One of the greatest artist's in the history of Country Music was a school drop-out.  Not a High School drop-out, a school dropout.

Don Gibson dropped out of school....in the second grade!

A Shelby, North Carolina native, Don was born to a poor working class family at a time when education was seen as, well, not that important.

Moving on in his life and away from a hard scrabble existence, Don made his way to Nashville in the 1950's...and those of us who love real Country Music have been grateful ever since.

Don wrote and recorded the great classic, 'Oh Lonesome Me'.

 

 

He also wrote a song that has become much more than a classic....the standard 'I Can't Stop Loving You'.  Yes, a lot of folks may not know that this second grade drop-out was not only a great singer, he was also a world class songwriter.

While Don had his own major hit with 'I Can't Stop Loving You', it was Ray Charles that took Don's song and, well, made it his own.

 

 

Don would go on with so many other great songs that have become classic's, and his final #1 Country smash was this great hit from 1972.

 

 

So whatever happened to this second grade drop-out that captivated the Country Music world and made millions of us Don Gibson fans?

Well, Don passed away from natural causes in 2003 at the age of 75 and is buried Shelby, North Carolina.

 

 

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