It breaks my heart to share that Phil Everly died Friday in Burbank of complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; as his wife, Patti Everly, told The LA Times. He was 74. “We are absolutely heartbroken,” she said, noting that the disease was the result of a lifetime of cigarette smoking. “He fought long and hard.”
In this picture of the Everly Brothers, Phil is on the left.
The music they’ve been making together and separately since they began performing as children in the late forties, has often been cited as the basis of close harmony in country and rock, used by artists from the Beatles to the Beach Boys to the Byrds and lives on today with three Everly-influenced tribute albums released in just the past twelve months.
Their string of hits on Cadence Records in the mid to late fifties are each unbelievable masterpieces, and they toured extensively with their contemporaries all over the world. In particular, Buddy Holly was a close fried and Phil was pallbearer at his funeral. Below is a picture from two years ago when he appeared in LA when Buddy received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, right outside the Capitol Records building on Vine Street.
Instead of posting the bio and the discography or my personal thoughts this evening, I’ll leave you each with your own memories, and see if we can post some music for you. RIP Phil…and thank you for the memories you’ve left with us.
Note the credits….
