Glossary entry for
Rodgers, Jimmie

hmarshal@mail.coin.missouri.edu suggests that the "Jimmie Rodgers" referenced in Van's "Cleaning Windows" is country music's Jimmie Rodgers:

Jimmie Rodgers was born around 1897 and began recording in the 1920s. He is considered the father of modern country music, having combined blues influences he picked up from black co-workers while working as a railroad brakeman with folk and "hillbilly music." He sold millions of records, including his first, "Blue Yodel," which is also known as "T for Texas." Jimmie suffered from tuberculosis (he is credited as the author of "T.B. Blues") and died in 1933 after a long battle with the disease. From just the two song titles named above it is pretty obvious that Van is an admirer of Rodgers.

Note that there was another Jimmie Rodgers, who sang folk, country, and hymns with many hits from '57 to '61. Van's Jimmie Rodgers was Jimmie C. Rodgers, born 9-8-1897 near Meridian, MS, while the 50's Jimmie is Jimmie F. Rodgers, born 9-18-1933, in Camas, WA (four months after Jimmie C. died).

Van was not the only musician to be influenced by Jimmie Rodgers, as shown by the track listing for the Jimmie Rodgers tribute album, released in 1997 on Bob Dylan's own Columbia distributed label.

Photograph shows Jimmie Rodgers as "The Singing Brakeman".

More information available at:

Van references in:

  • "Cleaning Windows" (on Beautiful Vision)



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