Mel Street
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member Sneakin Deacon
N 36° 07.156 W 086° 45.868
16S E 521196 N 3997202
Mel Street was a local country music star in Southwest Virginia and Southern West Virginia before become a popular star on the Grand Ole Opry and the WWVA Wheeling Jamboree.
Waymark Code: WM335Q
Location: Tennessee, United States
Date Posted: 02/02/2008
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member rangerroad
Views: 128

Mel Street climbed the country music ladder to stardom performing first in Southwest Virginia and Southern West Virginia. He hosted a local TV show on WHIS(Present day WVVA) in Bluefield, West Virginia. He record his first single titled “Borrowed Angel,” in 1970. In 1972 “Borrowed Angel” was picked up by Royal American Records, which gave the single national exposure. The record became an instant hit and Mel Street was vaulted into the national spotlight.

Mel Street continue to enjoy success with several hits including “You Make Me Feel More Like a Man," "Forbidden Angel," and "Smokey Mountain Memories." Along with success came a battle with clinical epression, a battle that he lost when he committed suicide on October 21, 1978. Mel Street is buried in Nashville's Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery.
Description:
King Malachi Street was born on October 21, 1933 in Grundy, Virginia. By the age of 16 he was performing on local radio shows in southwest Virginia and Southern, West Virginia. Before he became famous, Street worked as a radio tower electrician in Ohio and as a nighclub performer in Niagara Falls. In 1963 he move back to the area around Bluefield, West Virginia were he opend up an auto body shop while still performing in local nightclubs. From 1968 through 1972, Street hosted a tv show on WHIS(WVVA) in Bluefield, West Virginia. It was in 1970 that he record his first single, “Borrowed Angel,” on a small local record lable. Royal American Records picked up “Borrowed Angel” in 1972 and it almost instantly became a Billboard Top 10 Hit. The following year he recored what would be his biggest hit, "Lovin' on the Back Streets.” Mel Street’s popularity continued through the Mid-1970’s with several hits including, "You Make Me Feel More Like a Man," "Forbidden Angel," and "Smokey Mountain Memories." In 1978, Mel Street was diagnoised as being clinically depressed and on his 45th birthday, October 21, 1978 he committed suicide. Mel Street is buried in Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee.


Date of birth: 10/21/1931

Date of death: 10/21/1978

Area of notoriety: Entertainment

Marker Type: Horizontal Marker

Setting: Outdoor

Visiting Hours/Restrictions: Daily - During Daylight Hours

Fee required?: No

Web site: [Web Link]

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