1962–1969: R&B beginnings and musical shift In 1962, The Anglos took an eight-hour bus ride to
Muscle Shoals, Alabama where they recorded their first R&B single. Re-named Linda Martell and the Anglos,
Fire Records released "A Little Tear (Was Falling from My Eyes)" the same year. The single was unsuccessful. Linda Martell and the Anglos (sometimes credited as "The Angelos") released several more singles on the
Vee-Jay label, such as "Lonely Hours". David Browne of
Rolling Stone called the song "simmering, forlorn girl-group pop".) which was released in 1964. This song was composed by Elzie Bynem, who was Linda Martell's brother. It was advertised in the 7 March 1964 issue of
Cash Box, and the impression given was that "Backfield in Motion" was to be the A side, and "Bad Motorcycle" the B side. The recordings were issued on
Tollie 9003. However, it appears that "Bad Motorcycle" at some later stage turned out to be the A side. "Backfield in Motion" was a
Cash Box Newcomer Pick for the week of 14 March 1964. The single did have some potential, and the reviewer in the 14 March issue of
Cash Box said it could be flying high in the weeks to come. It did get airplay in Philadelphia and for the week of 1 August, it was one of the seven singles in the
Billboard Requests and Good Programming section of the "Analysis of Philadelphia Market" list by Georgie Woods and Jimmy Bishop of WDAS. The song was covered by
Joe South and the Believers, and issued on the Columbia label. The credited Composer for that release was L. Martell, who is believed to be her Brother Elzie aka Lee Martell. Interestingly, Joe South's other group, The Chips had recorded for the Tollie label. The group parted ways after her cousin got married. Her sister left the group soon after and Martell was a solo act for the first time in her career. For several years, she continued singing R&B music. She also met with Singleton who convinced her to record as a country singer. Martell was surprised at the decision. "I was a little bit shocked! I was mostly doing pop. But he said, 'You gotta go country'," she told
Rolling Stone in 2020. It climbed to number 22 on the US
country songs chart. Its follow-up was Martell's interpretation of "
Before the Next Teardrop Falls", which was later covered by
Freddy Fender. In August 1970, her debut album was released on Plantation Records titled
Color Me Country. The record reached number 40 on the US
Country LP's chart. The album was reviewed favorably by
Billboard in 1970, which found her country singing style to be authentic. In later years,
AllMusic rated the record three and a half stars with similar commentary. Her final charting single was issued around the same time titled "
Bad Case of the Blues". With her new success, Martell was hired by booking agent, Hubert Long, who helped arrange several entertainment opportunities. She also made her debut on the
Grand Ole Opry radio broadcast after Rayner played her recent record for an official at the company. In the American south, she was marketed as the "First Female Negro Country Artist" and was put on package shows with country artists
Waylon Jennings and
Hank Snow. Martell later recalled that performing as a black country artist was often challenging. She remembered being taunted by white audiences, who often shouted racial slurs while she was performing. "You're gonna run into hecklers, and I did...You felt pretty awful," she told
Rolling Stone. She also supports the underrepresented voices of
BIPOC artists in country music through the
Color Me Country™ Artist Grant Fund. In 2021, a
GoFundMe campaign was launched by Martell's granddaughter to create a documentary about her career and struggles as a black performer in Nashville. In 2024, Martell appeared on
Beyoncé's country-focused eighth studio album
Cowboy Carter. She made two spoken-word appearances on the tracks "Spaghettii" and "The Linda Martell Show". On
Instagram, Martell commented, "I am proud that @beyonce is exploring her country music roots. What she is doing is beautiful, and I’m honored to be a part of it. It’s Beyoncé, after all!" At the
67th Annual Grammy Awards "Spaghettii" received a nomination for
Best Melodic Rap Performance, becoming Martell's first nomination at the ceremony. ==Artistry and influence==