Tammy Wynette
Born: 5 May 1942
Died: 6 April 1998 (56 Years)
Died: 6 April 1998 (56 Years)
Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music singer-songwriter and musician and was one of country music's best-known artists and biggest-selling female singers during the late 1960s and first half of the 1970s.
Wynette was called the "First Lady of Country Music", and her best-known song is "Stand by Your Man", which she co-wrote. Many of her hits dealt with themes of loneliness, divorce, and the difficulties of life and relationships. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Wynette charted 20 No. 1 songs on the Billboard Country Chart. Along with Loretta Lynn, Lynn Anderson, and Dolly Parton, she is credited with having defined the role of women in country music during the 1970s.
A one-time hairdresser from rural Mississippi who rose to stardom, Wynette recorded 39 country Top 10 hits and sold 30 million records.[3] She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1998, the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009, the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience Hall of Fame in 2019. She won two Grammy Awards out of a total of 16 nominations. Her recording of "Stand By Your Man" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999 and was added to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2010. She was three times named female vocalist of the year in the Country Music Association Awards. She was given the American Music Awards Award of Merit, given to artists "who have made truly exceptional contributions to the music industry," in 1996. Her recording of "Stand by Your Man" was ranked as No. 473 on Rolling Stone magazine's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and her recording of "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" ranked as No. 69 on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time". Country Music Television ranked Wynette No. 2 on its list of "40 Greatest Women of Country Music" in 2002.
"She ... became the standard-bearer of an elaborately orchestrated Nashville sound, with pedal steel guitars underlined by strings and backup choruses," prominent music critic Jon Pareles wrote in Wynette's New York Times obituary.
Wynette's 1969 marriage to George Jones, himself a future Country Music Hall of Fame inductee,[18] created a country music supercouple, following the earlier success of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. Though they divorced in 1975, Wynette and Jones recorded a series of albums and singles together that hit the charts throughout the 1970s and early 1980s.
After years of medical problems that resulted in numerous hospitalizations, roughly 26 major operations and an addiction to pain medication, Wynette died on April 6, 1998, at the age of 55 while sleeping on her couch in her Nashville, Tennessee, home. Wynette's doctor from Pennsylvania said she died of a blood clot in her lung. Despite her persistent illnesses, she continued to perform until shortly before her death and had other performances scheduled.
A public memorial service, attended by about 1,500 people, was held at Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium on April 9, 1998. The service was televised live throughout the world by cable networks CNN and The Nashville Network. Parton gave remarks and performed a specially written song, closing her performance with a chorus from one of her own best-known hits, "I Will Always Love You." Country stars Merle Haggard, Wynonna Judd and Lorrie Morgan also performed, with Haggard offering his performance by a prerecorded video. Also offering eulogies were Naomi Judd and Wynette's frequent collaborator Norro Wilson.
A private, graveside service had been held earlier with a crypt entombment at Nashville's Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery. Her death elicited reactions such as that of songwriter Bill Mack, quoted in the Dallas Morning News, who said she was a "class act" and "irreplaceable" and that "she never knew a flat note." Lee Ann Womack was quoted also; she said of Wynette, whose songs often evoked strength and controlled passion, "You knew she knew what she was singing about. You can put her records on and listen and learn so much." Wynette was survived by Richey, her husband; four daughters; and eight grandchildren.
In April 1999, Wynette's remains were exhumed in an attempt to settle a dispute over how she died. A new autopsy was conducted a week after three of her daughters filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Wynette's doctor, Care Solutions of Nashville and Richey, claiming they were responsible for the country star's demise 12 months earlier. The medical examiner who performed the autopsy declared Wynette died from cardiac arrhythmia. Richey was later dropped as a defendant from the suit, a court dismissed the claims against Care Solutions, and the remaining parties reached a confidential settlement with the doctor. Wynette's remains were reinterred in the Woodlawn Cross Mausoleum, at Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Nashville, Tennessee.
In March 2012, the name on Wynette's tomb was changed from "Tammy Wynette" to "Virginia W. Richardson", the star's legal married name at the time of her death. In March 2014, the name on the tomb was changed back.
(wikipedia)
Wynette was called the "First Lady of Country Music", and her best-known song is "Stand by Your Man", which she co-wrote. Many of her hits dealt with themes of loneliness, divorce, and the difficulties of life and relationships. During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Wynette charted 20 No. 1 songs on the Billboard Country Chart. Along with Loretta Lynn, Lynn Anderson, and Dolly Parton, she is credited with having defined the role of women in country music during the 1970s.
A one-time hairdresser from rural Mississippi who rose to stardom, Wynette recorded 39 country Top 10 hits and sold 30 million records.[3] She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1998, the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2009, the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience Hall of Fame in 2019. She won two Grammy Awards out of a total of 16 nominations. Her recording of "Stand By Your Man" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999 and was added to the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry in 2010. She was three times named female vocalist of the year in the Country Music Association Awards. She was given the American Music Awards Award of Merit, given to artists "who have made truly exceptional contributions to the music industry," in 1996. Her recording of "Stand by Your Man" was ranked as No. 473 on Rolling Stone magazine's "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and her recording of "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" ranked as No. 69 on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time". Country Music Television ranked Wynette No. 2 on its list of "40 Greatest Women of Country Music" in 2002.
"She ... became the standard-bearer of an elaborately orchestrated Nashville sound, with pedal steel guitars underlined by strings and backup choruses," prominent music critic Jon Pareles wrote in Wynette's New York Times obituary.
Wynette's 1969 marriage to George Jones, himself a future Country Music Hall of Fame inductee,[18] created a country music supercouple, following the earlier success of Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. Though they divorced in 1975, Wynette and Jones recorded a series of albums and singles together that hit the charts throughout the 1970s and early 1980s.
After years of medical problems that resulted in numerous hospitalizations, roughly 26 major operations and an addiction to pain medication, Wynette died on April 6, 1998, at the age of 55 while sleeping on her couch in her Nashville, Tennessee, home. Wynette's doctor from Pennsylvania said she died of a blood clot in her lung. Despite her persistent illnesses, she continued to perform until shortly before her death and had other performances scheduled.
A public memorial service, attended by about 1,500 people, was held at Nashville's historic Ryman Auditorium on April 9, 1998. The service was televised live throughout the world by cable networks CNN and The Nashville Network. Parton gave remarks and performed a specially written song, closing her performance with a chorus from one of her own best-known hits, "I Will Always Love You." Country stars Merle Haggard, Wynonna Judd and Lorrie Morgan also performed, with Haggard offering his performance by a prerecorded video. Also offering eulogies were Naomi Judd and Wynette's frequent collaborator Norro Wilson.
A private, graveside service had been held earlier with a crypt entombment at Nashville's Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery. Her death elicited reactions such as that of songwriter Bill Mack, quoted in the Dallas Morning News, who said she was a "class act" and "irreplaceable" and that "she never knew a flat note." Lee Ann Womack was quoted also; she said of Wynette, whose songs often evoked strength and controlled passion, "You knew she knew what she was singing about. You can put her records on and listen and learn so much." Wynette was survived by Richey, her husband; four daughters; and eight grandchildren.
In April 1999, Wynette's remains were exhumed in an attempt to settle a dispute over how she died. A new autopsy was conducted a week after three of her daughters filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Wynette's doctor, Care Solutions of Nashville and Richey, claiming they were responsible for the country star's demise 12 months earlier. The medical examiner who performed the autopsy declared Wynette died from cardiac arrhythmia. Richey was later dropped as a defendant from the suit, a court dismissed the claims against Care Solutions, and the remaining parties reached a confidential settlement with the doctor. Wynette's remains were reinterred in the Woodlawn Cross Mausoleum, at Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery, Nashville, Tennessee.
In March 2012, the name on Wynette's tomb was changed from "Tammy Wynette" to "Virginia W. Richardson", the star's legal married name at the time of her death. In March 2014, the name on the tomb was changed back.
(wikipedia)