I was sad to hear the news that Phil Everly has died aged 74. Along with his older brother Don as the Everly Brothers they produced some amazing songs in the rock ‘n’ roll and pre-Beatles era. The Everlys had six UK number one singles from 1958 to 1961 and only three in the US Billboard charts. However they also had four number ones on the US Country chart and three on the US R & B chart. They topped the chart in Canada and Australia.
There magnificent harmonies influenced many pop and rock artists including Billie Joe Armstrong off of Green Day and Norah Jones who recently released a cover of the Everly Brothers album ‘Songs Our Daddy Taught Us’. Other artists greatly influenced by Phil and Don include the Hollies, the Beatles who said that the vocal arrangement for “Please Please Me” was based on “Cathy’s Clown”. Simon and Garfunkel were also big fans of the Everly Brothers and on hearing of Phil’s death Paul Simon said “Phil and Don were the most beautiful sounding duo I ever heard. Both voices pristine and soulful. The Everlys were there at the crossroads of country and R&B. They witnessed and were part of the birth of rock and roll.” I don’t think many people could sum the Everlys up better than that. My thoughts go out to Phil’s family, friends and fans across the globe. RIP Phil Everly.
