Don Bryant, the Grammy-nominated soul singer-songwriter best known for penning wife Ann Peebles’ 1973 hit “I Can’t Stand the Rain,” died Friday, Dec. 26, at age 83.
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In a social media post confirming his death, Bryant’s family wrote, “Don loved sharing his music and songs with all of you and it gave him such great joy to perform and record new music. He was so appreciative of everyone who was part of his musical journey and who supported him along the way.”
Born the fifth of ten children on April 4, 1942, in Memphis, Don Bryant got his start singing in church at age 5. Forming gospel quartet the Four Kings in high school, he penned the 1960 song “I Got To Know” for R&B group The 5 Royales and writing material for other artists at Hi Records.
Don Bryant, Memphis Soul Royalty, was a gentle giant with the soul & heart of a giant. A true gentleman & amazing talent. Someone you would remember the rest of your life.
— Take Me to the River (@tmttrfilm) December 27, 2025
We will always remember the great shows & good times Don gave us on tour.
RIP 🙏❤️
Photo by @luke.pio pic.twitter.com/NFz4053Qts
Don Bryant Wrote More Than 150 Songs
In 1969, Don Bryant released his first solo album, Precious Soul. He would go on to release three more, with his most recent, You Make Me Feel, coming in 2020 and earning Bryant his first Grammy nomination at age 78. Perhaps his biggest impact was in songwriting, however, with more than 150 credits to his name.
“I’m thankful I didn’t ever stop writing because I’m enjoying it now as much as I enjoyed it then,” he told American Songwriter in 2020.
[RELATED: Veteran Southern Soulman Don Bryant Revives Classic Sounds on His Sizzling New Release]
While playing with Hi Records owner Willie Mitchell in 1970, Bryant met an up-and-coming singer-songwriter named Ann Peebles. In 1973, the pair wrote the Top 40 hit “I Can’t Stand the Rain,” a year before they wed.
Recalling the songwriting process in a June 2020 interview with NPR, Don Bryant said, “We were on our way trying to get to a concert by Bobby Bland, I think it was. And it started raining now real, real, real hard. And I don’t know if it was me or not at this point, but somebody said, ‘I can’t stand this rain.’.. Most of the times when I heard a line that I thought was a good line, my mind would go into a writing mode. And that’s exactly what it did. And we’d sit down at the piano and start coming up with the lines on the song and wrote that song that night.”
Once hailed “the best song ever” by John Lennon, “I Can’t Stand the Rain” peaked at No. 38 on the Top 40 charts.
Featured image by Rick Kern/Getty Images
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