About those ALL-GIRL country western bands in the USA

Ray Montee (RIP) · Post by **Ray Montee (RIP)** » 26 Sep 2011 6:10 pm

Over the years I can't recall seeing any all-girl groups altho' I've got an unidentified cassette tape of such a group out of Denver in the late 1960's. It was a real professional group; great music, fabulous steel guitarist....... sounded like Joaquin Murphy.

Ann Jones of KING RECORDS fame was a DJ along with Willy Nelson at local radio station KVAN way back in the late 1950's, as I recall at this late date. She formed such an all-girl group and toured for quite awhile but just sorta drifted into the shadows. Any history on that group?

Why not list history and photo's of any 'all-girl groups' that you've known down thro' the years.

Billy Tonnesen · Post by **Billy Tonnesen** » 26 Sep 2011 7:00 pm

At one time in the sixties, Spade Cooley had an All Girl Band for his Saturday night TV variety show at the Samta Monica Pier Ballroom. Marion Hall was playing Steel Guitar. Just ran across some U-Tubes showing the Band the other day ! Also remember Porter Wagaoner and Bill Anderson using an all girl Band on their TV shows.

Brett Day · Post by **Brett Day** » 26 Sep 2011 7:09 pm

In the early '90's, there was an all girl band called Wild Rose, and they had a steel guitarist named Wanda Vick, who also played dobro and mandolin, in addition to the steel. They had one major hit in the nineties, a little song called "Breakin' New Ground". Wanda was a session musician who worked for Lynn Anderson and at one time, she was in Porter Wagoner's band.

Brett

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 26 Sep 2011 7:47 pm

Wanda Vick -- Now there is one GREAT musician.

Jim Cohen · Post by **Jim Cohen** » 26 Sep 2011 8:55 pm

... and, of course, there are the Dixie Chicks...

... and maybe one might consider the Mandrell Sisters (though they often seemed to have some guys in the background...)

... oh, and there's another Nashville based group of great song-writer/performers, 4 women collectively called "Queen of Hearts". We've done some house parties featuring them up this way in the past and have another happening in November. They're great.

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 26 Sep 2011 9:00 pm

But the Dixie Chicks' band was male (or some really bad looking girls

).

Duane Brown · Post by **Duane Brown** » 26 Sep 2011 10:15 pm

The first all girl group I ever saw was Helen Long and the Longshots. They worked the Nevada circuit in the '70's and featured Roy Nichols' wife Marsha on guitar and Linda Buzzard (Riley) on steel.Linda was Donny Buzzard's wife or ex and played a lot of c6. Really good band. Marsha was killed in a car wreck between Vegas and L.A. in the mid-70's. In 1980, I moved to Reno and got to know Linda as she was starting up a new 4-piece all-girl band, "The Texas Playgirls". The lead singer/drummer was Kathy York, one of the best singers I ever knew. We worked the Nevada circuit and were good friends. When their band broke up, Kathy and I worked together a lot and I lost track of Linda.

Olaf van Roggen · Post by **Olaf van Roggen** » 27 Sep 2011 12:00 am

In Austin Texas there's the Carper Family,a traditional country/bluegrass female group who mostly have Cindy Cashdollar on steel and dobro when they perform.
Austin country singer Brennen Leigh often joins them too,they just released a new cd called :"Back Then",
with Brennen Leigh and Cindy Cashdollar.
They are fantastic!
http://littleredhenpromotions.com/the_c ... amily.html

Alvin Blaine · Post by **Alvin Blaine** » 27 Sep 2011 12:15 am

Richard Sinkler wrote:But the Dixie Chicks' band was male (or some really bad looking girls ).

They started out as an all girl band, from the late '80s to the mid '90s, then the evolved into an equal opportunity employer.

The Original Dixie Chicks lineup(around 1991):

Olaf van Roggen · Post by **Olaf van Roggen** » 27 Sep 2011 12:57 am

....I saw the Dixie Chicks many years ago in Dallas TX in that period,I guess they had Steve Fishell on pedal steel then.

I forgot to mention a group called:"Girl Howdy" Western swing/Country/Honky Tonk band with the nice
Rose Sinclair on steel guitar.www.girlhowdyband.com

Bobby Bowman · Post by **Bobby Bowman** » 27 Sep 2011 1:30 am

I seem to recall that Judy Lynn had an all female band back in the '60's. I think her husband managed the group and they played the Nevada and west coast circut.
BB

Jack Harper · Post by **Jack Harper** » 27 Sep 2011 2:53 am

alvin ...that is the version of the dixie chicks that got my attention. i saw them in the late 80's
on a small club/bar circuit making a splash, having fun but not much money, but it didn't take a lot then. they loved the crowds. the crowd loved them.
i was much disapointed in the re-incatnation that became famous. when your hot your hot!
audrey williams had an all girl act for a moment.
darrel mcCall, joined up for a while, but he looked funny in a dress.

country..........

Steve Allison · Post by **Steve Allison** » 27 Sep 2011 4:55 am

And once apon a time there was Audrey Williams and her All girl band!

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 27 Sep 2011 8:41 am

Thanks Alvin. Had no idea. But many of us outside of Texas probably never saw this version of the Chicks.

Roual Ranes · Post by **Roual Ranes** » 27 Sep 2011 8:54 am

I ran into Ann Jones and her Western Sweethearts in Japan in 1956. Blanche Emerson (now Blanche White) was her steel player and the last I heard of Blanche she was in Arizona and still playing. I have an old photo somewhere. We were working out of the same hotel in Tokyo, doing USO Shows. I saw them again in 1958 in Norman Oklahoma doing a dance at the NATTC EM Club. I will dig for the photo but can't imagine where it is.

Post by **Brad Bechtel** » 27 Sep 2011 10:00 am

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_all-female_bands is mostly rock bands, but a pretty impressive collection nonetheless.

Charles Davidson · Post by **Charles Davidson** » 27 Sep 2011 11:00 am

My alltime favorite was the group Brett mentioned. WILD ROSE.They were HOT,HOT,HOT,pickers. Wanda Vick was married to Bobbe Seymour at one time. I think Bobbe put that band together and produced it. YOU BETCHA,DYK?BC.

Darrell Criswell · Post by **Darrell Criswell** » 27 Sep 2011 11:33 am

Porter Wagoner had an all girl band in the 80's called The Right Combination.

Russ Wever · Post by **Russ Wever** » 27 Sep 2011 1:30 pm

Blanche Emerson (White), steel guitar

Roual Ranes · Post by **Roual Ranes** » 27 Sep 2011 5:43 pm

Russ,
Thanks for the photo. Ann is top row left and Blanche is bottom row left.

Ben Rubright · Post by **Ben Rubright** » 27 Sep 2011 6:22 pm

I can't let this go by without posting the first steel guitar influence in my life.....Abbie Neal. She played a Gibson Console much like Don Helms' Gibson and furthermore she was also a champion fiddle player. Western Pennsylvania and the Wheeling Jamboree were her stompin' grounds before heading west for Reno, NV with her all girl band. Such fond memories I have of them.

http://www.lou-christie.com/abbie2.html

Russ Wever · Post by **Russ Wever** » 27 Sep 2011 9:09 pm

Russ,
Thanks for the photo. Ann is top row left and Blanche is bottom row left.

Yes, and here's a more current Blanche photo . .

Russ Wever · Post by **Russ Wever** » 27 Sep 2011 11:28 pm

oh, and . . .

Russ Wever · Post by **Russ Wever** » 27 Sep 2011 11:29 pm

Alan Harrison · Post by **Alan Harrison** » 28 Sep 2011 7:29 am

Just to set the record straight, I was working with Marsha Nichols at the Ramada Inn Lounge in Bakersfield on the night of her death. The Bass player called me the next morning and told me that Marsha was on her way home from the gig and had met a train at a crossing in Bakersfield and was killed. She was a fantastic guitar player and singer and was really a lot of fun to work with.....A really talented young lady.

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About those ALL-GIRL country western bands in the USA

About those ALL-GIRL country western bands in the USA

Judy Lynn???

Marsha Nichols