When The Judds debuted in 1984, the mother-daughter duo became America’s sweethearts.
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But this wasn’t a novelty act. Right out of the gate, The Judds began a trajectory to becoming a country music institution. They effortlessly merged the classic sound of Patsy Cline with the clean productions of the 1980s.
Their debut features now-standards performed with soaring and tight vocal harmonies. Both mother Naomi and daughter Wynonna topped the Country Albums chart with Why Not Me, an enduring classic.
Here’s a look back at The Judds’ debut masterpiece in three songs.
“Why Not Me”
The title track to The Judds’ debut album reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart and stayed on top for two weeks. It was the duo’s second No. 1 following “Mama He’s Crazy.” The track follows someone looking to find love everywhere around the world except their hometown. But the girl next door imagines a romance happening at home in Kentucky. Baby, why not me? The hit became an early underdog anthem for the future country legends.
You’ve been searching from here to Singapore
Ain’t it time that you notice the girl next door
Baby, why not me?
Oh, you had to see if the world was round
It’s time that you learned how good settling down could be
Why not me?
“Mama He’s Crazy”
In the early 1980s, Naomi worked as an ICU nurse at a Franklin, Tennessee, hospital. She was a single mother to her daughters Wynonna and Ashley. She treated producer and songwriter Brent Maher’s daughter following a car accident and gave him a demo tape of her and Wynonna. Maher helped The Judds sign with RCA and produced their debut. The title to their first No. 1 plays on a partner being “crazy.” But the mid-tempo ballad reveals he’s just crazy in love.
Mame, he’s crazy
Crazy over me
And in my life is where he says
He always wants to be
“Love Is Alive”
This one earned The Judds a Grammy nomination for Best Country Song. The track contains one of the most durable hooks in country music history, exquisitely putting love into the ordinary. Finding comfort in everyday moments, trudging through the week, sharing breakfast, and even while asleep. Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani covered the song in 2023 following Shelton’s departure from The Voice, ending a 23-season run on the show. Still, it’s hard to hear anyone other than Naomi and Wynonna sing “Love Is Alive.” You can hear echoes of The Judds’ influence on The Highwomen’s stirring “Crowded Table.”
Love ain’t a candle
It doesn’t burn through one night
And need the dark to shine
Love is alive
Photo by Ron Wolfson/Getty Images
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