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Kitty Wells

Ellen Muriel Deason (August 30, 1919 – July 16, 2012), known professionally as Kitty Wells, was an American pioneering female country music singer. She broke down a barrier for women in country music with her 1952 hit recording "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels", which also made her the first female country singer to top the U.S. country charts and turned her into the first female country superstar. “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels” would also be her first of several pop crossover hits. Wells is the only artist to be awarded top female vocalist awards for 14 consecutive years. Her chart-topping hits continued until the mid-1960s, paving the way for and inspiring a long list of female country singers who came to prominence in the 1960s.

Wells ranks as the sixth most successful female vocalist in the history of the Billboard country charts, according to historian Joel Whitburn's book The Top 40 Country Hits. In 1976, she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. In 1991, Wells became the third country music artist, after Roy Acuff and Hank Williams, and the eighth woman to receive the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Wells' success and influence on country music garnered her the title "Queen of Country Music".

Birth and Death Data: Born August 30, 1919 (Nashville), Died July 16, 2012 (Nashville)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1949 - 1972

Roles Represented in DAHR: vocalist, leader

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings (Results 501-503 of 503 records)

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Decca SP 1006 9/29/1954 You and me Kitty Wells vocalist  
Decca SP 1007 9/29/1954 As long as I live Kitty Wells vocalist  
Decca SP 1008 9/29/1954 No one but you Kitty Wells vocalist  
(Results 501-503 of 503 records)

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Wells, Kitty," accessed November 25, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/350416.

Wells, Kitty. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved November 25, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/350416.

"Wells, Kitty." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 25 November 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/350416

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