Carl Belew

Carl Robert Belew (April 21, 1931 – October 31, 1990) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Belew was recorded for Decca, RCA Victor, and MCA in the 1950s through 1970s, charting 11 times on Hot Country Songs. He also wrote singles for Johnnie & Jack, Eddy Arnold, Jim Reeves, and others.

Born in Salina, Oklahoma, Belew began his musical career in the 1950s when he performed on the Louisiana Hayride. He signed to Decca Records by the end of the decade, reaching number 9 on the country music charts with "Am I That Easy to Forget", which was later recorded by Skeeter Davis, Debbie Reynolds, Esther Phillips, Engelbert Humperdinck, Jim Reeves, and others. Also in this period, Johnnie & Jack recorded Belew's "Stop the World and Let Me Off", while Andy Williams recorded "Lonely Street".

Belew's only other chart entry for Decca was the Number 19 "Too Much to Lose", followed by the Number 8 "Hello Out There", his first RCA Victor release, in 1962. He continued to write songs for others, including "What's He Doing in My World" by Eddy Arnold and "That's When I See the Blues" by Jim Reeves; both Waylon Jennings and Susan Raye charted in the 1970s with covers of "Stop the World and Let Me Off".

Belew died of cancer on October 31, 1990, in Salina, Oklahoma.