Biography
On October 26, 1929, Matthews entered the world and joined the Jordanaires as second tenor in 1953. Three years afterward the ensemble launched its work supplying backing vocals for Elvis Presley. Their gospel-infused harmonies surface on hit recordings by Presley, Ricky Nelson, Jimmy Dean, Merle Haggard, and Tom Jones. Matthews also wrote The Nashville Numbering System, which Hal Leonard originally issued in June 1988. Neal Matthews suffered a fatal heart attack at age seventy in his Brentwood, TN, residence on April 21, 2000. Neal Matthews-related releases are Patsy Cline's The Patsy Cline Story, Patsy Cline Showcase, Sweet Dreams, Last Sessions, Remembering, Sentimentally Yours, A Portrait of Patsy Cline, Here's Patsy Cline; Elvis Presley's Known Only to Him: Elvis Gospel 1957-1971, The King of Rock 'n' Roll: The Complete 50's Masters, The Collection, His Life & His Music; k.d. lang's Shadowland; Gordon Lightfoot's Songbook; Jerry Lee Lewis' All Killer, No Filler: The Anthology; Loretta Lynn's All Time Gospel Favorites; Reba McEntire's Reba McEntire; Don Gibson's A Legend in My Time; Scotty Moore's All the King's Men; Billy Ray Cyrus' It Won't Be the Last; Don McLean's For the Memories; Sugar Ray Norcia's Sweet & Swingin'; the Jordanaires' Sing Gospel, Sing Elvis' Favorite Gospel Songs; Jimmy Sturr's Polka! All Night Long, Living on Polka Time; Get Hot or Go Home: Vintage RCA Rockabilly '56-'59, Vols. 1 & 2; Hank Locklin's Please Help Me I'm Falling; Ronnie McDowell's Greatest Tribute to the King; Lefty Frizzell's Life's Like Poetry; Charlie McCoy's Out on a Limb; and Duane Eddy's Twangin' From Phoenix to L.A.