Ray Charles and The Judds joined the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday in Nashville in a ceremony filled with tears, music and laughter, just a day after .
The loss of Naomi Judd altered the normally celebratory ceremony, but the music played on, as the genre鈥檚 singers and musicians mourned Naomi Judd while also celebrating the four inductees: The Judds, Ray Charles, Eddie Bayers and Pete Drake. Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Vince Gill and many more performed their hit songs.
Naomi and Wynonna Judd were among the most popular duos of the 1980s, scoring 14 No. 1 hits during their nearly three-decade career. On the eve of her induction, the family said in a statement to The Associated Press that Naomi Judd died at the age of 76 due to 鈥渢he disease of mental illness.鈥�
鈥� The Judds (@juddsofficial)
Daughters Wynonna and Ashley Judd accepted the induction amid tears, holding onto each other and reciting a Bible verse together.
鈥淚鈥檓 sorry that she couldn鈥檛 hang on until today,鈥� Ashley Judd said of her mother to the crowd while crying. Wynonna Judd talked about the family gathering as they said goodbye to her and she and Ashley Judd recited Psalm 23.
鈥淭hough my heart is broken I will continue to sing,鈥� Wynonna Judd said.
Fans gathered outside the museum, drawn to a white floral bouquet outside the entrance and a small framed photo of Naomi Judd below. A single rose was laid on the ground.
READ MORE:
Charles鈥� induction showcased his which showed the genre鈥檚 commercial appeal. The Georgia-born singer and piano player grew up listening to the Grand Ole Opry and in 1962 released 鈥淢odern Sounds in Country and Western Music,鈥� which became one of the best selling country releases of his era.
The piano player, blinded and orphaned at a young age, is best known for R&B, gospel and soul, but his decision to record country music changed the way the world thought about the genre, expanding audiences in the Civil Rights era.
Charles鈥� version of 鈥淚 Can鈥檛 Stop Loving You,鈥� spent five weeks on top of the Billboard 100 chart and remains one of his most popular songs. He died in 2004.
Brooks sang 鈥淪even Spanish Angels,鈥� one of Charles鈥� hits with Willie Nelson, while Bettye LaVette performed 鈥淚 Can鈥檛 Stop Loving You.鈥�
Country Music Hall of Famer Ronnie Milsap said he met Charles when he was a young singer and that others tried to imitate Charles, but no one could measure up.
鈥淭here was one of him and only one,鈥� said Milsap. 鈥淗e sang country music like it should be sung.鈥�
also inducted two recordings musicians who were elemental to so many country songs and singers: Eddie Bayers and Pete Drake.
Bayers, a drummer in Nashville for decades who worked on 300 platinum records, is a member of the Grand Ole Opry band. He regularly played on records for The Judds, Ricky Skaggs, George Strait, Alan Jackson鈥痑nd Kenny Chesney. He is the first drummer to join the institution.
Drake, who died in 1988, was a pedal steel guitar player and a member of Nashville鈥檚 A-team of skilled session musicians, played on hits like 鈥淪tand By Your Man鈥� by Tammy Wynette and 鈥淗e Stopped Loving Her Today鈥� by George Jones. He is the first pedal steel guitar player to become part of the Hall of Fame.
Kristin M. Hall, The Associated Press
Like us on and follow us on
