Don Everly, the surviving half of the Everly Brothers, has died at his Nashville home. He was 84.
“Don lived by what he felt in his heart,” read a statement from his family. “Don expressed his appreciation for the ability to live his dreams … with his soulmate and wife, Adela, and sharing the music that made him an Everly Brother.”
A cause of death was not immediately disclosed.
“Very sad day,” tweeted Dave Davies of The Kinks. “Both of the Everlys were part of my musical life growing up. We were inspired by their wonderful records and their singing and their voices.”
Nancy Sinatra recalled: “Touring with Phillip and Donald was literally thrilling. To have the privilege of singing with their breathtaking iconic voices was one of the great gifts of my career.”
Renowned for their harmonies, Don and his brother Phil had more than a dozen Top 10 hits in the U.S. in the late 1950s and early ‘60s, including “All I Have to Do Is Dream,” “Wake Up Little Susie” and “Bye Bye Love.” They were among the first acts inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where they were introduced by Canada’s Neil Young. In 1997, they were honoured with a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
“The Everly Brothers were a big influence on us and we learned a lot from their beautiful harmonies,” tweeted Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys.
Born Isaac Donald Everly in Brownie, Kentucky, he started performing with his brother and parents Ike and Margaret as the Everly Family.
The Everly Brothers would last until July 1973, when Phil walked off stage during a concert in California. They reunited for a show in London in 1983. Phil died in 2014 at 74.
“I always assumed I would go first, because I was the oldest,” Don told the Los Angeles Times. “It was a shock to find out he was so ill.”
Don was married four times and had five children (including one who died as an infant).