Isaac Donald "Don" Everly (born February 1, 1937) and Phillip "Phil" Everly (born January 19, 1939), together known as the Everly Brothers, are country-influenced rock and roll performers, known for steel-string guitar playing and close harmony singing. What gives them their particularly unique sound is not just their distinctive voices, they also sing using vocal harmony mostly based on parallel thirds. With this, each line can often stand on its own as a melody line. This is in contrast to classic harmony lines which, while working well alongside the melody, are not as melodic by themselves. The late, great Chet Atkins (he died June 30, 2001) became an early champion of The Everly Brothers. The Everlys signed to Cadence Records and entered the recording studio for their first session in February 1957; recording "Bye Bye Love" which reached #2. The song, written by husband and wife Felice and Boudleaux Bryant, became the Everly Brothers' first million-seller. The duo had hits in the United States and the United Kingdom, the biggest being "Wake Up Little Susie," "All I Have to Do Is Dream," "Bird Dog" and "Problems," all penned by the Bryants. The Everlys also found success as songwriters; among their songs were Don's "(Till) I Kissed You," which hit #4 on the US charts and especially their international smash hit "Cathy's Clown" (written by Don and Phil) which sold over eight million copies.The brothers toured extensively with Buddy Holly during 1957 and 1958. Don claimed Holly to be a generous songwriter who wrote the song "Wishing" for them. Phil Everly was one of Buddy Holly's pallbearers at his funeral in February 1959. Over the years, the Everlys have been guests on many a project; Paul Simon's"Graceland" album being one example. The Everly Brothers had 26 Billboard Top 40 singles and 35 Billboard Top 100 singles and hold the record for the most Top 100 singles.The duo was elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986. (Wikipedia)
The Everly Bros appearing in the guest spot on this Chet Atkins /Mark Knopfler Special...and
making this Knopfler composition
(from the Dire Straits album "Brothers In Arms") very much their own.
