David Allan Coe (September 6, 1939–April 29, 2026) was an American singer-songwriter. Coe began playing music after spending much of his childhood in reform schools and jails, and he first gained attention for busking in Nashville.
He began playing largely in the blues style before moving to country music and becoming a key figure in the 1970s outlaw country movement. His most popular songs are “You Never Even Called Me by My Name,” “Longhaired Redneck,” “The Ride,” “Mona Lisa Lost Her Smile,” and “She Used to Love Me a Lot.”
His most popular tunes covered by others include Tanya Tucker’s number-one hit “Would You Lay With Me (In a Field of Stone)” and Johnny Paycheck’s rendition of “Take This Job and Shove It”. The latter inspired the film with the same name.
Coe’s defiant attitude, wild image, and unconventional lifestyle distinguished him from other country musicians, garnering him legions of admirers while also impeding his mainstream success by alienating the music industry elite.
Regardless, Coe was a prominent singer on the country music scene before his death. Coe died at the age of 86 on April 29, 2026. His widow verified his death to Rolling Stone on the same day. Coe died at the age of 86 on April 29, 2026. His widow has confirmed his death to Rolling Stone the same day.
David Allan Coe Biography
Coe was born in Akron, Ohio, on September 6, 1939. As a child, his favourite singer was Johnny Ace. After being sent to the Starr Commonwealth for Boys reform school at the age of nine, he spent the next two decades in prison, including three years at the Ohio Penitentiary. Coe stated Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, with whom he had spent time in prison, encouraged him to start writing songs.
Career
Coe’s debut album, Penitentiary Blues, was released in early 1970, and he toured with Grand Funk Railway shortly after. In October 1971, he went on as an exclusive writer for Pete and Rose Drake’s Windows Publishing Company, Inc. in Nashville, Tennessee, where he worked until 1977.
Although he developed a cult following with his performances, he was unable to develop any mainstream success, but other performers achieved charting success by recording songs Coe had written, including Billie Jo Spears’ 1972 recordings “Souvenirs & California Mem’rys” and Tanya Tucker’s 1973 single “Would You Lay With Me (In a Field of Stone)”, which was a number-one hit.
Thom Jurek, an AllMusic writer, wrote of the song: “The amazing thing is that both versions are definitive.” Coe’s second album, Once Upon a Rhyme, features one of his biggest singles, “You Never Even Called Me by My Name,” written by Steve Goodman and John Prine and originally released on Goodman’s 1971 debut album.
Coe’s rendition became his first country top-10 hit single, reaching at number eight in 1975, and features a spoken epilogue in which Coe recounts a letter with Goodman, who remarked that the song he had written was the “perfect country and western song”.
David responded by arguing that no song could fulfil that criteria without including a laundry list of clichés: “mama, trains, trucks, prison, or getting drunk”.
While living in Key West, Shel Silverstein played Coe his comedy music album Freakin’ at the Freakers Ball, which inspired Coe to sing his own humorous songs for Silverstein, who urged him to record them, resulting in the production of the independently released Nothing Sacred.
Jimmy Buffett accused Coe of plagiarising the tune of “Divers Do It Deeper” from Buffett’s album. In response to Buffett’s song’s success, Coe composed an offensive song that featured on Nothing Sacred.
The CD was distributed by mail order in 1978, through the back pages of the biker magazine Easyriders.
The CD also contains a song criticising Anita Bryant, a musician known for her vehement opposition to LGBT rights, notably her effort to overturn an LGBT anti-discrimination law in Miami-Dade County.
Coe released another independent album, Underground Album, in 1982, which included his most contentious song, “Nigger Fucker”. The sexually explicit song, written from the perspective of a man whose sweetheart abandoned him for an African American man, drew accusations of bigotry against Coe.
Because of this song, the material produced by musician and white supremacist Johnny Rebel has been incorrectly credited to Coe. AllMusic, which did not evaluate Underground Album, rated it three out of five stars. Coe replied to the accusations, saying, “Anyone who hears this album and claims I’m a racist is full of shit.”
Coe has also revealed that his longtime drummer, Kerry Brown, is Black and married to a White woman.
David Allan Coe Death
The Music Universe confirmed that country music great David Allan Coe died on Wednesday, April 29th at the age of 86.
According to a representative, Coe died in intensive care at around 5 p.m. ET today. Speaking with Music Universe, the representative stated, “David is a musical treasure,” and that, despite his worsening health, “David appreciated all of the fans.”
David Allan Coe Wife
David Allan Coe married Kimberly Hastings, his sixth wife, on April 17, 2010, in the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas. Coe was 71 years old when the wedding took place, while Hastings was 48.
The wedding was a star-studded celebration for the outlaw community, with country musician Toby Keith acting as the official witness.
The marriage was hardly an unexpected decision; the pair had been dating for over ten years before walking down the aisle. Kimberly was a consistent presence in Coe’s professional life, frequently accompanying him on stage as a backup and duet singer.
David Allan Coe Children
While David Allan Coe had several children from his various marriages, several of his daughters have taken to the forefront to pursue their own artistic careers.
- Shelli Coe: Shelli was born and reared in Austin and made her debut on her father’s “Family Album” at the age of three. She began her career as DAC’s backup singer, eventually performing in clubs and on the radio. After taking a break to raise a family, she returned to the music profession in 2006.
- Tanya Montana-Coe: Tanya, a Nashville native reared by a single mother, pursued a different route than her father. While she is a musician with a first album called Silver Bullet, her sound is clearly not country. Aside from music, she is a successful entrepreneur who runs the “Goodbuy Girls” clothing store in East Nashville.
- Shyanne and Carla Coe: These two daughters appear in many of Coe’s biographies, but they keep a low profile. Details about their personal lives and birthdays have kept confidential.
- Coe also has a son, Tyler Mahan Coe, who founded the Cocaine & Rhinestones podcast.
David Allan Coe Net Worth
David Allen Coe has an estimated net worth of $1.5 million. Throughout his musical career, he has earned the majority of his money through album sales, live concerts, and songwriting royalties.
Social Media
Instagram: @legendarydavidallancoe