Richard Sterban, bass singer for the Oak Ridge Boys, dies at 83

Richard Sterban, whose bass voice helped define the Oak Ridge Boys' 1981 hit "Elvira," has died at age 83, according to a WSMV/Gray News report carried by Live 5 News, Dakota News Now, Cleveland 19 and Valley News Live.

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum gives Nov. 14, 2026, as the date of Sterban's death, the report said. The museum's announcement did not state a cause of death.

The Oak Ridge Boys confirmed the death in a social media post, according to the report. In it, the group described Sterban as both a partner and a brother and said its members were grieving.

Sterban was born April 24, 1943, in Camden, New Jersey. Citing the Hall of Fame and Museum, the outlets reported that before joining the Oak Ridge Boys he sang with J.D. Sumner and the Stamps, a gospel group that performed with Elvis Presley. He became a member of the Oak Ridge Boys in 1972.

His low vocal parts became a signature of "Elvira," the group's best-known single. According to the museum, the song reached No. 1 on the country chart and No. 5 on the pop chart, giving the group success well beyond country radio.

The Oak Ridge Boys were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2015, the report said.

Kyle Young, chief executive of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, praised Sterban's role in linking two musical traditions. "Richard Sterban was a musical bridge builder," Young said in a statement reported by the outlets.

Young added: "He used his unmistakable bass voice to connect commercial country music to its deep gospel roots," according to the report.

Sterban's career spanned decades of gospel and country music, beginning in gospel harmony groups and continuing through more than five decades with the Oak Ridge Boys, based on the dates reported by the museum.

The reports did not include details about funeral or memorial arrangements, or information about surviving family members.

Compiled by True News from reporting by Live 5 News, Dakota News Now, Cleveland 19 and Valley News Live. Each outlet's original story is linked below.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/1084