Jack Scott

(Jack Scafone, Jr)

Jack Scott was born on  January 24, 1936 in Windsor Ontario, Canada. His first recordings were on the ABC-Paramount label; "Two Timin' Woman," was the first, in October of 1957. In 1958, he signed with Carlton Records, and "Leroy," which he wrote, was released in April to a moderate reception by the teenage audience. However when some of the disk jockeys turned the record over, they discovered

180 What It Was Was Rockabilly

"My True Love," which became a solid hit. Where "Leroy" was a rollicking mover, "My True Love" was a slow, impressive ballad; it was the ballads that made him strong from then on. The uniqueness of Jack's voice was probably the most important part of the acceptance by the teenagers. The deep resonance was what every male desired, to show the world that he was now a man. While he was basically a shy person, the strength of his voice was more than enough to carry forth even a very weak song, and make it strong. 

The next single was also a two sided hit: "With Your Love," backed with "Geraldine," the latter a pure rockabilly sound, with echo, and cute lyrics. This slow, fast formula would continue to work throughout the Carlton Records phase of his career. His appearances on national television, mainly with Dick Clark, would increase his popularity immeasurably. By the time Jack signed with the Guaranteed label, the influence of Hank Williams, and country music in general, was obvious. His first release, "What Am I Living For," backed with "Indiana Waltz," would set the pace for future songs of the slow, sexy style that would become popular with the teenagers. Here, the faster songs tended to be on the A side, where as the slower songs would remain on the B side. 

When Jack moved to Top Rank, the influence of Hank Williams reigned supreme, and he recorded one of the best albums of Hank Williams' songs ever recorded, entitled I Remember Hank Williams. His song "What in the World's Come Over You," was excellently received by his audience, and "Burning Bridges," later released on Capitol Records in an  album, sold for many years as a strong standard in the field.

By this time, however, the fire was out. The movement to Capitol Records really didn't accomplish much by way of advancing his career.

Neither did the moves to RCA, Groove, Jubilee, and finally, in the `60's to Dot Records, although some of these recordings are considered to be his best. Even today, he is constantly asked for copies of his records, and has rerecorded several of them on his own. He currently makes a living selling cars, somewhere in Indiana. 

It is difficult to understand why the public reacts the way it does to many singers, and artists, but Jack Scott deserved more than he received. His album of Hank Williams' songs, alone, was one of the best albums I have ever heard. He had an emotional understanding of the songs, and it was evident in his presentation. While Jack still makes occasional appearances throughout the Ease and Midwest area of the country, for the most part, he's gone. Through his disappearance from the American music scene, the world has lost a great artist.