Friend Dolly leads tributes to singer

had a string of hits including The Gambler, Lucille, Lady, Believe In Me and Coward of the County.

He and Dolly had a huge smash in 1983 with Islands in the Stream.

Dolly once told him that she would sing at his funeral.

“We were recording You Can’t Make Old Friends and it was very touching,” Kenny told an interviewer.

“She came around the corner and she put her arms around my neck and said, ‘Kenny, I want you to know something. I can never sing at your funeral.’ I said, ‘So I assume I am going first.”

Kenny believed his popularity was down to how his songs resonated with fans and that they “say what every man wants to say and that every woman wants to hear”.

He grew up in poverty on a housing estate in Houston, Texas, but was determined to become a successful musician.

He began recording with a string of bands, including Kenny Rogers and the First Edition, before launching his solo career in 1976.

He went on to become one of the most successful pop- country crossover acts of all time.

He was the 10th best-selling male artist in US history in terms of album sales. And he worked with other greats, including Willie Nelson.

In 2013, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

In their statement, his family said he had “left an indelible mark on the history of American music”.

Away from music, Kenny was obsessed with tennis and became so good that he ranked higher than Bjorn Borg in ATP’s doubles table.

He met his fifth wife Wanda Miller in an unexpected way in Atlanta.

He was on a blind date with another woman but he was smitten by her instead and later cal led the restaurant asking about Miller.

She returned his call after her col leagues convinced her they weren’t playing a joke on her.

They married on June 1, 1997 and they had twin boys in 2004, making Rogers a father of five.

In 2016, he chose to stop touring so he could spend more time with them and, in August 2019, Miller wrote on Twitter: “We love you Kenny. Another blessed year.”

They remained happily together until his death.

Unconf irmed US reports said Rogers had battled hepatitis C and bladder cancer.