Hoyt Wayne Axton (March 25, 1938 – October 26, 1999)^[1] was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist and actor. He became prominent in the early 1960s, establishing himself on the West Coast as a folk singer with an earthy style and powerful voice. Among his best-known songs are "Joy to the World", "The Pusher", "No No Song", "Greenback Dollar", "Della and the Dealer" and "Never Been to Spain".^[2]

He was also a prolific character actor with many film and television roles to his credit, often playing a father figure in a number of films including The Black Stallion (1979), Heart Like a Wheel (1983) and Gremlins (1984).

Born in Duncan, Oklahoma, Axton spent his preteen years in Comanche, Oklahoma, with his brother John.^[3] His mother Mae Boren Axton, a songwriter, cowrote the song "Heartbreak Hotel", which became a major hit for Elvis Presley.^[4] Some of Hoyt's own songs were later recorded by Presley. Axton's father John Thomas Axton^[5] was a naval officer stationed in Jacksonville, Florida, where the family joined him in 1949.

Axton graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in 1956 and left town after a hardware store was destroyed by fire on graduation night following a misguided prank.^[6]

He attended Oklahoma State University on a scholarship,^[4] where he played football, but he left to enlist in the U.S. Navy. Axton held the rank of Petty Officer Second Class and served on two ships, the USS Princeton (CV-37) and the USS Ranger (CVA-61).^[2]

Axton was the first cousin of David Boren, who served as governor of Oklahoma and three terms in the United States Senate and was also president of the University of Oklahoma.^[7]

After his discharge from the Navy, Axton began singing folk songs in coffee houses and nightclubs in Southern California. In the early 1960s, he released his first folk album, The Balladeer (recorded at the Troubadour), which included his song "Greenback Dollar", which became a 1963 hit for the Kingston Trio.^[2]

Axton released numerous albums throughout the 1960s and 1970s. He produced Tales From the Ozone, a 1975 album by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, and he released many minor hits of his own, such as "Boney Fingers", "When the Morning Comes" and 1979's "Della and the Dealer".^[4] His vocal style featured his distinctive bass-baritone (which later deepened to near-bass) and use of characterization.

Axton first appeared on television in a David L. Wolper ABC production of The Story of a Folksinger (1963). He appeared on Hootenanny, hosted by Jack Linkletter, during this period. In 1965, he appeared in an episode of Bonanza^[4] in which he sang duets with Pernell Roberts. In 1966, he made his film debut in Smoky playing the role of Fred Denton, the evil brother of the character played by Fess Parker. He gained fame in the 1970s and 1980s through his film roles, including those in The Black Stallion (1979), Endangered Species (1982), Heart Like a Wheel (1983) and Gremlins (1984). His television appearances included WKRP in Cincinnati (1979) and Diff'rent Strokes (1984, 1985). In 1980, he sang the theme song to the short-lived series Flo, and he appeared as himself in the episode titled "You Gotta Have Hoyt". Axton sang the jingle "The Ballad of Big Mac" for a 1969 McDonald's Big Mac television commercial as well as "Head for the Mountains" in voiceovers for Busch beer in the 1980s. He appeared in a Pizza Hut commercial in 1985 and in a TV spot for FTD with Merlin Olsen in 1989.^{[citation needed]}

Axton's most lasting contributions, however, were songs made famous by others: "Joy to the World" (Three Dog Night) and "Never Been to Spain" for both Three Dog Night and Elvis Presley, "Greenback Dollar" for the Kingston Trio, "The Pusher" and "Snowblind Friend" for Steppenwolf, "No No Song" for Ringo Starr, and songs covered by singers such as Joan Baez, Arlo Guthrie, John Denver, Nina Simone, Waylon Jennings, Martha Reeves, Jonathan Edwards, Glen Campbell, Anne Murray, David Clayton-Thomas and Colter Wall. Axton sang duets with Linda Ronstadt on the songs "Lion in the Winter" and "When the Morning Comes" and with Tanya Tucker on "You Taught Me How to Cry." His composition "Joy to the World", performed by Three Dog Night, reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for six straight weeks in 1971, making it the top hit of the year. He named his record label Jeremiah after the bullfrog mentioned in the song.^[2]

Axton was married four times, but the first three ended in divorce.^[2] He had five children.^[2] One of his children, Matt Axton, is a musician.^[8]

He struggled with cocaine addiction, and several of his songs, including "The Pusher", "Snowblind Friend" and "No No Song", partly reflect his experiences with the drug.^[2] He was a proponent of medical marijuana use, but he and his wife Deborah were arrested in February 1997 at their Montana home for possession of about 500 g (1.1 lb) of marijuana. His wife later explained that she offered Axton marijuana to relieve his pain and stress following his 1995 stroke. They were fined and received deferred sentences. Axton never fully recovered from his stroke, and he was confined to a wheelchair for the remainder of his life.

Axton died at age 61 at his home in Victor, Montana on October 26, 1999, after suffering two heart attacks in two weeks.^[2][9][10]

On November 1, 2007, Axton and his mother Mae Boren Axton were inducted posthumously into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in Muskogee, Oklahoma.^[11][12]

Among Axton's best-known compositions (or co-writing credits) are:

• "Greenback Dollar" - covered by the Kingston Trio and many others.
• "The Pusher" - covered by Steppenwolf on their debut album in 1968; this version was also used in the soundtrack of the 1969 film Easy Rider. Nina Simone recorded the song in 1971. Blind Melon, Isla Grant, and The Flaming Lips also covered the song.
• "Have a Nice Day" (1971) - covered by Bing Crosby
• "Less Than the Song" (1972) - covered by Joan Baez
• "Lion In The Winter" (1974) - duet with Linda Ronstadt. Guthrie Girls covered the song.
• "No No Song" (1975) - became a #3 hit for Ringo Starr in March 1975
• "Never Been to Spain" - covered by Three Dog Night, Waylon Jennings, Elvis Presley, Cher, and Ike & Tina Turner
• "Joy to the World" - Three Dog Night hit from 1971 that spent six weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Little Richard and Matt Axton also covered the song.
• "Snowblind Friend" (1971) - covered by Steppenwolf, David Allan Coe, and Chestnut Station
• "Lightning Bar Blues" (1973) - covered by Brownsville Station, Linda Ronstadt, Arlo Guthrie and Hanoi Rocks
• "Sweet Misery" (1974) - covered by John Denver, Martha Reeves, and Matt Axton.
• "Sweet Fantasy" (1974) - covered by Glen Campbell and David Clayton-Thomas
• "Ease Your Pain" (1971) - covered by Bobby Whitlock, Glenn Yarbrough and Jackie DeShannon
• "When the Morning Comes" (1974) - duet with Linda Ronstadt
• "You Taught Me How to Cry" - 1977 duet with Tanya Tucker. Covered by Matt Axton
• "Boney Fingers" (1974) - with Renee Armand
• "Jealous Man" (1976) - covered by John Fullbright
• "Della and the Dealer" (1979) - performed on WKRP in Cincinnati; reached the top 20 of the Billboard country chart in the U.S. and the top 50 of the British pop chart
• "Evangelina" (1974) - covered by Arlo Guthrie, Jonathan Edwards, Colter Wall and others
• "Flash of Fire" (1976) - cowritten by Cathy Smith
• "Gypsy Moth" (1976) - covered by Freddie White and Nathaniel Rateliff
• "In a Young Girl's Mind" (1975) - covered by Johnny Cash