Singer/songwriter/actor Mac Davis passed away on Tuesday, after becoming ill after undergoing heart surgery.
Davis first came to prominence in the 1960s, writing hits for Elvis Presley (“In the Ghetto,” “A Little Less Conversation”), then became a popular country singer (and occasional actor) in the 1970s, with songs like “Baby Don’t Get Hooked on Me” and “It’s Hard to Be Humble.”
Davis was 78, and he passed away on the same day, and at the same age, as fellow 1970s singer Helen Reddy.
RIP Mr. Davis; you done good. Great songs, good run on TV, some films… nice job!
He always came across as super-likable, too.
About a week ago, after listening to the Candi Staton cover of “In the Ghetto,” I was perusing Mac Davis’s Wikipedia page.
This anecdote was pretty funny:
According to record producer Jimmy Bowen, “Ghetto” was originally pitched to Sammy Davis, Jr. but Mac Davis, guitar in hand, played the song in a studio, with onlookers such as Jesse Jackson and other members of the black activist community. Mac Davis, the only white man in the room at the time, eventually told Bowen, “I don’t know whether to thank ya, or to kill ya.”
It was so hard for him to be humble, since he was perfect in every way.
I guess now Lubbock, Texas really is in his rear-view mirror.
Damn. I saw him live when I was in college in the early 70s (if I’m remembering correctly, he was the opening act for someone else). His act was a combination of singing and telling funny stories, and I thought he was great.
I just now remember I met him years and years ago. He was fixin’ to take a boat ride and I passed him on the dock. Dressed just like the photo above. Canadian Tuxedo! He was nice and friendly.
Oh man, first concert I ever went to was with my oldest friend, we went to the Sacramento Memorial Auditorium and we saw Helen Reddy with opening act Mac Davis. That was almost fifty years ago. Such a coincidence they passed away so close together.
My dad used to like to sing “Oh, lord, it’s hard to be humble”.
He sang like a canary (he said). He was also handsome, swayv, de-boner, and modest to a fare-thee-well. I miss my dad. Thanks, Mac, for giving him a hook to hang his sense of humor on.