Country Music Stars We Sadly Lost Too Soon

Classic country music is full of liquor, violence, and rowdy living. And while the genre's greatest songwriters know how to craft this mythology out of thin air, some of them also lived out these sorts of tales. Sadly, substance abuse, mental illness, and sometimes plain old happenstance caused certain icons to lose their lives prematurely. The following list is by no means complete, but it does include some legends of both the classic and modern country eras. Some of these performers were already superstars when they died, while others gained a cult following in the years following their deaths. In any case, here are country music stars we sadly lost too soon.