Keith Whitley
Keith Whitley | |
|---|---|
Whitley performing in June 1988 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jackie Keith Whitley |
| Born | July 1, 1954 Ashland, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Origin | Sandy Hook, Kentucky, U.S. |
| Died | May 9, 1989 (aged 34) Goodlettsville, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Genres |
|
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
| Years active | 1970–1989 |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of | Clinch Mountain Boys, New South |
| Spouse | |
Jackie Keith Whitley (July 1, 1954 – May 9, 1989) was an American country music and bluegrass singer and songwriter. During his career, he released only two albums, but charted 12 singles on the Billboard country charts, and seven more after his death.
Born in Ashland, Kentucky, Whitley grew up in nearby Sandy Hook. He began his career there in 1970, performing in Ralph Stanley's band. Establishing himself as a lead singer in bluegrass music, Whitley moved to Nashville in 1983 and began his recording career there. His first top-20 country hit single, "Miami, My Amy", was released in 1986. In 1988, his first three singles from his second studio album Don't Close Your Eyes, the title song, "When You Say Nothing at All", and "I'm No Stranger to the Rain" were number-one hits. During the final years of his life, Whitley struggled with a lifelong alcohol addiction. He completed his sessions for his follow-up album, I Wonder Do You Think of Me, before dying of acute alcohol poisoning in 1989 at his Goodlettsville home at age 34. The album's "title song", along with "It Ain't Nothin'" and "I'm Over You", were released as singles after his death.
In 2022, Whitley was posthumously inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.