1973 Barbara Fairchild – The Teddy Bear Song
Barbara Fairchild lived in Arkansas until she was 13 years old, already showing a talent for singing Country music. Her family moved to St. Louis, and Barbara soon had a regular job singing for a local television show. She began recording singles in 1965, but didn’t find her way to the charts with her first few record labels.
In 1969, Barbara auditioned for producer Billy Sherrill and signed a contract with Columbia Records. Her first two singles reached the Country chart, but her first top forty Country single didn’t arrive until the next year.
Don Earl and Nick Nixon wrote Barbara’s most successful single, The Teddy Bear Song, which Jerry Crutchfield produced. They released the single in 1972, and it reached the top of the Country chart early the next year. The record became big enough to cross over to many pop stations and reached #32 on the Hot 100 in June.
Videos weren’t really a thing back in 1973, but Barbara eventually released a video for the song…in 2012!
They nominated Barbara for the 1974 Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Female, but the award went to Olivia Newton-John for Let Me Be There. That was probably a hint of things to come for Country Music radio.
Barbara’s next single, Kid Stuff, did nearly as well on the Country charts, where it peaked at #2. Unfortunately, it stalled at only #95 on the Hot 100, and that became her last appearance on the pop charts.
She continued releasing top forty Country singles through 1977, after which her career faded there as well. She continued to appear on television and in concerts, often with her singer/songwriter husband, Roy Morris. Barbara later began to record Gospel music.
She and her husband now live in Branson, Missouri, and they still occasionally appear in shows.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Fairchild
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Fairchild_discography
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