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{{Infobox musical artist
| name = The Statler Brothers
| image = File:Statler promo.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = A promotional image of the Statler Brothers, 1970s. From left to right: Harold Reid, Don Reid, Phil Balsley, and Lew DeWitt.
| background = group_or_band
| alias =
* The
* The
| origin = [[Staunton, Virginia]], U.S.
| genre = {{flatlist|
* [[Country music|Country]]
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* [[traditional pop]]
}}
| years_active = 1955–2002
| label = {{flatlist|
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* Yell
}}
|
| past_members = {{plainlist|
* Joe McDorman
* Don Reid
* Harold Reid
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}}
}}
'''The Statler Brothers''' (sometimes simply referred to as '''The Statlers''') were an American [[country music]], [[gospel music|gospel]], and vocal group
Originally performing [[Southern gospel]] music at local churches, the group billed themselves as The Four Star Quartet, and later The Kingsmen.<ref name="AmGosp">{{cite encyclopedia
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| isbn = 0-415-94179-2
| pages = 376
}}</ref> In 1963, when the song "[[Louie, Louie]]" by the [[garage rock]] band also called [[The Kingsmen]] became famous, the group elected to bill themselves as
| editor = Irwin Stamler & Grelund Landon
| encyclopedia = Country Music: The Encyclopedia
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| isbn = 0-312-26487-9
| pages = 459
}}</ref> Don Reid sang [[lead singer|lead]]; Harold Reid, Don's older brother, sang [[Bass (voice type)|bass]]; Phil Balsley sang [[baritone]]; and [[Lew DeWitt]] sang [[tenor]] and was the [[guitarist]] before being replaced due to ill health by [[Jimmy Fortune]] in
The band's style was closely linked to their gospel roots. "We took gospel harmonies," said Harold Reid, "and put them over in country music."<ref name="AmGosp" /> Most of their albums contain at least one gospel song
== Career ==
The Statlers began their career at a performance at Lyndhurst Methodist Church near their hometown of Staunton, Virginia, under the name The Four Star Quartet.<ref name="AmGosp" /> In 1964, they started an eight-year run as Johnny Cash's opening act and backing vocalists.<ref name="Stamler" /> This period of their career was memorialized in their song "We Got Paid by Cash
Two of the Statlers' best-known songs are "[[Flowers on the Wall]],"
Throughout the Statlers' career, much of their appeal was related to their incorporation of comedy and parody into their musical act, due in large part to the humorous and comedic talent of group member Harold Reid; they were frequently nominated for awards for their comedy as well as their singing. They recorded two comedy albums under the [[pseudonym]] Lester "Roadhog" Moran and the Cadillac Cowboys, and one-half of one side of the album ''Country Music Then and Now'' was devoted to satirizing small-town radio stations' Saturday-morning shows.
The Statlers earned the number-one spot on the [[Billboard charts|''Billboard'' chart]] four times, for "[[Do You Know You Are My Sunshine]]?" in 1978, "[[Elizabeth (The Statler Brothers song)|Elizabeth]]" in 1984, and in 1985, "[[My Only Love (song)|My Only Love]]" and "[[Too Much on My Heart]]
In 1980, the Statler Brothers purchased and renovated their former elementary school, Beverly Manor, in Staunton, occupying the complex for several years. The complex consisted of offices for the group, a small museum and auditorium, and an adjacent building that served as office space for unrelated businesses. A garage was built to store the two tour buses that the group had used for many years. The group has since sold the complex, which Grace Christian Church in Staunton converted back into an academic campus.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gcswarriors.org/contact-us/directions.cfm |title=Elementary/Middle School Directions |website=Grace Christian School |access-date=June 1, 2020}}</ref>
In 1970, the group began performing at an annual [[Independence Day (United States)|Independence Day]] festival in Gypsy Hill Park in Staunton. The event, known as "Happy Birthday USA
DeWitt retired from the Statler Brothers in 1982 due to ill health. After a 3-year hiatus, he returned to the music industry as a solo artist until shortly before his death on August 15, 1990, from complications of [[Crohn's disease]], at age 52.<ref>[https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE0D9133EF934A2575BC0A966958260 "Lew DeWitt, 52, Tenor With the Statler Brothers"]. ''[[The New York Times]]'' (obituary). (August 17, 1990) retrieved April 10, 2008.</ref>
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== Awards ==
'''[[Academy of Country Music]]'''
*
*
*
'''[[Country Music Association]]'''
* [[Country Music Association Awards|1972 Vocal Group of the Year]]
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
'''[[Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum]]'''
*
'''[[Gospel Hall of Fame]]'''
* [[Gospel Hall of Fame|Inducted in 2007]]<ref>[http://www.gmahalloffame.org/inductees_2007.cfm "Gospel Music Hall of Fame 2007 Induction Ceremony"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080406041815/http://www.gmahalloffame.org/inductees_2007.cfm |date=April 6, 2008 }} [[Gospel Music Association]] official [
'''[[Grammy Awards]]'''
* [[Grammy Award for Best New Country & Western Artist|1965 Best New Country & Western Artist]]<ref>[http://www.grammy.com/GRAMMY_Awards/Winners/Results.aspx?title=&winner=Statler+Brothers&year=0&genreID=0&hp=1 "Grammy Award Winners: 1965, Country".] [[National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences]] official [http://www.grammy.com/ website] {{webarchive|url=https://
* [[Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals|1965 Best Contemporary (R&R) Performance – Group (Vocal or Instrumental)]] – "[[Flowers on the Wall]]"<ref>[http://www.grammy.com/GRAMMY_Awards/Winners/Results.aspx?title=&winner=Statler+Brothers&year=0&genreID=0&hp=1 "Grammy Award Winners: 1972, Pop."] [[National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences]] official [http://www.grammy.com/ website] {{webarchive|url=https://
* [[Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal|1972 Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group]] – "The Class of '57"<ref>[http://www.grammy.com/GRAMMY_Awards/Winners/Results.aspx?title=&winner=Statler+Brothers&year=0&genreID=0&hp=1 "Grammy Award Winners: 1972, Country."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090629234415/http://www.grammy.com/GRAMMY_Awards/Winners/Results.aspx?title=&winner=Statler+Brothers&year=0&genreID=0&hp=1 |date=June 29, 2009 }}
'''[[American Music Awards]]'''
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The group disbanded and retired after completing a farewell tour on October 26, 2002. Balsley and Don Reid continue to reside in Staunton, as did Harold Reid until his death in April 2020; Fortune, though, relocated to [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]], where he continues his music career as a solo artist, having released three albums under his own name. The Statlers remain one of the most awarded acts in the history of country music.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://countrymusic.about.com/od/statlerbrother1/a/statlerbrosbio.htm |title=About the Statler Brothers |first=Kathy |last=Coleman |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070905034239/http://countrymusic.about.com/od/statlerbrother1/a/statlerbrosbio.htm |archive-date=September 5, 2007 |url-status=dead |website=about.com |access-date=April 13, 2008}}</ref>
Don Reid has pursued a second career as an author
== Grandstaff/Wilson Fairchild ==
Wil and Langdon Reid, the sons of Harold and Don, respectively, formed a duo in the 1990s, originally performing under the name Grandstaff. In 2007, Grandstaff recorded "The Statler Brothers Song"
In an interview on Nashville's [[WSM (AM)]] on March 25, 2010, Wil Reid said that they decided to change their name to Wilson Fairchild after many people got the name "Grandstaff" wrong during introductions. The name comes from "Wilson
Sisters Kim and Karmen Reid (daughters of Harold) also enjoyed a brief stint as a country duo in the early 1980s, which included a guest appearance on an episode of ''[[Hee Haw]]''.
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==Members and years active==
*Joe McDorman – lead (1955–1960)
*[[Lew DeWitt]] – tenor (1955–1982) (died 1990)
*Phil Balsley – baritone (1955–2002)
*Harold Reid – bass (1955–2002) (died 2020)
*Don Reid – lead (1960–2002)
*[[Jimmy Fortune]] – tenor (1982–2002)
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* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmDpqWuhuXc The Statler Brothers performing a gospel in the Johnny Cash Show during the 1960s]
* [http://www.statlerbrothers.com/ Official Website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20040203111303/http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/statler_brothers/artist.jhtml at CMT]
* [http://jimmyfortune.com/ Jimmy Fortune's Homepage]
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