Robert L. Lord, known professionally as Bobby Lord, was born on January 6, 1934 in Sanford, Florida however, he grew up predominantly in Tampa. His love for music began at a young age and he entered talent competitions as a teenager in which he impressed audiences with his upbeat energy and rockabilly style. Bobby met the love of his life, Mozelle, in high school and was married by the age of 20.
Upon graduating from Plant High School, Lord was given the opportunity to host his own television program while attending University of Tampa. The hour-long, Saturday-night program was called “The Bobby Lord Homefolks Show,” and aired on WSUN-TV in St. Petersburg, FL. The show featured Lord singing along with a house band.
In 1952, he won a national talent competition sponsored by TV Guide. This victory lead to an appearance on ABC’s “Paul Whiteman’s TV Teen Club” based in Philadelphia. Soon thereafter, Boudleaux Bryant heard one of Bobby’s demo tapes and passed it along to Columbia Records, who signed him as a recording artist in 1953. At the age of 19, Lord was the label’s youngest recording artist. He began releasing country and rockabilly tracks with Columbia and joined the ABC-TV’s “Ozark Jubilee” based out of Springfield, MO.
When the show was cancelled in 1960, Lord moved to Nashville, Tennessee and was immediately offered a spot on the “Grand Ole Opry” where he performed throughout the 1960s. He recorded with Hickory Records from 1961-67 and Decca Records thereafter and remained with them until the end of his recording career.
During the 60s, he became best known for the daily afternoon television program on WSM-TV, “The Bobby Lord Show,” which featured popular country artists. The show aired locally from 1963 – 1965 before moving to national syndication. The show was wildly successful and remained on the air until 1968.
Shortly after the show came to a close, Lord went into partial retirement, returning to the business world in real estate and insurance. In 1970, he recorded another top-20 single, “You and Me Against the World,” and continued to record sporadically throughout the 70s.
Though much of his career was dedicated to television and live performances, Bobby recorded over 40 singles, six of which reached the Top-40 charts, including. He also recorded four studio albums on major labels including Bobby Lord’s Best and The Bobby Lord Show.
Bobby Lord passed away on February 16, 2008 in Stuart, Florida at the age of 74. If you’d like to learn more about the career and legacy of Bobby Lord, please visit http://www.hillbilly-music.com/artists/story/index.php?id=11542.
