Who is the

most influential duo in the history of popular music?

No, it's

not Lennon-McCartney and it's not Jagger-Richards. It's

not even Simon and Garfunkel. It is the Everly Brothers,

the duo that influenced all of those outstanding acts,

and they will be playing the Frederick Brown Jr.

Amphitheater this Friday and Saturday evening.

Don and

Phil Everly were born two years apart in the coal mining

regions of Kentucky. Their parents, Ike and Margaret,

were folk and country singers who passed on their love of

music to their sons. In 1951, when Don was 14 years old

and Phil was 12, the boys started playing music with

their parents on KMA radio.

By 1953,

the family had moved to Knoxville, Tenn. and performed on

WROL. Don had written a song called "Thou Shalt Not

Steal," which Chet Atkins gave to country singer

Kitty Wells. The song was a hit and the Everly parents

decided it was time to send their boys on to Nashville.

Things were not always easy and their parents had to work

many jobs to continue to support the boys, but in

February 1957, things changed forever.

The Everly

Brothers signed with Cadence Records and released a

little song called "Bye, Bye, Love." That

little song went on to sell over two million copies. By

June of that year, the Everly Brothers were regulars at

The Grand Ole Opry. They were very popular in country

music circles, but they also found that their appeal was

far reaching. Rock and Roll fans, R&B fans, and folk

music fans all enjoyed the sounds of the Everly Brothers,

and so did people all around the world.

In the next

few years, the Everlys recorded dozens of songs, many of

which became gold records. Songs like "Wake Up,

Little Susie," "All I Have To Do Is

Dream," "Cathy's Clown" and "When

Will I Be Loved" not only gave the Everly Brothers

fame and fortune, they gained the respect of fellow

musicians. Their melodies and combinations of multiple

genres of music paved the way for acts like The Beatles,

Bob Dylan and The Grateful Dead.

In 1961,

the boys were called upon to fulfill their military

service obligations and they enlisted in the Marine

Reserves. In 1970, Johnny Cash presented a television

show called "Johnny Cash presents The Everly

Brothers." Three years later, after an argument

while onstage, the Everly Brothers went their separate

ways. Phil and Don recorded some solo albums and did a

little songwriting on the side, but it wasn't until the

early 1980s that the brothers decided to work together

again.

In 1983,

the Everly Brothers played two sold-out performances at

Royal Albert Hall in London. That performance was made

into a double album. In 1986, they recorded a new album

called "Born Yesterday." Time Magazine voted

that album one of the Top 10 Pop Albums of that year.

Impressive when you consider that other albums from that

year include U2's "The Joshua Tree" and INXS

"Kick."

Nineteen

eighty-six also was the year that The Everly Brothers

became two of the first inductees into The Rock N' Roll

Hall of fame. They were recognized for their music, their

influence and their staying power. Over their careers,

The Everly Brothers have played in more than 700 cities

in North America, traveled to nearly every country in the

world, and sold more than 40 million records.

The Everly

Brothers will take the stage 8 p.m. this Friday and

Saturday. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at the

amphitheater box office or by calling 770-631-0630.

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