Gary Stewart was one of the most influential and acclaimed country singers of the 1970s, known for his distinctive vibrato voice and his outlaw country sound influenced by southern rock. He had a series of country chart hits, the biggest of which was “She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinkin’ Doubles)”, which topped the U.S. country singles chart in 1975. However, his life was also marked by personal tragedies, substance abuse, and career decline. On December 16, 2003, Stewart died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, one month after the death of his wife. What led to his tragic suicide and how did he impact the country music scene? Here is a brief overview of his life and legacy.
Contents
Early Life and Career
Stewart was born in Jenkins, Kentucky, on May 28, 1944, the son of George and Georgia Stewart. He was named after the actor Gary Cooper. In 1959 his father, a coal miner, sustained an injury while working in the mines, and shortly afterwards the family moved to Fort Pierce, a city on Florida’s Atlantic coast. Learning guitar and piano, Stewart began touring with local bands and writing songs in his teens. He married Mary Lou Taylor, who was more than three years his senior, at age seventeen and began working days in an airplane factory. He still played in rock and country bands at night. While playing in an Okeechobee, Florida, honky-tonk known as the Wagon Wheel, Stewart met country singer Mel Tillis, who advised Stewart to travel to Nashville to pitch his songs. He recorded a few songs for the small Cory label in 1964 and began co-writing songs with local policeman Bill Eldridge. Stewart and Eldridge wrote Stonewall Jackson’s 1965 country hit, “Poor Red Georgia Dirt”. Signed to the Kapp label in 1968, Stewart made several unsuccessful recordings but several songwriting successes followed, for artists like Billy Walker, Cal Smith, and Nat Stuckey. He even played piano for a time in Charley Pride’s band the Pridesmen, and can be heard on Pride’s live In Person double-album. Disappointed with Music Row, however, he soon returned to Florida and resumed playing countrified rock ‘n’ roll in local clubs and bars. According to Wikipedia.
Peak of Career
In 1970 Motown Records, hoping to get Nashville artists to record their songs, paid Stewart $30 to record countrified demos of “Baby I Need Your Loving”, “Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday”, and “I Can’t Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)”. These demos caught the attention of RCA Records, who signed Stewart in 1974 and gave him creative freedom to record his own songs and choose his own producers. Stewart’s peak came with his acclaimed 1975 RCA album Out of Hand, which climbed to No. 6 on the Billboard country album chart. That album also yielded the No. 1 hit “She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinkin’ Doubles)”, a song about a man who suspects his wife of cheating on him and drowns his sorrows in alcohol. The song became Stewart’s signature tune and a honky-tonk classic. His work continued to be acclaimed throughout the ‘70s, particularly the 1976 album Steppin’ Out and 1977’s Your Place or Mine. 1980’s Cactus and a Rose also featured southern rockers Bonnie Bramlett, Gregg Allman and Dickey Betts. Stewart’s music was praised by critics and fans for its authenticity, energy, and emotion. He was also one of the first country artists to incorporate elements of rock, blues, and soul into his sound, creating a unique style that influenced many later artists. According to CMT.
Personal Struggles and Career Decline
However, Stewart never established a firm audience – he was often labeled as too country for rock audiences and too rock for the country listeners. He also lived his private life on a grand honky-tonk scale and his heavy drugging and drinking were no secret. He suffered from several personal tragedies that took a toll on his mental health and career. In 1980, Stewart was in a car crash that wrecked his back; in 1988 his son Gary Joseph killed himself with a gun; and in November 2003 his wife Mary Lou died after a bout of pneumonia. “Gary couldn’t put his pants on without Mary Lou around,” a friend of mine who knew him told me. According to Steve Hoffman Music Forums. Stewart faded away in Florida, quit recording, went back to playing the bars, and little more was heard from him. He did release a few albums in the late ’80s and early ’90s on the California label HighTone, but they did not match his earlier work, either in quality or in sales. He also teamed up with songwriter Dean Dillon for a couple of albums, but they did not make much impact either. Stewart had canceled his last scheduled concert date – Nov. 29 at Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth – after his wife died. Stewart had released a Live At Billy Bob’s CD earlier that year. According to CMT.
Gary Stewart Cause of Death: Suicide
On December 16, 2003, Stewart was found dead in his home in Fort Pierce, Florida. He was 59 years old. The cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the neck, according to the police report. He left a note that read: “I can’t go on without Mary Lou.” He also left instructions for his funeral and burial. Stewart’s death was ruled a suicide by the coroner’s office. His death shocked and saddened his fans and peers, who remembered him as a talented and passionate artist who never compromised his vision. According to KXRB.
Legacy and Influence
Despite his tragic end, Stewart’s legacy and influence live on in the country music scene. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest honky-tonk singers of all time, and one of the pioneers of the outlaw country movement. His songs have been covered by artists such as George Strait, Dwight Yoakam, Patty Loveless, Sara Evans, and Tim McGraw. He has also been praised by rock and pop artists such as Elvis Costello, Bruce Springsteen, and Tom Petty. He was inducted into the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame in 2007, and received a posthumous Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association in 2004. His albums Out of Hand and Your Place or Mine were ranked among the 500 greatest albums of all time by Rolling Stone magazine in 2020. His music continues to inspire and entertain new generations of fans who appreciate his authentic and emotional style. According to Wikipedia.
