Hal Ketchum

Hal Michael Ketchum (April 9, 1953 – November 23, 2020) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Born in Greenwich, New York, he began his professional music career in Texas. After an independent release in the late 1980s, he signed with Curb Records in 1990, for which he would record until 2008. Ketchum recorded nine albums and one greatest-hits package for Curb, and a final album for Music Road in 2014. The 1991 release Past the Point of Rescue was his most commercially successful, having been certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America. Between 1991 and 2006, Ketchum had 17 entries on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including three that reached the number two position: his debut single "Small Town Saturday Night", as well as a cover of Mick Hanly's "Past the Point of Rescue", and "Hearts Are Gonna Roll". Ketchum's music is defined by his songwriting, tenor singing voice, and minimalist production, with generally favorable reception for his influences of folk music and country musicians from Texas. Ketchum retired from the music business in 2019 following a diagnosis of dementia.