Known for his expressive baritone voice and hard-traveled authenticity, Dick Curless was one of the most versatile and powerfully eloquent singers of his time. Dick Curless: Hard Traveling Man from Maine explores the singer’s life and career, from his rural Northeast upbringing and popular truck-driving songs of the ’60s-’70s, to his critically acclaimed 1995 album, Traveling Through.
Though he is best known for his 1965 national hit, the truck-driving anthem “A Tombstone Every Mile,” Dick Curless had a wide-ranging repertoire and a smooth, sonorous delivery that made him popular not only in his native Northeast but nationally as well. During his storied career, Curless placed more than twenty hit recordings on Billboard country charts.
Conversation and Performance: The Life and Music of Dick Curless
Saturday, February 18 | 2:30 PM –4:00 PM | Ford Theater
Dick Curless is best known for the 1965 hit truck-driving anthem “A Tombstone Every Mile.” He was later signed by Buck Owens’s management, production, and publishing company and toured nationally with Owens. His album Traveling Through, completed just months before his death in 1995, is a rootsy exploration of the sad and the spiritual side of country, blues, and gospel music. Peter Guralnick, award-winning author and guest co-curator, and Jake Guralnick, who produced Traveling Through, will participate in the conversation. Chuck Mead, co-founder of country band BR549 and Americana solo artist, will perform briefly in tribute to Curless.
Dick Curless Exhibit Highlights
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Regal Archtop Guitar -
Stage Wear -
Wedding Dress -
Stage Wear -
Martin D-28 Guitar -
Jacket -
Suede Jacket -
Stage Wear -
Adamas Acoustic-Electric Guitar -
Leather Boots
See the Exhibition
The exhibition Dick Curless: Hard Traveling Man from Maine, runs January 13, 2023, through January, 2024, at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in downtown Nashville. Purchase tickets to see this exhibition and others using the button below.