Aubrey Wilson "Moon" Mullican

The Birthplace of Western Swing site says Sydney Nathan signed Mullican to the new King label in 1946, and that his hit "New Pretty Blonde" was a parody, in pigeon French, of "Jole Blon" and became a million-seller. The Handbook of Texas entry on Harry Choates says Mullican's version of the song did better than Choates's own, which had come out a year earlier on Gold Star. Mullican died suddenly in Beaumont on January 1, 1967, the day after a large New Year's Eve meal.

What the plaque says

Aubrey Wilson "Moon" Mullican Born in the small town of Corrigan in 1909, Aubry Wilson Mullican became famous as a country and western singer and songwriter. His father was a farmer and the African-American farm workers and sharecroppers influenced his music greatly. Mullican began his career when he was only 16, playing the piano in bars and brothels in the Houston area. His habit of performing all night long and sleeping during the day earned him the nickname, "Moon." He also had a unique style of playing the piano, known as the "two-finger right-handed" piano style which later became his trademark. Mullican shouted his words, believing it was more important to be heard than to be precise. He was a fun-loving man who when asked why he chose the piano said, "the beer kept sliding off my fiddle!" By the 1940s his reputation grew. He played with various bands and recorded numerous albums which included his biggest hits, "Goodnight Irene," "Mona Lisa" and "I'll sail my ship alone." He was one of the first solo singer-pianists to play at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Mullican performed throughout the U.S., Europe and Vietnam sharing the stage with the likes of Hank Williams, Ernie Ford and Red Foley. Overall, Mullican accompanied other singers and musicians on more than 200 recordings as well as recording his own music. Before dying at the age of 58, he grew to be known as the "King of the Hillbilly Piano Players." At his funeral, friend and former Louisiana Governor Jimmie Davis delivered his eulogy. His epitaph reads, "I'll sail my ship alone." The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inducted Moon Mullican in 1974. (2012)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• McFaddin-Ward House — 1.4 mi
  A Beaux-Arts Colonial Revival mansion finished in 1906 and lived in by one family for 75 years, with free guided tours of three furnished floors, the carriage house and gardens.
• Spindletop-Gladys City Boomtown Museum — 5.1 mi
  A re-created oil boomtown on the Lamar University campus, with a derrick, period shops, a 1941 granite monument and an optional re-enactment of the January 1901 Lucas gusher.
• Village Creek State Park — 11 mi
  A 2,466-acre state park on one of the few free-flowing creeks in Texas, with a launch for the Village Creek Paddling Trail, boat rentals and sandy-upland trails in the Big Thicket.
• Museum of the Gulf Coast — 19 mi
  Port Arthur's regional museum in a former bank building: fossils, Native Americans, the petroleum story, a 125-foot history mural and Halls of Fame for musicians, athletes and artists.

More markers nearby

• William McFaddin — steps away
• Andrew F. Smyth — steps away
• Police Chief Reid Tevis — steps away
• Magnolia Cemetery — steps away