Kenny Rogers

Date of Birth: 08/21/1938 | Date of Passing: 03/20/2020 | Date of Funeral: 03/20/2020

American Singer, Songwriter and Actor. In a career that spanned more than six decades, he was an iconic entertainer whose songs have topped the charts with hits such as ‘The Gambler,’ ‘Lady,’ ‘Islands In The Stream,’ ‘Lucille,’ ‘She Believes In Me,’ and ‘Through the Years.’ Born and raised in Houston, he was the fourth of eight children in a poor family. He took to playing guitar as an adolescent and while in high school, he formed a rockabilly group, the Scholars, who recorded for a local label. After a brief stint at the University of Houston, he played bass in several jazz groups. In 1966, he moved to Los Angeles, where he joined the folk-pop group the New Christy Minstrels. The following year, Rogers founded the rock group the First Edition and scored two top-10 pop hits, ‘Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In),’ and ‘Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town.’ In 1976, he signed a solo deal and recorded ‘Lucille,’ which became his first No. 1 country hit and reached No. 5 on the national pop chart. It also earned Rogers his first Grammy, for best male country vocal performance. He also partnered with longtime female star Dottie West, and the duo racked up three No. 1 country singles. He would go on to notch five more No. 1 solo country singles by the end of the decade, the biggest of these were the Grammy-winning ‘The Gambler’ and ‘Coward of the County.’ Each song inspired TV movies featuring Rogers. In 1980, his ‘Greatest Hits’ landed at No. 1, that included ‘Lady’, ‘Islands in the Stream’ (with frequent partner Dolly Parton), and his version of Bob Seger’s ‘We’ve Got Tonight’ with Sheena Easton. Overall, he would earn three Grammys and six Country Music Association awards. By the time Rogers retired from performing for health reasons in 2018, he had placed more than 50 singles in the country Top 40, of which 20 also appeared in the pop Top 40. His signature song, ‘The Gambler,’ was added to the National Registry and among other honors, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Died at home under hospice care of natural causes at the age of 81.