Mindy McCready Remembered by Lorrie Morgan, Pam Tillis

Two of country music's leading ladies of the 1990s, Pam Tillis and Lorrie Morgan are teaming up for a new album called Dos Divas. Billing their current tour as Grits and Glamour, the pair have certainly experienced the ups and down of the business, and have seen many other artists who have been affected by the perils of fame. One such artist on both their minds, of course, is the late Mindy McCready, whose suicide at age 37 earlier this month has touched many lives, including those who knew the singer during the period of her greatest success in country music.

"I remember all good about Mindy," Lorrie tells The Boot. "We knew each other a long time, we were labelmates on RCA. She was beautiful, sexy, talented, funny and full of life. I'm so sad that she's not here to have fun with and to make music anymore."

"I didn't know Mindy as well as Lorrie did," adds Pam. "But I'll never forget when she first came out. We did a package show, a bunch of people just starting out ... Neal McCoy, Mindy, myself, Toby Keith. Sometimes, if somebody has a really strong image, it almost eclipses their talent. So, I just thought of Mindy as this bombshell, and they were making her out to be the blond Shania. But she did a soundcheck and it was the first time I ever heard her sing. She sang 'Long, Long Time' and my jaw dropped. It was so stunningly beautiful. I never really forgot that moment. She was really a great singer but I think she was underappreciated.

"She just couldn't get better. She could never get over the hump of addiction. Some people get better and some people don't. If you don't work the program ... I think she thought she could do it on her own. If you don't keep that support system going, your chances of failure are, unfortunately, so high."

Lorrie Morgan is among the artists who will perform at a memorial tribute to Mindy McCready on Wednesday (March 6) in Nashville.

Come back to The Boot next week for more of our exclusive interview with Pam Tillis and Lorrie Morgan. For more information on the new album and tour, click here.