George Hamilton IV, 50-year Opry star, dies at age 77George Hamilton IV, the 50-year "Grand Ole Opry" star known as the "International Ambassador of Country Music," died Wednesday at a Nashville hospital. Mr. Hamilton was 77 and had suffered a heart attack on Saturday.
In a business populated by brash and outlandish stars, Mr. Hamilton traded on subtlety, gentility and decency. In the liner notes of his 1968 RCA album, "The Gentle Country Sound of George Hamilton IV," he wrote of a "quiet, beautiful musical revolution in the world of country music."
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For Mr. Hamilton, his 1959 entry into country music was a natural transition. He grew up in North Carolina, listening to "Opry" stars Hank Williams, Hank Snow, Jimmy Dickens and Eddy Arnold. He joined the "Opry" himself in February 1960, and Chet Atkins signed him to RCA Victor as a country artist. He notched his first Top 10 country hit in 1960, with "Before This Day Ends," and repeated that success with "Three Steps to the Phone (Millions of Miles)" and "If You Don't Know I Ain't Gonna Tell You." But his biggest hit came in 1963, with "Abilene," a loping tribute to a Kansas town and a four-week No. 1 country single.
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