She has also received the Tex Ritter Award presented by the prestigious International Fan Club Organization (IFCO).On the heels of her enormously successful weekly television show, "Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters," US magazine named Mandrell "Favorite Variety Star of the Year". And in 1983, she won her first Grammy Award for "Best Inspirational Performance", in recognition of her gospel-flavored LP He Set My Life To Music, which features family members and friends in the industry. She has completed a second gospel album Precious Memories, which is a two-record collection of both gospel and inspirational music. In her career, she has amassed some 60 major awards.

Mandrell has even become the subject of an entire museum in Nashville called "Barbara Mandrell Country." It is an intimate look into her family life and award-winning career, with each display and video planned and arranged personally by Barbara.

Mandrell, who has received three gold records, recently released two new recordings on her new record label, Direct Records. "Acoustic Attitude" is comprised of acoustic arrangements of her greatest hits, while "It Works For Me" includes all-new material.

She released her autobiography, "Get to the Heart: My Story", on September 10, 1990 and within four days, it made the New York Times Bestseller List and remained there for six months. The book is an intensely personal and in-depth view of what was the very private life of Barbara Mandrell. Co-written with George Vecsey and published by Bantam Books, Barbara's story was released in paperback September 9, 1991.

It's a one-in-a-million success story, but Barbara's rise to the forefront as one of the industry's "most instantly recognized female country faces" (The Chicago Tribune) didn't happen overnight.

Mandrell's Upbringing and Her Rise to stardom

Mandrell was born December 25 in Houston, Texas, into a very musical family, and moved to Southern California at the age of seven. She was greatly influenced in her early years by her parents, Irby and Mary Mandrell. An avid musician and music teacher, Mary taught her curious daughter how to pick out notes on her accordion. Barbara was soon playing complicated pieces like "Gospel Boogie", and even learned to read music before she could read the English language. Performing came as naturally to her as her musical ability. As a pre-schooler, she made her first public appearance with her accordion in her uncle's church, playing the only gospel song she knew. The excited five year old thought it was so much fun that she played through a second time.

Irby owned a music store and he made sure that Barbara had her pick of the best instruments.
She chose to study the pedal steel and saxophone. At the age of 10, Barbara played on her first
TV and radio show in Bakersfield, California with host Cousin Herb Henson.