Lamar Morris (September 30, 1938 – June 1, 2023) was an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer and musician. Between 1966 and 1973, he was a solo artist on the

MGM Records MGM Records was a record label founded by the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film studio in 1946 for the purpose of releasing soundtrack recordings (later LP albums) of their musical films. It transitioned into a pop music label that continued into the ...

label, charting in the Top 40 of

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

with "If You Love Me", which peaked at number 27.

Early life and career

Lamar Morris was born on September 30, 1938, in

Andalusia, Alabama Andalusia is a city in and the county seat of Covington County, Alabama, Covington County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 8,805. History Andalusia was first settled in 1841 after floodi ...

. Morris participated in both the 1968 and 1972 Presidential campaigns of

George Wallace George Corley Wallace Jr. (August 25, 1919 – September 13, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Alabama for four terms. A member of the Democratic Party, he is best remembered for his staunch segregationist and ...

, for which he performed several songs including " Stand Up For America" and " Wallace in the Whitehouse". Morris was also a member of

The Bama Band The Bama Band is an American country music group composed of Lamar Morris (vocals, guitar), Wayne "Animal" Turner (guitar), Clifford E. "Cowboy" Eddie Long (steel guitar), Jerry McKinney (saxophone), Vernon Derrick (fiddle), Ray Barrickman (bass), ...

Hank Williams, Jr. Randall Hank Williams (born May 26, 1949), known professionally as Hank Williams Jr. or Bocephus, is an American singer-songwriter and musician. His musical style is often considered a blend of southern rock, blues, and country. He is the son of ...

's backing band. He wrote the song "

Eleven Roses "Eleven Roses" is a song written by Lamar Morris and Darrell McCall and recorded by American musician Hank Williams Jr. It was released in March 1972 as the only single and title track from the album of the same name. The song was Williams' first ...

" for Williams.

Personal life and death

On June 24, 1960, Morris married Lycrecia Ann Guy (born 1941), half-sister of

They since divorced. In 1996, he married Cathy Diane Ross. Lamar Morris died in

Auburn, Alabama Auburn is a city in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is the largest city in eastern Alabama, with a 2020 population of 76,143. It is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. The Auburn-Opelika, AL MSA with a population o ...

on June 1, 2023, at the age of 84.

Charted singles

References

1938 births 2023 deaths People from Andalusia, Alabama American country singer-songwriters MGM Records artists Country musicians from Alabama Singer-songwriters from Alabama {{US-country-singer-stub