Edward Morris, a Nashville-based music journalist who edited Billboard‘s country coverage, wrote a popular CMT.com column and penned numerous books, died Thursday at age 90. The family did not give a cause of death. Morris was best remembered in the country community for a 14-year tenure with from 1981 to 1995, the last four of those as the publication’s country music editor.
Prior to coming on staff, his contributions to as a freelancer dated back to 1972. In 1999, he joined CMT.com as a writer, where his byline continued to enjoy prominence in the country community. The website became the primary go-to for consumers looking for country news, and Morris remained there into his mid-80s, until 2020, when, under cover of COVID, MTV Networks began to dismantle its once-flourishing news sites.
His eight books included “Edward Morris’ Complete Guide To Country Music Videos” (1997), “Garth Brooks: Platinum Cowboy” (1993), “Alabama” (1985), “At Carter’s Stanley’s Grave: Musings on Country Music & Musicians” (2011), and “Scorched Mirth and Acid Reflux” (2019). He also wrote liner notes for releases by the Judds, Keith Whitley, Guy Clark, Eddy Arnold, Hank Snow and Chet Atkins, among others. In 2002, Morris was honored at Belmont University’s annual International Country Music Conference (ICMC) with its Charlie Lamb Journalist of the Year award.
Morris was married to country music publicist Norma Morris, who died in 2021 — read her Variety obituary here — and is the father of publicist Erin Morris Huttlinger. He wrote a book about the final evolution of his relationship with Norma, “Stardust: An Alzheimer’s Love Story,” which stemmed from blogs and social posts he had written about their journey as they fell apart and then came together again as she required intensive care. In a 2023 interview with the website FiftyForward, Morris said, “I like words… I listen to words, listen to people talk, listen to cliches.
The inspiration is just everywhere. I sort of see writing as a performance. You know, you hear musicians say that they would do it for free if they weren’t paid for it.
And I feel the same way about writing. I love to write with the anticipation of amusing people or getting arguments started or whatever.” Morris recalled aspects of his career for the site. Asked about highlights of being a country music journalist, he answered, “The first one was that I was able to meet the Grand Ole Opry stars that I’d listened to as a boy, and to meet Ernest Tubb, Roy Acuff, Pee Wee King, Eddy Arnold and Minnie Pearl, even Herman Crook of the Crook Brothers, who was one of the original acts of the Opry.
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