Country

Died On This Date (August 5, 2008) Reg Lindsay / Australian Country Music Legend

Reg Lindsay
August 5, 1929 – August 5, 2008

Born near Sydney in 1929, Reg Lindsay was one of Australia’s most prolific country music songwriters with over 500 songs to his credit.  Lindsay began learning to play the harmonica at just two years old, and would eventually master the banjo, fiddle, mandolin and guitar as well.  Throughout his 50-year career, Lindsay won three of Australia’s version of the Grammy and four Logies, their version of the Emmy, for his television programs.  In 1974, he became the first Australian to perform at the Grand Ole Opry.  Reg Lindsay was 79 when he died of pneumonia on August 5, 2008.



Died On This Date (August 4, 2007) Lee Hazlewood / Country Music Great

Barton Lee Hazlewood
July 9, 1929 – August 4, 2007

Lee Hazlewood was a country singer, songwriter, musician and producer whose work with Nancy Sinatra during the ’60s are essential records of the era.  Hazlewood settled in Arizona as a disc jockey after being leaving the military in the early ’50s.  He soon partnered with Duane Eddy as a songwriter and producer on such hits as “Peter Gunn.”  During the mid ’60s, he began working with Nancy Sinatra, writing and producing “These Boots Are Made For Walking,” and many more.  Hazelwood all but retired from music during the ’70s, but his songs lived on having been covered by such unlikely artists as Megadeth, Beck, Nick Cave, Lydia Lunch and the Tubes.  He died of renal cancer at the age of 78.

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Died On This Date (August 3, 2010) Bobby Hebb / Had Huge Pop Hit With “Sunny”

Bobby Hebb
July 26, 1938 – August 3, 2010

Bobby Hebb was a Nashville singer-songwriter who had a huge pop hit with “Sunny” in 1966.  No less an authority than Broadcast Music Incorporated (BMI) lists it at #25 on its list of the top 100 songs of the century.  “Sunny” is also one of the most covered songs in pop music history.  It has been recorded by James Brown, Del Shannon, Stevie Wonder, Nick Cave, and Frank Sinatra, to name a few.  Hebb’s first break came when he was still just a child.  After performing on a local television program, he landed a spot playing spoons behind Roy Acuff on the Grand Ole Opry.  He later sang back up on Bo Diddley’s recording of “Diddley Daddy.”  On the day following the assassination of John F. Kennedy, Hebb’s brother, Harold Hebb was stabbed to death in a fight outside a Nashville club.  Those two events rocked Hebb’s world enough that he sought solace in his songwriting, which lead to the optimistic lyrics of “Sunny.”  The song soon became an international hit and helped land Hebb a spot opening for the Beatles on their U.S. tour.  He continued to release respectable hits over the years as well as pen a few for others.  Bobby Hebb was 72 when he passed away on August 3, 2010.

Thanks to Craig Rosen at Number1Albums for the assist.

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Sunny - Bobby Hebb

Died On This Date (July 31, 1964) Jim Reeves / Country Music Icon

Jim Reeves
August 20, 1923 – July 31, 1964

When Jim Reeves graduated from college, he played semi-pro baseball until he was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1944.  An ankle injury put the brakes on his baseball career while still in the farm system.  Reeves soon turned his sights on music and by the late ’40s was making records and was part of Moon Mulican’s band.  Reeves later made his solo radio debut on the highly influential program, Louisiana Hayride, reportedly as a last-minute replacement for Hank Williams.  He eventually signed with RCA Records where, with the help of producer, Chet Atkins he released a string of hits including “Four Walls” and “He’ll Have To Go.”  His smooth voice and style came to exemplify the “Nashville Sound.”   Jim Reeves died when the small plane he was piloting crashed in bad weather over Tennessee.  He was 40 years old.

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The Essential Jim Reeves - Jim Reeves

Died On This Date (July 30, 2003) Sam Phillips / Legendary Record Producer

Sam Phillips
January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003

samAs a producer, Sam Phillips was one of the key architects of early rock ‘n roll.  What he helped create in his Sun Studios would become the foundation on which current popular music was built.   Phillips opened his Memphis recording studio in 1950 to make records for his own label, Sun Records.  One of his early recordings was Jackie Brenston’s “Rocket 88,” that many consider the first rock ‘n roll record ever.  Other future legends he worked with were B.B. King, Bobby Blue Bland, Rufus Thomas and Howlin’ Wolf, whom he considers his greatest discovery.   Of course most consider his OTHER “discovery” to be his greatest – Elvis Presley.   Phillips recorded some of the biggest early records by some of the greatest names in rock history.  They included hits by Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Ike Turner,  and Roy Orbison.  Sam Phillips died of respiratory failure at the age of 80.