Tammy Wynette

  • Nashville, TN
    hometown
  • Country
    genre
  • 1966
    started
  • Bio
    full story
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About Tammy Wynette

Official Site: http://TammyWynette.com/ , countrymusichalloffame.com


In many ways, Tammy Wynette deserves the title of "the First Lady of Country Music." During the late '60s and early '70s, she dominated the country charts, scoring 17 number one hits. Along with Loretta Lynn, she defined the role of female country vocalists in the '70s.

After her father, who was a musician, died when she was just eight months old, Wynette was raised at her grandparents' home in Mississippi; her mother moved to Birmingham, AL, to do military work. As a child, Wynette taught herself to play a variety of instruments left behind by her father. When she was a teenager, she moved to Birmingham to be with her mother. At 17, she married her first husband, Euple Byrd, and set to work as a hairdresser and beautician. The marriage was short-lived, but it produced three children within three years. By the time her third child was born, the couple were divorced.

Wynette's third child had spinal meningitis, which meant she had expensive medical bills to pay. In order to earn some extra money, she began performing in clubs at night. In 1965, she landed a regular spot on the television program The Country Boy Eddie Show, which led to appearances on Porter Wagoner's syndicated show. The following year, she moved to Nashville, where she auditioned for several labels before producer Billy Sherrill signed her to Epic Records.

"Apartment #9," Wynette's first single, was released late in 1966 and almost broke the country Top 40 early in 1967. It was followed by "Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad," which became a big hit, peaking at number three. The song launched a string of Top Ten hits that ran until the end of the '70s, interrupted by three singles that didn't crack the Top Ten. After "Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad" was a success, "My Elusive Dreams" became her first number one in the summer of 1967, followed by "I Don't Wanna Play House" later that year.

During 1968 and 1969, Wynette had five number one hits -- "Take Me to Your World," "D-I-V-O-R-C-E," "Stand by Your Man" (all 1968), "Singing My Song," and "The Ways to Love a Man" (both 1969). In 1968, she started a relationship with George Jones which would prove to be extremely stormy. Beginning in 1971, Wynette and Jones recorded a series of duets -- the first was the Top Ten "Take Me" -- which were as popular as their solo hits. However, the marriage was difficult and the couple divorced in 1975; they continued to record sporadically over the next two decades. Throughout the '70s, Wynette racked up number one hits.

In the early '80s, her career began to slow down. Although she still had hit singles, she didn't reach the Top Ten as easily as she had in the previous decade. That trend continued throughout the rest of the decade and into the '90s. Even though she didn't have as many hits as she'd had in the past, Wynette remained a respected star and a popular concert attraction. In the '80s, she began suffering a variety of health problems, including inflammation of her bile duct. She was hospitalized several times during the mid-'90s before her death on April 6, 1998. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, Rovi

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Music

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  • Let's Call It A Day Today
    tammy-wynette
    Video
    Let's Call It A Day Today
  • Beneath A Painted Sky
    tammy-wynette
    Video
    Beneath A Painted Sky
  • NEXT TO YOU
    tammy-wynette
    Video
    NEXT TO YOU
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    • Stand By Your Man
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/4/6/5/8/6/105568564.mp3
    • D-I-V-O-R-C-E
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/3/2/9/6/8/107286923.mp3
    • 'Til I Can Make It On My Own
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/6/1/1/7/8/107287116.mp3
    • Your Good Girl's Gonna Go Bad
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/0/5/6/6/0/121506650.mp3
    • Stand By Your Man
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/9/3/9/8/7/252478939.mp3
    • Take Me To Your World
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/8/2/2/4/6/105464228.mp3

Photos

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  • Country musicians Tammy Wynette and George Jones appear on the set of television show <I>Nashville Palace</I> in 1981.
    Tammy Wynette
    Country musicians Tammy Wynette and George Jones appear on the set of television show Nashville Palace in 1981.
    Hulton Archive/Getty Images
  • Tammy Wynette
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    Tammy Wynette
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    Tammy Wynette
    Tammy Wynette
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  • Tammy Wynette
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Discography

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  • Live Upclose and Personal (2013)
    Tammy Wynette
    Live Upclose and Personal (2013)
    TGG Direct
  • Without Walls (1994)
    Tammy Wynette
    Without Walls (1994)
    Epic
  • Heart Over Mind (1990)
    Tammy Wynette
    Heart Over Mind (1990)
    Epic
  • Next to You (1989)
    Tammy Wynette
    Next to You (1989)
    Epic
  • Higher Ground (1987)
    Tammy Wynette
    Higher Ground (1987)
    Epic
  • Sometimes When We Touch (1985)
    Tammy Wynette
    Sometimes When We Touch (1985)
    Epic
  • Good Love & Heartbreak (1983)
    Tammy Wynette
    Good Love & Heartbreak (1983)
    Epic
  • Even the Strong Get Lonely (1983)
    Tammy Wynette
    Even the Strong Get Lonely (1983)
    Epic
  • Soft Touch (1982)
    Tammy Wynette
    Soft Touch (1982)
    Epic
  • You Brought Me Back (1981)
    Tammy Wynette
    You Brought Me Back (1981)
    Epic
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