Don Everly, the eldest sibling of the Everly Brothers, died at his home in Nashville on Saturday (August 21), The Los Angeles Times reports. A spokesperson for the family confirmed his death to the Times, though a cause of death was not provided. He was 84 years old. “Don lived by what he felt in his heart,” the family wrote in their statement to the Times. “Don expressed his appreciation for the ability to live his dreams … with his soulmate and wife, Adela, and sharing the music that made him an Everly Brother.”

The duo of Don and Phil Everly rose to the height of it popularity in the late 1950s and ‘60s, landing nearly three dozen songs on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Known for their country-tinged rock’n’roll and tight harmonies, the Everly Brothers went on to influence artists including the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and Simon and Garfunkel. In 1986, they were among the first 10 artists to inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Isaac “Don” Everly was born in Brownie, Kentucky in 1937, but spent most of his childhood in Shenandoah, Iowa. His father Phillip Everly was a coal miner turned musician who played guitar on his own radio show. In 1945, Don and Phil began singing on air as “Little Donnie” and “Baby Boy Phil,” harmonizing with their parents. In 1956, the duo recorded their first single “Keep a-Lovin’ Me,” penned by Don, for Columbia Records. Their breakout hit “Bye Bye Love” arrived in 1957 on Cadence Records. The Everly Brothers continued to release chart-topping singles like “Wake Up Little Susie,” “All I Have to Do Is Dream,” and “Cathy’s Clown.” The Everlys’ final U.S. top 40 hit, “Bowling Green,” arrived in 1967.

In 1970, Don released his first solo album, which was not met with commercial success. He continued recording with his brother until they announced their last performance as the Everly Brothers in July 1793. Tensions had surfaced between the two; during the last show, Phil smashed his guitar on stage and walked off, leaving Don to finish the set solo. The two then pursued their respective solo careers. Don saw some success in the mid to late ’70s in Nashville with his band, the Dead Cowboys.

The brothers reunited at London’s Royal Albert Hall in 1983. Despite playing together in various engagements, the two became estranged again in their later years until Phil Everly died of lung disease in 2014. “I always thought about him every day, even when we were not speaking to each other,” Don told The Los Angeles Times shortly following his brother’s death. “It still just shocks me that he’s gone.”