100 Greatest Women #49 Olivia Newton-John One of the biggest female country stars of the seventies became one quite accidentally. Her mere presence in country music infuriated traditionalists, but her pop-flavored country foreshadowed the boundary
100 Greatest Women #50 Jeannie C. Riley Her music was more outspokenly feminist than any of her contemporaries, but Jeannie C. Riley was on the receiving end of every sexist obstacle imaginable as she worked
100 Greatest Women #51 Terri Clark When Mercury records launched Terri Clark in 1995, they billed her as country music’s first female hat act. Over the next decade, she’d show a lot more staying power
100 Greatest Women #52 Juice Newton The cross-pollination between pop and country music in the early eighties provided an opening for Juice Newton and her undeniably infectious aural confections. By the time that the hits
100 Greatest Women #53 Jo Dee Messina The first big post-Shania country star, Jo Dee Messina fully embodied the girl power movement of the late nineties, releasing catchy country-pop songs that were consistently from a
100 Greatest Women #54 Sara Evans A pure country singer with a sweet tooth for pop hooks. Sara Evans has been one of the most prominent female artists during the male-dominated 21st century, thanks not
100 Greatest Women #55 Jeannie Seely With the voice of a honky tonk angel and the mouth of a sailor, Jeannie Seely has been one of the most forceful personalities on the country music scene
100 Greatest Women #56 Matraca Berg When women became the dominant creative force in country music during the mid-nineties, it wasn’t just on the strength of their vocal talents, but also because of their excellent
100 Greatest Women #57 Dale Evans Back when they used to call it Country & Western music, Dale Evans was the most iconic female artist for the latter half of the genre. She’ll forever be
100 Greatest Women #58 Jan Howard She’s been an Opry member for three decades, and by the time of her induction, she was already a presence on the Nashville music scene for eleven years. Jan