Remembering Mickey Gilley
• Country music legend Mickey Gilley, whose sprawling, eponymous nightclub in suburban Houston, TX helped spawn the massively popular “Urban Cowboy” movement in the ’80s (and the hit movie starring John Travolta), died Saturday, May 7 in Branson, MO from complications due to a recent hospitalization. He was 86.
Born in Natchez, MS, Gilley was exposed to music at an early age and chased a career in music following in the footsteps of his older cousin, Jerry Lee Lewis. After deciding to pursue music full time, Gilley cut his first single in New Orleans under producer Huey Meaux. In 1970, he opened Gilley’s, his first nightclub in Pasadena, TX. In 1980, Gilley’s became world-famous when it was prominently featured in the movie Urban Cowboy starring John Travolta and Debra Winger.
As Variety reports, the two-LP Urban Cowboy soundtrack, executive produced by Irving Azoff and released by Asylum, spawned three No. 1 Country singles: Gilley’s cover of “Stand By Me,” “Lookin’ for Love” by Johnny Lee (the leader of Gilley’s house band) and Anne Murray‘s “Could I Have This Dance,” plus Kenny Rogers‘ No. 4 country hit, “Love the World Away.” All those tracks, plus Boz Scaggs‘ “Look What You’ve Done to Me” and Joe Walsh‘s “All Night Long,” hit the Top 40 charts. The soundtrack album was ultimately certified for sales of 3 million copies.
Throughout the course of his career, Gilley scored 17 No. 1 hits, including “Room Full Of Roses,” “City Lights,” “Window Up Above,” Don’t The Girls All Get Prettier At Closing Time,” “Bring It On Home To Me,” “Stand By Me,” and “Lonely Nights,” to name but a few. He also appeared as an actor in numerous popular television series including Murder She Wrote, The Fall Guy, Fantasy Island and The Dukes of Hazzard.
Gilley earned numerous accolades including six ACM Awards, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and was inducted into the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame in 2011. He was also one of only a handful of artists to receive the Academy of Country Music’s Triple Crown Awards. [Photo Courtesy of Mickey Gilley Enterprises]
