Shirley Collie
Encyclopedia
Shirley Collie Nelson born Shirley Angelina Simpson, was an American
country music
and rockabilly
singer, yodeler, guitarist and songwriter. From 1963 to 1971, she was the second wife of country star Willie Nelson
.
to Alice (née Davis) and Henry Simpson, she sang at local war bond rallies during World War II as a child, and made a guest appearance on KFEQ-AM
in St. Joseph, Missouri. In 1945, at age 14, Simpson replaced "Sue" on the weekday morning Millie and Sue show on KMBC-AM in Kansas City, and the duo also appeared on the station's Brush Creek Follies barn dance show. She bought her Little Martin guitar from the previous Sue, an instrument she would use for the rest of her career. Her first marriage, at 15, lasted until she was 19.
In 1950, Simpson moved to Texas to play with Bob Wills
, Johnnie Lee Wills
and other Texas bands. She settled in Corpus Christi and performed locally until the fall of 1955, when the redhead was offered a regular role on ABC-TV’s Ozark Jubilee
in Springfield, Missouri
and signed a recording contract with ABC-Paramount
. In 1956, she released her first singles on the label under her Jubilee stage name, Shirley Caddell, and made a guest appearance on The Eddy Arnold Show
. In 1957, she recorded two singles with Lefty Frizzell
on Columbia Records
, as well as two solo numbers.
In 1958, she left Springfield to tour with The Philip Morris Country Music Show based in Nashville, Tennessee
; where she met the show's manager and emcee, Hiram "Biff" Collie, a country music disc jockey on KFOX-AM
in Long Beach, California. They married and she moved to Hollywood, appearing on Country America on KABC-TV
. Both were also regulars on KTTV-TV's Town Hall Party
, and Collie was a guest on NBC-TV's You Bet Your Life
in 1960.
Starting in 1960, Collie released singles on the Liberty Records
label with Floyd Tillman
, Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys, and Clyde Beavers. In 1961, she made her chart debut with the Harlan Howard
song “Dime a Dozen,” which rose to No. 25 on the Billboard
country chart. That same year, "Why Baby Why
", her duet with Warren Smith
, reached No. 23. Soon record producer Joe Allison approached her to sing with Willie Nelson, who previous singers had been unable to sing harmony with him due to his style. Their 1962 duet, "Willingly", climbed to No. 10 and was his first chart hit, but it failed to establish him as a star.
In 1962, Collie was offered the role of semi-regular character Pearl Bodine on the CBS-TV series The Beverly Hillbillies
, but instead began touring with Nelson, playing bass guitar in his band. They married in Las Vegas
in 1963. As Nelson's career flourished, he talked her into staying home in Ridgetop
outside Nashville, where she helped raise his three children by his first wife, Martha. The couple co-wrote his 1968 single "Little Things", and she is credited with writing his singles "I Hope So" (1969) and "Once More With Feeling" (1970).
After she discovered Nelson had fathered a daughter with Connie Koepke, who would become his third wife, their marriage fell apart and they divorced in 1971. In the years following, however, she would perform and yodel with Nelson when he toured in Missouri until she retired; and the two collaborated on her 2009 book, Memoir: Scrapbooks in My Mind: Featuring Shirley and Willie Nelson and Many Others.
From 1987–1989 Nelson worked for the state of Missouri with the mentally disabled. She continued to perform in Branson, Missouri
and received a lifetime achievement award from KMBZ in 1996.
Nelson died in Springfield, Missouri
on January 27, 2010, aged 78, following a long illness, and was buried at White Chapel Memorial Gardens in Springfield. She is survived by her widower, Ed Melton; and a sister, Mary Lou Ritchie.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
and rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
singer, yodeler, guitarist and songwriter. From 1963 to 1971, she was the second wife of country star Willie Nelson
Willie Nelson
Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized...
.
Biography
Born in Chillicothe, MissouriChillicothe, Missouri
Chillicothe is a city in and the county seat of Livingston County, Missouri, United States. The population was 9,515 at the 2010 census. The name "Chillicothe" is Shawnee for "big town", and was named after their Chillicothe, located since 1774 about a mile from the present-day city.Chillicothe is...
to Alice (née Davis) and Henry Simpson, she sang at local war bond rallies during World War II as a child, and made a guest appearance on KFEQ-AM
KFEQ
KFEQ 680 AM is a Saint Joseph, Missouri area talk radio station that airs local and national programs.Local programming includes news, sports, and agricultural information.Bob Orf is program director for KFEQ. Orf began his career at KFEQ St. Joseph in 1975...
in St. Joseph, Missouri. In 1945, at age 14, Simpson replaced "Sue" on the weekday morning Millie and Sue show on KMBC-AM in Kansas City, and the duo also appeared on the station's Brush Creek Follies barn dance show. She bought her Little Martin guitar from the previous Sue, an instrument she would use for the rest of her career. Her first marriage, at 15, lasted until she was 19.
In 1950, Simpson moved to Texas to play with Bob Wills
Bob Wills
James Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with...
, Johnnie Lee Wills
Johnnie Lee Wills
Johnnie Lee Wills was an American Western swing fiddler popular in the 1930s and 1940s.-Biography:Wills was born in Jewett, Texas, and was the younger brother of Bob Wills. He played banjo with Bob as a member of the Texas Playboys starting in 1934, the year the ensemble began playing on KVOO-AM...
and other Texas bands. She settled in Corpus Christi and performed locally until the fall of 1955, when the redhead was offered a regular role on ABC-TV’s Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee
Ozark Jubilee is the first U.S. network television program to feature country music's top stars, and was the centerpiece of a strategy for Springfield, Missouri to challenge Nashville, Tennessee as America's country music capital...
in Springfield, Missouri
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...
and signed a recording contract with ABC-Paramount
ABC Records
ABC Records was an American record label, founded in New York City in 1955 as ABC-Paramount Records. It originated as the main popular music label operated the Am-Par Record Corporation, the music subsidiary of the American Broadcasting Company . ABC-Paramount Records' first president was Samuel H....
. In 1956, she released her first singles on the label under her Jubilee stage name, Shirley Caddell, and made a guest appearance on The Eddy Arnold Show
The Eddy Arnold Show
The Eddy Arnold Show is the name of three similar American network television summer variety programs during the 1950s hosted by Eddy Arnold and featuring popular music stars of the day...
. In 1957, she recorded two singles with Lefty Frizzell
Lefty Frizzell
Lefty Frizzell , born William Orville Frizzell, was an American country music singer and songwriter of the 1950s, and a proponent of honky tonk music. His relaxed style of singing was an influence on later stars Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, George Jones and John Fogerty...
on Columbia Records
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
, as well as two solo numbers.
In 1958, she left Springfield to tour with The Philip Morris Country Music Show based in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
; where she met the show's manager and emcee, Hiram "Biff" Collie, a country music disc jockey on KFOX-AM
KFRN
KFRN 1280 AM is a non-commercial traditional Christian radio station licensed to Long Beach, California and serving the Los Angeles market, which runs programming from Family Radio. Its transmitter is located in Wilmington, California....
in Long Beach, California. They married and she moved to Hollywood, appearing on Country America on KABC-TV
KABC-TV
KABC-TV, channel 7, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, licensed to Los Angeles, California. KABC-TV's studios are located in Glendale, California...
. Both were also regulars on KTTV-TV's Town Hall Party
Town Hall Party
Town Hall Party was an American country music radio and television show broadcast over KXLA-AM, Pasadena, California, KFI-AM, Los Angeles, California, and KTTV-TV. The first radio broadcast was in the autumn of 1951.Promoter William B...
, and Collie was a guest on NBC-TV's You Bet Your Life
You Bet Your Life
You Bet Your Life is an American quiz show that aired on both radio and television. The original and best-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show debuted on ABC Radio in October 1947, then moved to CBS Radio in September...
in 1960.
Starting in 1960, Collie released singles on the Liberty Records
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.-1950s:...
label with Floyd Tillman
Floyd Tillman
Floyd Tillman was an American country musician who, in the 1930s and 1940s, helped create the Western swing and honky tonk genres. Tillman was inducted into the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame in 1970 and the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1984.-Early life:Tillman grew up in the cotton-mill town of Post,...
, Bob Wills and The Texas Playboys, and Clyde Beavers. In 1961, she made her chart debut with the Harlan Howard
Harlan Howard
Harlan Perry Howard was a prolific American songwriter, principally in country music. In a career spanning six decades, Howard wrote a large number of popular and enduring songs, recorded by a variety of different artists...
song “Dime a Dozen,” which rose to No. 25 on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
country chart. That same year, "Why Baby Why
Why Baby Why
"Why Baby Why" is the title of a country music song co-written and originally recorded by George Jones. Released in late 1955 on Starday Records, and produced by Starday co-founder and Jones manager Pappy Daily, it peaked at #4 on the Billboard country charts that year...
", her duet with Warren Smith
Warren Smith (singer)
Warren Smith was an American rockabilly and country music singer and guitarist.-Biography:Smith was born in Humphreys County, Mississippi to Iola and Willie Warren Smith, who divorced when he was young...
, reached No. 23. Soon record producer Joe Allison approached her to sing with Willie Nelson, who previous singers had been unable to sing harmony with him due to his style. Their 1962 duet, "Willingly", climbed to No. 10 and was his first chart hit, but it failed to establish him as a star.
In 1962, Collie was offered the role of semi-regular character Pearl Bodine on the CBS-TV series The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr....
, but instead began touring with Nelson, playing bass guitar in his band. They married in Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
in 1963. As Nelson's career flourished, he talked her into staying home in Ridgetop
Ridgetop, Tennessee
Ridgetop is a city in Davidson and Robertson counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee. The population was 1,083 at the 2000 census. The Ridgetop Police Department uses several speed traps around the area to generate revenue for the city general fund which is also used to pay their 5 sworn...
outside Nashville, where she helped raise his three children by his first wife, Martha. The couple co-wrote his 1968 single "Little Things", and she is credited with writing his singles "I Hope So" (1969) and "Once More With Feeling" (1970).
After she discovered Nelson had fathered a daughter with Connie Koepke, who would become his third wife, their marriage fell apart and they divorced in 1971. In the years following, however, she would perform and yodel with Nelson when he toured in Missouri until she retired; and the two collaborated on her 2009 book, Memoir: Scrapbooks in My Mind: Featuring Shirley and Willie Nelson and Many Others.
From 1987–1989 Nelson worked for the state of Missouri with the mentally disabled. She continued to perform in Branson, Missouri
Branson, Missouri
Branson is a city in Taney County in the U.S. state of Missouri. It was named after Reuben Branson, postmaster and operator of a general store in the area in the 1880s....
and received a lifetime achievement award from KMBZ in 1996.
Nelson died in Springfield, Missouri
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...
on January 27, 2010, aged 78, following a long illness, and was buried at White Chapel Memorial Gardens in Springfield. She is survived by her widower, Ed Melton; and a sister, Mary Lou Ritchie.
Discography
| Year | Single | US Country Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales... |
|---|---|---|
| 1956 | "I Think You're Lying" | — |
| "Where Did the Sunshine Go?" | — | |
| 1957 | "Oh Yes Darling!" | — |
| "Part-Time Gal" | — | |
| "No One to Talk To" (with Lefty Frizzell Lefty Frizzell Lefty Frizzell , born William Orville Frizzell, was an American country music singer and songwriter of the 1950s, and a proponent of honky tonk music. His relaxed style of singing was an influence on later stars Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Roy Orbison, George Jones and John Fogerty... ) |
— | |
| "Is it Only that You're Lonely" (with Lefty Frizzell) | — | |
| 1960 | "Here I Am, Drunk Again" (with Clyde Beavers) | — |
| "Sad Singin' and Slow Ridin'" | — | |
| "I'd Rather Hear Lies" | — | |
| "My Charlie" | — | |
| "Didn't Work Out, Did It?" | — | |
| 1961 | "Dime a Dozen" | 25 |
| "Why Baby Why Why Baby Why "Why Baby Why" is the title of a country music song co-written and originally recorded by George Jones. Released in late 1955 on Starday Records, and produced by Starday co-founder and Jones manager Pappy Daily, it peaked at #4 on the Billboard country charts that year... " (with Warren Smith Warren Smith (singer) Warren Smith was an American rockabilly and country music singer and guitarist.-Biography:Smith was born in Humphreys County, Mississippi to Iola and Willie Warren Smith, who divorced when he was young... ) |
23 | |
| "Why I'm Walking" (with Warren Smith) | — | |
| "Keeping My Fingers Crossed" | — | |
| "If I Live Long Enough" | — | |
| "Oh You Darling" | — | |
| 1962 | "Willingly" (with Willie Nelson Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson is an American country music singer-songwriter, as well as an author, poet, actor, and activist. The critical success of the album Shotgun Willie , combined with the critical and commercial success of Red Headed Stranger and Stardust , made Nelson one of the most recognized... ) |
10 |
| "Chain of Love" (with Willie Nelson) | — | |
| "You Dream About Me" (with Willie Nelson) | — | |
| "Is this My Destiny" | — | |
| "We're Going Bad Together" | — | |
| "No Wonder I Sing" | — | |