Penny Jay

Who was Penny Jay?

Penny Jay was an American country music singer and songwriter, who was active from the 1940s to the 1960s. She is best known for "Don't Let Me Cross Over" a song she wrote which reached #1 on the country music charts in late 1962.

Jay was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, and began performing with her mother at church functions at the age of 10. Cas Walker, a Knoxville merchant and host of a radio show on local WROL featured Jay performing under the name "Little Miss Helen" when she was 12. Jay played stand-up bass and guitar, and became a fixture on the show during the early '40s.

In the early '50s, Jay began performing as part of a duo with a friend named Marie Wilson. The pair were billed as "Jenny & Jill", and they recorded several original sides for OKeh Records, including "A Million Other Hearts".

Jay moved to Nashville in the early '60s, and began performing and writing songs for other artists. She was signed to Republic Records, but her contract was picked up by Decca Records. She ultimately released eight singles on Decca, including "Just Over The Line", "Lonely And Unwanted", and "Those Kinds of Girls". Jay performed at the Grand Ole Opry, and on Roy Acuff's "Midnight Jamboree" radio show broadcast from Ernest Tubb's record shop. Jay's band at this time included her daughter, Sherry, who was one of the first female drummers in Nashville.