Paying tribute to the late, great Keith Whitley.
It always amazes me the impact that Keith Whitley had on country music in such a short career. He released his first solo album, an EP called A Hard Act to Follow, in 1984. He would go on to release only two full albums before his tragic death in 1989, with his third full-length album I Wonder Do You Think of Me coming out months after his death.
Since then three posthumous albums of Whitley’s work have been released, but after only 5 years from the time that he released his first album to his death, Keith Whitley managed to cement himself as one of the all-time greats in country music.
If you ask many of the best country singers today who their favorite artists are, Whitley’s name is almost sure to come up, over thirty years after his too-short career came to a tragic end.
I’ve said it before many times: If Keith Whitley were still alive, he would be giving George Strait a run for the title of the King of Country Music.
This past week, a tribute to Keith Whitley was held at the Nashville Palace, celebrating the recent announcement that Whitley would at long last be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Keith’s widow Lorrie Morgan and his son Jesse Keith Whitley were just two of the names who showed up to pay tribute to the country music legend. And they joined Darryl Worley to perform one of Keith’s biggest hits, “Don’t Close Your Eyes.”
Of course this isn’t the first time Jesse Keith has sung his dad’s classic song.
Back in 2017, his bluegrass-inspired version of the hit was featured on the Country Grass album, which also included performances on other songs by artists like Crystal Gayle and Lee Greenwood.
