Don Everly, Half of Rock Duo the Everly Brothers, Dead at 84: 'Very Sad Day'
Frans Schellekens/Redferns/Getty Don Everly
Don Everly, half of the chart-topping rock 'n' roll duo the Everly Brothers, has died. He was 84.
Don died Saturday in his Nashville home, a rep for the musician told The Los Angeles Times. A cause of death has yet to be shared.
"Don lived by what he felt in his heart. 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," read a family statement shared with the newspaper.
Don's death came 7 years after the death of his younger brother Phil, who died at the age of 74 from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
CBS Photo Archive/Getty The Everly Brothers
Following news of his death, musicians and fans mourned the singer and guitarist's death.
"Very sad day. Both of the Everlys were part of my musical life growing up," wrote Dave Davies, a founding member of The Kinks. "We were inspired by their wonderful records and their singing and their voices. Wake Up Little Suzie was my favorite as a kid."
"Don Everly of the Everly Brothers has died. All The Saints Rejoice in Heaven When a Fallen Angel Flys [sic]," Roy Orbison Jr., whose late father was a friend of the duos, wrote in a separate tribute. "This world loves you Don. Thank You for the Music."
Broadway composer Andrew Lloyd Webber — whom the brothers recorded a song for in 1998 — also mourned the musician's death, writing, "Farewell Don. A curtain has finally come down on the greatest duo in rock history. The Everly Brothers were the daddies of the vocal harmonies of rock today."
Don Everly of the Everly Brothers has died.
All The Saints Rejoice in Heaven When a Fallen Angel Flys.
This world loves you Don. Thank You for the Music.#DonEverly #EverlyBrothers pic.twitter.com/Mt3XZubfqP— Roy Orbison Jr (@Royorbisonjr) August 22, 2021
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Don was born to singers Ike and Margaret Everly in 1937 in Kentucky, two years before his younger brother.
Sharing a love of music from an early age, the brothers began performing together when they were children on their family's radio show, eventually rising to fame in the 1950s.
Throughout their decades-long career, the harmonizing brothers released 21 studio albums as well as a number of chart-topping hits, including "All I Have to Do Is Dream," "Problems," "Bye Bye Love" and "Wake Up Little Susie."
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The Everly Brothers were inducted into the inaugural Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class in 1986 and joined the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2001.
"The Everly Brothers are integral to the fabric of American music. Very few of us can say we were around at the beginning, and even fewer can say we're still here," Jerry Lee Lewis, now the only living member of the 1986 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame class, said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE. "With my friend Don's passing, I am reflective… reflective on a life full of wonderful friends, spectacular music and fond memories. There's a lot I can say about Don, what he and Phil meant to me both as people and as musicians, but I am going to reflect today. God Bless Don Everly and long live Rock and Roll music."
Don was also inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in 2019.