Dale Morris died in his sleep Friday night at age 89. The Nashville-based artist manager spent decades shaping the careers of some of country music's biggest names, and his death marks the close of a long chapter in the business side of the genre.
According to Billboard, Morris got his start in the music industry as a songwriter. His first notable credit was penning Johnny Paycheck's 1967 single "Don't Monkey With Another Monkey's Monkey." He eventually shifted his focus to artist management and launched Dale Morris & Associates.
In 1979, Morris met a then up-and-coming band called Alabama at The Bowery in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. What followed was one of the most successful manager-artist partnerships in country music history. Under Morris, Alabama scored 33 No. 1 hits on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, the most among any duo or group. The band also became a major touring act, bringing production values that Billboard described as on par with the era's biggest rock acts.
In the early 1990s, Morris began working with a young Kenny Chesney. That relationship proved equally consequential. Chesney went on to become a Country Music Hall of Famer and one of the highest-grossing country touring artists of all time, according to Billboard Boxscore. Chesney also holds the record for the most No. 1 songs on Billboard's Country Airplay chart, with 33.
Morris's client list extended well beyond Alabama and Chesney. Over the years he also managed Martina McBride, Barbara Mandrell, Jake Owen, Old Dominion, Brandon Lay, Ryan Griffin and Walker County. In 2018, Paradigm, now called THE·TEAM, acquired Dale Morris & Associates, the in-house booking business of Morris and his partner Clint Higham's firm, Morris Higham Management.
In 2014, Morris received the T.J. Martell Foundation's Tony Martell Lifetime Entertainment Achievement Award.
Higham, president of Morris Higham Management, remembered his mentor in a statement. "He was larger than life, and never met a dream he couldn't build," Higham said. "Dale Morris gave me my first internship, and I never wanted to go anywhere else. He saw things in people, in me, in Kenny, and inspired everyone to reach beyond what we thought possible. Maybe it's how much he loved life, loved his family, loved us."
Higham also said, "It's the end of an era."
Morris was married to his wife, Earline, for 68 years. He was preceded in death by his son, Tim. He is survived by his daughter-in-law Jennifer, grandchildren Zack, Colton, Nick and Kendall, and great-grandchildren Mary Dee and Gus.
His grandson Zack Morris offered his own tribute. "We're so blessed to have had 90 years with him as the patriarch of our family," he said. "Thank you to our music industry family and to his vast community of friends in Nashville, Boca and beyond for loving him all these many years."
A celebration of life is being planned for later this fall. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
