Susan Raye
| Susan Raye | |
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Susan Raye in 1973
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Susan Raye |
| Born | October 8, 1944 |
| Origin | Eugene, Oregon, U.S. |
| Genres | Country |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Years active | 1969–1986 |
| Labels |
Capitol Nashville Records United Artists Records Westexas Records |
| Associated acts | Buck Owens |
Susan Raye (born October 8, 1944, Eugene, Oregon) is an American country music singer. She enjoyed great popularity during the early and mid-1970s and chalked up seven top 10 and nineteen top 40 country hits (see Susan Raye discography), most notably the song "L.A. International Airport", an international crossover pop hit in 1971.
Raye was a protegee of country music singer Buck Owens. Owens and Raye recorded a number of hit albums and singles together, and were one of the most successful country duet acts of the era, in addition to their solo careers.
Raye first began singing with a high school rock group, but after the band called it quits, she auditioned for a local country station. Not only did she begin performing on the radio, she also landed work as a disc jockey, eventually becoming the host of a Portland TV program called Hoedown. It was at one of Raye's performances at an area nightclub where she met Jack McFadden, Owens' manager. McFadden was so impressed with her vocal talents that he persuaded Owens to fly her to his home in Bakersfield, California, for an audition.
She moved to Bakersfield and began singing with Owens in 1968, and soon after she cut her first recordings. One of these songs, "Put a Little Love in Your Heart," made the Top 30 in 1970. At about the same time, she began a nine-year stint as a featured performer on the program Hee Haw.
Susan Raye's first sessions as Buck Owens's duet partner were released in 1970. The albums We're Gonna Get Together and The Great White Horse were Top 20 hits that year, as were the title tracks to each album and a third single, "Togetherness". The song "The Great White Horse" peaked at No. 8 and was the most successful Owens-Raye duet.
Raye's biggest year as a solo artist came in 1971, when she issued three consecutive Top Ten hits: "L.A. International Airport", "Pitty, Pitty, Patter", and "(I've Got A) Happy Heart". The title track of 1972's My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own also reached the Top Ten.
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