Dottie West

Dottie West (born Dorothy Marie Marsh) was an American country music singer and songwriter. She was one of the first female country singers to cross over into the pop charts. She began her career as a background singer for country music stars such as Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn.

West released her debut album, Here Comes My Baby, in 1965 and it peaked at #1 on the Country chart. Her next album, Dottie West Sings, released in 1966, went gold and produced the single “Here Comes My Baby,” which hit #1 on the Country chart and #8 on the Pop chart.

Her other standout albums include Country Girl (1969), The Best of Dottie West (1970), and Greatest Hits (1973). Her standout songs include “Country Sunshine,” “Would You Hold It Against Me,” and “Just What I Had in Mind.”

In 1967, West became the first female country artist to win a Grammy Award, for her duet with Kenny Rogers, “The Carroll County Accident.” An interesting fact about West is that she was the first female country artist to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, in 1980.