Via Go Fund Me:
If you’ve landed on this page, you probably have been introduced to Hal Ketchum’s music at some time in your life. Hal is an extremely gifted artist, with a large repertoire of self-penned songs and a voice that makes angels cry.
Spending most of the 1980’s and 90’s as a hard working country musician, Hal was hospitalized in 1998 with Acute Transverse Myelitis, a sister disease to Muscular Sclerosis, which his mother died from at an early age. He had to learn how to do basic tasks for a second time, including playing guitar.
He came back and spent 10 more years on the road, until issues with brain functions reappeared and almost ended his career. At one point in 2010, the doctors said that he would never be the same and would always need to be in a care facility.
After several long years of loving care from his family and friends, and a severe desire to write and sing again, Hal came back with a new album full of beautiful love songs, funny songs, and ballads as well as remakes of some of his most memorable tunes, called “I’m The Troubadour.”
During this time Hal was blessed and fell in love with a beautiful and supporting wife, Andrea, and they were married in 2014. After only a few years of being happily married and back touring and performing, tragedy struck again in the form of a vicious, incurable brain disease. His memory was failing him, he was forgetting guitar chords and words to his own songs and other basics, and it was only a short time before he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease as well as Diabetes.
It’s now 2020, and the disease has progressed – Hal has sung his last tune for us on this earthly plane of existence. He can no longer tour or make records to support his family. Now it’s time for us to step up and help with the almost insurmountable medical bills and living expenses that are piling up.
Hal dedicated his life to writing, singing, and performing for his fans worldwide. He’s played hundreds of benefits, supporting causes and those in need. Any help that you can give Hal and his family is graciously appreciated, whether it’s a dollar or ten, it doesn’t matter. All donations go to the Hal Ketchum Medical Fund and will do a large amount to ease the financial burden of out of control medical costs and living expenses.
Thank you in advance – Hal has a tremendous respect and love for all of you.
Sincerely,
Team Hal
Click HERE to donate.
A fundraising tribute concert has also been scheduled at Gruene Hall on Sunday, February 23rd.
This event has been titled “RAISED BY WOLVES, BOUND FOR GLORY: A TEXAS TRIBUTE TO HAL KETCHUM” and the musical lineup will feature: Bruce Robison & Kelly Willis, Walt Wilkins, The Mystiqueros, Lee Roy Parnell, Rob Roy Parnell, Jesse Dayton, Slaid Cleaves, Kenny Grimes, Waylon Payne plus other very special guests.
Tickets will go on sale on Tuesday, January 14th at 1:00 PM, will be $37.50 and proceeds from this event will benefit the Hal Ketchum Medical Relief Fund.
Click HERE to purchase tickets.
We are very sad to learn of the retirement of Hal Ketchum, and his diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. Hal has been a part of the Gruene Hall family since 1985 and we will always love and cherish him and the many performances that he blessed us with. Hal Michael Ketchum is a carpenter who builds things made with wood and crafts songs made of silk. He is widely known as having one of the most beautiful voices in country/Americana music. USA Today once said he has “the most effervescent voice in country music.” Hal moved to the Gruene, Texas area from upstate New York where he was born and bred. He stumbled onto Gruene Hall by accident and fell in love with the music scene. He scored his own Sunday afternoon show after recording a four song demo in his basement that contained the first songs that he had ever written, like “The Preacher and Me”, which still stand strong today. He soon recorded his first album, Threadbare Alibis, which triggered interest from around the world. It was a quick ticket to fame with his first single, a song written by Pat Alger, called “Small Town Saturday Night”, which hit number one in 1991. A subsequent string of hits, including “I Know Where Love Lives,” “Five O’ Clock World,” & “I Miss My Mary,” soon followed, adding up to 15 top ten Billboard hits, with five of them in the top five, and well over five million total album sales. He was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry in 1994 making him the 71st member.
