Born on This Day in 1908, the First Woman To Have a Million-Selling Country Single and a Major Influence for Patsy Cline and Dottie West

On this day (October 30) in 1908, Ruby Rose Blevins was born in Beaudry, Arkansas. She was an incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist who built her reputation with her skill as a musician, singer, and yodeler. Later in life, she took the name Patsy Montana before becoming the first woman in country music to release a million-selling single with “I Want to Be a Cowboy’s Sweetheart.” However, that was far from the end of her career. She continued to record and perform until her death in 1996.

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As a teenager, Montana left Arkansas for California, where she studied violin at UCLA. While on the West Coast, she won a talent contest and landed a job with a Los Angeles-area radio station. There, she performed at Rubye Blevins, the Yodeling Cowgirl from San Antone.

[RELATED: Patsy Montana’s 1935 Hit “I Wanna Be a Cowboy’s Sweetheart” Made Her the First Woman in Country Music to Sell More Than a Million Copies of a Single]

According to the Country Music Hall of Fame, she took the name Patsy Montana while performing with the Montana Cowgirls. The trio worked with singer/songwriter Stuart Hamblen and Montie Montana, who was a silent film star, champion roper, and the inspiration for Montana’s stage name.

Years after the Montana Cowgirls disbanded, she joined the Kentucky Ramblers, a swing-influenced string band. That group became the Prairie Ramblers and took on a cowboy image. Their near-constant touring and radio appearances allowed them to build a nationwide reputation. Then, in 1935, producer Art Satherley invited the band to New York to record for ARC. That’s when Montana recorded her record-breaking single.

Patsy Montana Earned Her Place in History with “I Want to Be a Cowboy’s Sweetheart”

“I Want to Be a Cowboy’s Sweetheart” started as the Stuart Hamblen-penned “Texas Plains.” Patsy Montana changed some of the song’s lyrics and changed the title to “Montana Plains.” Later, she went back to the song and made further changes. This final set of changes yielded her signature song. Because it is based on “Texas Plains” and still contains many of the original lyrics, Hamblen shares writing credit with Montana on the historic single.

Montana was far from the last artist to record the song. Suzzy Bogguss released her version of the song in 1989. The next year, The Chicks recorded it on their debut album. The long list of artists who have covered the song also includes LeAnn Rimes, Lynn Anderson, Phish, and Cyndi Lauper.

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