On this day (January 14) in 2022, songwriter Dallas Frazier died from stroke-related complications in Gallatin, Tennessee, at the age of 82. His writing credits include some of the biggest country hits of the 1970s and ’80s. Some of the highlights of his career include Emmylou Harris’ “Beneath Still Waters,” Charley Pride’s “(I’m So) Afraid of Losing You Again,” and the Oak Ridge Boys classic “Elvira.”
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Frazier was born in Oklahoma, but he wouldn’t stay there long. His family, like many others in the area, relocated to the West Coast to avoid the ravages of the Dust Bowl. Like other families of Okies, they escaped the dust, but the poverty followed them.
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When he was only 12 years old, Frazier won a talent show hosted by Ferlin Husky, according to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. This earned him a spot on Husky’s traveling show and a regular spot on the Bakersfield-based TV show Hometown Jamboree. He was more than a performer, though. He had already started writing his own songs.
Frazier never saw much chart or commercial success as a recording artist. He released four studio albums and several singles. None of those releases broke into the top 40. As a songwriter, though, he had a long line of hits.
Dallas Frazier Probably Penned Your Favorite Country Song
The list of artists who cut Dallas Frazier’s songs reads like a who’s who of the genre’s biggest names. George Jones, Ferlin Husky, Connie Smith, Loretta Lynn, Ernest Tubb, Ricky Skaggs, Charley Pride, Conway Twitty, Emmylou Harris, and the Oak Ridge Boys are among the names on that long and impressive list.
Pride had several hits with Frazier’s songs. He took “(I’m So) Afraid of Losing You Again,” “All I Have to Offer You (Is Me),” “I Can’t Believe That You’ve Stopped Loving Me,” and “Then Who Am I” to No. 1.
Harris made “Beneath Still Waters” a No. 1 single in 1980.
One of Frazier’s biggest hits as a songwriter was “Elvira.” He released it as the title track from his 1966 debut album. Kenny Rogers and the First Edition cut it in 1970. Rodney Crowell and Ronnie Hawkins also recorded it before the end of the decade. Then, in 1981, the Oak Ridge Boys recorded it. Their rendition topped the country chart and peaked at No. 5 on the Hot 100. It then became one of the group’s signature songs.
In short, the country music world wouldn’t be what it is today without Dallas Frazier.
Featured Image by Daniel DeSlover/ZUMA Press Wire/Shutterstock
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