Justice
9. Bobby Darin
Soundtrack | Come September
Walden Robert Cassotto, nicknamed "Bobby", was born in The Bronx, New York, in 1936. Severe rheumatic fever as a child scarred his heart and led to an overprotected and pampered childhood. He was the focal point of a family that fostered and encouraged his love of music. His music career started ...
Gunfight in Abilene
10. Kenny Rogers
Soundtrack | Polar
Born in Houston, Texas on August 21, 1938, Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, actor, record producer and entrepreneur Kenneth Ray Rogers was the fourth of eight children born to a carpenter father who worked in a shipyard and a mother who was a hospital nurse's assistant. Of humble Irish and Native...
The Gambler 1 -5 Rio Diablo
11. Fabian
Actor | The Longest Day
Swinging teen idol Fabiano Anthony Forte, better known to his fans as Fabian, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1943, to a police officer. His father took ill and died when Fabian was young and the boy was forced to find work to help pay the family bills. With no experience but looks to die...
North to Alaska
12. Jewel
Soundtrack | Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story
Jewel was born on May 23, 1974 in Payson, Utah, USA. She is a music artist and actress, known for Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007), Ride with the Devil (1999) and Clueless (1995). She was previously married to Ty Murray.
Ride With the Devil
13. Dean Martin
Soundtrack | The Dean Martin Show
Martin was born Dino Paul Crocetti in Steubenville, Ohio, to Gaetano Alfonso "Guy" Crocetti, an Italian immigrant and barber, and his Ohio-born wife, Angela (Barra) Crocetti. He spoke only Italian until age five. Martin came up the hard way, with such jobs as a boxer ("Kid Crochet"), a steel mill ...
Rio Bravo Sergeants Three Four for Texas Sons of Katie Elder 5 Card Stud Bandolero Something Big Showdown
14. Kris Kristofferson
Actor | Blade
Kris Kristofferson was born in Brownsville, Texas, to Mary Ann (Ashbrook) and Lars Henry Kristofferson. His paternal grandparents were Swedish, and his father was a United States Air Force general who pushed his son to a military career. Kris was a Golden Gloves boxer and went to Pomona College in ...
Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid Heaven's Gate Stagecoach (1986) The Last Days of Frank and Jesse James The Tracker Outlaw Justice
15. Bobby Vinton
Soundtrack | Flushed Away
Bobby Vinton was born on April 16, 1935 in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Flushed Away (2006), Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) and Blue Velvet (1986). He has been married to Dolly Dobbins since December 17, 1962. They have five children.
The Train Robbers
16. Lena Horne
Soundtrack | Cabin in the Sky
Lena Calhoun Horne was born June 30, 1917, in Brooklyn, New York. In her biography she stated that, on the day she was born, her father was in the midst of a card game trying to get money to pay the hospital costs. Her parents divorced while she was still a toddler. Her mother left later in order ...
Death of a Gunfighter
17. Glen Campbell
Soundtrack | True Grit
Glen Campbell was born on April 22, 1936 in Billstown, Arkansas, USA. He was a music artist and actor, known for True Grit (1969), Shindig! (1964) and Dark Phoenix (2019). He was married to Kim Campbell, Sarah Jan Barg, Billie Jean Nunley and Diane Marie Kirk. He died on August 8, 2017 in Nashville...
True Grit Uphill All The Way
18. Johnny Cash
Soundtrack | The Johnny Cash Show
Johnny Cash was born February 26, 1932, in Kingsland, Arkansas, to Carrie Cash (Rivers) and Raymond Cash. He made his first single, "Hey Porter", for Sun Records in 1955. In 1958 he moved to Columbia Records. He had long periods of drug abuse during the 1960s, but later that decade he successfully ...
A Gunfight Stagecoach (1986) The Last Days of Frank and Jesse James
19. Travis Tritt
Actor | Blues Brothers 2000
Travis Tritt was born on February 9, 1963 in Marietta, Georgia, USA. He is a music artist and actor, known for Blues Brothers 2000 (1998), My Cousin Vinny (1992) and The Mule (2018). He has been married to Theresa Nelson since April 12, 1997. They have three children. He was previously married to ...
Rio Diabo Outlaw Justice
20. Duane Eddy
Soundtrack | Natural Born Killers
Duane Eddy was born on April 26, 1938 in Corning, New York, USA. He is an actor and composer, known for Natural Born Killers (1994), Forrest Gump (1994) and Broken Arrow (1996). He has been married to Diane Mary 'Deed' Abbate since December 17, 1979. He was previously married to Maureen A Power, ...
The Wild Westerners
21. Julie London
Actress | Emergency!
Julie London recorded 32 albums during her career. Forced to give up band singing when her true age was discovered, she was primarily a torch singer. Her vocal range was described by "sultry" and "low-keyed". Her own favorite singers were Barbra Streisand and Roberta Flack.
She was known in some ...
A lot of westerns in the fifties
22. Marty Robbins
Soundtrack | The Drifter
He is known for many styles of music - pure honky-tonk, rockabilly, gospel, straight-ahead pop, blues and Hawaiian. But fans remember Marty Robbins best for his cowboy songs. Songs like "Big Iron", "Running Gun", "The Hanging Tree" and of course "El Paso" established Robbins as the master of the ...
Buffalo Gun Ballad of a Gunfighter
23. B.J. Thomas
Soundtrack | Forrest Gump
B.J. Thomas was born on August 7, 1942 in Hugo, Oklahoma, USA. He was an actor, known for Forrest Gump (1994), Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre (2023) and Spider-Man 2 (2004). He was married to Gloria Richardson. He died on May 29, 2021 in Arlington, Texas, USA.
Jory
24. Dinah Shore
Soundtrack | The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Her real name was Frances "Fanny" Rose Shore, and she was born in Winchester, Tennessee. Stricken with polio at 18 months of age, she recovered after receiving the Sister Kenny treatment. She became a cheerleader at Hume-Fogg High School in Nashville and went on to graduate from Vanderbilt ...
Belle of the Yukon
25. Vaughn Monroe
Soundtrack | Die Hard
Vaughn Wilton Monroe was born October 7, 1911 in Akron, Ohio, and his family moved to Wisconsin shortly thereafter. Monroe showed an early talent for the trumpet and focused most of his early efforts on that. Monroe wanted to be an opera singer, but the Depression made pursuing such a career ...
Singing Guns The Toughest Man in Arizona
26. Naomi Judd
Actress | Someone Like You...
Naomi Judd was born on January 11, 1946 in Ashland, Kentucky, USA. She was an actress and producer, known for Someone Like You (2001), An Evergreen Christmas (2014) and Route 65 Nashville. She was married to Larry Strickland and Michael Charles Ciminella. She died on April 30, 2022 in Nashville, ...
Rio Diablo
27. Burl Ives
Actor | The Big Country
Burl Ives was one of six children born to a farming family in Hunt City, Jasper, Illinois, the son of Cordellia "Dellie" (White) and Levi Franklin Ives. He first sang in public for a soldiers' reunion when he was age 4. In high school, he learned the banjo and played fullback, intending to become a...
Sierra Stations West The Big Country Day of the Outlaw Baker's Hawk
28. Waylon Jennings
Actor | Maverick
Jennings, a singer, songwriter and guitarist, recorded 60 albums and had 16 No. 1 country singles in a career that spanned five decades. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in October 2001. With pal Willie Nelson, Jennings performed duets like "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up ...
Stagecoach (1986) Outlaw Justice
29. June Carter Cash
Soundtrack | The Johnny Cash Show
June Carter Cash was born on June 23, 1929 in Maces Springs, Scott County, Virginia, USA. She was an actress and producer, known for The Johnny Cash Show (1969), The Apostle (1997) and Man of Steel (2013). She was married to Johnny Cash, Edwin Lee (Rip) Nix and Carl Smith. She died on May 15, 2003 ...
Stagecoach (1986) The Last Days of Frank and Jesse James
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