The conspiracy theories at the moment remain just that:conspiracies. Remember, Keith Whitley was thought to have consumed an entire bottle of mouthwash and numerous bottles of hairspray for their alcohol contents on the day of his death. May 3, 2021 @ Remember, Keith achieved this level of influence with only 3 country albums and in less than 4 years as a country recording artist. But Morgan's . Only 3 songs were released & 2 others became hits for other artists. Then Keiths 1988 record Dont Close Your Eyes set him on the path to downright superstardom, landing him his first #1 hit with the title track, which would set off a succession of five straight #1 songs from Whitley. Just before he died, Jackie Keith Whitley had recorded his fourth solo album titled "I Wonder Do You Think of Me." I thought as much as I loved Keith, surely that would help him. 7:53 pm. In detail he almost died 9x of the same thing previously before the final time. The death of Keith Whitley felt like the next chapter in country musics history of some of its greatest stars ending life too early, from Hank Williams perishing in the back of his Cadillac on New Years Day 1953, to Patsy Cline, Hawkshaw Hawkins, and Cowboy Copas dying in a plane crash in 1963, or any number of other high profile deaths taking country stars away during the height of their popularity. Thanks for your part in creating great live music venues. Good for him. Might be worth considering a clarifying edit, especially after receiving a report of a source specifically Contradiction the assumption you made. Lorrie Morgan also called into question some of the specifics of how Keith Whitley was discovered on the day he died. I have plenty of folks who can verify my stories, all well known recording artist. Every time the phone would ring it was in the back of my mind that there was somebody calling to tell me hes been in a wreck or died of alcohol. The urine screen was positive for Cocaine and Cocaine metabolites. The official cause of death for Keith Whitley was ruled alcohol poisoning by local medical examiner Charles Harlan on May 10tha day after Whitleys death. Then in 2010, the accusations against Charles Harlan became even more severe, with the doctor being blamed for numerous botched autopsies resulting in false murder convictions, including a man convicted for stabbing and murdering his cousin, when the deceased died after having a seizure and falling on a glass table. I am now fully suspicious of all celebrity deaths and how spins are arranged in someones mind that they are protecting the hero when in thruth they are trying to protect themselves. We stil love Lorrie Morgans songs also. Charles Harlan had also been giving false testimony in trials for many years. Keith loved his life, his music, and his family. My view was coming from a different world conducting investigations with civil and/or criminal implications. One of Keiths managers, Don Light, had warned her early on after the two country entertainers had met at The Grand Ole Opry. Verns prime years spent on underfunded independent labels until his big break in the late 80s and unfortunate health issues began only a few years after his big break. Whitley left the New South in 1982 and moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 1983 in hopes of launching a solo career. Lorrie Morgan knew the risks of entering a romantic relationship with Whitley. Lefty drank, Hank drank, George Jones was still drinking, and I had to. In the romantic part of my soul, Keith may have very well known what was to happen if he hadnt let go and let Lorrie carry on without him. Vern also an accomplished and overlooked songwriter. The actual album consisted of only 8 songs. 6:02 pm. Keith will always be #1 for me when it comes down to voices!! I agree that Lanes account on what happened is very questionable/biased. He had just finished up his fourth studio album called I Wonder Do You Think of Me. 9:36 am. This is so interesting and heartbreaking. Even then, we would have to figure out why there is a discrepancy in between the two dates. Keith is the best vocalist period in all genres of Music combined at any point and time. The publishing of Keith Whitleys autopsy report put most of the rumors to bed, though they would re-emerge in subsequent years. October 24, 2020 @ The 49-year-old entrepreneur from Pulaski, Tenn., was arrested for first-degree murder in 2001, in connection with the death of his cousin, Stevie Hobbs. Joe Tank we were living in Kingsport in the late 80s and early 90s right when I first started listening to Keith Whitley. Kevin Smith June 29, 2020 @ The last minor detail involves the autopsy. May 9, 2019 @ 6:12 pm, Hey Trigger, my name is Joe Tank Leach and I was Keiths first manager and ended up signing him with Norro at RCA. I cant imagine any more disrespectful or shameful a response to Keith Whitleys death these many years later than to be bringing up what Lorrie Morgan did or didnt do. 10:59 am. It is such a shame to lose such a great artist while so young. His marriage to Lorrie Morgan would also help settle him, at least to some extent. In 2019, Whitley's legacy to country music was celebrated on the 30th anniversary of his death. His voice is in the elite category, alongside people like Jones, Gosdin, Don Williams, and Hag. His official cause of death was listed as acute ethanolism, according to Autopsy Files. May 8, 2019 @ After Keith Whitley's death, Lorrie Morgan, shown with her husband Jon Randall, went on to become one of country music's most popular singers. He had so much to live for at the time. This speaks to the depths of Keith Whitleys addiction. I loved how you not only touched on Whitleys musical career but also the controversy surrounding his death. They would have to be deaf and blind not to see his contribution to both these genres of music and his influence on so many Country singers, musicians and songwriters. RIP. Sturgill_Jennings77 thanks for sharing that. She alleges that Whitleys manager at the time, Jack McFadden, dropped by in between when brother-in-law Lane Palmer made his two visits, but McFadden was unable to get Keith to answer the locked bedroom door. why sidereal astrology is wrong. keith whitley autopsy report. Jackie Keith Whitley was a country musician who rose to fame in the '80s. I just dont see him quite at the level of the other guys. But neither of these theories takes into consideration the severity of Whitleys drinking problem well before his country career took off in earnest. May 9, 2019 @ 25 Feb/23. His final studio album, I Wonder Do You Think of Me was to me a masterpiece. Welcome to Autopsyfiles.org - Home Page - Autopsy Reports of . 12:06 pm. Speaking to individuals about the legacy of Keith Whitley, from country music historians to superstars such as Garth Brooks, they believe there wouldnt have been the commercial resurgence in country music heading into the 90s like the genre experienced if it wasnt for Whitley. But, I get that this literally is not something to make into a federal case. It was himself that Whitley would regularly put in harms way. Jason Hannan Crowe before moving to Nashville in 1983 where he would soon sign a record deal with RCA, in part due to the attention hed earned in The New South, and the success Music Row was having with fellow Kentuckian Ricky Skaggs as an emerging solo artist. No doubt Keiths vocals put him in rareified air. When Lorrie Morgan was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1984, she became the institutions youngest-ever invited member.Keith Whitley and Lorrie Morgan had been married for three years at that point, and they were one of country musics emerging power couples. May 10, 2019 @ There have also been lingering questions about just how old Keith Whitley was when he passed. I hope his soul is at peace. Couldnt win the battle he would never win the war so sad brill artist, Barbara McCurry Once when riding passenger in a car and passing a bottle back and forth with the driver, they tried to take a sharp curve at 120 mph. Keith Whitley told The Chicago Tribute once, quote I learned to do things the way the old-timers did it. He had the love of a good woman, a gift from God in his singing, fame, money and children and still it wasnt enough to be able to over come. Trigger Lorrie admits that Keith was found dying in another ladies arms. Lucinda Williams, Country When Country Wasn't Cool Wow, Marc Cohen The autopsy findings. Required fields are marked *, Notify me of follow-up comments via e-mail. Just demons and nothing could stop the inevitable. At just 34 years old, Whitely succumbed to his alcohol abuse, dying in his bed of alcohol poisoning, with a blood alcohol level of .47. Ralph Stanley recruited both of them for his band right then and there. 57[M. 23 Comments. Thanks again for such a well written and detailed article!! The question I have is What if through one way or another had Lane managed to resuscitate Keith to a point where he be transported by an ambulance to the hospital?, Ronald Stoner Normally I dont get involved anymore and just let the egos have there way, but just felt the record should be set straight from a historical perspective and plus it looks like some of these fans would enjoy it. Little did Lorrie Morgan know how much the note would mean to her, and how poignant it would be when she opened it a week later. It appeared from his history that like Hank and George, nobody could stop his ultimate self destruction. History I like to think Keith would have been the leading force for traditional country music into the mid to late 90s with Strait, Jackson, and Travis. Im sorry for the loss of Mr. Whitley and I hope his family is well. https://www.reverbnation.com/mattengelsmusic/song/16287569-mr-whitley, jimincincy 10:13 pm, I think he is the best singer of all time and we can learn from him and his songs even though he is not with us anymore dosent mean that we should not go on and not have fun doing what we all know and love doing sing together, Nick Brown The singers blood alcohol level was reported to be .47, or almost five times the amount to be declared intoxicated in Tennessee. He came into his own here. Go rest high on that mountain. May 8, 2019 @ His career was taking off. Keith Whitley, Lorrie Morgan, Ralph Stanley, Ricky Skaggs. He was a true country artist and if his demons had not bested him, wouldve been as big as Garth brooks. I recall a Tracy Lawrence interview from 1993 where he said that if hed survived, hed have been bigger than Garth. Garth was a whole different kind of beast when it came to album sales, but I think Whitley definitely would have entered the 90s with the same status as Strait, Yoakam, or Travis (meaning that I dont think he wouldve been swept away in the wake of the Class of 89/90). It hurts to think about what might have been. Lorrie Morgan is a rare Nashville, Tennessee native in country, who grew up around the music, and in the wings of the Grand Ole Opry, making her first appearance on the show at the age of 13, singing the song Paper Roses, and receiving a standing ovation. He was hands down the best country singer I have ever heard. If I could have any wish I wanted, this is my wish: That in your life which is so precious to me, may worries, troubles and problems never linger. Keiths inner demons made it a leadpipe cinch that HE wouldnt be helping with that fight.unless it was to throw up his hands in defeat. Small amounts of cocaine and Valium were also found in his system. He was astounding. Trigger But, it was a great show even from the nosebleeds of Thompson-Boling arena in Knoxville. Garths opinions and words carry a lot of weight and in the event that Keith is elected to the HOF in the near future, his input shouldnt be overlooked. Disturbing Details Found In Jackie Keith Whitley's Autopsy Report. 1050. 9:59 am. "L.A. to Miami" did much better on the music charts, and Whitley had three top 10 hit songs. But with Lorrie Morgan out of town that first weekend of May, 1989, there was nobody there to tend to Whitley, or his raging alcoholism. Induct him already. Not at all. Also, Garths recommendation means nothing. Iit was for radio show called Country Time. Luckyoldsun He tried to turn down his Hall of Fame induction until Whitley was in: https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/garth-brooks-tried-to-turn-down-hall-of-fame-induction/. So, im not sure i see him getting in ahead of bigger influencers and stars with lifetime careers. Best Answer. Actually thats not what he told Lorrie in her book. The medical examiner who wrote and performed the autopsy, Charles Harlan, would soon become widely discredited, and blamed for numerous false reports and other unethical practices. For this and for the considerable influence he had over his era and the one that followed, he should be in the hall of fame without delay. In 1986, Whitley began dating singer Lorrie Morgan, daughter of George Morgan, a Grand Ole Opry star and member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Do you have a direct link? If you dont mind I will share some small corrections with you. We really dont know, and the mind plays tricks on people. Whitleys voice was stunning in several of his songs. Posthumously, Whitley would score two more #1 songs and four Top 15 singles, and theres no reason to believe his output wouldnt have continued to reign on the country charts had he lived. Though Whitley had cleaned up in 1987 after numerous close calls from drinking to excess, the sobriety lasted about six months before he fell back off the wagon once again, which could not have been a surprise to anyone. Though hired as a guitarist, it was Whitleys singing that really made him stand out, and soon he was the lead vocalist for the Clinch Mountain Boys. Lane left at around 8:30 a.m. and returned around 11:00 a.m. Kristen Luchinsky But in the aftermath of Keith Whitleys death, rumors swirled about the circumstances, some of which have continued to linger in popular lore to this day. One theory was that Whitley was a conflicted as a staunch traditionalist who was being asked to record more commercially applicable material, or was feeling the pressure of stardom. During his teenage years, Whitley and his friends would sip on bottles of bootleg bourbon, and drive down the windy mountain roads of Kentucky at unsafe speeds. 1:35 pm. Trig Im loving these pods love that theyre the perfect length too which is something some pods never quite nail down. I absolutely LOVED his voice and music, going back to his bluegrass days with Ralph Stanley. TilBillyHill (As I wrote this, The Dance player in my mind, along with Im No Stranger to the Rain, Brotherly Love, I Wonder, Do You Think of Me, and some of Lorries songs. Deborah Sturch Why would Lorrie Morgan leave Keiths Whitley side when he were to be alone. All I could tell people is to balance out the different perspectives and come to their own conclusion. May 8, 2019 @ Because, booze or drugs, the substance is always going to call the shots. Please read this as being sent with the best of intentions and not to be a troll or to nitpick. On May 12th, 1989, more than 500 mourners attended Keith Whitleys funeral where long-time friend Ricky Skaggs presented the eulogy, and spoke specifically about the ills of drug and alcohol abuse. May 10, 2019 @ The level Whitley had in his system was five times the intoxication limit in Tennessee at that time. It wasnt just what Whitley accomplished before he passed away that left such a gaping hole in the heart of country music, its what many expected him to accomplish in the coming years. For example, although I believe Gene Watson and Vern Gosdin had a similar effect and they had better careers since they lived longer. Georgeultimate self destruction?? A Tragic Early Death. I think that Whiskey Lullabye is a quintessential haunting country song, performed perfectly by Paisley and Krauss. 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