Sonny Curtis, frontman of The Crickets and writer of the ‘Mary Tyler Moore Show’ theme, dies at 88
Curtis wrote hit songs including I Fought the Law and Love Is All Around, and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with The Crickets.
Sonny Curtis, the frontman of Buddy Holly’s band The Crickets and the songwriter behind the theme for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, died Friday after a sudden illness. He was 88. His daughter, Sarah Curtis, announced the death in a Facebook post, saying he passed away peacefully with family by his side and that he had lived a long and meaningful life.
Curtis was born May 9, 1937, in Meadow, Texas, where he learned to play guitar with the help of uncles who performed with a local family group, the Mayfield Brothers. He left an early imprint on the rockabilly era after meeting Buddy Holly at age 15 and forming a band that opened for legends such as Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley and Carl Perkins. He would go on to contribute to several Holly-era recordings, playing guitar on tracks including “Blue Days, Black Nights” and “Rock Around With Ollie Vee,” the latter of which he also penned.
Curtis officially joined The Crickets in 1958, shortly before Holly’s death in a February 1959 plane crash at age 22. In the wake of Holly’s passing, Curtis stepped into the frontman role for the group. The Crickets issued their first post-Holly album, In Style With the Crickets, which featured Curtis’s own composition “I Fought the Law.” The song would become a hit years later when covered by The Bobby Fuller Four in 1966, helping to cement the tune as a rock ’n’ roll staple. 
Among Curtis’s enduring contributions were songs like “Walk Right Back,” which The Everly Brothers helped popularize, and the ballad “More Than I Can Say,” later recorded successfully by Bobby Vee and Leo Sayer. He once noted in interviews that “I Fought The Law” had become his most lucrative copyright, given the number of covers and performances by artists ranging from Hank Williams Jr. to The Clash, among others, and the song’s enduring resonance across genres.
In 1970, Curtis wrote and performed the theme song for The Mary Tyler Moore Show, titled Love Is All Around. The tune became a familiar soundtrack to a landmark sitcom about a single woman pursuing a career in a Minneapolis newsroom, which ran for seven seasons on CBS. The work helped broaden Curtis’s reach beyond rock and country into television music with international recognition.
As his career continued, Curtis remained active as a songwriter and performer, both as a solo artist and with The Crickets. His catalog extended to hits such as “The Straight Life,” recorded by Glen Campbell; “A Fool Never Learns,” recorded by Andy Williams; and “I’m No Stranger to the Rain,” performed by Keith Whitley. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1991 and the Nashville Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2007. In 2012, Curtis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Crickets, alongside drummer Jerry Allison, bassist Joe B. Mauldin and rhythm guitarist Niki Sullivan.
Curtis is survived by his wife of more than 50 years, Louise, and their daughter. His family confirmed the death, noting in the Facebook post that he had lived a remarkable life and that his loss would be felt deeply by those who knew him. The announcement underscored a career that bridged early rock with television music and country traditions, leaving a lasting mark on American popular culture.
Curtis’s influence extended across decades and genres, reflecting the breadth of his songwriting and performing career. The Crickets, with Curtis at the helm for much of the period after Holly’s death, helped shape the sound of early rock and roll, while Curtis’s TV theme work brought his music into millions of living rooms. The Mary Tyler Moore Show theme, in particular, remains a touchstone of American TV music, emblematic of a show that balanced humor with a sense of optimism and resilience.
Images throughout Curtis’s career capture a performer who shared stages with significant artists and appeared at major concerts and events. His legacy endures not only in the songs that continue to be covered by artists but in the way his work bridged the worlds of pop, country and television—an enduring footprint on culture and entertainment.
As the music world reflects on Curtis’s contributions, his name stands among those who helped define the sound of a generation while also expanding the reach of songwriter artistry into new media. His work continues to be discovered by new listeners and reinterpreted by artists, ensuring that his influence will be felt for years to come. 