AUSTIN, TX – On Sept. 16, Willie Nelson announced the passing of Ben “Lovey” Dorcy III, subject of the 2017 documentary, Lovey: King of the Roadies, who had supported bands on the road starting in 1950 until mid-2017, an astonishing 67 years. He was 92.
“Anything you say about Ben — as wild as it was — you don’t have to make up, because it actually happened,” observed country artist Johnny Bush, in the King of the Roadies documentary.
Along with Nelson, Dorcy had toured with legendary artists including Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash, among many others, and along with this year’s documentary, he was the subject of songs including Waylon Jennings’ “Ode to Ben Dorcy,” and Red Sovine’s “Big Ben Dorcy the Third.”
“He has no living relatives, yet he is the patriarch of a family of artists, and fellow roadies who love him dearly,” said Amy Nelson, Willie’s daughter, and co-producer of the documentary, as quoted by Rolling Stone in 2015.
In The Tao of Willie, the 2007 self-help book that Nelson wrote with Turk Pipkin, Nelson noted, in a tongue-in-cheek tribute, that Dorcy was not only the world’s most durable roadie, he was a valued resource for important life decisions.
“When I’m contemplating one of life’s difficult decisions, I generally consult with Ben Dorcy…When faced with a difficult decision, I observe Ben and do the opposite of what he does,” Nelson joked.
But for the Facebook announcement of Dorcy’s passing, Nelson left a tribute that was sincere, short and sweet.
“Ben ‘Lovey’ Dorcy was our friend and part of the Willie Nelson Family,” Nelson noted. “Thank you Ben for years of hard work and sound advice. We love you.”
