Melba Montgomery

Melba Joyce Montgomery (October 14, 1938 – January 15, 2025) was an American country music singer and songwriter. She was known for a series of duet recordings made with George Jones, Gene Pitney, and Charlie Louvin. She was also a solo artist, having reached the top of the country charts in 1974 with the song, "No Charge". Born in Tennessee but raised in Alabama, Montgomery had a musical upbringing. Along with her two brothers (songwriters Carl and Earl Montgomery), she placed in a talent contest which brought her to the attention of Roy Acuff. For several years, she toured the country as part of his band until she signed with United Artists Records in 1963.

At United Artists, Montgomery collaborated with George Jones on a series of duets. Their first was 1963's "We Must Have Been Out of Our Minds", which became a top-five single on the country charts. For several years, Jones and Montgomery toured and recorded together. Among their other singles was "What's in Our Heart", "Let's Invite Them Over", and "Party Pickin'". Montgomery became more identified as a duet artist as the decade progressed. She recorded with both Gene Pitney and Charlie Louvin on several charting country singles. Her solo career was overshadowed, though, until she moved to Elektra Records in 1973. Her 1974 song about motherhood called "No Charge" became a commercial success in several genres. It was followed by a series of charting singles, including the top 20 "Don't Let the Good Times Fool You" (1975).

Montgomery continued her solo career. In 1977, she reached the top 40 of the country charts again with a cover of the song, "Angel of the Morning". In the '80s, she released several recordings, including the album I Still Care and the charting single "Straight Talkin'". In the '90s, Montgomery began working as a songwriter in the country music community. She wrote songs that were recorded by a series of artists. Among them was George Strait, who recorded "What Do You Say to That", which became a top-five country single. Montgomery has also continued sporadically releasing music as a country artist. Her final album was 2010's Things That Keep You Going, issued on RPM Music.

Melba Joyce Montgomery was born into a musical family in Iron City, Tennessee, United States, on October 14, 1938. Siblings, Carl and Earl Montgomery, later became songwriters in the country music field. She was raised in Florence, Alabama, where her father taught vocal lessons in the local Methodist church. Montgomery first began singing in the Methodist church and was later given a guitar at age 10. Montgomery and her two brothers formed a trio in their late teens. When she was age 20, the sibling trio won an amateur talent contest held at Nashville radio station WSM's Studio C, which at that time housed the Grand Ole Opry. Impressed by her singing, the talent content judge, Roy Acuff, invited Montgomery to tour with him in place of singer June Webb. Montgomery toured with Acuff from 1958 until 1962. She also recorded three singles for the Nugget label in 1962.

In 1963, Montgomery signed her first major-label recording contract with United Artists Records. Her music was discovered by George Jones (who was also on United Artists) who persuaded producer Pappy Daily to sign her to the label. The pair began recording as a duet partnership beginning in 1963. Montgomery wrote their first duet single called "We Must Have Been Out of Our Minds". In 1963, the single climbed to number three on the American Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The song became Montgomery's breakout single. It was followed by the double-sided top-20 Billboard single, "Let's Invite Them Over"/"What's in Our Heart" and "You Comb Her Hair". The recordings were included on Jones and Montgomery's first studio album, also titled What's in Our Hearts. The disc reached number three on the Billboard Country Albums list in 1963. Their second studio disc, Bluegrass Hootenanny (1964), reached number 12 on the country albums survey. The other singles by the pair that made the Billboard country top 40 through 1967 are: "Please Be My New Love", "Multiply the Heartaches". and "Party Pickin'".

Between 1963 and 1968, Jones and Montgomery recorded a series of duet singles and albums. Their songs centered on themes about couples committing infidelity or comedic-themed songs about marital conflicts. The songs were then blended with Montgomery's Appalachian vocal harmonies. Critics and writers took notice of the Jones-Montgomery duets. In reviewing a 1996 compilation, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic found their songs to "illustrate how well-suited the pair was for each other" and that Montgomery was perhaps "Jones' best duet partner." Wade Jessen of Billboard described the blending of their voices to have "electrifying intensity". The duo toured together routinely throughout the 1960s as well. "It was such an honor to get to record and work shows with him. I’ve been very very blessed through my career," Montgomery recalled.

Montgomery also had a solo career during this period. Her 1963 solo singles, "Hall of Shame" and "The Greatest One of All", both made the top 30 on the Billboard country songs chart. Her solo recordings of this era were also produced by Pappy Daily. Her debut studio album was released in 1964 by United Artists called America's Number One Country and Western Girl Singer. It was followed in August 1964 by her second solo album, Down Home. Along with George Jones, Montgomery moved to Musicor Records in 1966. The same year, Montgomery collaborated with Gene Pitney on the single, "Baby Ain't That Fine". The song rose to number 15 on the Billboard country songs chart in 1966. A collaborative album between the pair was also released in 1966 titled Being Together.

Along with her collaborative recordings, Musicor continued releasing solo albums by Montgomery. In 1966, the label issued her first album of sacred music titled Hallelujah Road. Her other solo albums such as Don't Keep Me Lonely Too Long (1966) contained traditional country material. However, none of her solo singles was commercially successful. Only 1967's "What Can I Tell the Folks Back Home" made the Billboard country chart, peaking at number 61. At Capitol Records, she began being produced by Pete Drake. He was successful in pairing her as a duet partnership with Charlie Louvin. Their 1970 single, "Something to Brag About", went to number 18 on the country songs chart. It was followed by their 1971 studio LP of the same name, which made it to number 45 on the Billboard country albums chart. Five more of their duet singles made the country chart through 1972, including the top-40 entries "Did You Ever" and "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)".