Louise Massey, country and western singer, was born Victoria Louise Massey in Midland, Texas, on August 10, 1902. She was the daughter of Henry Massey.

The Massey family left Texas while Louise Massey was very young and she grew up near Roswell in Lincoln County, New Mexico. In 1918, Louise's father, Henry Massey, started a band that featured himself and three of his eight children singing and playing musical instruments. Most of the children were able to play several instruments while dressed in “elaborate cowboy outfits as their stage attire,” Louise played piano and sang. The Masseys' music career began in 1920s, when they played and sang at local shows and church socials. At the age of 15, Louise married Milton Mabie, who also joined the group.

In 1930, the quintet known as The Westerners included Louise, Curt and Allen Massey, Milton Mabie, and Larry Wellington, who had replaced Henry Massey. Louise, with her flamboyant Spanish-style costumes, became the focal point of the act and received lead billing. The Westerners' first radio performance was on KMBC in Kansas City. They moved to WLS Radio in Chicago in 1933. In 1934, the song "When the White Azaleas Start Blooming" was released by the band and sold three million copies. In 1936, they moved to New York, where they continued their radio work on NBC. In 1938, Louise Massey and the Westerners appeared in the Tex Ritter film Where the Buffalo Roam. The group returned to WLS Radio in 1939 and did a morning broadcast on NBC called Reveille Roundup.

Louise was labeled the "original rhinestone cowgirl" by later generations, she was known for her spectacular costumes and ladylike style on stage and for recording in both English and Spanish. The band was considered to be one of the most successful western acts in the USA. Polished, versatile and influential, they boasted a smooth sound that obscured their origins as rural musicians under their fiddling father Henry’s tutelage in New Mexico.

She retired in 1950 to the Hondo Valley in Lincoln County, New Mexico. She and her husband had one daughter, Joy. Louise Massey was inducted into the National Cowgirl Hall of Fame in 1982. She died in San Angelo, Texas, on June 20, 1983.

Sources: Read More About Louise Massey
https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/mabie-victoria-louise-massey
The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Country Music
https://www.flametreepro.com/personalities-louise-massey-and-the-westerners-cowboys-and-playboys-country.html
https://countrydiscoghraphy2.blogspot.com/2016/10/louise-massey-massey-family-westerners.html

Recording Session Chronology
10-Song Playlist Part 6

October 11th + 12th, 1940 – Stevens Hotel, Chicago, IL
Louise Massey and The Westerners
Louise Massey (vocals), Allen Massey (guitar), ? (steel guitar), Milt Mabie (bass), Curt Massey (fiddle), Larry Wellington (accordion/piano), ? (clarinet).

100. Las Gaviotas
101. Quiera Mi Jesusita
102. Old Pioneer (Missing Song)
103. Goodnight Mother (Missing Song)
104. Tears On My Pillow
105. We Never Dream The Same Dream Twice
106. Dream Valley
107. Mistakes

January 23, 1941 – Chicago, IL
Louise Massey and The Westerners
Louise Massey (vocals), Allen Massey (guitar), Milt Mabie (bass), Curt Massey (fiddle), Larry Wellington (accordion), ? (clarinet).

108. Army Rookie Polka (Missing Song)
109. Sailor Boy (Missing Song)
110. La Fiesta Polka
111. Ciribiribin

January 27, 1941 – Chicago, IL
Louise Massey and The Westerners
Louise Massey (vocals), Allen Massey (guitar), Milt Mabie (bass), Curt Massey (fiddle), Larry Wellington (accordion), ? (steel guitar).

112. Since You Said Goodbye To Me (Missing Song)
113. I Left My Heart In Texas (Missing Song)
114. My Adobe Hacienda
115. I Thought We Never Meet Again (Missing Song)

May 29, 1941 – Chicago, IL
Louise Massey and The Westerners or Massey Family
Louise Massey (vocals), Allen Massey (guitar), Milt Mabie (bass), Curt Massey (fiddle), Larry Wellington (accordion), Smokey Lohman (steel guitar), Probably Bill Thall (clarinet).

116. Answer To I’ll Be Back In A Year, Little Darlin’ (I’ll Be Waiting For You)

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