MIKE MOUTOUX

and recommended that WLS hire the young singer. They
did and in 1933 Skyland Scotty, a nickname he acquired at
WMMN, joined WLS.
Since Red Foley had to quit the duet act with Lulu Belle,
WLS executives suggested that she join with Scotty as a duet
partner. Although they knew each other, they performed
on different touring units so it wasn’t until they got together
and performed their first song together on stage, “Madam,
I’ve Come To Marry You” that the duet clicked. Actually, it
clicked in more ways than one; they quickly became a popular
performing duo during the summer of 1934 and on December
13, 1934 were married.
Accustomed to radio presenting its performers as young,
single men and women, it came as quite a surprise when
Lulu Belle and Scotty found their marriage made them even
more popular. Lulu’s pregnancy with their daughter Linda
was publicized on WLS and the birth of their daughter was
announced by Scotty on The National Barn Dance.
Skyland Scotty had recorded for Bluebird, then Conqueror
(a total of 14 songs) before they became a duo and after they
paired they recorded together. Lulu Belle and Scotty recorded
for Vocalion, Columbia, Bluebird, Trutone and Starday, where
they recorded three albums, The Sweethearts of Country
Music (1963), Down Memory Lane (1964) and Sweethearts
Still (1965). Lulu Belle recorded an album, Snickers and
Tender Memories (1965) and in 1985 recorded an album for
a small label.
The duo appeared in seven movies, although they never
moved to Hollywood. In addition to a Roy Rogers movie,
Shine On Harvest Moon (1938), Lulu Belle and Scotty
appeared in Hi Neighbor (1940), Village Barn Dance (1940),
County Fair (1941) and The National Barn Dance (1944).
Among their most popular songs were “Does the
Spearmint Lose Its Flavor On The Bed Post Overnight?”, a
song that was written in 1924 and brought back by Lonnie
Donegan as “Does Your Chewing Gum Lose Its Flavor on the
Bedpost Overnight,” which became a hit in the U.K. as well
as the United States in 1961.
The act thrived with novelty songs; Lulu’s most popular
number was “Daffy Over Taffy.” Other popular numbers
included “Gotta Quit Kicking My Dog Around,” “When
Grandpa Got His Whiskers Caught In The Zipper of His
Shirt,” “Hominy Grits,” and “Which Would You Rather Have
On Hand, A Grand Baby or a Baby Grand?” As a songwriter,
one of Scotty’s most popular tunes was “Mountain Dew,”
which was originally written by Bascom Lamar Lunsford.
Scotty kept the melody and chorus and wrote new verses so
he and Lunsford shared songwriting royalties. Interestingly,
Lulu Belle and Scotty never performed that song on The
National Barn Dance because the station would not allow
any songs about liquor.
Scotty wrote “Have I Told You Lately That I Love You”
in 1944 after Lulu visited him in the hospital, where he was
recuperating. Another song, “Remember Me (When the
The WESTERN WAY
Candle Lights Are Gleaming)” was recorded by Willie Nelson
on his Red Headed Stranger album. In 1971 Scotty was elected
to the Nashville Songwriter’s Hall of Fame.
In 1939 Lulu Belle and Scotty left WLS for Cincinnati and
“The Boone County Jamboree” at WLW, where they stayed
for two years, then returned to WLS. They were some of the
most popular performers on the most popular barn dance of
their day, counting their years there from 1932, when Lulu
Belle joined, until 1958, when they retired. From 1949-1957
they hosted a daily television show in Chicago on WNBQ.
After their retirement, Lulu Belle and Scotty moved back to
Spruce Pine in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina.
During their time in Chicago Scotty earned a Master’s degree
from Northwestern University and when he returned to North
Carolina he taught school, farmed and was active in the local
community. He died January 31, 1981. Two years later Lulu
Belle married attorney Ernest Stamey and spent two terms
in the North Carolina Legislature. She died in Ingalls, North
Carolina on February 8, 1999.
The National Barn Dance was an evening of “fun” where
audiences were invited to laugh as they forgot their weekday
troubles and trials. Lulu Belle and Scotty were a “fun” duo;
they made audiences laugh and the audiences loved them
for it. They used cornball humor and novelty songs in their
performances and they demonstrated their love for each other
during each performance. They presented themselves as a
loving couple who loved their audiences and their audiences
loved them in return.
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