1927–2013 · American pop singer · Mercury single, November 1950 · nine weeks at No. 1
Clara Ann Fowler of Claremore, Oklahoma became the top-charting female vocalist of the 1950s and one of the first pop artists to harmonise with herself on record, via engineer Bill Putnam’s overdubbing. Her “Tennessee Waltz” reached her almost by accident: Billboard reviewer Jerry Wexler heard an R&B version by Erskine Hawkins and suggested the song to Page’s manager Jack Rael, and it was cut in a hurry as the flip of a Christmas novelty. It spent nine weeks at No. 1 and became one of the best-selling singles of the century. Nothing about that record is a mistake — only the chronology people attach to it.