Boney mentioned this Hank III story in the comments below, I'll put it up here so everyone can see.

Career Retrospective Albums From Country Music’s Women

Patsy Cline, Bobbie Gentry, Tammy Wynette, Lynn Anderson


Getting a bit bored by the endless publicity blather for Steve Earle's new one, the interviews are all a bit samey and I just want to hear the damn album but here is one more, from the Rolling Stone and included mostly because I like this:

The way I write songs is true to what I believe is important in country music. I was playing a country joint in Las Vegas when Guitar Town came out, and there was a big dance floor in front of the stage. This guy went dancing by, and he said, "Play something country." I stopped the band in its tracks, and I said, "I have the Number One country album in America. This week, I decide what's fucking country and what's not."

Hear, hear: Ray Charles Should Be in Country Music Hall of Fame