Country music’s ‘Gambler,’ Kenny Rogers, dies at 81
Hall of Famer sold more than 100 million albums in his six-decade career. Appreciation,
Kenny Rogers, known for recording enduring classics like “The Gambler,” “Lucille” and “Islands in the Stream,” was remembered Sunday for the husky voice and natural charisma that made him a country crossover star and cultural icon.
The multitalented entertainer who embraced his persona as “The Gambler” on record and on TV died Friday night at age 81. He was under hospice care and died at home in Sandy Springs, Georgia, of natural causes, representative Keith Hagan told The Associated Press.
During his six-decade career, the singer sold more than 100 million albums worldwide, won three Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He also published photography books, donated time and money to philanthropic causes, appeared in a number of madefor-television movies and launched an eponymous restaurant chain.
Kenneth Donald Rogers (called “Kenneth Ray” by his family members) was born in Houston on Aug. 21, 1938. The fourth of Edward and Lucille’s eight children, Rogers grew up in the San Felipe Courts housing project and was the first person in his family to receive a high school diploma.
“As early as grade school, I began to see music and singing as a respite from all the awkwardness and embarrassment of growing up poor, shy and often an outsider,” Rogers wrote in his 2012 book, “Luck or Something Like It: A Memoir.”
He entered his first talent contest when he was 10. His version of “Lovesick Blues” won him the grand prize: a half-gallon of vanilla ice cream and a meeting with country star Eddy Arnold.
Rogers notched his first solo top 20 country hit with 1975’s “Love Lifted Me.” Other hits followed, including the charttoppers “Lucille,” “Daytime Friends” and “Love or Something Like It.”
In late 1978, Rogers released a single called “The Gambler,” written by an unknown
“We’ve learned more from Kenny Rogers over these decades than anybody else in the music industry . ... We learned how to be honest. We learned integrity in your performance.” Joe Bonsall of the Oak Ridge Boys when Rogers was honored with a star on the Music City Walk of Fame in 2017
songwriter in his 20s named Don Schlitz. The song tells the story of a chance meeting on a train.
Rogers wasn’t the first to record it, but his rendition became the most enduring version. “The Gambler” won him a Best Male Country Vocal Performance Grammy, and became his signature song. It also led to a starring role in a series of made-for-television “Gambler” movies.
After country story-songs like “The Gambler” and “Coward of the County,” Rogers was looking to record something different. Enter Lionel Richie and his song “Lady.” Rogers’ sultry recording hit No. 1 on Billboard’s pop and country charts in 1980.
Between 1977 and 1985, Rogers released 15 No. 1 country hits. Most of those songs became pop hits as well, including “Islands in the Stream,” a catchy pop-country duet between Rogers and fellow megastar Dolly Parton.
The two singers toured together and continued to record together. Their last duet, “You Can’t Make Old Friends,” was released in 2013.
Rogers found further chart success in collaborations with artists such as Dottie West (they were named CMA Vocal Duo of the Year in 1978 and 1979), Kim Carnes (“Don’t Fall in Love with a Dreamer”) and Sheena Easton (“We’ve Got Tonight”).
Rogers got involved with a number of offstage pursuits as well. Beginning in the 1980s, he published multiple photography books that showcased photos of landscapes as well as portraits he took of artists like Michael Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor and Ray Charles.
He also gave his name to Kenny Rogers Roasters, a chain of chicken restaurants, in 1991. The chain (once used as a subplot in a “Seinfeld” episode) eventually closed in the U.S. but has done well overseas, with multiple locations in Malaysia and other countries.
In 1999, Rogers, while working on an album for his own Dreamcatcher label, recorded “Buy Me a Rose,” a tender ballad written by Jim Funk and Erik Hickenlooper and featuring background vocals from Alison Krauss and Billy Dean. When it topped the charts in 2000, Rogers, then 61, was the oldest artist to have a No. 1 country hit. It was also his first No. 1 single since 1987.
“This is not about money, it’s about validation,” he told The Tennessean in April 2000, shortly before the song topped the charts. “Even Garth (Brooks) said on this television biography they did of me that ‘Kenny’s problem was he was too pop for country and too country for pop.’ Now the good news is that’s a great place to be; there’s a lot of money in that place. But you lose acceptance, and acceptance gives you tenure. Without acceptance, you come and you go.”
In 2013, Rogers was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame alongside Cowboy Jack Clement and Bobby Bare.
In September 2015, Rogers appeared on “Today” to announce his plans to retire: “I’m going to do a big worldwide tour, and it’s going to be my last . ... I’m going to say goodbye at that point. I’ve done this long enough.”
He was honored with a star on the Music City Walk of Fame in 2017. At the event, Oak Ridge Boy Joe Bonsall said, “We’ve learned more from Kenny Rogers over these decades than anybody else in the music industry. We learned how to look for good songs, because Kenny is a song man . ... We learned how to put on shows. We learned how to treat people right. We learned how to be honest. We learned integrity in your performance.”
Rogers’ family is planning a private service “out of concern for the national COVID-19 emergency,” a statement posted early Saturday read. A public memorial will be held at a later date.