Died On This Date (April 28, 2009) Vern Gosdin / Country Music Star

Vern Gosdin
August 5, 1934 – April 28, 2009

vernVern Gosdin was nicknamed “The Voice” for a reason.  He had one of the most beautifully soulful singing voices in all of country music, and if honky-tonk had a Mount Rushmore, Vern Gosdin would likely sit alongside George Jones, Merle Haggard, Lefty Frizzell and Buck Owens.   Gosdin scored several hits throughout the ’70s and ’80s, including “Set ’em Up Joe,” “Chisled In Stone,” and “If You’re Gonna Do Me Wrong (Do It Right).”   Gosdin began singing as a child in his Alabama church.  In the early ’60s he moved to Los Angeles where he became an integral part of the blossoming west coast country scene.  He soon signed to Capitol Records where he released a few marginal hits.  But it wasn’t until he moved to Atlanta, retired and then came out of retirement that he hit his stride with a series of chart toppers throughout the ’80s.  Vern Gosdin passed away in a Nashville hospital after suffering a stroke in recent weeks.

Thanks to Stephen of Stephen Brower for the assist.

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Chiseled In Stone - Vern Gosdin

Died On This Date (April 28, 1988) B.W. Stevenson / Had hit With “My Maria”

B.W. Stevenson (Born Lewis Stevenson)
October 5, 1949 – April 28, 1988

Born in Dallas, Texas, B.W. Stevenson was  singer-songwriter of country pop songs. He had one big hit, 1973’s “My Maria,” which reached #9 on the Billboard pop singles chart.  The song became a #1 country hit for Brook & Dunn in 1996.   Stevenson died while undergoing heart valve surgery on April 28, 1988.  He was 38.

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B.W. Stevenson

Died On This Date (April 22, 2003) Felice Bryant / Wrote Many Pop Hits

Felice Bryant
August 7, 1925 – April 22, 2003

Along with her husband Boudleaux, Felice Bryant, wrote such early pop hits as “Bye Bye Love,” “Rocky Top,” and “All I Have To Do Is Dream,” the last two being big hits for the Everly Brothers. The future Mr. & Mrs. Boudleaux met in 1945 and so began a successful songwriting partnership (and marriage) that would last some forty years. During that time, they wrote songs for a virtual who’s who of popular music. That list includes Tony Bennett, the Grateful Dead, Dean Martin, Ray Charles, Nazareth, Bob Dylan, Elvis Presley, Elvis Costello, Simon & Garfunkel, Roy Orbison, Buddy Holly and Sarah Vaughan. Together they penned over 1500 recorded songs which obviously landed them into several songwriter halls of fame. Felice Bryant passed away from natural causes on April 22, 2003.



Died On This Date (April 22, 2008) Bob Childers / Americana Singer-Songwriter

Bob Childers
November 20, 1946 – April 22, 2008

Oklahoma singer-songwriter Bob Childers passed away on Tuesday, April 22, 2008 of emphysema and related lung disease. Childers was a the so-called godfather or Red Dirt Music, a hard to define sub-genre of country/Americana that includes elements of country, rock and folk. After touring much of the country’s dive bars and honky tonks through the ’70s, Childers released his debut album at the dawn of the ’80s. Over his career, he wrote over 1500 songs and earned accolades from no less than fellow Oklahoman, Garth Brooks who wrote a song with him. He was even invited to perform at the White House in 1982. 2004 saw the release of Restless Wind – A Tribute To The Songs of Bob Childers, a 3-CD set that included Jimmy Lafave, Cross Canadian Ragweed and The Red Dirt Rangers.




Died On This Date (April 15, 1998) Rose Maddox / Country Legend

Rose Maddox (Born Roselea Brogdon)
August 15, 1925 – April 15, 1998

rose-maddoxRose Maddox was a country singer, musician and songwriter who performed with her siblings as Maddox Brothers and Rose during the late ’30s and early ’40s.  When her brothers went off to serve their country in WWII, Rose continued as a solo act and later rejoined the boys upon their return.  And even though they were considered a “hillbilly” band, they were most popular in California, likely due to its growing population of Southern immigrants.   They have been called the “greatest hillbilly band of all time,” while Rose has been referred to as the “grandmother of rockabilly.”  After the group disbanded in the late ’50s, Rose signed to Capitol Records as a solo act.  She scored several Top 20 hits including a #4 hit duet with Buck Owens.   In the mid ’60s, Rose switched gears a bit and started performing bluegrass.  She found a new audience among the folk revivalists of the era.  She continued recording and performing occasionally well into the ’90s, even earning a Grammy nomination in 1996.  She died of kidney failure in 1998 at the age of 71.

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America's Most Colorful Hillbilly Band, Vol. 1 - The Maddox Brothers and Rose