Country legend Kitty Wells died on Monday at the age of 92 due to complications from a stroke.
She was a pivotal figure who paved the way for female country singers and was a hero to the likes of Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton.
Wells was a 33-year-old wife and mother on the verge of quitting music when she recorded Honky Tonk Angels in 1952.
It was a pro-female response to Hank Thompson’s No 1 hit Wild Side of Life, a song blaming a woman he picks up in a bar for breaking up his marriage, and it became her signature song.
The record's message was controversial at the time, and got banned by many radio stations – but it went on to sell nearly a million copies.
"Kitty Wells will always be the greatest female country singer of all times. She was my hero. If I had never heard of Kitty Wells, I don't think I would have been a singer myself," wrote Loretta Lynn on her website.
"I wanted to sound just like her, but as far as I am concerned, no one will ever be as great as Kitty Wells. She truly is the Queen of Country Music."
