Patsy Cline

Patsy Cline (b. Virginia Patterson Hensley September 8, 1932 – March 5, 1963) was an American country music singer, who enjoyed pop music cross-over success during the era of the Nashville Sound in the early 1960s. Since her death at the age of 30 in a 1963 plane crash at the height of her career, she has been considered one of the most influential, successful, revered and acclaimed female vocalists of the 20th century. Her life and career has been the subject of numerous books, movies, documentaries, articles and stage plays.

Cline was best known for her rich tone and emotionally expressive voice, which, along with her role as a mover and shaker in the Country Music industry, has been cited and praised as an inspiration by many vocalists of various music genres. Posthumously she has sold millions of albums over the past 50 years and won countless awards, which has given her an iconic fan status, similar to that of music legends Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley. In 2001, she was voted by artists and members of the Country Music industry as #1 of 40 Greatest Women of Country Music of all time and in 1999 she was voted #11 of The 100 Greatest Women in Rock and Roll of all time by members and artists of the rock industry. According to her 1973 Country Music Hall of Fame plaque: "Her heritage of timeless recordings is testimony to her artistic capacity." Among those hits: "Walkin' After Midnight", "I Fall to Pieces", "She's Got You", "Crazy", and "Sweet Dreams".

Early years & rise to fame

Born Virginia Patterson Hensley on September 8, 1932, in Gore, Virginia, she was the daughter of Sam and Hilda Patterson Hensley, a blacksmith and a seamstress; Hilda was only 16. Patsy was the eldest of three children, which included a brother, Sam, and a sister, Sylvia Mae. The three children, despite their given names, were called "Ginny," "John," and "Sis," respectively.

Some say that Patsy had an unhappy childhood and grew up a poor girl "on the wrong side of the tracks", but except for the fact that her father deserted the family in 1947, when she was fifteen, the Hensley home was quite happy.^[1] The family moved often, living in many different places around Virginia, before settling into Winchester. Cline often proclaimed as a child that she would one day be famous, and looked up to stars such as Judy Garland and Shirley Temple. A serious illness as a child caused a throat infection which, according to Cline, resulted in her gift of "a voice that boomed like Kate Smith's." Cline credited everyone from Kay Starr to Hank Williams for influencing her and was very well rounded in her musical tastes. As a child, she often sang in church with her mother. Cline was also a by-ear pianist and sang with perfect pitch.

Cline began performing in area variety/talent shows early on. She once went to the local radio station (WINC) in Winchester and ask DJ Jimmy McCoy if he would let her sing on his radio show. He did and this was a great opportunity for Patsy, as Jimmy's radio show was a great showcase for local talent. As she grew older, she began to play in popular nightclubs. To support her family after her father abandoned them, she dropped out of high school and worked various jobs, soda jerking and waitressing by day. At night, Cline could be found singing at local nightclubs, wearing her infamous fringed western stage outfits designed by herself and made by her mother, Hilda.

During this period in her early 20s, Cline met two men who would be responsible for making her name a household word. The first was contractor Gerald Cline, whom she married in 1953 and would divorce in 1957. The second was Bill Peer, her new manager. It was Peer who gave her the name "Patsy", short from her middle name and her mother's maiden name "Patterson."

Cline began making numerous appearances on local radio, and she attracted a large following in the Virginia/Maryland area—especially when Jimmy Dean learned of her. She became a regular on Connie B. Gay's "Town and Country" television show, broadcast out of Washington, D.C, which also featured Dean, himself an established young country star. She also began making appearances on the world renowned Grand Ole Opry.

In 1955, Cline was signed to Four Star Records. However, her contract only allowed her to record compositions by Four Star writers; Cline disliked this, and later expressed regret over signing with the label. Her first record for Four Star was "A Church, A Courtroom & Then Good-Bye." The song attracted little attention, although it did lead to several appearances on The Grand Ole Opry. Between 1955 and 1957, Cline recorded Honky Tonk material, with songs like "Fingerprints," "Pick Me Up On Your Way Down," and "A Stranger In My Arms." She also experimented with Rockabilly. However, none of these songs gained any notable success for Cline. According to Owen Bradley, her Decca Records producer, the Four Star compositions only seemed to hint at the potential that lurked inside of Cline. Bradley thought her voice was best suited for singing pop music. However, the Four Star producers insisted that Cline would record only country songs, as her contract also stated. During her contract with Four Star, Cline recorded 51 songs.

1957: Success of "Walkin' After Midnight"

The year 1957 was a year of great change in Cline's life as she found national stardom and married the man whom she called the love of her life, Charlie Dick. While looking for material for her first album "Patsy Cline" a song appeared titled "Walkin' After Midnight," written by Don Hecht and Alan Block. Cline initially did not like the song because it was, according to her "just a little old Pop song." However, the song's songwriters and record label insisted Cline should record it. She then auditioned for Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scout's program in New York City, and luckily got accepted to sing on the show.

Initially, Cline was supposed to sing the song "A Poor Man's Roses (Or a Rich Man's Gold)," however, show producers insisted Cline instead sing "Walkin' After Midnight." That night, she won the program and was invited to return to the show. The song was so well-liked by the audience that she decided to release "Walkin' After Midnight" as a single. The song was released in early 1957, and before long it was a hit on both the Country and Pop charts, reaching #2 on the Country charts and #12 on the Pop charts. Cline became one of the first country singers to have a crossover pop hit. She couldn't follow up "Walkin' After Midnight" with another hit, however, in part because of the deal that limited her to songs from one publishing company.^[2] After the birth of their daughter Julie in 1958, she and Charlie moved to Nashville, Tennessee.

In 1959, Cline met Randy Hughes, who became her manager. With Randy's promotion and a new contract with Decca Records - Nashville, Cline's stardom would begin its ascent to the top.

1960: The year of her comeback

When her Four Star contract expired in 1960, Cline signed with Decca Records-Nashville, under the direction of legendary producer Owen Bradley. He was not only responsible for much of the success behind Cline's recording career, but also for those of Brenda Lee and Loretta Lynn. Under Bradley's direction, Cline enjoyed country and pop music success both because of her versatile vocal ability and because of Bradley's arrangements and incorporation of instruments — such as strings — not typically used on country records. Bradley found that Cline's voice was best-suited for Country Pop-crossover songs, and helped smooth Cline's voice into silky, torchy Pop-singing glory. Cline never liked the fact that she sang Pop material. This new, more sophisticated instrumental style became known as “The Nashville Sound,“ founded by Bradley and RCA’s Chet Atkins, who produced Jim Reeves, Skeeter Davis, Connie Smith, and Eddy Arnold.

Cline's first Decca release was in 1961, was the Country Pop ballad "I Fall to Pieces," written by Hank Cochran and Harlan Howard. It went on to become Cline's first #1 hit on the Country charts and peaked at #12 on the Pop charts. The song cemented Cline's status as a household name and proved that female Country singers could enjoy just as much crossover success as male counterparts such as Jim Reeves and Eddy Arnold.

That same year, she was elected as a member of the Grand Ole Opry, the realization of a lifelong dream. Cline was one of the Opry's greatest stars and, reportedly, she is the only Opry star in history to date to receive membership merely as a result of asking.

Believing that there was "room enough for everybody" and perhaps due to her own self confidence, Cline befriended and encouraged several women starting out in Country Music, including Loretta Lynn, Dottie West, Barbara Mandrell (with whom Cline once toured), Jan Howard and Brenda Lee, all of whom cite her as an influence in their careers. Both Lynn and West claimed that Cline always gave of herself to her friends, often buying them groceries when they didn't have money, new furniture and even money to pay the rent to enable them to stay in Nashville and continue their quest for stardom. Cline's friend, Honky Tonk pianist and Opry star Del Wood, stated in the 1980 Ellis Nassour biography Patsy Cline: "Even when she didn't have it, she'd spend it and not always on herself. She'd give anyone the skirt off her backside if they needed it."

Cline also became friends with Roger Miller, Hank Cochran, Faron Young, Ferlin Husky, Harlan Howard and Carl Perkins; a group of male artists and songwriters whom she enjoyed joining at Tootsies Orchid Lounge next door to the Grand Ole Opry. Singer George Riddle remembered on the 1986 documentary The Real Patsy Cline: "It wasn't unusual for her to sit down and have a beer and tell a joke. She'd never be offended at the guys jokes because most of the time she'd tell a joke better than you! Patsy was full of life as I remember." She was known for calling her friends "Hoss," a term of endearment, and referring to herself as "The Cline." Though Cline never met Elvis Presley, she was a huge fan of his music and often kept up with him through the Jordanaires, who backed her and Elvis' vocals. She referred to him as "The Big Hoss."

Near-fatal car accident

While Cline would continue to thrive successfully in 1961, she also gave birth to a son, Randy. However, on June 14, 1961, Patsy and her brother Sam were involved in a head-on car collision, the second and most serious of two during her lifetime. The impact of the accident threw Patsy through the windshield, nearly killing her. Upon her arrival at the scene, singer Dottie West picked glass from Patsy's hair, while Patsy insisted that the other car's driver be treated first. (Coincidentally, West would be involved in a serious car accident in 1991 and would not survive.) Patsy later stated that she saw the female driver of the other car die before her eyes at the hospital. Suffering from a jagged cut across her forehead that required stitches, a broken wrist, and a dislocated hip, she spent a month in the hospital. While in the hospital, Cline, according to the Nassour biography Patsy Cline and to friend Billy Walker, rededicated her life to Christianity. She received thousands of cards and flowers sent by fans.

When she left the hospital, her forehead was still visibly scarred. For the remainder of her career, she wore wigs and careful makeup to hide the scars, and headbands to relieve pressure on her forehead. She returned to the road on crutches, determined to be a survivor with a new appreciation for life.

Years later in the 1990s, a series of recordings from her first concert since the accident was released. These archives, recorded in Tulsa, Oklahoma, were found in the attic of one of Cline's former residences by the current owners and given to the family. The album, released in 1995, is titled "Patsy Cline: Live At the Cimmarron Ballroom."

The height of her career: 1960-1961

After the success of "I Fall to Pieces," Cline needed a follow-up, particularly because her near-fatal car accident had required that she spend a month in the hospital, which meant lost time from touring and promotions. The famous follow-up to her hit was written by Willie Nelson and called "Crazy," which Cline originally hated. Her first recording session recording "Crazy" turned out to be a disaster, and Cline claimed that the song was too difficult to sing. She tried to record "Crazy" like the demo recording of it (which was sung by its songwriter), but had a tough time recording it not only because of its demo, but because she found the high notes hard to sing due to her wounded ribs from her car accident. The entire day in the studio at Decca was a head-on fight between Cline and Owen Bradley. However, when the song was finally recorded the next week in one take by Cline, she recorded a version that was completely different from the demo, and because of this, it turned out to become a classic and, ultimately, Cline's signature song – the one for which she remains best known. In late 1961, the song was an immediate Country Pop crossover hit, and was also her biggest Pop hit, when it went into the Top 10 there. Friend Loretta Lynn later reported that the night Cline premiered "Crazy" at the Grand Ole Opry, she received three standing ovations.

The success of "Crazy" was a hit on three different charts, the Hot Country Songs list, the US Hot 100 list, and the Adult Contemporary list. Soon an album was released that November entitled Showcase With the Jordanaires, that featured Cline's two big hits that year. The album brought success to Cline late that year.

Affect & Influence

Cline was the first female in the industry to prove that she could surpass her male competitors in terms of record sales and concert tickets. Cline is often considered a "pioneer" and "heroine" by her female contemporaries, who claim that she broke down doors in the industry for women when it was dominated and ruled by men. In retrospect, it was Cline who opened the door to greater pop-influence for country female vocalists, like Lynn Anderson, Crystal Gayle, Reba McEntire, Faith Hill, Shania Twain and Carrie Underwood.

Guitarist/Producer Harold Bradley said of Cline in the 2003 book Remembering Patsy: "She's taken the standards for being a country music vocalist, and she raised the bar. Women, even now, are trying to get to that bar.... If you're going to be a country singer, if you're not going to copy her -- and most people do come to town copying her -- then you have to be aware of how she did it. It's always good to know what was in the past because you think you're pretty hot until you hear her.... It gives all the female singers coming in something to gauge their talents against. And I expect it will forever."

Despite her name, Cline proved she was "nobody's patsy" many times in her life. She was in control of her own career, making it clear that she could stand up to any man -- verbally and professionally -- and challenge their rules if they got in the way of where she felt her career should be headed. In a day and time when concert promoters often cheated stars out of their money by promising to pay them after the show and running with the money during the concert, Cline stood up to many of the male promoters before she even took the stage and demanded their money by claiming: "No dough, no show." According to friend Roy Druskey on the 1986 documentary The Real Patsy Cline: "Before one concert we hadn't been paid. And we were talking about who was going to tell the audience that we couldn't perform without pay. Patsy said 'I'll tell 'em!' And she did!" Friend Faron Young stated "It was common knowledge around town that you didn't mess with 'The Cline'!"

When Cline made her first recordings in 1955, Kitty Wells, known as "The Queen of Country Music," was the undisputed top female vocalist in the country music field. By the time Cline broke through as a consistent hit maker in 1961, Wells was still country's biggest female star. However, Cline dethroned Wells when, for two years in a row, she won Billboard Magazine's "Favorite Female Country & Western Artist" and the 1962 Music Reporter "Star of The Year" award. The two country queens could not have been more different, given that Cline's husky, full-throated, sophisticated sound was a marked contrast to Wells' pure-country, quivering vocals. Cline proved her name as such a household word that she needed no "royal" title other than her name to prove her popularity. Though she was gaining attention on Country and Pop charts, she did not think of herself as anything other than a country singer and was known for her humility in her motto "I don't want to get rich -- just live good."

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Patsy Cline

With Cline’s success climbing the record charts, she was in high demand on the concert circuit. Whereas most women in Country Music at that time were only considered “window dressing,” opening acts or extra attractions for the more popular and higher paid male star headliners, Cline was the first to headline her own show and receive top billing above many of the male stars with whom she toured. While bands typically backed up the female singer, Cline led the band through the concert instead. Cline was so respected by men in the industry, that, rather than being introduced to audiences as “Pretty Miss Patsy Cline” as her female colleagues often were, she was given a more stately introduction such as that given by Johnny Cash on their 1962 tour together: “Ladies and Gentlemen, the one and only Patsy Cline.” As an artist, Cline held her fan base in extreme high regard (many of which became lifelong friends), staying for hours after concerts to chat with them and sign autographs.

Cline was not only the first woman in Country Music to perform at New York’s Carnegie Hall (which she did with fellow Opry members with disapproval from elite gossip columnist Dorothy Kilgallen, whom Cline fired back at) but also to headline the Hollywood Bowl with