Home
Politics
Everly and his older brother Don, who survives him, rose to fame in the 1950s with hits such as "Wake Up Little Susie," "All I Have to Do is Dream" and "Bye Bye Love."
The duo, who are credited with influencing rock and country singers for decades, were among the first performers to be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, and in 2001 they were also inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
"We are absolutely heartbroken," Patti Everly told the Times, noting her late husband's disease was caused by cigarette smoking. "He fought long and hard."
Tributes flowed in from all over the world.
Nancy Sinatra, the singer and daughter of Frank Sinatra, paid a special tribute on Twitter.
"Phil Everly is gone. Touring with Phil and Don was one of the thrills of my life. I love you Phillip - Godspeed," she wrote.
Brian May, the Queen guitarist, wrote on his official website: "I never met them. Wish I had. But they will always be my heroes."
He added: "RIP Phil Everly... you were magic. I have tears in my eyes."
Early rise to stardom
Phil and Don were the children of Midwestern country singers Ike and Margaret Everly, and performed on the family radio show while growing up.
As teenagers -- two clean-cut youths in suits and ties -- they headed for Nashville, Tennessee, and began their stellar career.
The Everly Brothers signed their first record deal in 1957 and soon after produced hits that spanned the genres of pop, rock and country.
The two were known for close-harmony singing and praised by Rolling Stone magazine as "the most important vocal duo in rock" and "a major influence on the music of the 1960s."
The brothers sang in sweet harmony in public, but as they aged they struggled with drug and alcohol abuse and increasingly clashed off stage.
In 1973 they broke up in the middle of a performance in southern California, and did not perform again together until 1983, when they played at London's Royal Albert Hall.
The brothers produced two albums in the 1980s and played some shows in the 1990s, but were largely estranged.
"Everything is different about us, except when we sing together," Don Everly told the Los Angeles Times in 1999. "I'm a liberal Democrat, he's pretty conservative."
Yet their musical influence continues: in November, Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong and jazz singer Norah Jones released an Everly Brothers tribute album, titled "Foreverly."
"The Everly Brothers go way back far as I can remember hearing music. Those harmonies live on forever. We're gonna miss you Phil. Gratitude," Armstrong wrote on Twitter.
Other tributes poured in as word of Phil Everly's death spread.
"Rest in peace Phil Everly. You guys brought us a lot of pleasure back in the day," rock and country singer-songwriter Charlie Daniels tweeted.
"They had that sibling sound," said singer Linda Ronstadt, who recorded one of the biggest hits of her career in 1975 with her interpretation of Everly's "When Will I Be Loved."
"The information of your DNA is carried in your voice, and you can get a sound (with family) that you never get with someone who's not blood-related to you," she told the Los Angeles Times.
In addition to his wife and brother, Everly is survived by mother Margaret, sons Jason and Chris, and two granddaughters.
The Times said funeral services would be private.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The duo, who are credited with influencing rock and country singers for decades, were among the first performers to be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, and in 2001 they were also inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
"We are absolutely heartbroken," Patti Everly told the Times, noting her late husband's disease was caused by cigarette smoking. "He fought long and hard."
Tributes flowed in from all over the world.
Nancy Sinatra, the singer and daughter of Frank Sinatra, paid a special tribute on Twitter.
"Phil Everly is gone. Touring with Phil and Don was one of the thrills of my life. I love you Phillip - Godspeed," she wrote.
Brian May, the Queen guitarist, wrote on his official website: "I never met them. Wish I had. But they will always be my heroes."
He added: "RIP Phil Everly... you were magic. I have tears in my eyes."
Early rise to stardom
Phil and Don were the children of Midwestern country singers Ike and Margaret Everly, and performed on the family radio show while growing up.
As teenagers -- two clean-cut youths in suits and ties -- they headed for Nashville, Tennessee, and began their stellar career.
The Everly Brothers signed their first record deal in 1957 and soon after produced hits that spanned the genres of pop, rock and country.
The two were known for close-harmony singing and praised by Rolling Stone magazine as "the most important vocal duo in rock" and "a major influence on the music of the 1960s."
The brothers sang in sweet harmony in public, but as they aged they struggled with drug and alcohol abuse and increasingly clashed off stage.
In 1973 they broke up in the middle of a performance in southern California, and did not perform again together until 1983, when they played at London's Royal Albert Hall.
The brothers produced two albums in the 1980s and played some shows in the 1990s, but were largely estranged.
"Everything is different about us, except when we sing together," Don Everly told the Los Angeles Times in 1999. "I'm a liberal Democrat, he's pretty conservative."
Yet their musical influence continues: in November, Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong and jazz singer Norah Jones released an Everly Brothers tribute album, titled "Foreverly."
"The Everly Brothers go way back far as I can remember hearing music. Those harmonies live on forever. We're gonna miss you Phil. Gratitude," Armstrong wrote on Twitter.
Other tributes poured in as word of Phil Everly's death spread.
"Rest in peace Phil Everly. You guys brought us a lot of pleasure back in the day," rock and country singer-songwriter Charlie Daniels tweeted.
"They had that sibling sound," said singer Linda Ronstadt, who recorded one of the biggest hits of her career in 1975 with her interpretation of Everly's "When Will I Be Loved."
"The information of your DNA is carried in your voice, and you can get a sound (with family) that you never get with someone who's not blood-related to you," she told the Los Angeles Times.
In addition to his wife and brother, Everly is survived by mother Margaret, sons Jason and Chris, and two granddaughters.
The Times said funeral services would be private.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
