Jim Ed Brown, the Country Music Hall of Famer who made up one-third of the family band The Browns, died at the Williamson Medical Center in Franklin, Tennessee, Thursday. He was 81.
Brown was named to the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville this year after serving as a member of the
Grand Ole Opry since 1963, according to The Tennessean. Suffering from lung cancer, Brown was presented his Hall of Fame medallion last week ahead of the official fall induction ceremony.
"It was sad, but in a beautiful way, because we were making him happy," "Whispering" Bill Anderson, a longtime country music star and friend who presented Brown his Hall of Fame recognition, told the newspaper.
"For more than 60 years, Jim Ed Brown has maintained a solid reputation as a versatile country performer, radio and television host, and
recording artist," read his Country Music Hall of Fame biography.
"On the air, on disc, and in personal appearances, he has extended the smooth-singing tradition established by country stars such as Red Foley, Eddy Arnold, and Jim Reeves. With the Browns — a trio he formed with sisters Maxine and Bonnie — as a solo artist, and as a duet singer, he placed hits in the country charts from 1954 into the early 1980s."
One of The Browns' biggest hits came in 1959 with the recording of "The Three Bells," which reached No. 1 on Billboard's country and pop charts, and even made the Top 10 of the R&B charts, according to The Tennessean.
Country music stars expressed their condolences on Twitter.
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