Phil Everly

Phillip Everly (January 19, 1939 – January 3, 2014) was an American musician, who was one half of the duo The Everly Brothers alongside his older brother Don.

Phil was born in Chicago in 1939 to Isaac Milford "Ike" Everly Jr. (1908–1975), a guitar player, and Margaret Embry Everly (1919–2021). He was of German, English and Cherokee descent.

The Everly family moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, in 1953, where the brothers attended West High School. In 1955, the family moved to Madison, Tennessee, while the brothers moved to Nashville. Don had graduated from high school in 1955, and Phil attended Peabody Demonstration School, from which he graduated in 1957.

The Everly Brothers Career started in 1951. They signed to Cadence Records In 1957. Their first hit was "Bye Bye Love", which had been rejected by 30 other acts.

"Bye Bye Love" went to no. 2 on the pop chart, behind Elvis Presley's "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear", and No. 1 on the country and No. 5 on the R&B charts. The song, by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, became the Everly Brothers' first million-seller.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.