We can all take a lesson from Don Everly

Don said in one interview that he and his brother Phil were successful because they ‘never followed trends’, writes Chris Stevenson

The Everly Brothers, Phil, left, and Don, perform on stage in 1964 (AP)

As the tributes came in for Don Everly, some reports pointed to a 1986 interview with the Associated Press in which he said he and his brother Phil were successful because they “never followed trends”.

“We did what we liked and followed our instincts,” he said. “Rock’n’roll did survive, and we were right about that. Country did survive, and we were right about that. You can mix the two, but people said we couldn’t.”

The Everly Brothers had a number of hits around the globe in the late 1950s and early 1960s and influenced The Beatles – among many other musicians – who would obviously go on to be the biggest band in the world (although The Everly Brothers’ own fame in the US had waned somewhat by that point).