Shelly West (born May 23, 1956) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

singer Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...

. Her mother was the country music star

Dottie West Dottie West (born Dorothy Marie Marsh; October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country singer and songwriter. She also had several credits as an actress. A distinguished figure in the country genre, West was among several people ...

, whose career spanned three decades. The younger West reached her peak in popularity during the 1980s before mostly retiring in the wake of her mother's death.

Biography

Early life

West was born in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

on May 23, 1956.

1981–1987

West's career coincided with her mother Dottie's reinvention of herself as a

country pop Country pop (also known as urban cowboy or even urban country) is a fusion genre of country music and pop music that was developed by members of the country genre out of a desire to reach a larger, mainstream audience. Country pop music blends g ...

star. Shelly West is best known for her hit

duet A duet (italian language, Italian: ''duo'') is a musical composition for two Performing arts, performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a har ...

s with

David Frizzell David Frizzell (born September 26, 1941) is an American country music singer. He is the younger brother of country musician, Lefty Frizzell. His career started in the late 1950s, but his biggest success came in the 1980s. Biography Frizzell wa ...

, especially their number-one hit "

You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma "You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma" is a song from the film ''Any Which Way You Can'', performed by American country music artists David Frizzell and Shelly West. It was written by Larry Collins and Sandy Pinkard (of Pinkard & Bowden). The son ...

". She also was a successful solo artist, having her own number-one hit, "

José Cuervo Jose Cuervo is a Mexican brand of tequila manufactured by Proximo Spirits. As of 2012, it was the best-selling tequila brand in the world,Dana Cimilluca, Paul Sonne and Simon Zekaria“Diageo Ends Its Attempt to Buy Jose Cuervo Tequila,”''Wall ...

" in 1983. West was married to

Gary Hood Gary may refer to: *Gary (given name), a common masculine given name, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name Places ;Iran * Gary, Iran, Sistan and Baluchestan Province ;United States *Gary (Tampa), Florida *Gary, Ind ...

1983-2000.

1987–1992: Retirement

West did reunite with Frizzell for a few shows in the late 1980s. West married Garry Hood in 1983 and had twin sons.

Biography at Allmusic.com A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...

/ref> In 1990, Shelly toured with her mother, Dottie; together, they were popular on the road. On August 30, 1991, Dottie was involved in a major car accident, eventually dying five days later, on September 4, from injuries sustained in the accident. West was a technical adviser for a television biopic about her mother's life, '' Big Dreams and Broken Hearts: The Dottie West Story'', produced by and starring actress

Michele Lee Michele Lee (born June 24, 1942) is an American actress, singer, dancer, producer and director. She is known for her role as Karen Fairgate MacKenzie on the prime-time soap opera ''Knots Landing'', for which she was nominated for a 1982 Emmy A ...

. At that point, amid major changes in the country music industry that impacted the careers of many established country stars, the younger West retired to focus on her family.

Post-retirement

In June 2005, CMT honored Shelly and her duet partner, David Frizzell, when they were voted number six on its ''100 Greatest Duets Special''. Although they did not perform any songs, Shelly West and David Frizzell appeared on the special, for which West was interviewed. West appeared on numerous episodes of ''Country Family Reunion'' on

RFD-TV RFD-TV is an American pay television channel owned by Rural Media Group, Inc. The channel features programming devoted to rural issues, concerns and interests. The channel's name is a reference to Rural Free Delivery, the name for the United St ...

. West has returned to performing occasionally since 2012. She reunited with David Frizzell for two shows on October 13, 2012, at the God and Country Theater in

Branson, Missouri Branson is a city in the U.S. state of Missouri. Most of the city is situated in Taney County, Missouri, Taney County, with a small portion in the west extending into Stone County, Missouri, Stone County. Branson is in the Ozarks, Ozark Mountain ...

. The duo played another show on November 2, 2013 at the Americana Theater in Branson.

Discography

Studio albums

Compilations

Singles

Singles with David Frizzell

Awards

References

External links

*
CMT.com: Shelly West
{{DEFAULTSORT:West, Shelly 1958 births Living people American country singer-songwriters American women country singers Musicians from Cleveland Songwriters from Ohio Country musicians from Ohio