Country star 'Cowboy' Jack Clement dies at 82

In this April 10, 2013 file photo, Jack Clement poses for photographers at the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tenn. Clement, a producer, engineer, songwriter and beloved figure who helped birth rock ‘n’ roll and push country music into modern times, died Thursday morning, Aug. 8. He was 82. (AP)

"Cowboy" Jack Clement, a producer, engineer, songwriter and beloved figure who helped birth rock 'n' roll and push country music into modern times, has died. He was 82.

Close friend Dub Cornett says Clement's hospice nurse confirmed that Clement died Thursday morning. He passed away just months after learning he would be joining the Country Music Hall of Fame, a fitting tip of the cowboy hat to the man whose personal story is entwined with the roots of rock 'n' roll like few others. He was to be inducted at a ceremony later this fall.

Clement's career included stops in Memphis at Sun Records, where he discovered Jerry Lee Lewis, and Nashville, where he was a close collaborator of Johnny Cash, Charley Pride and fellow 2013 inductee Bobby Bare.