Bonnie Brown Dead at 77

Bonnie Brown, the youngest of the Browns singing trio, passed away on Saturday in her native Arkansas from complications of lung cancer. She was 77.

Her passing leaves the oldest sister, Maxine Brown, as the only survivor of the group that did big things on both the country and pop charts during the 1950s and early '60s with hits like "The Three Bells", "Scarlet Ribbons (For Her Hair)" and "The Old Lamplighter."

Jim Ed Brown, the founder of the trio and a longtime member of the Grand Ole Opry, died on June 11, 2015, just months before the Browns were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

The three Brown siblings formed their singing group incrementally. Jim Ed started as a solo performer in the early '50s.

Maxine soon joined him onstage, and in 1954 the pair scored a No. 8 hit on the country charts with "Looking Back to See."

Bonnie Jean joined the act the following year, by which time the Browns were appearing on the famous Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport.

She and fellow Hayride performer Elvis Presley were actually involved romantically briefly during this period. They toured with The King and another rising star, Jim Reeves.

Between 1955 and 1967, when the trio disbanded, the Browns had such country hits as "Here Today and Gone Tomorrow," "I Take the Chance," "I Heard the Bluebirds Sing," "Just As Long As You Love Me," "I'd Just Be Fool Enough" and "Coming Back to You."

Although it was their 1959 recording of "The Three Bells" that made the group international stars and earned them appearances on the major TV variety shows, including American Bandstand and The Ed Sullivan Show.

"The Three Bells" topped both the country and pop charts for weeks and was even a Top 10 R&B hit. The Browns became members of the Grand Ole Opry in 1963.

Bonnie Brown is survived by two daughters, Kelly and Robin. Her husband, Dr. Gene "Brownie" Ring, passed away in January 2016.