If you ask my Uncle Burl, the original classic country queen isn't Dolly Parton or even Patsy Cline. Nope, he will gladly let you know exactly why that honor belongs to the one and only Kitty Wells. After listening to her for the first time recently, I knew he was 100 percent right before the first song had finished.
Don't get me wrong, I love Dolly like she's my own family, and Patsy definitely made important strides in the genre, too. But while listening to Miss Wells' crisp, beautiful, and downright soothing vocals, all of the stress I had built up in my day honestly just melted into nothing. It's the same charming twang we're used to hearing from all the Grand Ole Opry greats, but with that feminine twist that was totally unique to Wells in her day.
In fact, according to my research, she was the first solo female musician to ever step foot on that illustrious stage back in 1952. Comedian Minnie Pearl pre-dates her by a decade or so, but as far as I can tell, Wells was the earliest lady to show off her musical talents.
However, the song was initially banned from being played on the NBC series when it debuted. The lyrics defend women in response to fellow musician Hank Thompson's accusations in his song,"The Wild Side of Life," by saying, "It's a shame that all the blame is on us women…" Unsurprisingly, this stirred controversy with more conservative listeners. When audiences made it top the charts regardless, the Opry obliged and invited Wells to their studio.
Take a look below and be sure to SHARE her groundbreaking performance with your friends!
