AP
·
BREAKING: Kris Kristofferson has died at 88. The singer-songwriter and actor brought gritty realism to country music with compositions like "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down.”
Kris Kristofferson, singer-songwriter and actor, dies at 88
APNEWS.COM
Kris Kristofferson, singer-songwriter and actor, dies at 88

Kris Kristofferson, singer-songwriter and actor, dies at 88


Lancaster PA, April 12, 2019 (Owen Sweeney/AP)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kris Kristofferson, a Rhodes scholar with a deft writing style and rough charisma who became a country music superstar and A-list Hollywood actor, has died.

Kristofferson died at his home on Maui, Hawaii on Saturday, family spokeswoman Ebie McFarland said in an email. He was 88.

McFarland said Kristofferson died peacefully, surrounded by his family. No cause was given.

Starting in the late 1960s, the Brownsville, Texas native wrote such classics standards as “Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down,” “Help Me Make it Through the Night,” “For the Good Times” and “Me and Bobby McGee.” Kristofferson was a singer himself, but many of his songs were best known as performed by others, whether Ray Price crooning “For the Good Times” or Janis Joplin belting out “Me and Bobby McGee.”

He also starred opposite Ellen Burstyn in director Martin Scorsese’s 1974 film “Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore,” starred opposite Barbra Streisand in the 1976 “A Star Is Born,” and acted alongside Wesley Snipes in Marvel’s “Blade” in 1998.

Kristofferson, who could recite William Blake from memory, wove intricate folk music lyrics about loneliness and tender romance into popular country music. With his long hair and bell-bottomed slacks and counterculture songs influenced by Bob Dylan, he represented a new breed of country songwriters along with such peers as Willie Nelson, John Prine and Tom T. Hall.
“There’s no better songwriter alive than Kris Kristofferson,” Nelson said during a November 2009 award ceremony for Kristofferson held by BMI. “Everything he writes is a standard and we’re all just going to have to live with that.”

He was a Golden Gloves boxer and football player in college, received a master’s degree in English from Merton College at the University of Oxford in England and turned down an appointment to teach at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, to pursue songwriting in Nashville. Hoping to break into the industry, he worked as a part-time janitor at Columbia Records’ Music Row studio in 1966 when Dylan recorded tracks for the seminal “Blonde on Blonde” double album.

At times, the legend of Kristofferson was larger than real life. Johnny Cash liked to tell a mostly exaggerated story of how Kristofferson, a former U.S. Army pilot, landed a helicopter on Cash’s lawn to give him a tape of “Sunday Mornin’ Comin’ Down” with a beer in one hand. Over the years in interviews, Kristofferson said with all respect to Cash, while he did land a helicopter at Cash’s house, the Man in Black wasn’t even home at the time, the demo tape was a song that no one ever actually cut and he certainly couldn’t fly a helicopter holding a beer.

In a 2006 interview with The Associated Press, he said he might not have had a career without Cash.

“Shaking his hand when I was still in the Army backstage at the Grand Ole Opry was the moment I’d decided I’d come back,” Kristofferson said. “It was electric. He kind of took me under his wing before he cut any of my songs. He cut my first record that was record of the year. He put me on stage the first time.”

One of his most recorded songs, “Me and Bobby McGee,” was written based on a recommendation from Monument Records founder Fred Foster. Foster had a song title in his head called “Me and Bobby McKee,” named after a female secretary in his building. Kristofferson said in an interview in the magazine, “Performing Songwriter,” that he was inspired to write the lyrics about a man and woman on the road together after watching the Frederico Fellini film, “La Strada.”

Joplin, who had a close relationship with Kristofferson, changed the lyrics to make Bobby McGee a man and cut her version just days before she died in 1970 from a drug overdose. The recording became a posthumous No. 1 hit for Joplin.

Hits that Kristofferson recorded include “Why Me,” “Loving Her Was Easier (Than Anything I’ll Ever Do),” “Watch Closely Now,” “Desperados Waiting for a Train,” “A Song I’d Like to Sing” and “Jesus Was a Capricorn.”

In 1973, he married fellow songwriter Rita Coolidge and together they had a successful duet career that earned them two Grammy awards. They divorced in 1980.

He retired from performing and recording in 2021, making only occasional guest appearances on stage.

[apnews.com]

--

Legend. Safe journey, Kris.

His first album included the song, "Blame It on The Stones"

Perhaps it was a bit late in the game, but it did a nice job satirizing the folks who considered the Stones to be a threat to Western Civilization

Kristofferson/Fritts

From a show he did here in Florence, AL to celebrate Donnie Fritts' birthday a few years back. Fritts lived here and played keys in Kris' band and was a prolific songwriter -- Keith Richards covered his song "We Had It All"

(Fritts is the one playing keys in this)

Loved Kristofferson, and yes Blame it on the Stones was fun

Very sad.

He was a big part of taking Country back to the roots it had so badly strayed from.

RIP

RIP Rubber Duck

RIP and condolences to family and friends

Rod

So sad!

God bless you! Have a safe journey Kris!

[www.youtube.com]



d.f



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2024-09-30 15:23 by dead.flowers.

A great songwriter and singer. The next Highwayman to leave us.
I was fortunate to see one of his concerts years ago, I requested Sing Me Back Home and he smiled towards me and played it.

Live Forever Mr Kristofferson

When the Stones postponed their 2nd Beacon show in 2006, I was grateful to be able to catch Kris opening up for George Jones at Carnegie Hall.

RIP Kris. Great singer, songwriter and actor.

In 1979 I was 12 years old, start discovering music and my mom brought home an album called "Music for the Unicef Concert". She played "Chiquitita" by Abba all day long and I discovered a song inside this album called "Fallen Angel" by Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge. I become a fan of Kris and Rita since then.

Bye Kris you wont be missed, you will be allways present.


[www.youtube.com]

Fernando

Forgot how old he was.

Ooof. This is part of that 'They're going' phase.

Mark Isham & Marianne Faithfull - El Gavilan (The Hawk) song written by Kris Kristofferson, from the film "Trouble in Mind".

video: [youtu.be]

RIP Kris another great artist gone.

...so sad to hear, that another legend is gone ! For me he's unforgettable because of the following movie:



[youtu.be]

Long lives "Rubber Duck" !!!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2024-10-01 11:10 by DocChill.

I just had to bring this back up... it was on the second page already.

I hope Kris Kristofferson will be on covers of magazines with articles paying tribute to this wonderful artist and his passing will get the attention it deserves. What a legend! Only one still with us from The Highwaymen.

Sad to hear the news of his passing.