Kitty Wells did almost as much for country music as the guitar and fiddle. The Queen of Country died on Monday at the age of 92 after complications from a recent stroke. Wells was not only a major hitmaker in the ’50s and ’60s, but she was the first female country singer with a voice that the mostly male-dominated industry stepped aside and respected. 

Her 1952 hit ‘It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels’ was a fiery answer to Hank Thompson’s ‘Wild Side of Life.’ The song was banned for a short time at NBC radio and the Grand Ole Opry, but eventually became the first song from a female artist to top the charts.

Needless to say, women in Nashville today owe Wells a show of gratitude, and many — like Martina McBride, Kellie Pickler and Sunny Sweeney — said thank you on Twitter this week. Men of country, of course, paid tribute to the late singer as well.

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