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.
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