You'll be hard-pressed to find a country duo more impactful on the genre over the past half century than The Judds. The iconic mother-daughter duo of Naomi and Wynonna Judd quickly captivated crowds upon their arrival in the mid-80s, inspiring a generation of young women to pick up guitars and sing their hearts out.
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Now, many of those same artists are returning the favor and showing their gratitude. Everyone from country music legends like Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire and Trisha Yearwood have joined forces with rising stars of today like Carly Pearce, Lainey Wilson, Megan Moroney and Ashley McBryde to pay homage to the duo with the compilation album A Tribute To The Judds, out now. The fourteen track collection includes many of The Judds biggest hits from "Girls Night Out" (feat. McEntire, Pearce, Jennifer Nettles and Gabby Barrett) to "Mama He's Crazy" (feat. Wilson and Parton) and "Love Can Build A Bridge" (feat. Jelly Roll, K. Michelle and the Fisk Jubilee Singers).
Among the other acts taking part are O.N.E. The Duo, a mother-daughter duo like The Judds comprised of Tekitha and Prana Supreme. The rising artists put their own touch onto "Had A Dream (For The Heart)" on the record with an assist from frequent collaborator and runner-up on season 21 of NBC's The Voice, Wendy Moten.
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It's Moten who kicks the song off before the silky smooth harmonies of Tekitha and Prana get ushered in soon after, alongside a flurry of piano, guitar and a steady backbeat. But it's truly the vocals in the driver's seat throughout, strapping listeners in for high-flying adventure that'd even make Naomi and Wynonna turn their heads.
According to Tekitha, while the group was humbled to be involved, covering others' songs wasn't something they did until recently.
"For a long time it wasn't something I was comfortable with out of respect because I thought each song was already done perfect the first time," says Tekitha. "With The Judds it was the same thing, but with the transition of coming to Nashville and co-writing, it ushered in this comfortability that when the opportunity to record this song came about I saw it more as an honor and privilege. We wanted to do the best job we could to honor the legacy of Naomi and Wynonna. The whole process has been like a dream to me."
Per Prana, it was a full-circle moment as a fellow mother-daughter duo getting to be part of a tribute to one of the most successful to come before them, which in many ways helped to inspire her and Tekitha to do the same.
"Sister-sister acts are very common, but outside of that you don't see a lot of mother-daughter duos," says Prana. "So the fact that on our first album [Blood Harmony] we got to work with Brent Maher, who discovered The Judds and produced all of their albums, validated us in being part of this group getting to honor their legacy. They laid the foundation for what we're doing now, which is being beautiful and powerful women that are shaking up the country scene."
Alanna Taylor
In many ways country music has a lot of work left to do on the part of equity and inclusion, but it's safe to say that The Judds did a lot to push the needle in the right direction in their hey-day. There's countless women currently tearing up the scene who directly credit The Judds with inspiring them to enter the country genre, many of whom are involved in this tribute. That notion is not lost on Prana, who stressed the importance of giving everyone the chance to tell their story.
"Without them I feel like what it would look like to be a woman in country music would be very different," says Prana. "The records Wynonna and Naomi were breaking were the complete opposite of most of country radio at the time and they were still wildly successful, which goes to show that the gatekeepers don't know everything. Their success led to an investment in women's songs and stories that we're still feeling today."
Another artist who shares a similar sentiment about The Judds is The Mavericks' Raul Malo, who lent his voice to "Let Me Tell You About Love" from 1989's River Of Time. On the reinterpretation he's joined by the late Carl Perkins — whom he referred to as "the architect of rock'n roll" — courtesy of an old demo recording merged with fresh vocal tracking from Malo's home studio. The result is a twangy and hard-driving ditty that combines the world's of country and rock'n roll, a mixture The Judds tackled better than just about anyone.
"The Judds are one of the most special acts to come through the pipeline in country music," says Malo. "Naomi was always super country and Wynonna was very rock'n roll, so together they made quite the combination. 'Mama He's Crazy' was always a standout to me because of it and those family harmonies that remind me so much of the Everly Brothers. They're just undeniable."
While others stayed within the country or rock'n roll spaces exclusively, The Judds never hesitated to move outside — or between — the two. Even Parton, who found crossover success on the pop charts with hits like "9 to 5," didn't officially make the move into the rock sphere until this year, readying for the release of her 49th album Rockstar on Nov. 17, following an induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame that blindsided her last year. For that reason (among many others) there's no doubt of The Judds' legendary status as trailblazers, a label that Malo fully stands behind.
"Country and rock'n roll have always been tied at the ankle," says Malo. "Country has always danced around rock'n roll and rock'n roll has always danced around country, and nobody was able to do it better than The Judds. Their execution was done seamlessly and beautifully with grace and style. That'll always be their legacy to me."
