This Arizona native possessed one of the best singing voices in any musical genre. Marty Robbins was also versatile enough to record not only country music but early rock and roll, hawaiian, hispanic and western gunfighter ballads too. Born in Glendale in 1925 Marty and twin sister Mamie grew up in the desert before central air conditioning.

After joining the Navy during World War 2 Marty would pick up a guitar and start developing his own style. When he returned to Arizona after the war he began playing in nightspots and dancehalls, a few times he would share a gig with another local Phoenix area singer named Buck Owens. He would land his own radio and tv show on KPHO in Phoenix
and would be discovered by Country star Little Jimmy DIckens when he came to town on a Grand Ole Opry package show. Dickens caught Robbins act and referred him to Columbia Records executives who quickly signed him to a recording contract in Nashville. By the early 50’s Marty had joined the Grand Ole Opry.

In 1960 his famous concept album “Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs” produced the song “EL PASO” becoming the first country song to ever win a Grammy award. Marty would record over 18 number one records and race NASCAR stock cars as a hobby. He possessed one of the largest fan clubs in the country and was loved by his fans worldwide. A series of heart attacks began in 1970 and Marty was one of the first people in the country to receive then experimental heart bypass surgery. In October of 1982 Marty was inducted into the Country Music Hall Of Fame in Nashville. By December of that year he had another heart attack which took his life at age 57. Marty Robbins was a true and talented Arizonan. (bio by Jim West)

Marty Robbins web site