The Statler Brothers

The Statler Brothers were an American country music vocal group.

They were guest performers in Hee Haw.

Career Highlights
The quartet was formed in 1955 performing locally and, in 1964, they began singing backup for Johnny Cash until 1972. Originally performing gospel music at local churches, the group billed themselves as The Four Star Quartet, and later The Kingsmen. In 1963, when the song "Louie, Louie" by the garage rock band also called The Kingsmen became famous, the group elected to bill themselves as The Statler Brothers. Despite the name, only two members of the group (Don and Harold Reid) are actual brothers and none has the surname of Statler. The band, in fact, named themselves after a brand of facial tissue they had noticed in a hotel room (they joked that they could have turned out to be the Kleenex Brothers). Don Reid sang lead; Harold Reid, Don's older brother, sang bass; Phil Balsley sang baritone; and Lew DeWitt sang tenor and was the guitarist of the Statlers before being replaced by Jimmy Fortune in 1983 due to DeWitt's ill health. DeWitt continued to perform as a solo artist until his death from heart and kidney disease.

Two of their best-known songs are "Flowers on the Wall", their first major hit that was composed and written by Lew DeWitt, and the socially conscious "Bed of Rose's". Their songs have been featured on several film soundtracks and also in the famous video game, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. These range from "Charlotte's Web" in Smokey and the Bandit II to "Flowers on the Wall" in the crime dramedy Pulp Fiction. They earned the number one spot on the Billboard chart four times: for "Do You Know You Are My Sunshine?" in 1978, "Elizabeth" in 1984, and "My Only Love" and "Too Much on My Heart" in 1985.

The group disbanded and retired after completing a farewell tour 26 October 2002.