Trailblazing Women of Country: A Look into the Path They Create
On Saturday, March 9th, soloist Miko Marks and Country Music Television’s 2022 “Next Women of Country” Kristina Train, will hit the stage at Weill Hall with their performance titled, “Trailblazing Women of Country- A Tribute to Patsy, Loretta, and Dolly”. These women had undoubtedly a large effect on country music, but who were these women and how did they get to such a level of fame? Today we will be looking at why Patsy Cline, Loretta Lynn, and Dolly Parton are the trailblazing women of the country.
Patsy Cline
From Virginia Patterson Hensley to Patsy Cline
Patsy Cline was born Virginia Patterson Hensley, on September 8th, 1932. As a child, she moved around, working when her family needed money. When she was 13, she contracted a throat infection and rheumatic fever, but all was not lost. She became interested in singing and began performing, auditioning at the age of 14 on the local radio station. She continued to perform in the local area. In the 1950’s she met her first husband, Gerald Cline. Encouraged to take on a stage name, Virginia Patterson Hensley turned to Patsy, taken from her middle name, and used her new surname, Cline, becoming Patsy Cline.
1950’s- 60’s (61)
During the 1950’s through the early 60’s Cline continued to perform, becoming a regular on Connie B. Gay‘s Town and Country Time, though he was officially added to the show in 1955, and in 1954, she signed on to a two-year contract with Four Star Records. Her singles were not hits, though some did believe Cline had potential. In 1956 she got the opportunity to perform on the television show Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts, and on January 21st, 1957, she appeared on the show. She had originally planned to perform the song “A Poor Man’s Rose (Or a Rich Man’s Gold)”, but the show’s producer advised her to sing “Walkin’ After Midnight” and wear a cocktail dress instead of the cowgirl outfit she usually wore. She sang the song, wore the dress, and won that night’s program. The song was rush-released and ended up at number two on the Billboard Hot Country and Western Sides chart, while also reaching 12 on the Billboard pop music chart.
The move to Nashville worked. She signed with Randy Huges and officially signed with Decca Records in 1960. She recorded “I Fall to Pieces” and “Lovin’ in Vain”. “I Fall to Pieces”, placed number one on the country chart, got to number 12 on the Billboard Pop chart, and was also ranked as the number two song for 1961 for the end of the year chart.
Car Crash
On June 14, 1961, Cline was involved in a car accident. Another car hit the car Cline and her brother were driving, throwing her out of the window. She was brought to the hospital, sustaining life-threatening injuries. She was treated and took one month to recover.
1961-1963
Six weeks after the accident, Cline went back to performing. Written by Willie Nelson, “Crazy” was originally not a song she wanted to record. Cline refused but after some convincing, she cut and crafted the song to her own liking. The song was released in October in 1961. It hit number two on Billboard’s country music chart and number nine on Billboard’s pop chart. “Crazy’ was one of her biggest hits, and has since become a country music standard.
In 1961 as well, she recorded “She’s Got You”, her third country-pop hit, which hit number one on Billboard’s country chart, while simultaneously getting her global, hitting the UK’s chart at number 43. In 1962, Cline continued her success with such hits as “When I Get Through with You”, “So Wrong”, and “Imagine That”. Through this success she was able to buy a house; her symbol that she had made it as a singer.
Despite her success, royalties began to slow, and so her manager got Cline to sing at the MerriMint Theater in Las Vegas, though she did not enjoy her experience there, developing dry throat and homesickness. She also began to have premonitions of her own death, not believing she was going to live much longer.
Death
Before taking the flight that would take her life, Cline had other options go amiss. On March 3rd, she had been feeling ill, performing “I’ll Sail My Ship Alone”, anyway. The next morning she was unable to leave the Kansas, Fairfax airport, due to fog. Dottie West, a country singer whom Cline had performed with the previous night, offered Cline the opportunity to drive back to Nashville. Cline refused the eight-hour car ride and instead boarded an airplane in the afternoon with Lloyd Estel Copas, and Hawkshaw Hawkins, both of whom are country singers, and Randy Hughes, Cline’s manager and their pilot. Despite stormy weather, and an air manager advising against flying in this weather, the group took off.
The plane crashed on Tuesday, March 5th, 1963, about 90 miles from their destination. Many people were hopeful that the group would eventually land, and that there had been no accident. Country singer and songwriter, Roger Miller and a friend went out and found the crashed plane. It was confirmed that everyone was killed instantly.
Cline is buried at Shenandoah Memorial Park in her hometown of Winchester, Virginia.
Why was she so influential?
We know the history, but why is she considered one of the trailblazing women of country? There are many reasons people believe this, but it comes down to a few things. Number 1, Cline was one of the first country musicians to go from country to pop music. She helped to popularize country music to a wider audience. She defined the genre “Nashville Sound” creating this new country-pop genre. She also helped to create a “new woman”. She wore lipstick and high heels but she also wore men’s pants on stage. This contrast between gender norms helped to set her apart from others in the industry as well as create a new path for women of that time. Cline was, in conjunction with being a singer, she was a mother. While she undoubtedly loved her children, she continued to push her career forward, while also being a full-time mom and homemaker. Cline helped to set a new kind of standard for women. She influenced the genre and ultimately was a friend and advisor to Loretta Lynn and was admired by Dolly Parton.
Loretta Lynn
Early Life of a Coal Miners Daughter
Loretta Web was born in Kentucky on April 14, 1932. Her father was a coal miner and died from a related disease after the family moved to Wabash, Indiana. At the age of 15, Loretta Web married Oliver Vanetta “Doolittle” Lynn, The two moved to Washington state, where Doolittle purchased Lynn her first guitar. She taught herself and began to improve by playing in local clubs and eventually started a band with her brother, called Loretta and the Trailblazers.
Success
Lynn performed on a televised competition where Norm Burley of Zero Records heard Lynn sing. The president of said company had Lynn attend a session in Hollywood, where she reformed “I’m A Honky Tonk Girl,” “Whispering Sea,” “Heartache Meet Mister Blues,” and “New Rainbow.” Her first releases included “Whispering Sea” and “I’m a Honky Tonk Girl“. Subsequently, Lynn began touring and by the time she reached Nashville, she had a song reach number 14 on Billboard’s Country and Western charts. With the help of Wilburn Brothers Publishing Company she signed with Decca Records and by 1960 she had her first certified fan club and was listed in Billboard Magazine’s number four Most Promising Country Female Artists.
The Wilburn Brothers had a hold on the publishing rights to her music, which she fought to regain for 30 years; she was unsuccessful in her efforts. Due to this lack of control, she stopped writing music and began performing with Grand Ole Opry, a weekly live country music broadcast in Nashville.
In 1962, Lynn released her song titled “Success” with Decca Records. It reached number 6 on the Billboard Hot Country Western and Sides. During this time Lynn would continuously have songs in the top 10. And in 1966 her song “You Ain’t Woman Enough (To Take My Man)”, made Lynn the first female country artist to write a number-one hit.
Lynn continued this winning streak. Songs hit number 10, number 5, and number one on many charts for her songs written and produced from 1967 to 1980. “What Kind of Girl (Do You Think I Am)”, got within the top 10, “Your Squaw is on the Warpath” and “You’ve Just Stepped In (From Stepping Out on Me)” both got into the Top 5 Country hits, “Fist City” and “Coal Miners Daughter” both hit number one.
Tributes, awards, and movies
Lynn was a dear friend to Patsy Cline, and after Cline’s death, Lynn recorded a tribute album, with Lynn’s recording of Cline’s song “She’s Got You” hitting number one on the charts.
Lynn focused a lot of her music on women’s issues, like her marriage problems, being a widow, birth control, childbirth, and double standards; she even had eight songs banned from the radio station.
Lynn was the only woman to have ever received the “Artist of the Decade” by the Academy of Country Music. In 1983, she was added to the Nashville Songwriter Hall of Fame and in 1988 the Country Hall of Fame, as well as the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008. In 2013 Lynn was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.
The 1980 film Coal Miner’s Daughter, was a biographical film, and hit number one at the box office in the U.S. Sissy Spacek won seven Academy Awards for her role as Loretta Lynn, winning Best Actress at the Oscars, and many more. She is also the only female country artist to chart in six different decades. In 2018, Lynn was named Artist of a Lifetime by Country Music Television.
Return to country Late Career/ 2000-2020’s
In 2004 Lynn put out the album Van Lear Rose, an album in which she wrote or co-wrote, each song on it. She received high praise for it, winning Grammy® Awards for Best
Country Album of the Year. In 2010, Sony Music released a compilation album, Coal Miner’s Daughter: A Tribute to Loretta Lynn. Her 2015 album Full Circle reached 19 on Billboard’s Hot 200, and was her 40th album to make the top 10; it was nominated for the Country Album of the Year.
Death
Loretta Lynn died on October 4th, 2022, of natural causes at her home in Hurricane Mills. She was 90 years old.
Why was she Important
Lorette Lynn was undoubtedly successful. She won a great deal of awards, and her music was generally well-received by the public, often landing her with top hits. She was incredibly influential though, for her use of music to not shy away from her truth. Her song “Coal Miner’s Daughter”. “The Pill”, “Fist City” and “Rated X”, showed her views on womanhood, and the difficulties she had growing up. She paved the path for others to do the same, and sing their truth as well. She was kind and helpful to her peers, inviting them to sing at her parties and with her. She helped support others within the music industry and create a path for them too.
Dolly Parton
Tumbling out of Bed and into Dolly’s Early Life
Dolly Parton was born in Little Pigeon River, Tennessee. Parton’s family did not have much money when she was growing up. They lived partly in a one-bedroom cabin. She grew up going to church and singing in the church choir; Parton attributes her musical abilities to her mother.
As a child, Parton’s musical abilities were already being recognized. At age 10 she was on local television broadcasts and at age 13 she was in the studio of a small recording label for her single, “Puppy Love”. After graduating high school, the singer moved to Nashville. Originally, Parton was a songwriter, writing many songs that hit the Billboard Top 10 hits; Skeeter Davis‘s “Fuel to the Flame” Bill Phillips “The Company You Keep”, and “Put It Off Until Tomorrow.” At 19 she was pitched as a pop singer, though she did not do very well, none of her songs taking off. After writing a country charting song, Parton’s record label allowed her to sing “Dumb Blonde” and “Something Fishy”, two country songs that reached number 24 and 17 on the country charts.
1967- 1975 Country music
Parton joined Porter Wagoner on his show The Porter Wagoner Show. The two recorded songs together and were successful. While she was releasing solo music, nothing did as well as the music she released with Wagoner. Wagoner had her record “Mule Skinner Blues”. The recording reached number 3 in the charts and in 1971 her song “Joshua” reached number 1. During this period her biggest hit was “Jolene”, released in 1973. It reached the top of the charts in 1974 and was included in the Hot 100, as well as reaching number 7 in the U.K. She and Wagoner eventually parted in 1975, though they remained acquainted.
In 1974 Parton had the chance for Elvis Presley to record her song “I Will Always Love You”, a song that she had released and had reached number 1 on the country charts. She refused after learning Presley expected her to sign half of the publishing rights to any song. This move allowed her to make millions of dollars in royalties.
1976-1986 Pop Music
In 1976 through 1986, Parton began to make the transition to pop music. She took reign over her production with the aim to make it more pop-y. She produced and released New Harvest… First Gathering in 1977. It was well received and the song “Light of a Clear Blue Morning” made it to the pop charts. Her songs “Two Doors Down” and “It’s All Wrong, But It’s All Right” topped the country chart as well as the pop Top 20. She continued to have songs both on the country and the pop charts, including her 1980 hit “9 to 5“.
1987- 2005 Bluegrass
In 1987 Parton released Trio with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt. The album was praised by critics and reached number 1 on Billboard’s Country Albums chart as well as number 10 on Billboard‘s Top 200 Albums chart. Parton released the album Rainbow and the song “The River Unbroken“, but they did not continue her success, so the artist continued to record country music. The 1989 album White Limozeen (1989) gave Parton two number 1 hits, but this success did not continue. Later charts featured more contemporary country artists, leaving others, like Dolly, off the charts.
Her 1993 album Dancing with the Moon, reached number 4 on the charts and would later become Planum. The artists recorded and had some commercial and less ‘upfront’ success with music put out during this time. She continued to have a good time, even if songs or albums did not do as well as past music. In 1999, she, Linda Ronstadt, and Emmylou Harris released a follow-up album, Trio II; the cover of Neil Young’s song “After the Gold Rush” won a Grammy® Award for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals. In 1999 Parton was inaugurated into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
Parton released a few Bluegrass albums, The Grass is Blue, in 1999, where she won the Grammy® Award for Best Bluegrass Album, and Little Sparrow in 2001, with its cover of Collective Soul‘s “Shine.” The latter release won her a Grammy® Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. The third album Halos & Horns followed in 2002.
2005-Present Day
Dolly Parton has released several holiday albums, toured many parts of the world, and has also appeared in several acting pursuits. While of course being an incredible singer and songwriter, Parton has participated in a large amount of philanthropy work. Parton founded Imagination Library, giving almost 200 million books to children. Her organization the Dollywood Foundation helps children in Tennessee get support in education. She has donated multiple large sums to hospitals, including one million dollars to help fund coronavirus research, aiding in finding the vaccine. Dolly Parton is also an incredible businesswoman. She has created her own theme park, Dollywood, and in general, has been instrumental in maintaining her public image.
Why is she influential?
One of the most recognizable country singers today, Dolly Parton has truly embodied the motif of a trail-blazing woman. Similar to Loretta Lynn, Parton has used song as a medium for discussing women’s issues and the feminine perspective. Her ability to cross over into pop, bluegrass, and rock has allowed her to reach a wide range of fans. While many people today would say ‘love all genres be hate country’ Dolly Parton is often the exception; who could hate “Jolene”, or “9 to 5”. Through this she has garnered a vast following breaking through the barriers of genre; she is an artist many people can say they like. Dolly Parton’s philanthropy work has also contributed to her success and influence. She has donated to hospitals and aided in the literacy of children. These efforts, though not seemingly directly related to her music, show her progression from a singer-songwriter, to a public figure, all of which would not have happened if it were not for her influential music career.
These three women have created their own path, and shined a light into what country music could and should be. It is no surprise that a tribute to these women has been created. None of these singers are touring anymore, but if you’re interested in hearing them live, on Saturday, March 9th, the Green Music Center will be hosting soloists Miko Marks and Kristina Train, at Weill Hall with their tribute to these incredible singers of country. Tickets are available now at gmc.sonoma.edu/trailblazing-women.
Written by Liza Schoen
Liza Schoen is a 2024 graduate from Sonoma State University, with a B.A in Communications and Media studies with a minor in philosophy. She currently served as the Green Music Center Marketing Student Assistant (2024), as well as an usher (2022-2024) for Green Music Center shows and concerts.
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