1950 HITS ARCHIVE: I’ll Never Be Free - Kay Starr & Tennessee Ernie Ford

I’ll Never Be Free (Benjamin-Weiss) by Kay Starr & Tennessee Ernie, with instrumental accompaniment Five years before “Sixteen Tons” would make him a household name, “Tennessee Ernie” was recording primarily for the country music market and not yet including “Ford” as part of his professional billing. His most successful crossover hit of the early 50s was this top-5 duet with Kay Starr, whose own star was also on the rise. THE 1950 HITS ARCHIVE - here in one place, a good-quality library of original-release-version best-sellers and songs that made an impact that were either released or enjoyed a major chunk of their popularity within the calendar year 1950 (some were recorded in 1949).