Kin Vassy

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kin Vassy was a singer-songwriter who in addition to his solo recordings also recorded with other artists, most notably Kenny Rogers, Frank Zappa and Elvis Presley.

In the 1960s, Vassy made a name for himself as a member of The Back Porch Majority. In 1970 he left them and joined Country rock outfit Kenny Rogers and The First Edition. As a member of the group he enjoyed a top 30 album - Somethings Burning - and one of his own songs "Heed The Call" became a top 40 hit in 1971.

Vassy left the group in 1972 after The Ballad of Calico album (replaced by Jimmy Hassell) and went on to work on both a solo career and as a session musician. Soon after, however, he was back with Kenny Rogers & The First Edition, replacing his former bandmate Terry Williams who launched his own solo career. The group split in 1976 and Vassy once again went solo.

In 1980 Vassy released the single "Makes Me Wonder If I Ever Said Goodbye" which featured ex-First Edition leader Kenny Rogers on backing vocals. Though the song was not a huge hit, the following year Rogers covered the song on his best-selling Share Your Love album, this time with Vassy providing backing vocals. Vassy (like Terry Williams) would continue to work with Rogers on various projects, such as Kenny's 1984 album What About Me?. Vassy also composed the song "Kentucky Homemade Christmas" for Rogers, released on Christmas (Liberty Records, 1981).

Vassy died in 1994, however his legacy continued both in the various recordings he left in many guises and due to the fact that he was also to have one more hit. Martina McBride recorded one of Vassy's last songs, "Phone's Are Ringing All Over Town" which would go to Number 1 on the Country music charts in 1996.