Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: Neil D
Date: 29 Mar 11 - 11:02 PM

My mom had a Simon Crum album, it was Ferlin Husky's alter ego. I remember listening to him when I was young.

                                  Christina

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: GUEST
Date: 29 Mar 11 - 08:49 PM

Well said Ebbie

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: Ebbie
Date: 29 Mar 11 - 12:37 AM

I see that I hit 1940's rather than 1950's- 'twas inadvertent.

Sandy Mc Lean, it takes a little looking but there's still a lot of old Country around. There are several people in my own circle who perpetuate it.

Today's Country is mis-named. I have no real objection to it but I do object to the name; it should be called 'Country Pop' or something like that.

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: Sandy Mc Lean
Date: 28 Mar 11 - 04:12 PM

Ebbie, I share your feeling deeply! I grew up immersed in my mother's singing and I am caught in a time lapse in thinking that little or better has happened since the 1960's. I am unsure if that is my downfall or my legacy!

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: Ebbie
Date: 28 Mar 11 - 11:30 AM

Yesterday I watched two videos of the 1940's Grand Ole Opry that a friend brought me. For several hours I watched and listened as Ferlin Husky, Grandpa Jones, Carl Smith, Faron Young, June Carter, the Carter Family, Ernest Tubb, Johnny and Jack, Eddie Hill, Goldie Hill, and many, many more- all young and vibrant and ALIVE. All gone now.

There are a few still here: Little Jimmy Dickens, Kitty Wells, Ray Price.

Years ago, I told my very devout mother: 'Leavng religion aside, can you see my dilemma when I think that if all those people could stand to die, so can I.' And then I think, 'But they couldn't stand it: it killed them.'

My mother laughed and said, 'I see what you mean.'

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: GUEST,jwillcut
Date: 28 Mar 11 - 03:23 AM

Such a great loss for everyone. May you rest peacefully on those dove's wings. Jerry and Barb

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: katlaughing
Date: 19 Mar 11 - 03:51 PM

Me, too, Ebbie. I was surprised to see this as I thought he was gone long before. Great songs/musician/man. Thanks FH and may you be at peace on those dove's wings.

kat & Rog

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky (1925-2011)
From: Ebbie
Date: 19 Mar 11 - 12:38 PM

Another of those who were not yet gone- when I thought they were.

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky
From: josepp
Date: 19 Mar 11 - 11:56 AM

One of the greats.

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky
From: catspaw49
Date: 19 Mar 11 - 11:32 AM

Wow.....Another legend gone..........When I lived in Nashville in the early eighties he was often out and about and in the news. Neat thing about Nashville was always the accessibility and "ordinary folks" attitude of the country stars.

Spaw

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky
From: GUEST,bankley
Date: 19 Mar 11 - 11:16 AM

I saw him once opening for Buck Owens on a package tour... he stole the show... and Buck`s Buckaroos were THE hot band at the time...

RIP FH

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky
From: SINSULL
Date: 19 Mar 11 - 12:01 AM

I loved "Gone". A great song. RIP and thank you for your music.
Mary

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky
From: Beer
Date: 18 Mar 11 - 04:03 PM

Yes indeed, another great one.
Ad.

Subject: RE: Obit: Ferlin Husky
From: Sandy Mc Lean
Date: 18 Mar 11 - 03:26 PM

Another great one carried carried away on the wings of a dove! RIP!

Subject: Obit: Ferlin Husky
From: Wesley S
Date: 18 Mar 11 - 03:11 PM

From todays paper:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Ferlin Husky, a pioneering country music entertainer in the 1950s and early '60s known for hits like "Wings of a Dove" and "Gone," died Thursday. He was 85.

The 2010 Country Music Hall of Fame inductee died at his home, said Country Music Hall of Fame spokeswoman Tina Wright. He had a history of heart problems and related ailments.

With his resonant voice and good looks, Husky was one of the most versatile entertainers to emerge from country music. He was a singer, songwriter, guitarist, actor, and even a comedian whose impersonations ranged from Bing Crosby to Johnny Cash.

He was one of the first country musicians to bring the genre to television and helped spread its popularity in booming post-World War II California, an important step in country's quest for a national audience.

He said in a 2010 interview with The Associated Press that he was buoyed by his Hall of Fame induction because he worried he'd been forgotten as his health failed over the years.

"The main thing I'm proud of, this is for my family and for the many people who want to see me go in there before I die," he said. "It's a great honor."

Husky, who was one of the first country artists to have his name on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, sold more than 20 million records, according to his website. He won many country music awards long before such shows were televised and meant so much to careers.

He was born in 1925 near Flat River, Mo. After five years in the Merchant Marines during World War II, he began his singing career in honky-tonks and nightclubs around St. Louis and later in the Bakersfield, Calif., area.

Signed to Capitol records in the early 1950s, he had his first big success when he teamed with 2011 Country Music Hall of Fame inductee Jean Shepard on "Dear John Letter," which ranked No. 4 on Billboard's list of top country songs of 1953. He was also the headline act for a tour that included a young Elvis Presley.

"He was so eager to learn how to entertain an audience, he'd watch everything I did," Husky said.

"Wings of a Dove," a gospel song, became another No. 1 country hit in 1960 and was one of his signature songs. His other hits included "A Fallen Star," "My Reason for Living," "The Waltz You Saved for Me" and "Timber I'm Falling."

While still recording under his real name, Husky created a character named Simon Crum as his comic alter ego, hitting the charts with such songs as "Cuzz You're So Sweet" and "Country Music Is Here to Stay."

He also was a regular on TV and appeared in a string of movies with co-stars like Zsa Zsa Gabor ("Country Music Holiday" in 1958) and Jayne Mansfield ("Las Vegas Hillbillies" in 1966.)

He cut back on his entertaining in 1970 and performed part time, mostly concert dates. He was performing once a month in the mid-2000s. But his imprint on country music remained.

"In the mid-'50s, Ferlin would create the template for the famed Nashville Sound, a sound that gave rock 'n' roll a run for its money and forever put Music City on the map," Kyle Young, director of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, said at Husky's induction in May 2010. "The multitalented and musically versatile Ferlin Husky was always ahead of his time."