Chris LeDoux News

Chris LeDoux died Wednesday (March 9) at the age of 56 due to complications from ongoing treatment for cancer of the bile duct. The singer, songwriter, and rodeo champion was surrounded by family and friends at the time of his death at Casper Medical Center in Casper, Wyoming.

LeDoux had checked into the hospital earlier this week. He was diagnosed with cancer last year, and was undergoing radiation treatments. In 2000, LeDoux successfully underwent a liver transplant after being diagnosed with liver disease. LeDoux had recorded 22 albums on his own when Garth Brooks mentioned his name in the hit song, "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)" in 1989. Shortly thereafter, LeDoux signed with Brooks' label, Capitol Nashville, where he recorded 15 albums and sold nearly six million copies.

The simple phrase "a worn out tape of Chris LeDoux" in that famous song of Brooks' gave the singing cowboy the boost he'd been needing, career-wise, as far as LeDoux was concerned: "As far as Garth helping my career, he did tremendously. It's funny...the first time I met him, he told me the opposite. He says, 'Chris,' (laughs) 'You don't realize what using your name in that song has done for my career,' but I know it helped me way more than it did him. You see, we'd been doing this for probably 18 years when that song finally came out."

Capitol Nashville President and CEO Mike Dungan said, "All of us at Capitol Records and EMI Music are saddened at the passing of Chris. In a world of egos and soundalikes, he was a unique artist and a wonderful man. We have always been proud to represent his music, and honored to call him our friend. Our thoughts go out to his wife, Peggy, and the LeDoux family."

Darryl Worley was on his way to a party in celebration of his latest Number One hit, "Awful Beautiful Life," when news of LeDoux's death reached him. The singer reacted to LeDoux's untimely passing: “I'm certainly saddened by the fact that he's gone, and I know he's been having some health problems. I spent a little time with Chris a couple different times. He was just really full of energy and enthusiastic and a positive guy, and he's one of the few people I know that can go out and sell four or five million records without a record label, so I think his success and what he did with country music speaks for itself. He doesn't really need anybody to praise him, but we're gonna miss him."

While Rascal Flatts member Joe Don Rooney didn't have a lot of personal experience with LeDoux, he says his absence as the real deal in country music will be felt: "He was a cowboy. He rode in the rodeos. He was raised rough and tough, and plus he was a great musician and singer and a heck of an entertainer, so he had the whole true package for country music. He'll never be forgotten."

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