Sonny Curtis

Sonny Curtis, the Texas-born songwriter, guitarist and longtime member of the Crickets, died September 19, 2025 at the age of 88. His wife, Louise, confirmed his death to the Associated Press. Their daughter, Sarah, wrote he had been suddenly ill.

Born May 9, 1937, in Meadow, Texas, Curtis grew up with Buddy Holly and played on Holly's early recordings. As teens, the two even opened for Elvis Presley.

After Holly's 1959 death, Curtis took a leading role with the Crickets on guitar and vocals. He wrote "I Fought the Law," later made famous by the Bobby Fuller Four and covered by such artists as the Clash, the Grateful Dead, and Green Day. He also wrote the ballad "More Than I Can Say," which Leo Sayer later took to No. 2, and "Walk Right Back," completed during Army basic training, which the Everly Brothers turned into a 1961 hit.

Television amplified his reach in 1970 when he wrote and sang "Love Is All Around," the buoyant theme for "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." Another TV success came when he wrote and sang the theme song for "Evening Shade," for which he won an Emmy Award.

His catalog crossed genres, from Keith Whitley's "I'm No Stranger to the Rain" to songs recorded by Bing Crosby, Glen Campbell, and Andy Williams. As a session guitarist, he played on such hits as Vicki Lawrence's "The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia." Curtis entered the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame with the Crickets in 2012 and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1991.

He married Louise Halverson in 1970, and they had one daughter, Sarah. He made his home in the Nashville area for decades. Survivors include Louise and Sarah.

By Legacy News Staff

(Image: Jo Hale/Getty Images)