The Evangeline Parish native wore his Cajun heritage proudly on his sleeve and wove it into a remarkable string of Billboard country hits and a career at the Grand Ole Opry.
He wore his Cajun heritage proudly on his sleeve and wove it into his music. Grand Ole Opry star Jimmy C. Newman, an Evangeline Parish native and one of the few Opry stars to appear on the hallowed stage/program for 50+ years, died Saturday night in Nashville.
Born Jimmy Yves Newman, he added the C to his stage name, saying it was short for Cajun, early in his career. Following a short, unsuccessful recording career post-World War II through J.D. Miller's Future label in Crowley, Newman was signed in 1953 to Dot Records in Nashville. The next year began a remarkable series of hit songs on the country charts, a stint performing at the Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport and the ultimate status-maker for a country singer: joining the Grand Ole Opry.
Newman charted 33 singles on the Billboard country chart between 1954 and '70. His biggest hit, "A Fallen Star," rose to No. 2 and even hit the Top 25 on the pop chart. Newman performed at the Opry as recently as early this month.
Read more about his life and legacy here.