Lorrie Morgan Performs Her Late Husband Keith Whitleyโ€™s Song โ€œDonโ€™t Close Your Eyesโ€

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After her husband died, Lorrie Morgan took the stage to perform one of his most well-known songs, โ€œDonโ€™t Close Your Eyes.โ€

While this may have been one of the hardest performances Lorrie Morgan has ever given, fans say it was also โ€œthe best she has ever sounded.โ€

Performing one of her late husband Keith Whitleyโ€™s most iconic songs, Morgan put everything she had into singing the heartbreaking lyrics, which were written by Bob McDill.

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Whitley released โ€œDonโ€™t Close Your Eyesโ€ as the third single off his 1988 album of the same name. It shot straight to number one on the country charts and became Billboardโ€˜s number one country single of the year.

Keith Whitley - Don't Close Your Eyes (Official Video)

Sadly, after only releasing two albums to his name, Whitley passed away on May 9, 1989.

There have been four posthumous album releases since his passing, one dropping just three months after he died.

The video of her live performance of โ€œDonโ€™t Close Your Eyesโ€ cut to a sweet montage of photos and videos of Morgan and Whitley together through the years. It closes with footage of the married couple slow dancing.

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Morgan and Whitley were married in 1986 and have one child together, Jesse Keith Whitley, who is also a musician.

Jesse Keith performs a lot of original music, but also delights fans with covers of his famous dadโ€™s songs. One time, he even brought his young son on stage, and it felt as through three generations of Whitley men were with us.

RELATED: Jesse Keith Whitley & His Son Jackie Sing โ€œDonโ€™t Close Your Eyesโ€

Jesse and his mother teamed up to perform the songs a number of years ago. Fans couldnโ€™t believe their ears when they heard Jesse Keith start singing because he sounds eerily like his father.

Jesse Keith Whitley & Lorrie Morgan

See some of the fan reactions below.

โ€œThis is really beautiful. You can see how proud she is of her son. Big tribute to him that she stays in the background. She is no oneโ€™s backing singer.โ€

โ€œfreaking love this, you have your own sound and yet I can hear your dad tooโ€ฆ. keep it upโ€ฆ we lost your dad too soonโ€ฆโ€

Watch Lorrieโ€™s moving rendition of โ€œDonโ€™t Close Your Eyesโ€ below.

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About the Author

Jennifer Pernicano

Hi! I'm Jen, a Southern California-based country music fan. One of my favorite things to do is go to a country concert and experience the art of storytelling in person. There truly is nothing else like it!

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