Stars
come and go but lazy-voiced country and western singer Jim
Reeves seems to go on forever. His records still sell in the
thousands - though Jim Reeves died 40 years ago - July 31, 1964, -
in an air plane
crash, 39 years old.
This day meant the end of his life, but not that of his record
popularity.
His death created the Jim Reeves Legend and he became more popular
and more adored than during his lifetime. During the two years
after his death his record sales were five million singles and
eight million albums in Britain alone. He was in the charts as the
number one seller with his "Distant Drums", and it
remained a hit for five months - some achievement when you
consider the fierce competition headed by The Beatles and The
Rolling Stones.
His success continued to snowball beyond the usual tide of
sympathy sales which accompany tragedy - after forty years his
silky smooth music remains unique, appeals to generation after
generation and still touches emotions.
Jim Reeves was one of the greatest balladeers of the twentieth
century. His mellow baritone voice and muted velvet
orchestration combined to create a music that echoed around the world and has lasted to this day ...
Jim
Reeves was capable of singing hard country ("Mexican
Joe" went to number one in 1953), but he made his greatest
impact as a country-pop crooner. From 1955 through 1969, Reeves
was consistently charted in the country and pop charts - an
amazing fact in light of his untimely death in 1964.
