Willie Nelson's Ex-Wife and Former Singing Partner, Shirley Collie Nelson, Dies

Shirley Collie Nelson, former wife and duet partner of Willie Nelson, died Wednesday, Jan. 27, in Missouri. She was 78 years old.

 

Collie’s career as a Country Music artist was filled with many achievements, including charting three hit Country singles in the early ‘60s. Collie received her first charting single in 1961 when “Dime a Dozen” reached No. 25 on the Billboard Country charts.

 

A few months later, a duet with Warren Smith landed Collie with another charting single; “Why, Baby, Why” reached No. 23. In 1962, Collie teamed up with Nelson to record “Willingly,” a duet that reached No. 10 on the Billboard Country charts. The song marked Nelson’s first appearance on the charts as a recording artist. Nelson and Collie were married from 1963 to 1971.

 

More recently, Collie published a book, Scrapbooks in My Mind: Featuring Shirley and Willie Nelson and Many Others, in 2009.

 

Source: CMT.com