Eastern Ky. band mourns sudden death of member

PERRY COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - Clyde Trent, 53, went to work Tuesday morning, but his band members said he was not feeling well.

“[He] went back out to his truck to get some air, turn the air condition on to make it good and cold,” said Lead Guitarist Greg Hall. “He thought that would make him feel better, and he was going to the doctor, after that and he collapsed in his truck.”

Trent was a member of the band for more than 10 years and was known as a remarkable bass player.

”We just got him singing, Clyde could imitate Earl Thomas Conley,” said drummer Tim Engle. “Clyde was just that guy.”

The band recently performed in Hazard on the Fourth of July, not knowing it would be the last time all five of them would be together. Now they are deciding how to handle upcoming shows without him.

”It’s going to be a shock, we’ve got a lot to talk about, you’ve heard us, we’re a pretty good band,” said Engle. “We’ve been together a pretty long time.”

Besides loving music, band members said Trent loved his family and was a loving father and husband.

”They’re doing as well as expected, none of us ever dreamed that we would be talking about this today,” said Hall.

If you saw him on stage, he was known for wearing dark sunglasses and his tough-guy persona and many of their fans gravitated toward him.

”The kids just would migrate to him, I don’t know why,” said Hall. “Every now and then you’d see a smile because a crack in his armor was kids.”

You can see his obituary here.

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