Country singer Mickey Gilley

2022 - 5 - 7

Mickey Gilley -- mickey gilley passed away Mickey Gilley - mickey gilley passed away

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Image courtesy of "Deadline"

Mickey Gilley Dies: Proprietor Of World's Biggest Honky Tonk ... (Deadline)

Gilley's was a football-field-sized dancehall, boasting a capacity of 6,000. It caught fire as the center of the John Travolta-Debra Winger film Urban Cowboy in ...

He grew up with his two famous cousins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Jimmy Swaggart, surrounded by the influence of music. Before that, Gilley was a country music singer who made his mark with “Is It Wrong for Loving You,” and had 39 Top Ten Hits on the BIllboard Country Music charts. Mickey Gilley, who ran one of the world’s largest honky tonks in Pasadena, Texas and was credited with helping foster country music’s revival in the late ’70s as a key part of the Urban Cowboy film, has died.

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Image courtesy of "WAGM"

Mickey Gilley, country singer who helped inspire 'Urban Cowboy ... (WAGM)

Country star Mickey Gilley, whose namesake Texas honky-tonk inspired the 1980 film “Urban Cowboy” and a nationwide wave of Western-themed nightspots, ...

Like Lewis, he would sneak into the windows of Louisiana clubs to listen to rhythm and blues. “I thank John Travolta every night before bed for keeping my career alive,” Gilley told the AP in 2002. Gilley had suffered health problems in recent years. In recent years, Gilley moved to Branson. Gilley — cousin of rock ‘n’ roll pioneer Jerry Lee Lewis — opened Gilley’s, “the world’s largest honky tonk,” in Pasadena, Texas, in the early 1970s. Overall, he had 39 Top 10 country hits and 17 No. 1 songs.

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Image courtesy of "KPRC Click2Houston"

'A true legend': Mickey Gilley, popular Country Western singer, dies ... (KPRC Click2Houston)

The Country Western community lost a legend regarding the death of Mickey Gilley who died on Saturday, sources say.

“We were so honored to have Mickey perform at our State of the City in February, 2020. Our prayers for comfort and peace are with Mickey’s family, his loved ones and his fans.” According to Gilleys.com, the singer was born on March 9, 1936, in Natchez, Mississippi. His biography says he grew up in Louisiana where he learned the sounds of rhythm and blues by sneaking up to the windows of the clubs at night.

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Image courtesy of "CNN"

Country singer Mickey Gilley dies at age 86 - CNN (CNN)

Country singer Mickey Gilley, best known as the pioneer of the "urban cowboy" style, died Saturday in Branson, Missouri, his publicist Zach Farnum said.

Gilley was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1984. "We just lost a great human being," Brown said. starting with "Room Full of Roses" in 1974.

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Image courtesy of "Variety"

Mickey Gilley, Country Star Whose Texas Club Was Backdrop for ... (Variety)

Mickey Gilley, the country music icon whose bar served as the backdrop for John Travolta's "Urban Cowboy," has died. He was 86.

In 1971, Gilley launched the honky-tonk Gilley’s in Pasadena, Texas, which would later feature in the hit 1980 romantic drama “Urban Cowboy,” starring John Travolta and directed by James Bridges. The film’s popularity helped country music reach new audiences throughout the 1980s. Gilley’s honky-tonk served as the setting for the film, which led to the musician’s ascension into screen acting, with roles in television series such as “Murder She Wrote,” “The Fall Guy,” “Fantasy Island” and “Dukes of Hazzard.” Credited with popularizing the Urban Cowboy movement, Gilley’s music, including hit songs like “Stand By Me,” “Room Full of Roses” and “Lonely Nights,” created a bridge from the artist’s country roots to an ascension on pop charts.

Country singer Mickey Gilley, whose bar launched 'Urban Cowboy ... (National Post)

Country singer Mickey Gilley, whose namesake Texas-sized honky-tonk bar was the birthplace of the “Urban Cowboy” music and fashion fads of the 1980s, ...

After therapy he returned to singing in Branson but was unable to play the piano. Gilley rebounded by becoming a regular performer in the country music hotbed of Branson, Missouri, where he built a theater. He later appeared in television shows such as “Murder She Wrote,” “Fantasy Island” and “The Dukes of Hazzard.” Big Western hats, snap-button shirts and boots began to appear not just on the streets of Houston and Dallas but New York, San Francisco and Chicago. It billed itself as the world’s biggest honky tonk and also featured the mechanical bucking bull on which cowboys, cowgirls and wannabes could test their rodeo skills. A native of Natchez, Mississippi, Gilley grew up in Ferriday, Louisiana, son of Arthur Fillmore Gilley and Irene (Lewis) Gilley, who taught him to play piano.

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Image courtesy of "CMT.com"

Country Singer Mickey Gilley Dies (CMT.com)

Mickey Gilley, 86, had just played 10 shows in April, and passed away peacefully surrounded by friends and family.

CMT CMT CMT CMT CMT CMT CMT CMT CMT "We are deeply saddened to learn about the passing of the legendary Naomi Judd and honored to have shared many unforgettable moments and performances together over the years. CMT CMT

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Image courtesy of "The Washington Post"

Mickey Gilley, singer whose club inspired 'Urban Cowboy,' dies at 86 (The Washington Post)

He had 17 No. 1 country hits, and his nightclub in Texas was the inspiration for the 1980 film "Urban Cowboy."

“I thank John Travolta every night before bed for keeping my career alive,” Mr. Gilley told the Associated Press in 2002. Mr. Gilley began performing in the 1950s but found little success before opening opened Gilley’s, “the world’s largest honky tonk,” in Pasadena, Tex., in the early 1970s. His Texas nightclub shut down in 1989 and was destroyed by fire soon afterward. Mickey Leroy Gilley was born March 9, 1936, in Natchez, Miss. He grew up across the Mississippi River from Ferriday, La., where he learned to play boogie-woogie piano and sing with his cousins, rock-and-roll star Jerry Lee Lewis and Jimmy Swaggart, the future evangelist. The soundtrack included such hits as Johnny Lee’s “Lookin’ for Love,” Boz Scaggs’s “Look What You’ve Done to Me” and Mr. Gilley’s “Stand by Me.” The movie turned the Pasadena club into an overnight tourist draw and popularized pearl snap shirts, longneck beers, the steel guitar and mechanical bulls across the country. Such hit songs as “Stand By Me” and “Lonely Nights” created a bridge from the artist’s country roots to an ascension on pop charts and were credited with popularizing the Urban Cowboy movement.

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Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Country singer Mickey Gilley, who helped inspire Urban Cowboy ... (The Guardian)

Star said the film – based on his Texas club – had 'huge impact' on his career while in life 'I am doing exactly what I want to do'

He moved to Houston to work construction but played the local club scene at night and recorded and toured for years before catching on in the 1970s. Gilley had suffered health problems in recent years. In recent years, Gilley moved to Branson. “I thank John Travolta every night before bed for keeping my career alive,” Gilley said in 2002. By mid-decade, he was a successful club owner and had enjoyed his first commercial success with Room Full of Roses. He began turning out country hits regularly, including Window Up Above, She’s Pulling Me Back Again and the honky-tonk anthem Don’t the Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time. Overall, he had 39 top 10 country hits and 17 No. 1 songs.

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