Born 83 Years Ago Today in Orange County, the Singer Discovered by Marshall Grant, Championed by Johnny Cash, and Immortalized by a Kris Kristofferson Classic

Country singer Sammi Smith, born on 5 August 1943 in Orange County, California, is being remembered on the anniversary of her birth for her pivotal role in the 1970s outlaw country movement. She is best known for her rendition of Kris Kristofferson's "Help Me Make It Through the Night," which became the most commercially successful version of the song and helped cement her place in country music history.

Smith left school at 11 to sing in clubs and was discovered at an Oklahoma City nightclub by Johnny Cash's bassist, Marshall Grant. Cash later helped her secure a deal with Columbia Records, though her biggest breakthrough came after signing with Mega Records in 1970, when "Help Me Make It Through the Night" topped the country chart and reached number eight on the Hot 100. In 1973 she moved to Texas to join the outlaw country scene alongside Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings, later scoring further hits including "Today I Started Loving You Again," before largely retiring from music to run a cattle ranch in Oklahoma.