Johnny "Country" Mathis

Johnny "Country" Mathis (September 28, 1933 – September 27, 2011) was an American country singer and songwriter. He is credited with penning more than 500 tunes over the course of his long career. Mathis played on Louisiana Hayride from 1951 to 1960, as a solo artist and as a member of the hitmaking duo Jimmy & Johnny (with Jimmy Lee Fautheree). Mathis left the group to go solo in the middle of the 1950s, leaving Fautheree's brother Lynn to fill his shoes in the duo. Jimmy and Lynn nevertheless did not change the name Jimmy & Johnny; this would prove ideal for Mathis, who returned to the group from 1959 to 1961. As a solo artist, he released several singles for D Records, Decca, United Artists, and Little Darlin. His final charting...