Marty Stuart and Grand Ole Opry star Connie Smith have a rather unorthodox love story, but it’s one with a very happy ending.
Stuart is 17 years Smith’s junior, and he was just 12 years old when he first met her. His mom introduced them — she took Stuart to see Connie Smith live in concert in Mississippi — but it was unbeknownst to her what would happen in the next few decades.
“She was my mother’s favorite singer. We had a record of her at our house called Miss Smith Goes to Nashville. It had a beautiful photograph of her on the cover,” Stuart tells The Boot. “I thought she was the prettiest girl in the world, so I had my mama take me to buy me a yellow shirt, so Connie would notice me that night.
“After the concert, me and my sister got our picture made with her, and I got her autograph. On the way home, I told my mama that I was going to marry her,” he adds. “It took 25 years to figure it out, but it worked!”
