Connie Smith

===1983–present: Return to recording and performing===
For three years, Smith remained in semi-retirement, committing only to occasional performances at the ''Grand Ole Opry'', where she remained a member. At the Opry, she only performed gospel songs. However, she decided to return to her career in 1983. She re-signed with Monument Records, but left after label filed for bankruptcy. Instead, singer and songwriter [[Ricky Skaggs]] helped her secure a new recording contract to [[Epic Records]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hurst |first1=Jack |title=AFTER YEARS OF TRYING TO GET OUT, CONNIE SMITH TRYING TO GET BACK IN |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1985-07-28-8502190461-story.html |access-date=29 June 2022 |work=[[Chicago Tribune]] |date=July 28, 1985}}</ref>{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=28}} The first single, "[[A Far Cry from You]]" (1985), was written by [[Alternative country]] artist [[Steve Earle]].<ref>{{cite journal |title=Connie Smith – Too Cool to Be Forgotten |journal=[[No Depression (magazine)|No Depression]] |date=September 1, 1998 |url=https://www.nodepression.com/connie-smith-too-cool-to-be-forgotten/2/ |access-date=29 June 2022}}</ref> It reached number 71 on the Hot Country Songs chart.<ref name="whitburn"/>

One day in the mid-1990s, Smith was at her home talking to one of her daughters on the phone. After telling her mother what she was going to do that night, her daughter asked Smith what her plans for that night were. Because she did not have anything fun planned, Smith lied so her daughter wouldn't have to worry about her. After the conversation ended, Smith realized that she didn't need her own children worrying about her at the start of their adult lives and decided that it was time to return to her career.<ref name="interview"/> With country artist [[Marty Stuart]] (whom she later married in 1997), acting as the album's main producer, Smith signed a recording contract with [[Warner Bros. Records]] in 1996. Although the label preferred her to record an album of duets, Smith decided to go by her own terms and record a solo studio album. In October 1998 she released her [[Connie Smith (1998 album)|second self-titled studio album]].{{sfn|Escott|2001|p=30}} It consisted of ten tracks, nine of them co-written by both Smith and Stuart.<ref name="countryuniverse">{{cite web|last=Coyne|first=Kevin John|title=100 Greatest Women – Connie Smith (#24) |date=June 8, 2008 |url=http://www.countryuniverse.net/2008/06/07/100-greatest-women-24-connie-smith |publisher=Country Universe|access-date=August 15, 2010}}</ref>

Smith's 1998 project attracted limited commercial attention, but was given critical praise for its traditional and contemporary style. Kurt Wolff of the book ''Country Music: The [[Rough Guides|Rough Guide]]'' commented that the album sounded "far gutsier than anything in the [[Reba McEntire|Reba]] and [[Garth Brooks|Garth]] mainstream".<ref name="roughguide"/> Thom Jurek of Allmusic gave the release four out of five stars, calling it "a solid effort", also commenting "it stands head and shoulders over most of the stuff that's come out of Nash Vegas in over a decade. Even if it doesn't sell a copy, it's a triumphant return for Smith. She hasn't lost a whit of her gift as a singer or as a writer."<ref name="ConnieSmithWarnerBros">{{cite web|last=Jurek|first=Thom |title=''Connie Smith'' (1998) > Review|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r377744|pure_url=yes}} |website=Allmusic|access-date=August 15, 2010}}</ref> Also in 1998, Smith made a second cameo appearance in a film, portraying a "Singer at the Rodeo Dance" in ''[[The Hi-Lo Country]]'' starring [[Woody Harrelson]] and [[Billy Crudup]].

[[File:Connie Smith.jpg|thumb|left|Smith on stage at the Grand Ole Opry]]
In August 2003, she released a gospel album with country artists [[Barbara Fairchild]] and [[Sharon White (singer)|Sharon White]] titled ''[[Love Never Fails (2003 album)|Love Never Fails]]'' on Daywind Records.<ref name="countryuniverse"/> In an interview with ''Country Stars Central'', Smith said that she was ill with the [[stomach flu]] while recording the album, but still enjoyed making the record.<ref name="Country Stars Central"/> Produced by country and bluegrass performer [[Ricky Skaggs]] (White's husband), the album received a nomination from the [[Dove Awards]]. The website Slipcue.com reviewed the release and stated that ''Love Never Fails'' "is probably too rowdy for most [[Southern gospel]] fans (who really like tinkly pianos and less-twangy vocals), and while it probably won't wow many country listeners, for folks who are fans any of these three singers, this is kind of a treat.<ref>{{cite web|title=Connie Smith CD discography|url=http://www.slipcue.com/music/country/countryartists/conniesmith.html |publisher=Slipcue.com|access-date=August 15, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090805162536/http://www.slipcue.com/music/country/countryartists/conniesmith.html |archive-date=August 5, 2009}}</ref>

In November 2008, Smith joined the cast of [[Marty Stuart]]'s television series ''The Marty Stuart Show'', which aired on the [[RFD-TV]] network every Saturday night. The thirty-minute program featured traditional country music performed by both Stuart and Smith, as well as radio personality [[Eddie Stubbs]].<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Marty Stuart Show kicks off Saturday |url=http://www.countrystandardtime.com/news/newsitem.asp?xid=2244|magazine=[[Country Standard Time]]|access-date=August 15, 2010}}</ref> The show stopped airing on RFD-TV in 2014.<ref name="RFD">{{cite magazine |last1=Weeks |first1=Isaac |title=Rural America's Hottest Cable Channel Scrambles to Replace Country Music's Beloved 'Marty Stuart' Show |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/7973581/rural-america-cable-channel-replace-country-music-marty-stuart-show |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=May 24, 2021}}</ref> In August 2011 Smith released her first new solo recording in thirteen years, entitled ''[[Long Line of Heartaches]]'' via [[Sugar Hill Records (bluegrass label)|Sugar Hill Records]]. The record was produced by Marty Stuart and included five songs written by the pair. [[Harlan Howard]], [[Kostas Lazarides|Kostas]], [[Johnny Russell (singer)|Johnny Russell]], and [[Dallas Frazier]] also wrote tracks that were included on the disc.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=Upcoming and Recent CD Releases|url=http://www.countrystandardtime.com/cdreleases.asp|magazine=[[Country Standard Time]]|access-date=May 20, 2011}}</ref> The album was reviewed positively by AllMusic's Steve Leggett, who gave it four stars. "It wouldn't be quite right to call this a throwback album, but it does sound like vintage traditional country given just a bit of a polished edge," he concluded.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Leggett |first1=Steve |title=''Long Line of Heartaches'': Connie Smith: Songs, reviews, credits |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/long-line-of-heartaches-mw0002189781 |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=May 22, 2021}}</ref> Andrew Mueller of ''BBC'' also gave it a positive response, calling it "classic and classicist country songs".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mueller |first1=Andrew |title=Smith's first LP since 1998, both classic and classicist in feel |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/v86m/ |website=[[BBC]] |access-date=May 22, 2021}}</ref>

In August 2021, Smith's next studio album was released on the [[Fat Possum Records|Fat Possum]] label titled ''[[The Cry of the Heart (album)|The Cry of the Heart]]''. It was the third project produced by Stuart and her first album of new material in ten years.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Crone |first1=Madeline |title=Connie Smith Shares Marty Stuart-Produced 'The Cry of the Heart', Her First LP in Over A Decade |magazine=[[American Songwriter]] |date=August 2021 |url=https://americansongwriter.com/connie-smith-shares-marty-stuart-produced-the-cry-of-the-heart-her-first-lp-in-over-a-decade/ |access-date=30 April 2022}}</ref> ''The New York Times'' described ''The Cry of the Heart'' to evoke the traditional styles that "recall Smith's '60s era recordings".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Osmon |first1=Erin |title=54 Albums Later, Connie Smith's Defiant Heart Has Plenty to Say |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/19/arts/music/connie-smith-cry-of-the-heart.html |access-date=30 April 2022 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=August 19, 2021}}</ref> It was Smith's first album since 1976 to reach a charting position on ''Billboard'', peaking on the [[Current Album Sales]] chart following its release.<ref name="Album Sales">{{cite magazine |title=''The Cry of the Heart'' chart history |url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/connie-smith/chart-history/tcl/ |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |access-date=1 September 2021}}</ref> ''PopMatters'' gave the album an 8/10 rating and concluded "If you wanted to understand what traditional country is, you could go to the same place today as you could have 50 years ago: a Connie Smith record."<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Cober-Lake |first1=Justin |title=Connie Smith Returns with Power on 'The Cry of the Heart' |magazine=[[PopMatters]] |date=August 23, 2021 |url=https://www.popmatters.com/connie-smith-cry-heart-review |access-date=30 April 2022}}</ref>
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