Hit Country Songwriter Mike Dekle Passes

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Georgia-based songwriter Mike Dekle died Thursday (Feb. 24) at age 77 after a battle with lung disease.

His biggest songwriting hits included “Scarlet Fever” by Kenny Rogers (1983), “Don’t Love Make a Diamond Shine” by Tracy Byrd (1997), “Size Matters (Someday)” by Joe Nichols (2006) and “Country Must Be Country Wide” by Brantley Gilbert (2011). Gilbert’s version of their co-written “One Hell of an Amen” topped the country charts in 2014.

Pictured (L-R): Co-writers Mike Dekle, Brantley Gilbert, and Brian Davis at the No. 1 party for “One Hell of An Amen.” Photo: Valory Music Co.

Noted as a hard-core country tunesmith, Dekle had his songs recorded by Ricky Skaggs, Hank Thompson, Moe Bandy, The Whites. T.G. Sheppard, Scooter Lee, Colt Ford and Rhonda Vincent, among others.

He was born in Panama City, Florida, and the family moved to Athens, Georgia when he was five. Dekle began his career as a folk singer in coffeehouses in the 1960s. He moved to Nashville in the 1970s, hoping to make a life as either a singer or a songwriter.

Neither career panned out. So Mike Dekle spent most of the next three decades in Athens, Georgia as a State Farm insurance agent while pursuing country songwriting on the side.

He met songwriter/publisher Byron Hill in 1982. Hill produced Dekle’s record of “Scarlet Fever.” Kenny Rogers picked up the tune and signed Dekle to his publishing company. The superstar subsequently recorded the Dekle tunes “Two Hearts One Love,” “People in Love,” “Someone Must Feel Like a Fool Tonight” and “Some Prisons Don’t Have Walls.”

As a singer, Mike Dekle made the bottom rungs of the country charts in 1984 with his self-composed “Hanky-Panky” and “The Minstrel.”

Following his stint writing for Rogers, Dekle signed with Byron Hill’s publishing company, Song Source. He also continued to co-write with Hill, securing a number of recordings during the next few years. Keith Whitley recorded the songwriting team’s “A Day in the Life of a Fool.” Gene Watson sang their collaboration “No Trash in My Trailer.” Dekle and Hill remained lifelong friends.

In 1990, Dekle launched his own song-publishing company, Square D Music. He signed with Almo Irving Music in 1994.

He continued to sing, as well. Mike Dekle released six albums, Wood and Wire (1982), Fine Tuned (1999), Sketches (2003), Tunesmith (2005), Tributes (2009) and That Kinda Guy (2019).

Mike Dekle is survived by his wife Crystie and by their children and grandchildren. His death was announced by Lord & Stephens Funeral Home East Chapel in Athens, Georgia. A Celebration of Life will be announced at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, American Diabetes Association, Athens First Baptist Church Athens Building Fund or a charity of choice.

Nashville Songwriter Kerry Chater Passes

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Singer-songwriter Kerry Chater has died at age 76.

Chater is best known as the co-writer of such chart-topping hits as “You Look So Good in Love” (George Strait, 1984), “I Know a Heartache When I See One” (Jennifer Warnes, 1979), “You’re the First Time I’ve Thought About Leaving” (Reba McEntire, 1983) and the Grammy nominated “I.O.U.” (Lee Greenwood, 1983).

Born in Vancouver, Canada in 1945, Kerry Michael Chater was trained as a keyboardist and arranger. In 1966 in San Diego, he became a founding member of the hit pop band Gary Puckett & The Union Gap (“Woman, Woman,” “Young Girl,” “Lady Willpower,” etc.). Chater played bass in the group, was its bandleader and co-wrote some of its album tracks.

He left the Union Gap in 1970 to pursue a solo career. Chater studied musical theater and wrote several shows that were produced in Los Angeles in the 1970s.

Signed by Warner Bros. Records, he debuted as a solo artist with the 1976 LP Part Time Love. Its title track appeared briefly on the pop charts in 1977. Love on a Shoestring was issued as his second album in 1978.

“I Know a Heartache When I See One” launched his hit-making career as a songwriter in 1979. In addition to its pop and country hit version by Jennifer Warnes, the song was recorded by Jo Dee Messina, Anne Kirkpatrick, Lisa Brokop, Charlotte Whitted, Donna Fargo, Sandy Posey and a number of others.

The big hits by Strait, McEntire and Greenwood ensued in the 1980s. The Strait hit “You Look So Good in Love” has also been sung by such artists as Blake Shelton, Craig Wayne Boyd and Jamie Foxx.

Kerry Chater also co-wrote Alabama’s 1989 No. 1 hit “If I Had You.” Other notable titles by him include Michael Martin Murphey’s “What She Wants” (1985), Charlie Rich’s “Even a Fool Would Let Go” (1980), Paul Brandt’s “I Meant to Do That” (1997) and Jessica Andrews’ “You Go First” (1999).

Among the others who have recorded his songs are Kenny Rogers, Joe Cocker, Mindy McCready, Restless Heart, Highway 101, Loretta Lynn & Conway Twitty, Anne Murray, Eddy Raven, Dolly Parton and Lorrie Morgan.

A resident of Music City since 1987, Chater married songwriter Lynn Gillespie, who became his composing collaborator. In recent years, they have been co-writing with bluegrass star Donna Ulisse.

The couple also wrote books. The Chaters have published three thrillers, Kill Point, Blood Debt and Fortune’s Web. In addition, they have collaborated on a musical and produced four Kerry Charter solo CDs.

Kerry Chater is an alumnus of Leadership Music. He passed away on Feb. 4. No cause of death has been disclosed.

He is survived by his wife Lynn Gillespie Chater, by daughter Jesse Kirchhoff, by sons Kerry Jr. and Christopher and by four granddaughters. Funeral arrangements were handled by Heritage Funeral Home in Columbia, Tennessee.

Scotty Wray, Longtime Band Member For Miranda Lambert, Dies

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Scotty Wray playing with Miranda Lambert

Longtime guitar player and songwriter Scotty Wray passed away on Friday (Feb. 18) after battling heart issues.

Wray was a member of country music superstar Miranda Lambert’s band, meeting the entertainer when she was 17 in Greenville, Texas. The pair spent more than two decades together performing on thousands of stages and writing countless songs.

“We wrote songs, played gig after gig, fought, cried, laughed & even got matching arrow tattoos after we made it out of some rough patches. He was one of the most talented guitar players I’ve ever known and I’m so thankful I got to witness his genius seasoned for over 20 years,” Lambert shared on social media. “He was the [one] I could count on. Always. No matter what. If he was there on my right side I felt like I could take on the world. Scotty Wray was family to me and I’ll never sing a note without him because I know he is there with me. He always has been. I love you my sweet Bud Wray.”

In addition to being a seasoned musician, Wray was also the older brother of country singer Collin Raye. The two began singing at a young age with their mother Lois Marie Chandler Wray, who was a local musician in De Queen, Arkansas, opening for the like of Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, and Carl Perkins.

The brothers formed their own country rock band, The Wray Brothers Band, which signed with Mercury Records in 1986 and performed heavily in the Texas country circuit. They changed their name to The Wrays and recorded a string of singles, including “Reason to Believe” (1983), “Until We Meet Again” (1985), “I Don’t Want to Know Your Name” (1986), and “You Lay a Lotta Love on Me” (1987). The brothers disbanded shortly afterwards.

Wray went on to pen several songs for both Lambert and his brother, including the title track from Raye’s 2020 album, Scars, on which Lambert sings harmony.

Memorial arrangements for Wray have not yet been announced.

Celebration Of Life Set For Former Opryland Exec. Ed Stone

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Ed Stone

A celebration of life will be held for former Opryland USA VP of Marketing & PR, Ed Stone, who passed away on Feb. 11 at the age of 81. Stone’s life and legacy will be honored at the Country Music Hall of Fame Ford Theater on March 25 at 1 p.m.

Stone, a native of Greensboro, Georgia, enjoyed an accomplished career in the travel and tourism industry. After graduating from the University of Georgia’s Journalism and Mass Communication School, his career began at Callaway Gardens where he met his wife, Fran. Their family moved to Nashville with Opryland USA in 1974 where he became VP of Marketing and Public Relations for the park, hotel and the Grand Ole Opry.

In 1990, Stone started his own communications company with regional and national accounts. During his career, he served in leadership roles with Society of American Travel Writers (SATW), SATW Foundation, Travel Industry Association of America (TIAA), Southeast Tourism Society (STS), International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), University of Georgia College of Mass Communications, and Sequoyah Birthplace Museum.

He was known for his love of golf, having played over 500 courses throughout the world.

Stone is the father of music industry executive Lori Badgett of City National Bank. He also leaves behind his wife of 53 years, Fran Grainger Stone, daughter Robyn Isaacs, and his four grandchildren: Stone and Dylan Isaacs, and Ellie and Anna Badgett. He is proceeded in death by his parents and five siblings.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Girls Give or Fairfield Glade United Methodist Church.

Publisher, Producer & Songwriter Blake Mevis Passes Away At 73

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Producer and songwriter Blake Mevis passed away on Feb. 9 at the age of 73 following complications from COVID.

A native of Plymouth, Indiana, Mevis moved to Nashville in 1971 before landing a job with Loretta Lynn’s Coal Miner’s Music. He later worked for ABC and MCA Records and served as President of Pride Music Group, Charley Pride’s publishing company, during the 1980s.

Co-writers Blake Mevis (left) and Byron Hill (right) celebrate the 30th anniversary of George Strait’s “Fool Hearted Memory.” Photo: Courtesy of ASCAP

Mevis, who produced hit albums for George Strait and Keith Whitley, co-wrote Strait’s first No. 1 hit, “Fool Hearted Memory.” At one point in 1983, Mevis had four records in the Billboard country Top 20 that he had either written or produced. He was also responsible for pairing Strait with songwriter Dean Dillon who penned “Unwound,” which became Strait’s breakthrough hit.

Mevis’ other chart-topping songs include Pride’s 1983 “Night Games” and Joe Nichols’ “Brokenheartsville” in 2003. Mevis also had tracks recorded by the likes of Jim Ed Brown, Helen Cornelius, England Dan, John Ford Coley, Dave and Sugar, Charlie Rich, and Don Williams. He produced records for Pride, Vern Gosdin, The Kendalls, Clay Walker, and Moe Bandy and Joe Stampley.

Memorial arrangements have not yet been announced.

Hargus ‘Pig’ Robbins, Country Music Hall Of Fame Pianist, Dies At 84

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Hargus “Pig” Robbins. Photo: John Russell/CMA

Hargus “Pig” Robbins, a renowned pianist and Country Music Hall of Fame member who contributed to many country, rock, folk and pop hits since the late 1950s, died on Sunday (Jan. 30). He was 84.

Hargus Melvin Robbins was born on Jan. 18, 1938 in Rhea County, Tennessee. A tragic knife accident caused him to lose his sight at the age of three. He went on to study classical piano at the Tennessee School for the Blind at age seven.

While at school, Robbins developed his own unique style, influenced by pop and jazz pianists Floyd Cramer, Owen Bradley, Marvin Hughes, Ray Charles, and Poppa John Gordy. He developed the nickname “Pig” because he used to sneak in the school through a fire escape and play when he wasn’t supposed to, getting himself as dirty as a pig.

Hargus “Pig” Robbins. Photo: Courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Robbins soon started playing in Nashville clubs and landed his first major studio gig in 1959, playing the lively piano on George Jones’ hit “White Lightning.” After that session, Robbins was steadily booked in the Nashville recording studios, finding himself among the Nashville A-Team of session players.

Robbins played on many iconic hits coming out of Nashville over the next few decades, including for Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, Connie Smith, Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, Roger Miller, the Statler Brothers, and dozens of other country stars. Two memorable examples of Robbins’ playing can be heard on the intros of Charlie Rich’s “Behind Closed Doors” (1974) and Crystal Gayle’s “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” (1977).

Robbins contributed to Bob Dylan’s 1966 album Blonde on Blonde, opening him up to more folk, pop and rock singers. He also appears on the liner notes for many of Dolly Parton’s albums, such as 1968’s Just Because I’m a Woman, 1971’s Coat of Many Colors, 1973’s My Tennessee Mountain Home, 1974’s Jolene, and more.

Robbins also recorded his own albums, including the Grammy-winning Country Instrumentalist of the Year (1977), Pig in a Poke (1978), and Unbreakable Hearts (1979). He garnered two CMA Awards throughout his career, winning CMA’s Instrumentalist of the Year in 1976 and in 2000. Robbins was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2012 alongside Garth Brooks and Connie Smith.

Following the announcement of his death, Kyle Young, CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame, said “Like all successful session musicians, Pig Robbins was quick to adapt to any studio situation. He worked quickly, with perfection less a goal than a norm. And while he could shift styles on a dime to suit the singer and the song, his playing was always distinctive. Pig’s left hand on the piano joined with Bob Moore’s bass to create an unstoppable rhythmic force, while the fingers on his right hand flew like birds across the keys. The greatest musicians in Nashville turned to Pig for guidance and inspiration.”

Sarah Trahern, CEO of the Country Music Association, added “Hargus ‘Pig’ Robbins was a defining sound for so much of the historic music out of Nashville. His talent spoke for itself through his decades-spanning career and work as a session pianist with countless artists across genres. Our hearts go out to his friends and family during this difficult time.”

Former CMA Leader Janice Wendell Dies

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Janice Wendell

Nashville entertainment executive Janice Wendell, a 15-year member of the Country Music Association board, has died at age 79.

Wendell worked in television, in advertising and in marketing. She became a prominent community volunteer and philanthropist. In 2011, she was honored with a SOURCE award as an exceptional female music-business contributor.

She was born Janice Walker in East Tennessee in 1942 and spent her childhood in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Her family moved to Nashville in 1957. After graduating as class president from Donelson High, she attended Nashville Business College.

She began her professional career in 1964 with Showbiz, marketing syndicated television series such as The Porter Wagoner Show, Gospel Jubilee and The Beat!!! In 1969, she co-founded the advertising agency Creative House, Inc. This became Eric Ericson & Associates.

Pictured (L-R): Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum’s Kyle Young, Bud Wendell, the late Janice Wendell, the late Frances Preston, and UMPG’s Troy Tomlinson at the 2011 SOURCE Awards. Photo: Alan Mayor

She married Ericson, and they built the firm into the largest privately held advertising and marketing firm in the Southeast. Clients included Third National Bank (later SunTrust), Martha White Foods, Kentucky Fried Chicken, the State of Tennessee and National Life & Accident Insurance Company with its Opryland USA theme park.

Ericson created the Opry jingle “Come Hear American Singing” and helped to popularize “Music City USA” as Nashville’s brand name. The firm was the training ground for dozens of Nashville advertising and marketing professionals.

The couple divorced, and she phased out her involvement with the agency in the early 1980s. Through her work with National Life, she met its executive E.W. “Bud” Wendell, whom she married in 1984. After Ericson’s death in 1987, she returned as chair and CEO of their agency. She sold it and retired from her advertising career in 1992.

Throughout their marriage, the Wendells took part in many charitable, civic and philanthropic interests. Janice Wendell joined the Country Music Association board in 1982 and remained there until 1996. She also served on the boards of The Nashville Symphony, the Minnie Pearl Cancer Foundation, The Tennessee Performing Arts Center, The Nashville Tourism Commission, Cheekwood, The Country Music Foundation and other worthy causes.

She was on the Symphony’s executive committee and chaired the Symphony Ball. She helped raise the funds that enabled the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum to move from Music Row to downtown Nashville.

Janice Wendell received awards from United Way, Savvy magazine, the Nashville Advertising Federation and Advantage magazine, as well as SOURCE.

She passed away peacefully on Jan. 13, surrounded by family and friends. Janice Wendell is survived by her husband, E.W. “Bud” Wendell and children Eric Ericson Jr., Lindy Reece, Beth Cosgrove, Danny Wendell and Andrew Wendell. She is also survived by three sisters, a brother and 11 grandchildren.

Services will be held at First Presbyterian Church on Wednesday, February 2 at 10 A.M. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt, to Alive Hospice or to a charity of your choosing.

In observance of Wendell’s passing, CMA CEO Sarah Trahern commented: “I worked with Janice significantly in the mid to late 90s on TNN’s Evening of Country Greats television specials. Her passion and unwavering dedication to our artists, our industry and our history was displayed through everything she did, including her service on CMA’s Board of Directors. My heart goes out to Bud during this difficult time.”

Nashville Jazz Legend Beegie Adair Passes

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Beegie Adair

Beegie Adair, a keystone of the Nashville jazz community, passed away on Sunday (Jan. 23) at age 84.

The pianist and vocalist was equally at home in a variety of musical settings. She recorded more than 35 albums, played on sessions for country and pop stars, composed ad jingles, headlined at Carnegie Hall and was a jazz educator.

Bobbe “Beegie” Long was raised in Cave City, Kentucky. After earning a music degree at Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, she worked as a piano teacher. Migrating to Nashville, she landed a gig with the Hank Garland Quartet. She then spent a decade in the house band at WSMV-TV’s The Waking Crew and Afternoon Show.

This led to her becoming an in-demand session musician, playing on recordings or broadcasts by Dolly Parton, Chet Atkins, Vince Gill, Henry Mancini, Delbert McClinton, Dinah Shore, Ronnie Milsap, Ray Stevens, Boots Randolph, Peggy Lee, Hank Snow, Perry Como, Eddy Arnold, Jerry Reed J.J. Cale, Connie Francis, Mandy Barnett, Waylon Jennings, Neil Diamond and more.

She was in the bands of the TV programs The Johnny Cash Show and The Ralph Emery Show. Beegie Adair also performed on the soundtracks of such films as Clint Eastwood’s Every Which Way But Loose (1978), Burt Reynolds’ Smokey and the Bandit (1977) and Kevin Costner’s Perfect World (1993).

In the early 1970s, she performed in a 10-piece rock band called Sweet Thunder. This is where she met multi-instrumentalist Billy Adair (1947-2014), whom she married in 1975.

She and Billy formed a successful ad-jingle company. Among their clients were Purity Dairies, HCA, Allstate, United Airlines, Hamburger Helper, McDonald’s and Wrangler. A former touring musician, Billy Adair became the backbone of the jazz program at Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music.

In 1982, Beegie Adair formed the Adair-Solee Quartet with saxophonist Denis Solee. This evolved into the Be-Bop Co-Op, a jazz sextet. She has also performed in The Nashville Jazz Machine, Orchestra Twelve, The Andrew Goodrich Quintet and The Jazz Corporation.

She is best known for her Beegie Adair Trio, which showcased her keyboard virtuosity backed by bass and percussion. The group debuted on disc with 1991’s Escape to New York with Bob Crenshaw (bass) and Greg Hutchinson (drums) as her partners.

The trio eventually solidified with Roger Spencer (bass) and Chris Brown (drums) as her rhythm section. Among the many recordings by this lineup of the Beggie Adair Trio were The Nat King Cole Collection (1998), Jazz Piano Christmas (1999), Dream Dancing: Songs of Cole Porter (2000), Love, Elvis (2000), Jazz on Broadway (2005), Sentimental Journey (2006) and Too Marvelous for Words (2015). The trio’s Frank Sinatra Collection won the 1998 Nashville Music Award as Jazz Album of the Year.

Her most ambitious work was the six-CD, boxed-set collection Centennial Composers. Released in 2002 on Nashville’s Green Hill label, its 75 songs were drawn from the catalogs of Great American Songbook composers George Gershwin, Richard Rodgers, Duke Ellington, Hoagy Carmichael, Jerome Kern and Irving Berlin.

Adair also hosted her own radio series, Improvised Thoughts. This was an NPR talk/music show of the early 1990s where she chatted and shared music with Tony Bennett, Marian McPartland, Joe Williams, Nancy Wilson, Helen Merrill and others.

In 2002 Beegie Adair was honored by being named a Steinway Artist. This put her in the company of Harry Connick Jr., Billy Joel, Diana Krall, Sergei Rachmaninoff, Michel Legrand and Arthur Rubinstein. Her solo concerts at Steinway & Sons galleries throughout the U.S. attracted sell-out crowds.

Beginning in 2011, she began making annual appearances at the legendary Birdland Jazz Club in New York City. Adair also showcased at other Manhattan jazz venues, often with vocalist Monica Ramey. During this time, several of Adair’s albums became best sellers on the national jazz-music charts. She was also a top seller in Japan.

On Oct. 7, 2016, The Beegie Adair Trio sold out Carnegie Hall. This was a first for a Nashville jazz act. She repeated the feat in 2017, and returned to the hallowed Hall for several years thereafter.

Adair was an adjunct professor of jazz at Vanderbilt. She taught vocal jazz at the Nashville Jazz Workshop for several years. The Trio had a residency there, and she was a board member emeritus.

Beegie Adair died at her home in Franklin. Her burial will be at Williamson Memorial Gardens. Contributions in her name can be made to The Nashville Jazz Workshop, to the Billy Adair Scholarship Fund at Vanderbilt (giving.vanderbilt.edu), to the Williamson County Animal Center or to the St. Joseph Indian School.

A Celebration of Life will be conduced at a later date.

Oh Boy Records Co-Founder, Dan Einstein, Passes Away At 61

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Dan Einstein. Photo: Courtesy of Holly Gleason

Dan Einstein, a Grammy-winning producer and co-founder of Oh Boy Records, passed away on Saturday, Jan. 15 after a battle with a prolonged illness. He was 61.

Einstein co-founded Oh Boy Records with friends John Prine and Al Bunetta in 1981. He also aided its artist-owner counterpart, Steve Goodman’s Red Pajamas Records.

Born and raised in Connecticut, Einstein moved to LA in 1978 with his family, where he attended UCLA. He began booking acts at venues and soon went to work with Al Bunetta Management, which moved him to Nashville in the early ’90s.

After Goodman’s death in 1984, Einstein executive-produced the album A Tribute to Steve Goodman, which won the first-ever Contemporary Folk Grammy in 1986. Some of his other production credits include Prine’s 1988 Live album, Goodman’s Unfinished Business, and a Live From The Mountain Stage series.

Einstein, a member of Leadership Music’s Class of 1996, left the music business in 2004 to open Sweet 16th Bakery in East Nashville with his wife Ellen. The beloved neighborhood bakery became a staple shop for custom cakes, award-winning breakfast sandwiches, and more.

He is survived by his wife, Ellen Einstein. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Einstein’s name to Alive Hospice or to Vanderbilt University Medical Center to support the research of Dr. Michael Savona.

Those wishing to celebrate Einstein can RSVP here for a virtual community service, set for Wednesday evening (Jan. 19) at 6:30 p.m. CT. The family hopes to hold a public celebration of Einstein’s life this spring.

Former Grand Ole Opry Drummer Jerry Ray Johnston Passes

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Jerry Ray Johnston

Jerry Ray Johnston, a former staff drummer for the Grand Ole Opry, passed away on Jan. 9 in Franklin, Tennessee from complications with COVID pneumonia. He was 65.

Jerry is the father of The Cadillac Three frontman Jaren Johnston, and the father in law to ASCAP’s Evyn Mustoe Johnston.

Jerry Ray Johnston was born in Monroe, Louisiana and moved to Nashville at 24 to pursue a career in music as a drummer. Over the span of 40 years, he played with numerous country stars, had a recording contract with Warner Bros. with the group Bandana, and eventually became the staff drummer at the Grand Ole Opry, which was his dream when he left Louisiana.

He was known for encouraging many other musicians to move to Nashville, then guiding them and introducing them to the network they needed to get gigs. Jerry also donated time to play drums at his church whenever needed.

Jerry Ray Johnston is survived by his wife of 45 years, Karen Roark Johnston; children, Jaren Ray Johnston (Evyn) and Texa Rae Johnston; one grandson, Jude Daniel Johnston; brothers, Jody Lane Johnston (Judy), Randy McKnight (Diane) and Jimmy Johnston (Deborah); and special uncles Billy Johnston (Irene) and Clifford Johnston (Novis). Also mourning Jerry are four brothers-in-law, sister-in-law and their spouses; along with numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents Jimmy Johnston and Dorothy Johnston, and his grandparents, Clarence and Mae Johnston, who raised him from a small child.

Private services were held in West Monroe, Louisiana with Jerry’s brother-in-law officiating. A  memorial service will be held in Tennessee in a few weeks.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to MusiCares, St. Jude Children’s Hospital, Wounded Warriors Project, or the charity of your choice.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at kilpatrickfuneralhomes.com.