HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — William Orville "Lefty" Frizzell received a "Tennessee Music Pathways" marker in his honor on Thursday at 1 p.m. from the state of Tennessee and the city of Hendersonville to commemorate his significance as "one of the greatest country singers ever to live."
Frizzell was an American country music singer-songwriter and honky-tonk singer who set the style of "the country way" of singing for following generations by both sounding out syllables and singing longer.
He is known as one of the most successful and influential country music artists throughout his career, frequently compared with musical giants such as George Jones, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, The Everly Brothers, Keith Whitley, Merle Haggard, Randy Travis, and John Fogerty.
Many of Frizzell's songs charted in the Top 10 of the Hot Country Songs charts after the death of Hank Williams in 1953, and he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1982.
His brothers David and Allen Frizzell attended the commemoration.
"I’d even lived out here a couple of times with Lefty in this area here in Hendersonville and so, it brings back a lot of memories,” said Allen.
The brothers reminisced about living on the lake, occasionally attempting to water ski, but especially and most often: fishing.
Frizzell's marker can be found at Sanders Ferry Park and narrated on the Tennessee Music Pathways website.
Tennessee Music Pathways is an online planning guide launched by the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development in 2018 whose markers stretch across all 95 counties and feature hundreds of landmarks in honor of the seven music genres that originated in Tennessee.
