Nashville Bids Farewell To Eddy Arnold

Robert K. Oermann

Music City said goodbye to its founding father yesterday.

The life of Eddy Arnold, whose 1944 sessions launched Nashville as a recording center, was celebrated in a funeral service at the Ryman Auditorium. Thousands filled the 1892 hall to pay their last respects to the country-music titan.

“He was a big part of why Nashville became Music City,” said his biographer Don Cusic. “He transcended country music; he transcended Nashville. But he represented country music and he represented Nashville. He provided a touch of class to country music.”

As guests entered the venerable venue, they were given memorial programs with a classic Hatch Show Print of the star on its cover. Eddy Arnold hits serenaded them. Three of them, “Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye,” “Streets of Laredo” and “Jim I Wore a Tie Today” directly addressed the topic of mortality.

“I’m just sitting here listening to some of the greatest records ever made,” said Hall of Fame songwriter Dennis Morgan. The stage held more than a dozen massive flower arrangements, including a floral steel guitar. The casket, draped in a slate-gray funeral cowl designed by Eddy’s late wife Sally Arnold, was surrounded by more tribute arrangements.

The Jordanaires opened the ceremony with “Precious Lord, Take My Hand.” Following remarks by Bishop Robert Spain, UMC, soprano Jeanine Walker sang “My God and I” and “How Great Thou Art,” accompanied by husband Bill Walker on piano. The scripture reading and homily were followed by Vince Gill singing the moving “Go Rest High on That Mountain” backed by pianist John Hobbs. The two men embraced warmly as they exited the stage together.

“Eddy Arnold loved life,” said Cusic in his fond and sometimes humorous eulogy. “He loved the people. They were fans of his records and fans of the man, himself. Today is not a great day for Eddy Arnold fans. But it’s a great day for Eddy Arnold. Now he is at peace. It’s a great day for Eddy Arnold.”

Eddy’s grandson Shannon Pollard said, “Right now, I think he is smiling down upon us...I like to think that he was thinking about the good times when he left us.”

Before singing “You Don’t Know Me,” Gill stated, “I’d like to thank you for the opportunity to honor this man’s music. He was the most successful artist in our history.”

Eddy Arnold was a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award honoree and a National Medal of the Arts recipient. His totals of 92 top-10 hits, 67 consecutive top-10 hits and 145 weeks spent at No. 1 are statistics that are unmatched by any other country artist. There were only seven No. 1 country hits in 1948, and six of them were Eddy Arnold records. In 1952, he became the first country star to host his own network television series—it aired on all three networks as well as in syndication.

He is associated with dozens of classics, in addition to “You Don’t Know Me,” “Jim I Wore a Tie Today” and “Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye,” they include “Anytime,” “Make the World Go Away,” “Tennessee Stud,” “Bouquet of Roses,” “I Couldn’t Believe it Was True,” “Take Me in Your Arms and Hold Me,” “Misty Blue,” “Cattle Call,” “I Really Don’t Want to Know,” “The Tip of My Fingers,” “Molly Darling,” “It’s a Sin,” “May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You” and “I Wanna Play House with You.”

He is the only artist to have placed songs on the popularity charts in the 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. Billboard ranks him as the No. 1 country artist of all time.

Today, RCA Records is issuing the appropriately reflective single “To Life.” It is drawn from Eddy Arnold’s 100th album and his disc farewell, 2005’s After All These Years.

“His music has been heard by millions of people and will continue to be heard by millions of people,” said Bishop Spain. Addressing the family, he added, “Your father, your grandfather, was a first-class entertainer. But more important, he was a first-class gentleman.”

He also recalled Sally’s passing two months ago. He said that Eddy told him, “I want to be with her.” Eddy Arnold would have turned 90 years old today, had he not died exactly one week ago.

The Jordanaires returned to sing “Peace in the Valley.” The Walkers returned and performed “The Lord’s Prayer.” Then the sound system played “Make the World Go Away” as the pall bearers accompanied the casket up the Ryman’s center aisle and out to the hearse.

The burial was private. The superstar is survived by daughter JoAnn Pollard, son Richard Edward Arnold Jr., their spouses, children and grandchildren.

Pall bearers included Cusic, Bobby Campbell, Mike Curb, Joe Galante, Dan Miller and Charlie Chase. Honorary pall bearers included Harold Bradley, John Carter Cash, Jack Clement, Kyle Young, Eddie Stubbs, Jo Walker-Meador, Ralph Emery, Jerry Chestnut and Charlie Monk.

Hall of Fame songwriters Hank Cochran, Red Lane and Bill Anderson, plus many other industry figures were among the mourners. But this was not a celebrity-studded affair. Rather, it was a gathering of thousands of ordinary folks who loved Eddy Arnold and his music.

And perhaps that is as it should have been.