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Co-founder Jeff Cook of the popular country group Alabama has passed away. He was 73.
As a guitarist in the band, they created numerous hits including “Song of the South” and “Dixieland Delight.” Cook was also a fiddle player and vocalist.
The Country Music Hall of Fame said Cook landed eight No. 1 sons on the country charts between 1980 and 1982.
His band produced “Love In The First Degree,” “Feels So Right,” “Tennessee River,” and “Mountain Music.”
Cook was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and lived his final years in Destin, Florida.
Country star Travis Tritt called Cook “a great guy and one heckuva bass fisherman.”
“Heaven gained another guitar/fiddle player today,” wrote the estate of the late Charlie Daniels.
Cook played alongside his cousins Randy Owen and Teddy Gentry.
More on this story via Western Journal:
“Jeff Cook, and all of the guys in Alabama, were so generous with wisdom and fun when I got to tour with them as a young artist,” Kenny Chesney said in a statement.
“They showed a kid in a T-shirt that country music could be rock, could be real, could be someone who looked like me. Growing up in East Tennessee, that gave me the heart to chase this dream.”
The band had a three-year run as CMA Entertainer of the Year from 1982-1985 and earned five ACM Award Entertainer of the Year trophies from 1981-1985. He stopped touring with Alabama in 2018.
Cook released a handful of solo projects and toured with his Allstar Goodtime Band. He also released collaborations with Daniels and “Star Trek” star William Shatner. He entered the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2005 as a member of Alabama.
