The 1970s built on the 1960s. The Bakersfield Sound inspired the Outlaw Movement, and the Nashville Sound paved the way for the Rhinestone Cowboys. In hairstyles, Willie Nelson lived up to the name of his 1975 album, Red Headed Stranger and let his hair grow long and his beard get burly. Women wore everything from naturally long locks (Emmylou Harris and Crystal Gayle) to larger-than-life teased styles (Tammy Wynette) or wigs.
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In Duvall’s new book, Country Music Hair, the author and former CMT Radio producer interviews singers, hairstylists, and makeup artists to span the decades—complete with dozens of photographs—of the iconic bouffants, bobs, wigs, and, yes, mullets that have crowned country music’s chart-toppers.
The 1960s: Clean-cut or Curled
The 1960s straddled the line between the prim-and-proper 1950s and the wild-and-free 1970s. Musically, country saw two styles emerge: the more natural Bakersfield Sound, and the sleek production of the Nashville Sound. Hairstyles reflected the dichotomy. Bakersfield artist Buck Owens opted for a clean-cut crop. “Even Willie Nelson had his hair cut short at that time,” Duvall says. “The men weren’t really stepping out of their social norms.”