On This Day in 2019, We Lost the No. 1 Solo Hitmaker Who Was Also a Member of Country Music’s Greatest Sibling Trio

There are so many memorable country music trios out there. The Chicks, Lady A, etc. But before the popularity of the country trio toward the turn of the century, another trio composed of brothers gained national fame with their talents. That trio was Tompall And The Glaser Brothers, a country act composed of brothers Tompall, Chuck, and Jim Glaser. Sadly, on this day, April 6, 2019, we lost Jim to a heart attack at 81.

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The group was active from the 1960s through the 1970s and reunited briefly in the early 1980s. Their first album was the modern This Land – Folk songs, out in 1960. Their breakthrough album was the Top 20 hit Through The Eyes Of Love from 1968. The band’s first Top 40 hit songs on the Hot Country Songs chart were “Gone, On The Other Hand” from 1966 and “Through The Eyes Of Love” from 1967.

Tompall And The Glaser Brothers continued to enjoy quite a bit of success. They hit the Top 50 regularly through the 1970s and even the early 1980s. Their last official release while they were together, After All These Years from 1982, peaked at No. 54 on the country charts.

Remembering Jim Glaser’s Contributions to Country Music

Jim Glaser was a core part of Tompall And The Glaser Brothers. Born on December 16, 1937 in Spalding, Nebraska, Glaser’s interest in music started young, and it was only natural that he would form a country music group with his siblings.

Early in his career, Glaser was a backup singer for hire, notably working with Mary Robbins. While part of his brothers’ band, he had some success on the side as a songwriter in 1964. He wrote the Top 5 Skeeter Davis hit “What Does It Take”. He also wrote the Top 40 Liz Anderson hit “Thanks A Lot For Tryin’ Anyway”. His 1967 composition, “Woman, Woman” was a Top 5 hit for Gary Puckett & The Union Gap and later for himself in 1975.

After Tompall And The Glaser Brothers broke up in the early 1980s, Jim Glaser kicked off his solo career with a band. His debut album, Man In The Mirror from 1983, was a No. 16 hit on the country charts. He was an ACM Award winner and a legend of 20th-century country music who won’t soon be forgotten.

Photo by David Redfern/Redferns