Chad Morgan

Chadwick William Morgan was born on 11 February 1933 in Wondai, Queensland as the eldest of 14 children,[1][2] to Dave and Ivy Morgan.[3] From an early age he was raised by his grandparents, Bill and Eva Hopkins.[4] After his grandfather died in 1947, with his grandmother, he moved back to Scrubby Creek to live with his mother and siblings.[1][4] Both parents were amateur musicians his father played accordion and his mother accordion and mandolin, while Morgan learnt guitar.[1] He left school at age 14 and found work cutting timber.[3][5] According to Morgan he had made a dentist appointment to remove his protruding teeth, "I was tormented so much... But the farm truck broke down", he later reflected that he was glad he never made another appointment.[5]

From 1948 he worked on cattle farms near Rockhampton and began composing music.[1] Morgan's lyrics use Australian slang including sheilas, drongos, dills and geezers. Morgan was discovered through Australia's Amateur Hour, a radio talent contest, where he sang his original song "The Sheik of Scrubby Creek" and became a national finalist.[3][6] By November 1952 he had recorded that track together with "You Can Keep Your Wimmln and I'll Stick to My Beer".[7] He signed with Regal Zonophone Records (a subsidiary of EMI), which issued his debut single, "The Sheik of Scrubby Creek", in December.[8] He was described as a "Queensland hillbilly" with a "deadpan, bumpkin style".[8] He also undertook national service with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) at Aberley Base.[6][9]

Morgan toured extensively during his career, including with the Slim Dusty Show, the All Star Western Show and the Chad Morgan Show. He released 18 studio albums and undertook regular live performances. At the 1987 Country Music Awards of Australia he was inducted into the Australian Roll of Renown,[10] and was awarded an OAM on Australia Day (26 January) in 2004 for "service to country music."[11] Morgan appeared in the films, Newsfront (1978) and Dimboola (1979).[9] In the former film he provided a cameo as "Redex singer".[12] For the latter film he depicted Bayonet with "the full force of his unusual personality... [and] the lustre of his success in the entertainment world."[9]

Morgan contributed one verse to the Gordon Parsons song "Pub with no Beer". He was dubbed the "clown prince of comedy" by Slim Dusty.[13] He recorded a duet with John Williamson, "A Country Balladeer". He has had platinum and gold album sales and is one of Australia's most popular country music artists. Morgan performed at Sydney Opera House with Slim Dusty in April 1978. An album of the concert was released three years later, as On & Off the Road. It was released the same year as Sheilas, Drongos, Dills & Other Geezers which contained 20 of Morgan's hits from the 1950s and 1960s. In 2009 he wrote a song about his Aboriginal heritage, dedicated to his grandparents who raised him as a child, "The Ballad of Bill and Eva".[14] It was recorded with his granddaughter, Caitlin Morgan.[15]

Artists who have impersonated Morgan in their shows include Col Elliott and John Williamson. Barry Humphries used Morgan as his inspiration for Les Patterson's teeth.[16] Tex Morton once described Morgan as the only original country music artist in Australia.[17] As of January 2023 Morgan was touring rural Victoria – his career spanning over 70 years.[4]

Morgan was hospitalised for 14 months from December 1954 following a collision between his motorcycle and a car.[2][4][5] His injuries included two broken ribs, broken hand and broken leg, which subsequently prevented doing "hard physical work, and has turned to singing."[5] He married fellow singer Pam Mitchell in 1957,[1] the couple had three children - Allan, Chad Jr. and Janelle. He admitted to being a heavy drinker and smoker.[4] At age 47 the singer had a stroke.[4] Morgan's second marriage was to Joanie from 14 September 1985 to 2017 (her death).[4] After their wedding Morgan gave up drinking and smoking. As of 2004 he resided in Bli Bli, Queensland. In 2008 false rumours of his death began to surface after an announcement on radio 4GY. The radio station later apologised for the rumour.[18]

In 2009 he wrote a song about his Aboriginal heritage, dedicated to his grandparents, "The Ballad of Bill and Eva".[4][14] It was recorded with his granddaughter, Caitlin Morgan.[15] His biographical documentary film I'm Not Dead Yet was directed by Janine Hosking and released in 2011.[19] Australian writer Anna Rose published his biography Chad Morgan - Seventy Years in the Making in 2022.[4][20]

A documentary film, I'm Not Dead Yet, was made about Morgan's life. It was written and directed by the filmmaker Janine Hoskings. The DVD was released by Umbrella Entertainment on 6 June 2012.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chad Morgan.

• Official website
• Morgan's induction into the Roll of Honour by the Australian Country Music Foundation
• IMDB website listing for I'm Not Dead Yet
• Chad Morgan digital story and oral history - State Library of Queensland