Red Lane, a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer, died last week at 76 after a long battle with cancer, Rolling Stone reports. Lane was the songwriter behind songs by country artists like Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings.
Lane was born Hollis Rudolph DeLaughter in Zona, La., on Feb. 9, 1939, according to the Tennnessean. He served in the U.S. Air Force just shortly after high school. While in the Air Force, he would perform DJ sets at nightclubs under the moniker Red Lane, and the name stuck.
His first radio hit was Faron Young's "My Friend on the Right," which peaked at No. 11 on the 1964 Country Airplay chart, Billboard reports. Some of his other hits include "Til I Get It Right" by Tammy Wynette, "Country Girl" by Dottie West, "The Eagle" by Jennings and "My Own Kind of Hat" by Haggard.
In the '70s, Lane became an RCA recording artist and had a handful of songs of his own. He hit No. 32 on the charts in 1971 with "The World Needs A Melody." The song was later re-recorded by George Jones and Kenny Rogers.
Lane was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1993. His funeral arrangements are yet to be announced.
See Lane's performance at the Country Music Hall of Fame below.
