Ronald Wayne Brown died Tuesday

For those of you who knew and loved him.

Wreck on I-65 kills local musician
Ballistic Pintos singer dies, two injured
By JAMIE DEXTER
The Leaf-Chronicle

Ronald Wayne Brown, 57, the lead singer of the Ballistic Pintos, who
closed out each of the band's shows with the song "Wreck on the
Highway" died Tuesday in a wreck on Interstate 65.

The wreck occurred around 2:36 p.m. when Brown's vehicle, along with
another, were traveling south on I-65, according to a report by
Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Rickey Alexander.

There were two wrecks near the 67 mile marker of the highway, one on
each side of the road, and traffic came to a stop.

Highway Patrol spokesman Mike Browning told the Associated Press
Brown was killed when his Ford Ranger rear-ended a stopped Dodge
2500 on the interstate.

The two passengers in the Dodge were from Nashville, and were both
injured in the wreck, according to Alexander's report.

Brown was not wearing a seat belt.

Richard Stevens, who met Brown nine years ago after he first came to
Clarksville, said Brown had "this iconic stature ... when he was in
the room, everyone knew it was Wayne Brown."

When Stevens, executive editor of The Leaf-Chronicle, learned of his
best friend's death, "I was just crushed. I grabbed my head and fell
to one knee. He was one of my brothers."

Brown's lineage can be traced back to Dorsey Dixon, who wrote "Wreck
on the Highway," which was used by Roy Acuff to close out shows at
the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

"He was connected to the genesis of country music; he really was,"
Stevens said. "Wayne had it in his blood."

Before moving to Montgomery County 10 years ago to form the
Ballistic Pintos with Bobby Keel and Kenny Bagget, Brown played in
North Carolina and Oklahoma.

Brown was the lead singer and played mandolin and guitar with the
band.

Stevens, who shared the stage with Brown, said lead singer was the
term that could best describe him.

"He was the kind of guy who could sing and didn't even need a
microphone," Stevens said.

"He sang, and I saw the power of him singing in three states. People
just stopped and their jaws dropped ... he had 'it,' whatever 'it'
was."

Stevens said that although he never had a huge hit, Brown was
someone people in the music industry knew, from John Prine to Waylon
Jennings.

"He was somebody that everyone knew, because he had soul," Stevens
said.

Besides his music career, Brown was an iron worker, a Shriner and a
best friend, Stevens said.

"When you're 52 years old like I am, and to have met Wayne Brown
nine years ago — to meet someone that late in life who's your
brother is extraordinary," Stevens said, adding that Brown was the
best man at his wedding.

"He was one of the best people I met in my whole life, and I loved
him like a brother."