Jim Reeves

James Travis «Jim» Reeves (August 20, 1923 – July 31, 1964) was a Texan country and popular music singer-songwriter. With records charting from the 1950s to the 1980s, he became well known as a practitioner of the Nashville sound (a mixture of older country-style music with elements of popular music). Known as «Gentleman Jim», his songs continued to chart for years after his death. Reeves died in the crash of a private airplane. He is a member of both the Country Music and Texas Country Music Halls of Fame.

Reeves began to work as a radio announcer, and sang live between songs. During the late 1940s, he was contracted with a couple of small Texas-based recording companies, but without success. Influenced by such Western swing-music artists as Jimmie Rodgers and Moon Mullican, as well as popular singers Bing Crosby, Eddy Arnold and Frank Sinatra, it was not long before he was a member of Moon Mullican’s band, and made some early Mullican-style recordings like «Each Beat of my Heart» and «My Heart’s Like a Welcome Mat» from the late 1940s to the early 1950s.