Grand Ole Opry star Mel McDaniel passed away yesterday, March 31, at his shome in Hendersonville, TN, following a battle with cancer. He was 68.

Mel was born in Checotah, OK, on September 6, 1942 and started performing professionally when he was in his early teens. After working the club circuit in Oklahoma, Arkansas and Kansas, Mel moved to Nashville in the late 1960s. When nothing came out of that effort, he moved to Alaska, where he performed in clubs for two years.

In 1973, he returned to Nashville and got a job writing songs and recording demos for Combine Music Publishing. Impressed by his sound, the Grand Ole Opry's Wilburn Brothers helped him land a recording contract with Capitol Records in 1976. That same year, he charted with his single "Have A Dream On Me." Over the next four years, he charted with songs a dozen more times, but never reached higher than No. 11.

In 1980, however, he reached the No. 7 spot with the song that would become his signature tune, "Louisiana Saturday Night." After that, he came up with Top Ten hits like "Right In The Palm Of Your Hand," "Take Me To The Country," "Big Ole Brew," and "I Call It Love."

Finally, in 1985, Mel topped at No. 1 with "Baby's Got Her Blue Jeans On."

The next year, McDaniel was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry, where he continued to perform periodically after his recording activity began to flag in the late 1980s.

Mel's last Opry appearance took place with the show's full cast on Sept. 28 when the Grand Ole Opry House reopened after sustaining flood damage in May.