Mack Vickery, who wrote hits for George Strait, Jerry Lee Lewis and Ricky Van Shelton, died Dec. 21 of an apparent heart attack, according to The Tennessean. He was 66.
Vickery was known as a “wild man” who lived a party-filled lifestyle. “Rockin’ My Life Away,” which Jerry Lee Lewis recorded, was “his whole life in a song,” according to friend Merle Kilgore.
Born in Alabama, Vickery moved with his family throughout the South and Midwest following his mother’s death. As a teenager he played clubs in Ohio and Michigan, later moving to Memphis, where he recorded three songs with Sam Phillips. The songs were never released.
Vickery later moved to Nashville and wrote “The Fireman” for Strait and “I’ll Leave This World Loving You” for Shelton. More than 20 of his songs were recorded by Lewis, according to the paper.
In 2003, Vickery was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame.
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