Crystal Gayle

Born January 9, 1951, in Paintsville, Kentucky, Crystal Gayle moved with her family to Wabash, Indiana, when she was still quite young. Her music career was given a big boost by her older sister, country superstar Loretta Lynn. Loretta thought that Crystal's real name of Brenda Gail Webb was not quite "classy" enough, and after noticing a sign for the Krystal restaurant chain, she changed the "K" to a "C" and her sister became Crystal Gayle. She recorded her first hit song, "I've Cried the Blue (Right Out of My Eyes)", in 1970, which peaked at #23. In 1974 she signed with United Artists Records and producer Allen Reynolds. Over the next two years she released three albums and had several hit songs, including "This Is My Year for Mexico", "I'll Do It All Over Again", "Wrong Road Again" and "I'll Get Over You", her first #1. The next year, 1977, would prove to be a landmark year for her, with the release of her album "We Must Believe in Magic" and the worldwide smash hit, "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue", which--along with her almost floor-length hair--made her a household name.

She had many more hits throughout the rest of the 1970s, including "Talking in Your Sleep", "Ready for the Times to Get Better" and "Half the Way". She continued into the 1980s with such hits as "If You Ever Change Your Mind", "Too Many Lovers", "The Woman in Me", "Til I Gain Control Again" and "The Sound of Goodbye". In 1982 she recorded a duet with Eddie Rabbitt, the acclaimed "You and I", which has become one of the most popular wedding songs ever. In 1985 she teamed up with Gary Morris to record the love theme for the prime-time soap opera Dallas (1978), called "Makin' Up For Lost Time", which turned into yet another #1 hit. Her other 1980s hits included "A Long and Lasting Love", "Nobody Wants to Be Alone", "Straight to the Heart", "Cry" and "Nobody's Angel". In 1987 she guest-starred on the daytime soap opera Another World (1964) for a week. She teamed up again with Gary Morris and turned out the hit "Another World", which was also used as the new theme song for the soap opera. Her career took somewhat of a downturn in the late 1980s and she released her last major single, "Never Ending Song of Love", which peaked at #72, in 1990. Since then she has released several more acclaimed albums and many hit compilations.