Jody Miller

Jody Miller
Jody Miller in 1965
Background information
Birth name	Myrna Joy Miller
Born	(1941-11-29) November 29, 1941 (age 75) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
Origin	Blanchard, Oklahoma, U.S.
Genres	Country
Occupation(s)	Singer
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1960–present
Labels	Capitol, Epic
Associated acts	Roger Miller
Website	The Official Jody Miller site

Jody Miller (born November 29, 1941) is an American country music singer. Born Myrna Joy Miller, in Phoenix, Arizona, she was raised in Blanchard, Oklahoma, the youngest of five sisters.

Discovered by actor Dale Robertson, she began her career in the early 1960s as a folk/pop singer, singing in the Los Angeles area and appearing on Tom Paxton's television series. She released her first album on Capitol Records in 1964 and had a modest pop hit that year with "He Walks Like a Man".

In 1965, she participated in the Sanremo Festival as a team companion of Pino Donaggio. Since the Festival was created as a composers' competition, Miller and Donaggio presented differently arranged versions of the entry "Io Che Non Vivo (Senza Te)". The song came in on # 7 and was only a moderate hit until Dusty Springfield recorded an English version in 1966 which was eventually released as "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me". Also in 1965, Jody Miller released an answer record to Roger Miller's blockbuster hit "King of the Road", titled "Queen of the House" (which became her signature hit, peaking at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and at number 5 on the country singles chart). Miller won the Grammy award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for the song in 1966.

Miller scored a second top 40 pop hit that year with "Home of the Brave", a No. 25 Hot 100 hit that was historically significant for tackling the issue of noncomformity and tolerance. The theme prevented it from making headway in the more socially conservative country charts of 1965. By the mid-1960s, Miller became a pioneer crossover female vocalist, opening the doors for Linda Ronstadt, Anne Murray, and Olivia Newton-John, and others as a pop singer recording a strong country influence and finding success in both genres. Miller's pop success petered out by the late 1960s. Tammy Wynette's record producer, Billy Sherrill, was a fan of Miller. He signed her to Epic Records in 1970 to record specifically for the country market. She had two country hits right off the bat in 1970 with "Look At Mine" nearly making the Top 20 and a Top 20 hit with "If You Think I Love You Now (I Just Started)" in early 1971. She recorded a remake of the Chiffons 1963 hit "He's So Fine", which hit the top 5 on the country chart and No. 55 on the pop chart that summer, garnering another Grammy award nomination.