Jeannie Seely won a Grammy at just 26 for her song Don’t Touch Me, which charted highly in the US, and enjoyed an illustrious career which spanned several decades
Jeannie Seely – a country music legend and Grammy award winner – has died aged 85.
The singer had a number of hits, including Don’t Touch Me, which won her a Grammy in 1967 when she was just 26. Seely, at the time, became one of the youngest people to receive a Grammy, following their introduction in 1959 and remained among the youngest for several years.
Her success continued for decades, during which time the musician, of Titusville, Pennsylvania, was loved for her unique vocal style and became known as “Miss Country Soul”. Seely was a trailblazer for women in country music, celebrated for her spirited nonconformity and for a string of undeniable hits in the ‘60s and ’70s.
Seely’s career spanned more than six decades, during which time she made nearly 5,400 appearances on Grand Ole Opry, a much-loved live country music radio show in the US. Saturday’s Grand Ole Opry show will be dedicated to Seely following her passing, which happened on Friday after complications from an intestinal infection.
Don Murry Grubbs, the star’s publicist, paid tribute to the songwriter, who had a number of country hits in the ‘60s and ’70s, including three Top 10 hits on what is now known as Billboard’s hot country songs chart; Don’t Touch Me, 1967’s I’ll Love You More (Than You Need)” and 1973’s Can I Sleep In Your Arms?, adapted from the folk song Can I Sleep In Your Barn Tonight Mister?.
But Seely, who was nominated for multiple other Grammy Awards, was a bit of a rebel, known for wearing a miniskirt on stage when it was still taboo. Her glittering success came at a time when country music expected a kind of subservience from its women performers but her legacy is huge, having influenced modern performers, such as Shania Twain and Sheryl Crow.
In May, Seely revealed that she was in recovery after undergoing multiple back surgeries, two emergency procedures and spending 11 days in the ICU. She also suffered a bout of pneumonia.
In a statement at the time, the singer said: “Rehab is pretty tough, but each day is looking brighter and last night, I saw a light at the end of the tunnel. And it was neon, so I knew it was mine. The unsinkable Seely is working her way back.”
Seely was born in July 1940, in Titusville, about two hours north of Pittsburgh and raised in nearby Townville. Her love of country music was instant; her mother sang, and her father played the banjo. When she was a child, she sang on local radio programs and performed on local television. In her early ’20s, she moved to Los Angeles to kick-start a career, taking a job Liberty and Imperial Records in Hollywood.
Seely kept writing and recording. Nashville was next: She sang on Porter Wagoner’s show; she got a deal with Monument Records. Her greatest hit would arrive soon afterward: Don’t Touch Me, the crossover ballad written by Hank Cochran. The song earned Seely her first and only Grammy Award, for best country & western vocal performance in the female category.
Cochran and Seely married in 1969 but divorced in 1979. Seely since married Gene Ward, who died last year.
Seely continued to release albums, perform, and host, regularly appearing on country music programming in her own final years. Her songs are considered classics, and have been recorded by everyone from Merle Haggard, Ray Price and Connie Smith to Ernest Tubb, Grandpa Jones, and Little Jimmy Dickens.
And Seely never stopped working in country music. Since 2018, she’s hosted the weekly Sunday’s with Seely on Willie Nelson’s Willie’s Roadhouse SiriusXM channel. That same year, she was inducted into the Music City Walk of Fame.
She had been a member of Grand Ole Opry since 1967 when she won her Grammy. The soulful performer released her latest song in July 2024, a cover of Dottie West’s “Suffertime,” recorded at the world-renowned RCA Studio B. She performed it at the Opry the year before.