My Kind of Country

Country music from a fan's point of view since 2008

In Memoriam: Mel Tillis (1932-2017)

4 Comments Posted by on November 19, 2017

Grand Ole Opry star and Country Music Hall of Fame member Mel Tillis has died at age 85. He began recording in the 1950s and was the CMA’s Entertainer of the Year in 1976. He was also a highly regarded songwriter having written such classics as “I Ain’t Never”, “Ruby Don’t Take Your Love to Town”, “Honey (Open that Door)” and many others. He was also the father of Pam Tillis. Here he is singing “Coca Cola Cowboy”, which was a #1 hit for him in 1979.

Rest in peace, Mel. You will be missed.

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4 responses to “In Memoriam: Mel Tillis (1932-2017)”

  1. Luckyoldsun November 19, 2017 at 5:24 pm

    Another ’60s-’70s country legend gone. There are not many left.
    Tillis was, of course, most well-known for his persistent stuttering, which he would joke about, rather than try to hide.
    Luckily, the stuttering never affected his singing.

    Reply
  2. Tyler Pappas November 19, 2017 at 7:51 pm

    I bought his Greatest hits album 4 days ago and I just can’t figure out how the song “New Patches” didn’t hit #1. In my opinion it’s a perfect country song. I must have listened to it 20 something times in a row. Thank you Mel for all you’ve done for county music, whether it be writing the now many classic songs country music has today along with providing your vocal talents to many great country songs.

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  3. Paul W Dennis November 19, 2017 at 9:21 pm

    Country Heritage Redux: Mel Tillis

    Here’s a retrospective we did some years ago

    Reply
  4. Ken November 20, 2017 at 8:49 am

    Mel was truly a remarkable and unique talent. Superb songwriter, excellent singer and outstanding on-stage performer & comedian. His road band The Statesiders was always top notch and made his live shows even more memorable. Had the chance to visit with Mel backstage at several of his concerts and he was as nice in person as you would expect him to be. I did notice that offstage his speech was a bit smoother. A truly nice man.

    RIP Mel

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