If you’re like me, you’ve heard of June Carter Cash–and you’ve likely heard of her daughter, Carlene Carter. But until his death this past weekend (as noted in this NY Times obit), I had never heard of Carter Cash’s ex-husband (and Carlene’s father), Carl Smith.

As I have quickly learned, Smith was one of the most popular country singers of the 1950s and 1960s. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2003, having been a major influence on many of country’s most popular acts. According to the Tennessean‘s obit: “Waylon Jennings did not attend his own 2001 induction, saying that he would not go into any hall of fame that didn’t include Mr. Smith.” Part of the reason most folks my age never heard of  Smith (also known as Mr. Country) was that he left the industry in the late 1970s. As noted by the NY Times coverage, he “might be better known today if he hadn’t retired from performing to become a gentleman horse breeder in 1978″.

Not many singers can claim that they “had 58 consecutive Top 40 hits on that chart from 1951 to 1965″, but, according to the NY Times, that’s exactly what Smith did.