Ellen Muriel Deason (born August 30, 1919), known professionally as
Kitty Wells, is an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country musicCountry music is a blend of popular musical forms originally found in the Southern United States and the Appalachian Mountains...
singer. Her 1952 hit recording, "
It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels"It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" is a 1952 country song written by J.D. Miller, and originally recorded by Kitty Wells. It was an answer song to the Hank Thompson hit "The Wild Side of Life."...
," made her the first female country singer to top the U.S. country charts, and turned her into the first female country star. Her Top 10 hits continued until the mid-1960s, inspiring a long list of female country singers who came to prominence in the 1960s.
Wells's success in the 1950s and 1960s was so enormous that she still ranks as the sixth most successful female vocalist in the history of the
BillboardBillboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
country charts, according to historian
Joel WhitburnJoel Carver Whitburn is an American author and music historian.Whitburn founded Record Research Inc. in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, in 1970, and put together a team of researchers to examine in detail all of Billboards music and video charts...
's book
The Top 40 Country Hits, behind
Dolly PartonDolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best-known for her work in country music....
,
Loretta LynnLoretta Lynn is an American country music singer-songwriter; she was one of the leading country vocalists and songwriters during the 1960s and is revered as a country music cultural icon....
,
Reba McEntireReba Nell McEntire is a Grammy award-winning American country music artist. She began her career in the music industry singing with her siblings on local radio shows and rodeos. As a solo act, she was invited to perform at a rodeo in Oklahoma City, which caught the attention of country artist Red...
,
Tammy WynetteVirginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette , was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of country music's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists....
, and
Tanya TuckerTanya Denise Tucker is an American country music artist who had her first hit, "Delta Dawn", in 1972 at the age of 13...
. Wells was the third country music artist, after
Roy AcuffRoy Claxton Acuff was an American country music singer, fiddler, and promoter. Known as the King of Country Music, Acuff is often credited with moving the genre from its early string band and "hoedown" format to the star singer-based format that helped make it internationally successful.Acuff...
and Hank Williams, to receive the
Grammy Lifetime Achievement AwardThe Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is awarded by the Recording Academy to "performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording" ....
in 1991, as well as being the eighth woman and first
CaucasianThe term Caucasian race has been used to denote the general physical type of some or all of the indigenous populations of Europe, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, West Asia, Central Asia, and South Asia...
woman to receive the honor. In 1976, she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. She is as of 2009at age 90the oldest living member of the C&W Hall of Fame. Wells' accomplishments earned her the moniker The Queen of Country Music.
Early life
Wells was born Ellen Muriel Deason in 1919 in
Nashville, TennesseeNashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is the second most populous city in the state after Memphis. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state...
, one of the few country singers born in Nashville. She began singing as a child, learning guitar from her father. As a teenager, she sang with her sisters, who performed under the name the Deason Sisters on a local radio station beginning in 1936.
At the age of 18 she married
Johnnie WrightJohnnie Robert Wright, Jr. , known professionally as Johnnie Wright, is an American country music singer-songwriter who spent much of his career working with Jack Anglin as the popular duo Johnnie and Jack, and is also the husband of Kitty Wells.-Biography:Born in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, Wright...
, a cabinet-maker who aspired to country-music stardom (which he'd eventually achieve as half of the duo
Johnnie & JackJohnnie & Jack was an American country music duo composed of Johnnie Wright and Jack Anglin . Between 1951 and 1962, the duo released several singles on the RCA Victor Records label, including the #1 " I Get So Lonely." Following Anglin's death in a car accident in 1963, Johnnie Wright became a...
).
Music career
Wells sang with Johnnie and his sister Louise Wright; the three toured as Johnnie Right & the Harmony Girls. Soon Johnnie Wright met
Jack AnglinJack Anglin was an American country music singer best known as a member of The Anglin Brothers, and later Johnnie and Jack with Johnnie Wright....
, who married Louise and became part of the band which became known first as the Tennessee Hillbillies and then the Tennessee Mountain Boys.
Wright and Wells performed as a duo; it was at this time she adopted the "Kitty Wells" stage name. When Anglin returned from the Army, he and Wright formed the
Johnnie & JackJohnnie & Jack was an American country music duo composed of Johnnie Wright and Jack Anglin . Between 1951 and 1962, the duo released several singles on the RCA Victor Records label, including the #1 " I Get So Lonely." Following Anglin's death in a car accident in 1963, Johnnie Wright became a...
duo. Wells would tour with the pair, occasionally performing backup vocals.
On
Louisiana HayrideLouisiana Hayride was a radio and later television country music show broadcast from the Shreveport Municipal Memorial Auditorium in Shreveport, Louisiana, that during its heyday from 1948 to 1960 helped to launch the careers of some of the greatest names in American music...
, Wells performed with her husband's duo. Wells, however, did not sing on their records until signing with
RCA RecordsRCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1983 and a partner from 1983 to 1986.-The RCA family of labels:RCA is the name of three different co-owned record...
in 1949 releasing some of her first singles, including "Death At the Bar" and "Don't Wait for the Last Minute to Pray," neither of which charted. While these early records gained some notice, promoters still weren't keen on promoting female singers, and therefore Wells was dropped from the label in 1950.
1952: "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels"
In 1952, Paul Cohen, an executive at
Decca RecordsDecca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; later the link with the British company was broken for several decades...
, approached Wells to record "
It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels"It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" is a 1952 country song written by J.D. Miller, and originally recorded by Kitty Wells. It was an answer song to the Hank Thompson hit "The Wild Side of Life."...
,"
Thinking of the $125 recording payment, Wells went into
Owen BradleyOwen Bradley was an American record producer, who, along with Chet Atkins and Bob Ferguson, was one of the chief architects of the 1950s and 1960s Nashville sound in country music and rockabilly.-Before the fame:...
’s studio on May 3, 1952, to record “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels” for Decca Records. The single took off during the summer and sold more than 800,000 copies in its initial release. It also crossed over to Billboard’s pop charts, hitting #27.
The song, banned by many radio stations
in 1952 and was also temporarily banned from the
Grand Ole OpryThe Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music radio program and concert broadcast live on WSM radio in Nashville, Tennessee, every Friday and Saturday night, as well as Tuesdays and Thursdays from March through December...
. It became the first single by a female Country singer to peak at #1. The song was an answer song to
Hank ThompsonHenry William "Hank" Thompson was a country music entertainer whose career spanned seven decades. He sold over 60 million records worldwide....
's #1 smash, "
The Wild Side of Life"The Wild Side of Life" is a song made famous by country music singer Hank Thompson. Originally released in 1952, the song became one of the most popular recordings in the genre's history, spending 15 weeks at No...
" and its message helped it reach #1 in 1952, where it stayed for six weeks.
The song’s sentiments are similar to 1894’s “She Is More to Be Pitied than Censured,” with its premise that deceitful men are responsible for fallen women. The record was controversial and received some resistance from radio executives, but audiences couldn’t get enough of it.
Because of her major breakthrough, Wells received a membership to the Grand Ole Opry.
1953 – 1969: Career peak
"It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" was followed by "Paying for That Back Street Affair," a response to
Webb PierceWebb Michael Pierce was one of the most popular American honky tonk vocalists of the 1950s, charting more number one hits than any other country artist during the decade. For many, Pierce, with his flamboyant Nudie suits and twin silver dollar-lined convertibles, became the most recognizable face...
's "Back Street Affair." The single reached number six in the spring of 1953, helping to establish a permanent place at the top of the charts for Wells.
Between 1953 and 1955, Wells was popular on the Country charts, and was the only female solo artist at the time to be able to maintain her success. In 1953, Wells had two Top 10 hits with "Hey Joe" and "Cheatin's a Sin." The next year, Wells partnered up with country star
Red FoleyClyde Julian Foley , better known as Red Foley, was an American singer, musician, and radio and TV personality who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II....
for the duet "One by One," which peaked at #1 on the
Billboard Country ChartHot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
, and became her second chart-topper. The song led to a string of hit singles from the duo within the next two decades, including 1954's "As Long as I Live," which peaked at #3. As a solo artist in 1954, Wells had two major hits with the #8 "
Release Me"Release Me" is a popular song by Eddie Miller, Robert Yount, and Dub Williams, published in 1946.Miller wrote the song in 1946 but could not get anyone to record it for years, so he recorded it himself in 1953. Shortly afterward it was covered by Jimmy Heap, and with even better success by Ray...
" and the Top 15 hit, "Thou Shalt Not Steal" (written by Don Everly of the Everly Brothers).
Record companies were reluctant to issue albums by country's female artists until Kitty Wells proved that women could sell.
Wells became the first female country singer to issue an LP, starting with 1956's
Kitty Wells' Country Hit Parade, which consisted of Wells' biggest hits. She released her first studio album in 1957 with
Winner of Your Heart. Soon other female country singers released LPs in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
"Making Believe" and "Lonely Side of Town" became chart-toppers
for Wells, however not on
Billboard magazine. Wells's later 1950s releases included "Searching (For Someone Like You)," "
I Can't Stop Loving YouThe song was also recorded by Ray Charles in 1962 and released from Charles' groundbreaking Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music album. The Ray Charles cover version reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1962, as well as the U.S...
", and "Amigo's Guitar," which she wrote with
John D. LoudermilkJohn D. Loudermilk is an American singer and songwriter.-Biography:Loudermilk grew up in a family who were members of the Salvation Army faith and was influenced by the church singing. His cousins Ira and Charlie Loudermilk were known professionally as the Louvin Brothers...
.
In 1957, Wells issued
Winner of Your Heart. This was followed by a string of LPs released from,
Decca RecordsDecca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; later the link with the British company was broken for several decades...
between 1957 and 1973. She also partnered up with
Webb PierceWebb Michael Pierce was one of the most popular American honky tonk vocalists of the 1950s, charting more number one hits than any other country artist during the decade. For many, Pierce, with his flamboyant Nudie suits and twin silver dollar-lined convertibles, became the most recognizable face...
the same year for two duet singles, including the Top 10 hit, "Oh So Many Years." The duo didn't record together again until 1964 with the Top 10 hit, "Finally." In 1959, Wells had two Top 5 hits with "Amigo's Guitar" and "Mommy for a Day." Wells was later awarded a
BMI awardBroadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
for writing "Amigo's Guitar." Although not known much for her songwrting, Wells has won two BMI awards, including one for "Amigo's Guitar." She has published over 60 songs.
She continued to put much of herself into her songs throughout her career, inspiring other female country singers to record risky material as well.
Loretta LynnLoretta Lynn is an American country music singer-songwriter; she was one of the leading country vocalists and songwriters during the 1960s and is revered as a country music cultural icon....
was one of her followers in this sense, when she recorded "Don't Come a Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)" in 1967.
Dolly PartonDolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best-known for her work in country music....
's 1968 recording "
Just Because I'm a WomanJust Because I'm a Woman was released in April 1968, and is Dolly Parton's first solo album for RCA.-Album information:The title song, in which a woman admonishes her boyfriend for passing judgment on her previous sexual encounters, even though he is guilty of the same behavior Just Because I'm a...
," like "Honky Tonk Angels," questioned the male-female double-standard.
Wells entered the 1960s on top with songs like "Heartbreak U.S.A." and "Day into Night."
"Heartbreak USA" peaked at #1 on the Billboard Country Chart and became her third and final #1 hit. The follow-up, "Day Into Night" was a Top 10 hit the same year. Owen Bradley took over as Wells' producer in the 1960s. While Bradley did produce some of the biggest-selling country crossover singers of the time period, including
Patsy ClinePatsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
, he did have to record some of what Nashville then called "The Old-Timers," or the "Honky-Tonkers" from the 1950s, including Webb Pierce,
Ernest TubbErnest Dale Tubb , nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" , marked the rise of the honky tonk style of music...
, and Wells. With these singers, including Wells, he steered them all into the new contemporary sound without pushing them out of their limits. Wells's sound changed slightly due to Bradley's influence, incorporating some of the new Nashville Sound into her material.
The well-known Nashville Sound vocal group,
The JordanairesThe Jordanaires are an American singing group formed in 1948 best known for backing many of Elvis Presley's recordings.- Members :The group formed in 1948 in Springfield, Missouri, with members Bill Matthews , Bob Hubbard , Bill's brother Monty Matthews , Culley Holt , and pianist Bob Money...
, can be heard backing Wells on her big country hit from 1961, "Heartbreak USA."
In the early '60s, her career dipped slightly, but she continued to have Top Ten hits frequently.
In 1962, Wells had three Top 10 hits with "Will Your Lawyer Talk to God," "Unloved Wanted," and "We Missed You." Beginning in 1964, Wells' albums began to chart the Top Country Albums chart, starting with the LP,
Especially for You. Some of Wells' albums peaked within the Top 10 on that chart. That same year, Wells' singles began to return to the Top 10 with "This White Circle on My Finger" and "Password," both of which peaked at #7 on the Billboard Country Chart. In 1965, Wells had her last Top 10 hit with "Meanwhile, Down At Joe's" and in 1966, Wells then had her final Top 20 hit with "It's All Over But the Crying," which peaked at #14 on the Country charts.
During the late '60s and '70s, Wells' streak of hits evaporated, but she managed to have a string of minor hits and remained a popular concert attraction.
Wells continued with a string of Top 40 hits nearly up until the end of the decade with her last Top 40 single, "My Big Truck Drivin' Man" in 1968. In 1968, Wells recorded a duet album with husband Johnnie Wright called,
We'll Stick Together. Wells also reunited with Red Foley at the end of the decade for a studio album. Her albums continued to chart the Top Country Albums chart up until 1969 with
Guilty Street.
Wells was popular enough to start her own syndicated television program with her husband in 1969.
The Kitty Wells/Johnny Wright Family Show also featured appearances by their children, including actor Bobby Wright, and stayed on the air for several years.
She became the first female country star to have her own
syndicatedIn broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows to multiple individual stations, without going through a broadcast network. It is common in countries where television is scheduled by networks with local affiliates, particularly in the United States...
television show, but the program could not compete against shows starring more contemporary male artists like
Porter WagonerPorter Wayne Wagoner was a popular American country music singer known for his flashy Nudie and Manuel suits and blond pompadour. He introduced a young Dolly Parton on his long-running television show, and they were a well-known duet team throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s...
and Bill Anderson and only ran for one year.
1970 – present: Career decline and retirement
Wells stayed under the Decca label up until 1973. She released three studio albums in 1970 and two in 1971. The singles from these albums did not become major hits, some which didn't even make the Top 70 on the Billboard Country Chart. In 1973, when Decca became
MCA RecordsMCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part...
, Wells stayed with them for a short period time, before leaving the label. In 1974 she signed with
Capricorn RecordsCapricorn Records is an independent record label which was launched by Phil Walden, Alan Walden, and Frank Fenter in 1969 in Macon, Georgia. Capricorn became famous for its role in spearheading Southern rock, with The Allman Brothers Band at the forefront, but also including the Marshall Tucker...
, a southern rock label of the era, and recorded a blues-flavored album entitled
Forever Young on which she was backed by members of the Allman Brothers Band. The album was not a huge commercial success (though the Dylan-penned title tune did receive some airplay), but it received considerable acclaim and, through its association with the Allmans, brought Wells to the attention of a younger audience.
In 1976 she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Wells became the second female Country singer to become elected to the Hall of Fame (
Patsy ClinePatsy Cline , born Virginia Patterson Hensley, was an American country music singer who enjoyed pop music crossover success during the era of the Nashville sound in the early 1960s...
was the first to be honored as a solo act; 1973). In the late 1970s, Wells and husband formed their own record label, Rubocca (the name was a composite of their three children's names: Ruby, Bobby, and Carol) and released several albums. In 1979 at age 60 she was back on the Billboard magazine charts with a modest hit, "I Thank You for the Roses."
Despite her waning popularity, Wells remained a successful concert attraction at smaller venues throughout the country and was still performing on the summer resort circuit as late as the mid-1980s.
In 1987 she joined fellow Opry legends
Brenda LeeBrenda Mae Tarpley , better known as Brenda Lee, is an American performer who sang rockabilly, pop and country music with equal conviction and power; and had 37 US chart hits during the 1960s, a number surpassed only by Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Ray Charles and Connie Francis...
and
Loretta LynnLoretta Lynn is an American country music singer-songwriter; she was one of the leading country vocalists and songwriters during the 1960s and is revered as a country music cultural icon....
on
k.d. Langk.d. lang OC is a Canadian pop and country singer-songwriter. The artist gives her name in lowercase letters, with the given names contracted to initials and no space between these initials.Lang has won both Juno Awards and Grammy Awards for her musical performances...
's "Honky Tonk Angels Medley," which failed to crack the U.S. country charts despite high critical acclaim and crossover success in
CanadaCanada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Wells's 1955 recording "Making Believe" was included in the soundtrack of the film
Mississippi BurningMississippi Burning is a 1988 crime drama film loosely based on the FBI investigation into the real-life murders of three civil rights workers in the U.S. state of Mississippi in 1964. The movie focuses on two fictional FBI agents who investigate the murders...
.
In 1991, Wells awarded from the Grammy Awards a
Lifetime Achievement award.
Kitty and Johnny opened the "Family Country Junction Museum and Studio" in 1983 in their hometown of
MadisonMadison, Tennessee is a neighborhood of Nashville, Tennessee in the United States. It is incorporated as part of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County....
, but stopped running it on their own in 2000. Their grandson, John Sturdivant, Jr. has kept the Junction Recording Studio at its present location and which also houses Junction Records, and Music Entertainment.
Kitty Wells and her husband/singing partner of 53 years, will performed their final show together on Sunday, Dec. 31, at the Nashville Nightlife Theater and announced their retirement earlier in 2000.
Wells was ranked #15 on
CMT's 40 Greatest Women of Country Music in 2002.
An exhibit honoring Kitty Wells, will open at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville on Aug. 15 and will run through June 2009.
On May 14, 2008, Wells' "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" was added to the
National Recording RegistryThe National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically important, and/or inform or reflect life in the United States". The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, which created the National Recording...
at the
Library of CongressThe Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress and is the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and holds the largest number of books. The head...
, along with
Roy OrbisonRoy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter and musician, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly / country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records...
's "Oh, Pretty Woman."
Personal life
Wells has been married to husband, Johnnie Wright since October 30, 1937. Together they have had three children, two daughters Ruby (1939-2009) and Carol Sue, as well as a son, Bobby. In addition, Wells has two sisters, Mae and Jewel. Her parents were Charles Cary and Myrtle Deason, who have died since.
Carol Sue released a single with Wells in the mid-50s titled "How Far is Heaven," which peaked at #11 on the Billboard Country Chart. Wells' other children have been involved in the music business before, but have not developed professional careers as country music singers. Wells and her husband celebrated their seventieth wedding anniversary together in 2007 - a rare achievement for any couple and possibly the longest celebrity marriage in history.
External links