The legendary John Ellison to be inducted into the West Virginia Hall of Fame
By Matthew Young, RealWV
“I was born on the banks of the Kanawha River, in a two-room shack my father built out of driftwood. My mother told me that, when I was two years old, she woke up in the middle of the night because the house was moving. She stepped out of bed, and water came up almost to her knees.”
We were in Kimball the first time I heard John Ellison tell the story of that day in 1943 when his family lost everything. And after the Ellisons’ relocated to McDowell County, life didn’t get much easier for them.
“I grew up in total poverty,” John went on. “My father was earning $600 a year working in the coal mines. I looked at how hard he was working and never having anything. My mother even kept a lock on the refrigerator so we couldn’t go in. We could only eat when they took the lock off.”
But a lot has changed since the 1940’s. In the decades that have followed, John redefined what it means to grow up a poor, Black kid in the coalfields of Southern West Virginia. And while he was at it, John wrote one of the most recognizable and successful songs in history.
At just 17-years-old, and without first telling his parents, John bought a one-way ticket to Rochester, New York to pursue his dreams of making music. It wasn’t long before John established himself as a founding-member of the highly-influential Soul Brothers Six, and earned his place with America’s songwriting elite.
John wrote “(She’s) Some Kind of Wonderful” in 1967, shortly before departing Rochester for Philadelphia. The Soul Brothers Six recorded it, and the song would go on to reach number 91 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song would see even more success in the mid-1970’s, with the release of Grand Funk Railroad’s famous cover version.
In the nearly 60-years since John Ellison scribbled down the now-legendary opening line, “I don’t need a whole lot of money,” his song has been recorded by no less than 70 artists, and became the title of a 1987 feature film. Aside from Soul Brothers Six and Grand Funk Railroad, notable covers of the song include those recorded by Rod Stewart, Joss Stone, and Huey Lewis and the News. And in 2023, John celebrated his 82nd birthday with his own release of an updated version.
Throughout his impressive career, John Ellison has released numerous albums, and played his music for excited fans all over the world. In 2015, John was formally inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame. Now just weeks ahead of his 84th birthday, John continues to perform.
I have had the great honor of spending quite a bit of time with John Ellison since that night in Kimball. The strong friendship, the one that I never expected us to develop, has become one of my most cherished relationships. We have traveled this great country together, and his wisdom has, on more than one occasion, has given me comfort when I was sure that no words could. But then I guess I should expect nothing less from one of the greatest songwriters to ever put pen to paper.
My friend John – a true Mountaineer who came from the humblest of beginnings and achieved the highest levels of success – has been West Virginia’s loyal ambassador to the world since boarding a bus bound for Rochester at 17-years-old. On August 23, almost seventy-years later, our state will repay that loyalty when John is inducted as the newest member of the West Virginia Hall of Fame.
John’s induction ceremony will take place at the McKeever Lodge at Pipestem Resort State Park. The ceremony will begin at 3 p.m., and will be followed by a “Some Kind of Wonderful Buffet” at the Bluestone Dining Room. At 7 p.m., John, as well as several other West Virginia musicians, will perform at Pipestem’s outdoor amphitheater.
Congratulations, John, and thank you for your friendship. I love you, and I can’t think of anyone more deserving of a place in West Virginia’s Hall of Fame.
