I was a bit saddened this morning when I read that country singer Eddy Arnold had died at the age of 89. Although no cause of death was given, Arnold was at a care facility near Nashville when he passed away. In March of this year, he fell outside his home, injuring his hip.As a kid, the extent of my knowledge of Eddy Arnold didn't go beyond hearing snippets of his songs included in one of those mail order greatest hits compilations advertised on TV. However, when I subscribed to the digital service Music Choice in the mid 90s, I immersed myself in various types of music... one of which was classic country from the mid 40s through the early 70s. Along with artists such as Hank Williams Sr, Connie Smith, Buck Owens, and Patsy Cline, one of my favorites was Eddy Arnold. I really enjoyed the recordings he made during the "Tennessee Plowboy" phase of his career of the 1940s and early 1950s (songs such as "Full Time Job", "There' s Been A Change In Me", and "I Wanna Play House With You"). Along with these three chart toppers, Eddy had 25 other #1 hits on the Billboard Country chart. In fact, he ranks as the #1 artist in the history of the Billboard Country chart.
Eddy Arnold's death comes a couple of months after the death of his wife of 66 years, Sally. He is survived by a son and daughter, as well as two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Below is a clip of Eddy performing his 1948 hit "Anytime".
6 comments:
Oh, I hadn't heard this news! Sad. I remember listening to some of his music when I was young because my grandmother was a big fan of his.
It always sad to hear about a legend's passing, but the consolation is that longevity was on his side. He was one of the greats.
Hadn't heard of him. Although I do like some country music. What struck me about his performance below was the fact he was playing in a suit. We don't see that too much anymore. In my mind it felt like he was just on a tv show pretending to preform. lol :) I know that's not true, and the music wasn't bad...that's just what it looked like to me.
The Rock Chick: Because of your grandmother exposing you to Eddy's music, are you like Marie Osmond (a little bit country)?
Pjazzy: When I was reading the news story of Eddy's death, it mentioned that he didn't smoke or drink.
Jessica: Good observation about Eddy performing in a suit. I still see many of the older R&B performers still wearing suits, but the younger ones are all about the casual look. It's the same way when comparing older movies/TV series to recent ones.
Malcolm: well I do admit to adoring Marie Osmond, but really, no, I'm not a little bit country. There's a few artists and/or individual songs that I do like, but I'm way more like Donny...a "little bit rock and roll"! Thanks again for thinking of me today!
The Rock Chick: I think you are way more rock and roll than Donny. That's not to say that I frown on Osmonds tunes like "One Bad Apple" and "Double Lovin'". As for the B-52's song I sent, you are quite welcome.
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