Today in music history, July 14, marks one of the most iconic band breakups. It is the 47th year since Phil Everly smashed his guitar, stormed off the stage, and effectively ended the Everly Brothers.
By the start of the 1970s, the Everly Brothers' star had started waning. Their songs are no longer hits in the US, Canada, or in the UK. Their contract with Warner Bros. has also lapsed after ten years. Their last effort, "The Everly Brothers Show" live album, did not enjoy the same commercial success as their former releases.
The Everly Brothers continued performing throughout 1971. They also released two more albums in 1972 and 1973. Fleetwood Mac's future lead Lindsey Buckingham joined them in their 1972 tour. Later, Phil and Don Everly announced that they would be having their final show at Knott's Berry Farm, scheduled on July 14, 1973.
However, on the days leading to their final performance, tensions between the brothers started escalating. On the very day of their performance, Don finished the entire show. Phil, however, smashed his guitar and walked off the stage. The Everly Brothers would not perform again for ten years.
The Everly family of musicians
Don Everly was born in Brownie, Kentucky, in 1947, while Phil Everly was born in Chicago, Illinois, two years later. They were from a musical family. Their father, Isaac "Ike" Everly, Jr., was a guitar player. Their mother, Margaret Embry, was also a singer.
Ike and Margaret had a regular show in Shenandoah, Iowa, during the 1940s. They later started featuring their sons, "Little Donnie and Baby Boy Phil."
The Everly Brothers caught the attention of record label exec and family friend Chet Atkins of Nashville's RCA Victor studios. They were later signed to Acuff-Rose as songwriters, and later as artists for Cadence Records. They started gaining mainstream recognition with their first record, "Bye Bye Love," which peaked at No. 2 on the pop charts. It lost only to Elvis Presley's "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear." The Brothers' piece of music history "Bye Bye Love" also topped the country charts and rose to No. 5 on the R&B charts.
Their 1957 hit, written by Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, would mark a string of Everly Brothers' hit songs. The Bryant siblings and the Everly Brothers would go on to release "Wake Up Little Susie," "All I Have To Do Is Dream," "Bird Dog," and then "Problems." The musical duo of Don and Phil Everly became popular in North America and the UK.
Don and Phil later signed under Warner Bros for ten years, after three years of working with Cadence.
Reunion and The Everly Brothers later life
The brothers would first appear together in London's Royal Albert Hall, reuniting on September 23, 1983. Their concert effectively ended their ten-year solo careers in music history, with the show being recorded for a new live album. They would continue performing as the Everly Brothers, with their compilation album "Country Classics," being released in 2004.
Phil Everly passed away in January 2014, due to lung disease. He died 16 days before what would have been his 75th birthday. Don Everly later attested that weak lungs ran in their family, with Ike dying of black lung disease. Two years later, Don would admit in an interview that he is still coping with his younger brother's loss.
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