The Everly Brothers hadn’t performed together in years and they were not always on good terms, but Don Everly paid tribute to his brother Phil in a moving statement after Phil’s death on Friday.
Don sent a statement to the Associated Press, saying that he was just listening to a song Phil wrote when he heard the sad news. He “had an extreme emotional moment” just before, adding, “I took that as a special spiritual message from Phil saying goodbye. Our love was and will always be deeper than any earthly differences we might have had.”
Later, Don said that he loved his brother “very much” and thought that he would go first. “The world might be mourning an Everly Brother, but I'm mourning my brother Phil Everly,” he told the Associated Press.
Phil died Friday from obstructive pulmonary disease in California at age 74. His death was followed by an outpouring of support from musicians around the world, showing that even though it had been decades since the two recorded, their work is still influential.
The Everly Brothers were best known for songs like “All I Have To Do Is Dream” and “Bye Bye Love.” They broke up in 1973, but reunited in the mid-80s. They also performed before Simon & Garfunkel’s Old Friends shows.
You can check out our lists of their best singles here and covers here.
image: Amazon