One quiet evening in Staunton, Don Reid — the last voice of the Statler Brothers — returned to the small hometown stage where their journey had first begun. The seats were empty now, the curtain still, the air carrying only the faint scent of dust and wood. He stood alone at the microphone, his hand brushing across it as if greeting an old friend, then softly began to sing “Make the World Go Away.” His voice trembled, worn but tender, and in the silence it carried farther than any sold-out crowd ever could — a hymn for Harold, Phil, Lew, and the years that slipped by too quickly. When the final note dissolved into stillness, Don lowered his head and whispered, “We made it this far together, boys.” And for a moment, the empty hall felt full again, alive with echoes of harmony and brotherhood that would never truly fade.
THE SONG THAT FILLED AN EMPTY HALL — Don Reid’s Quiet Farewell to the Statler...