Sandy Posey: Single Girl and Born A Woman singer, who started as a backing vocalist for Elvis Presley, has died aged 80

Sandy Posey, who is known for the hits Single Girl and Born a Woman, had been suffering from dementia.

The singer's widower, Wade Cummins, told US celebrity website TMZ that his wife died on Saturday at home from complications with dementia.

The website reported that Wade was by Sandy's bedside when she died, with her daughter Amy and their niece. Wade says he cared for her in her final years but “is understandably heartbroken - she was the love of his life, and he’s missing her deeply” said TMZ.

She was born in Jasper, Alabama, moved with her family to Arkansas when young and lived in Lebanon, Tennessee in her later years. She was signed to major labels including MGM, Columbia, Warner Bros. and others.

There have been messages of condolence sent from across the world, from fans who were enraptured by her voice on tracks such as I Take It Back, Love Love Love, Bring Him Safely Home to Me, What a Woman in Love Won't Do and others.

The Country Music Hall of Fame posted on Facebook: “Sandy Posey, whose hits Born a Woman and Single Girl blended the sweetness of 1960s teen pop with country melodies, died Sunday, July 21. She was 80.

“It was on the Tennessee side of Memphis that Posey would begin her career as a musician and notch her biggest successes, having caught the attention of producer Chips Moman while she was working as a receptionist at famed Royal Studio.

“She began singing background vocals on recording sessions for Moman including tracks by Elvis Presley and Joe Tex. Posey’s debut single Kiss Me Goodnight, produced by pioneering rock & roller Bill Justis, was released under the name Sandy Carmel but failed to make an impression. She later worked with Moman on her 1966 singles Born a Woman and Single Girl, written by Martha Sharp, a future Nashville A&R executive, and backed by a studio band that included Tommy Cogbill and Reggie Young.

“Those songs, which positioned Posey in the same league as other hybrid pop stars like Brenda Lee and Skeeter Davis, painted a complicated, even troubling, picture of fidelity. Born a Woman and Single Girl became national pop hits, both reaching #12 on Billboard magazine’s all-genre Hot 100 in America. The songs fared even better in Canada and Australia, where they reached the Top Ten.”