Lee Brice Honors Daryle Singletary With Somber Cover [WATCH]
Tributes to '90s country artist Daryle Singletary have been pouring in since he died early Monday morning (Feb. 12). On Facebook, Lee Brice shared a somber rendition of "Old Violin," a Johnny Paycheck song that Singletary covered on one of his albums.
Readers can press play above to watch Brice's "Old Violin" cover. The singer says Singletary's death "hits me hard."
"I grew up listening to him, and he's one of the greatest singers of all time," Brice shares. "This was the first song I ever learned, when I was growing up, on guitar, so it's still, to this day, one of my favorite songs."
Singletary originally recorded his cover of "Old Violin" for his 2002 album That's Why I Sing This Way, a record full of country classics. Merle Haggard, Rhonda Vincent and more lent their voices to the project; "Old Violin" is the album's final track and features Paycheck. On Saturday night (Feb. 10), Singletary ended what turned out to be his final concert with the song.
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Born March 10, 1971, in Cairo, Ga., Singletary moved to Nashville in the early 1990s to pursue a career in country music. He started out performing at open mic nights and working as a demo singer. After Randy Travis recorded one of the songs that Singletary demoed, "An Old Pair of Shoes," Travis recommended the aspiring artist to his management team, and they helped Singletary sign with Giant Records.
Singletary released his debut album, a self-titled project, in 1995; two of its singles -- "I Let Her Lie" and "Too Much Fun" -- reached the Top 5 on the country charts. Throughout his career, Singletary released six additional studio albums, the most recent of which, There's Still a Little Country Left, came out in 2015. He charted more than a dozen singles, including a third Top 5 hit, "Amen Kind of Love."
Singletary leaves behind his wife, Holly, and four children: 7-year-old twin boys Mercer and Jonah, 5-year-old daughter Nora Caroline and 3-year-old daughter Charlotte Rose. He is also survived by his parents, Roger and Anita Singletary; a brother, Kevin Singletary; a sister-in-law, Melinda Singletary; his mother and father-in-law, Terry and Sandy Mercer; and a brother and sister-in-law, Tony and Kristy Rowland.
Country Artists Mourn Daryle Singletary's Death