Born Leona Belle Helton on January 7, 1943, Leona Williams picked up her professional last name from her first husband. A native of Vienna, Missouri, she spent nine months as a member of Loretta Lynn’s band in 1966, playing upright bass and singing harmony during the time Loretta had “Don’t Come Home A-Drinkin’ (With Lovin’ On Your Mind)” in release.
Williams’ goal, however, was to have her own show and her own hit records, and a couple of years later, she made her very first single for Wesley Rose’s Hickory Records. During that period, she embarked on a nine-week tour of the Far East and Southeast Asia, at the height of the Vietnam War.
