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Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular MusicA B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y ZSTATLER BROTHERS, TheCountry vocal quartet: Philip Balsley (b 8 Aug. '39), Don Reid (b 5 June '45), Harold Reid (b 21 Aug. '39), Lew DeWitt (b 8 March '38; d 15 Aug. '90 of Crohn's disease); Jimmy Fortune (b 11 March '45) replaced DeWitt '82, retired due to ill health. (DeWitt released solo album On My Own '85 on Compleat.) They were the most successful vocal group in country music, with four-part harmony, their own songs and some corny humour. Harold, Lew and Phil began in Lyndhurst Methodist Church in Staunton VA '55; worked as gospel trio the Kingsmen until Don joined '60; took new name '63 from a box of tissues to avoid confusion with a pop group, passed an audition and joined the Johnny Cash TV show '64, signed with Columbia. Sales of their records were nil for 18 months, label executives so disgusted they would not advance more studio time; Cash let them sneak into one of his sessions when he went to lunch and they recorded 'Flowers On The Wall' '65: the smash hit sold two million copies and won two Grammys. More hits incl. 'You Can't Have Your Kate And Edith, Too', but their career at Columbia was strained; they switched to Mercury, scored with 'Bed Of Rose's' '71 and never looked back, winning another Grammy for 'Class Of '57' '72. An extension of their act was their alter egos, Lester 'Roadhog' Moran and the Cadillac Cowboys, who won a plywood disc for selling 1,250 copies of their album Live At Johnny Mack Brown High School. The Statlers were named CMA Vocal Group of the Year every year '72--80 except one; their Old-Fashioned Fourth of July Celebra- tion in Staunton brought 60,000 people, the larg- est annual country music festival anywhere. Almost 30 years after that first hit they had more than 25 CDs in print. Hosted their own Statler Brothers Show on TNN since late '80s; though their singles no longer made the top ten, albums continued to sell with gold efforts Radio Gospel Favourites '86, Music Memories And You '90. Other albums incl. Flowers On The Wall, Big Hits and Oh Happy Day '66--9 on Columbia; Flowers On The Wall: The Essential Statler Brothers 1964--1969 '96 on Columbia CD compilation; Country Music Then And Now '72, Symphonies In E Major '73, Carry Me Back '74, Entertainers On And Off Record '78, The Originals '79, two-disc The Holy Bible -- The New And Old Testaments '79, Years Ago '81, The Legend Lives On '82, Today '83, Atlanta Blue '84, Pardners In Rhyme '85, Four For The Show '86, Maple Street Memories '87, Home '93 all on Mercury. |