Dorsey Burnette
December 28, 1932 – August 19, 1979
Dorsey Burnette was born into a musical family that included brother, Johnny Burnette. But early on in life, the brothers pursued another dream, boxing, each becoming Golden Gloves champs. In 1949, they met fellow pugilist, Paul Burlison who also shared an interest in music. They soon formed the Rock and Roll Trio which would become one of the foundations of American rockabilly. Dorsey continued to perform with the group and later as a solo artist well into the ’70s. His music found a home with rockabilly, pop and country fans alike. Dorsey Burnette died of a massive coronary on August 19, 1979. He was just 46.
Johnny Burnette was one of the originators of what would later be called rockabilly. Along with his brother, Dorsey Burnette and friend Paul Burlison, Burnette formed The Rock and Roll Trio who would cause a bit of a stir from a remarkable amount of promotional appearances for a band in such infancy. They were lucky enough to appear on American Bandstand, Ted Mack Original Amateur Hour, the Tonight Show and Kraft Music Hall. Unfortunately, the night they appeared in the finals of Ted Mack, Elvis Presley made his debut on the Ed Sullivan Show. But even with all of this great exposure, their records failed to catch on, leading the the end of the group in the fall of 1957. It should be noted that for about six years of his childhood, Dorsey and his family lived in the same Memphis housing project as Gladys, Vernon and Elvis Presley. Both Burnettes also spent their early days as amateur boxers, culminating in Golden Gloves championships for each. Johnny took a shot at turning professional, but after only earning $60 and a broken nose in his first bout, he decided to change careers. By the late ’50s, the Burnette brothers were living in Los Angeles where they would work with and have their songs recorded by Rick Nelson, among others. Johnny would soon go “solo” and record several hits for Liberty Records and later, Chancellor and Capitol Records. But tragedy would strike in August of 1964. While boating one night in a lake north of San Francisco, Burnette’s tiny unlit fishing boat was hit by a much larger cruiser, the impact throwing him into the water to his death.
themusicsover 
Dorsey Burnette was born into a musical family that included brother, Johnny Burnette. But early on in life, the brothers pursued another dream, boxing, each becoming Golden Gloves champs. In 1949, they met fellow pugilist, Paul Burlison who also shared an interest in music. They soon formed the Rock and Roll Trio which would become one of the foundations of American rockabilly. Dorsey continued to perform with the group and later as a solo artist well into the ’70s. His music found a home with rockabilly, pop and country fans alike. Dorsey Burnette died of a massive coronary on August 19, 1979. He was just 46.
