Died On This Date (January 27, 2010) Shirley Collie Nelson / Country Singer; Former Wife of Willie Nelson
themusicsover Shirley Collie Nelson (Born Shirley Simpson)
March 16, 1931 – January 27, 2010
Shirley Collie Nelson was a country singer who, over the course of her career, released a handful of hit country singles. An ambitious kid, she left home at the age of 14 to start a career in radio. By the late ’50s, Collie Nelson was a regular on the popular television program, Ozark Jubilee. During the ’60s, Collie Nelson released three hit country singles, “Dime a Dozen,” “Why Baby Why” (with Warren Smith), and “Willingly” (with Willie Nelson). That duet was actually Nelson’s chart debut. The two got married in 1963 and divorced in 1971. Following their divorce, Collie Nelson retired from music. In 2009, she released her memoirs, Scrapbooks in My Mind: Featuring Shirley and Willie Nelson and Many Others. On January 27, 2010, Shirley Collie Nelson passed away at the age of 78.
Terry Kath was the founding lead guitarist for the massively popular jazz/rock fusion band, Chicago. Formed while most of the members were in college, the group went on to sell over 120 million albums while charting the most singles of any act during the ’70s. What separated Chicago from other rock groups of the era was their use of a horn section as a lead instrument. And it could only take a guitarist as talented as Kath to shine through. He was such a guitar wizard, that many of his parts, some of which are instantly recognizable, were recorded in one take. Kath can also be heard singing lead on several Chicago songs, most notably, “Colour My World” and “Make Me Smile.” On January 23, 1978, Kath was with one of the crew members after a party. While at the roadie’s home, Kath grabbed an unloaded pistol and jokingly put it to his head and fired several empty shots. He then grabbed a second pistol, thinking it was also unloaded, and fired a bullet into his head, killing him instantly. He was 31 years old.
