2017
Don Williams died at his home in Alabama aged 78. Williams, who was known as “the Gentle Giant” because of his easygoing temperament, died after a short illness. Williams had 17 #1 hits in the US and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2010, before he retired in 2016. His career started as a musician in Portland, a city he moved to from his native Texas, where he was born in 1939. He moved to Nashville in the late 60s and wrote songs for some of country’s biggest names, including “Cowboy” Jack Clement.