Thanks to a string of hit singles and a popular television variety series, vocalist Barbara Mandrell was arguably the biggest female star in country music in the late '70s and early '80s. Born the oldest daughter into a musical family in Houston, TX, on Christmas Day, 1948, Mandrell was already reading music and playing accordion by the age of... [+] Read More

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One of the most popular and widely recognized female country singers of her era, Crystal Gayle supported her trademark, nearly floor-length hair with a supple voice, a flair for ballads, and a crossover-friendly country-pop style that netted her the occasional mainstream hit. Gayle was born Brenda Gail Webb in Paintsville, KY, in 1951; her older... [+] Read More

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After scoring several hits as part of the soft rock duo England Dan & John Ford Coley, Dan Seals reinvented himself as a country-pop singer and enjoyed a tremendous run of success during the latter half of the '80s. Born in McCamey, TX, in 1948, his brother was Jim Seals, later of another successful soft rock duo, Seals & Crofts. Both brothers... [+] Read More

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In the early '70s, Donna Fargo was an unusual country star for a couple of reasons. She was one of the few female country singers to write her own material, and one of the few country singers of any sort to cross over to the pop charts in a big way, which she did in 1972 with "The Happiest Girl in the Whole U.S.A." (number 11) and "Funny Face"... [+] Read More

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One of country music's most innovative artists during the late '70s and early '80s, Eddie Rabbitt has made contributions to the format that have often gone overlooked. Especially in songs like the R&B-inflected "Suspicions" and the rockin' "Someone Could Lose a Heart Tonight," Rabbitt challenged the commonly recognized creative boundaries of the... [+] Read More

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Best known for playing Bo Duke on the hit TV series The Dukes of Hazzard, John Schneider also maintained a parallel secondary career as a country singer for much of the '80s. Born in Mt. Kisco, NY, in 1960, Schneider grew up in Atlanta and started acting at the age of eight; he also learned guitar, and as a teenager he entertained at parties and... [+] Read More

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Louise is the younger sister of Barbara Mandrell. A guitarist and bassist, she worked in Barbara's band, The Do-Rights, at the age of 15, and toured with Merle Haggard in the early '70s. She married R.C. Bannon in 1979. ~ All Music Guide, All Music Guide

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At his commercial peak in the mid-'70s, Mac Davis was one of America's most popular entertainers, a countrypolitan-styled singer and actor who found considerable success in both fields. Born Scott Davis on January 21, 1942, in Buddy Holly's hometown of Lubbock, TX, he began performing in local rock groups while still in his teens. After moving... [+] Read More

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Ronnie Milsap was one of the major figures of country music in the 1970s, developing a hybrid of country and pop which brought him a large audience. Milsap was born in Robbinsville, North Carolina, and was raised by his father and grandparents following his parents' divorce. He was born blind from congenital glaucoma, and when he was five began... [+] Read More

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One of the longest-running groups in country music, the Oak Ridge Boys started life as a gospel quartet before gradually modernizing their style and moving into secular country-pop. Yet even at the height of their popularity in the late '70s and early '80s -- when they were big enough to cross over to the pop charts -- their sound always... [+] Read More

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