Music
Leslie York
1917–1984 · country singer, lead guitarist
Younger half and lead guitarist of the York Brothers, the Detroit-based country duo behind “Hamtramck Mama” and “Motor City Boogie.”
- Born
Louisa, Kentucky- Died
Dallas, Texas
aged 66- Also known as
- The York Brothers
- Detroit years
- late 1930s–1946, 1950s
- Field
- Music
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Leslie York, seven years younger than his brother George, finished ninth grade in Kentucky and won a talent contest in Lexington before joining George on radio in Portsmouth, Ohio. The two moved to Detroit in the late 1930s and built a large following among the Southern auto workers who packed the city's country bars. Leslie usually played lead guitar behind their close harmony vocals, and his picking gave records such as “Hamtramck Mama” (1939) their swing. The duo recorded for Detroit's Universal and Mellow labels and for Decca, served in the Navy during World War II (Leslie in Europe), and joined the Grand Ole Opry after the war. Back in Detroit from 1950, they recorded a long run of sides for King with Nashville session players, mixing hillbilly, jazz and blues in a country boogie style that anticipated rockabilly. Both brothers later settled in Dallas, where Leslie died in 1984.
Highlights
- Lead guitar on the York Brothers' records from “Hamtramck Mama” (1939) on
- Detroit-based duo favored by Southern migrant auto workers
- Grand Ole Opry members (1946–1950)
- Long series of King recordings after returning to Detroit in 1950