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NATION: Country singer Eddy Arnold

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

May 9, 2008

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Eddy Arnold, whose mellow baritone on songs like "Make the World Go Away" made him one of the most successful country singers in history, died yesterday, days short of his 90th birthday.

Arnold died at a care facility near Nashville, said Don Cusic, a professor at Belmont University and author of the biography "Eddy Arnold: I'll Hold You in My Heart." His wife of 66 years, Sally, died in March, and in the same month Arnold fell outside his home, injuring his hip.

Arnold's vocals on songs like the 1965 "Make the World Go Away," a top-10 pop hit and No.1 country hit, made him one of the most successful country singers in history.

Folksy yet sophisticated, he became a pioneer of "The Nashville Sound," a mixture of country and pop. His crossover success paved the way for later singers such as Kenny Rogers.

He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1966 and in 1967 became the first person to receive the entertainer of the year award from the Country Music Association.

Nicknamed "The Tennessee Plowboy," Arnold, the son of a sharecropper, first gained notice with appearances on the Grand Ole Opry in the early 1940s. He debuted on the charts in 1945 with "Each Minute Seems a Million Years," and began his string of 28 No. 1 country hits with "What Is Life Without Love" in early 1947. His success helped make Nashville an important recording industry hub, according to Sony BMG Nashville, parent of his longtime label, RCA.

Other hits included "Cattle Call," "The Last Word in Lonesome Is Me," "Anytime," "Bouquet of Roses," "What's He Doing in My World?" "I Want to Go With You," "Somebody Like Me," "Lonely Again" and "Turn the World Around."

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