Jean Shepard

• Genre: Bakersfield Sound
• Hometown: Pauls Valley

About

Oklahoma-born country singer Jean Shepard stayed true to her hard Honky-Tonk sound throughout a recording career that lasted more than twenty years. She was discovered in Southern California by band leader Hank Thompson, who put her together with record producer Ken Nelson (Buck Owens, Merle Haggard, Roy Clark). She had a hit right from the start with "A Dear John Letter," a duet with Ferlin Husky. She hit again with the oft-covered "A Satisfied Mind" and the hits just kept coming until the mid-1970s, when the trend of country radio turning its back on older performers began in earnest.

- Tom Heyman