Helen Cornelius (born Helen Lorene Johnson; December 6, 1941) is an American Country singer-songwriter, best remembered for a series of hit duets with Jim Ed Brown, many of which reached the U.S. Country singles’ top ten during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Helen Cornelius was born in Monroe City, Missouri, and was raised on a farm nearby. Her older brothers played in Country bands, and she formed a singing trio with sisters Judy and Sharon. Together they toured locally with the blessing of their father. Subsequently, Helen began touring on her own with a backup band called The Crossroads.
After completing high school, Cornelius wed and became employed as a secretary. She began touring again at the end of the 1960s and signed with Screen Gems Music as a songwriter in 1970. When the company went under, she sent a demo tape to Jerry Crutchfield, who offered her a contract with MCA Records; eventually she signed with Columbia Records, with whom she released two singles. In 1975, she signed with RCA Records; two further singles followed with little recognition.
In 1976, she recorded a duet, “I Don’t Want to Have to Marry You” with Jim Ed Brown; it was a major success in America. Further solo singles failed to take off, but her next duet with Brown, “Saying Hello, Saying I Love You, Saying Goodbye”, was another smash, and the pair began playing on the TV show, Nashville on the Road.
She continued to record with Brown, releasing the hits “I’ll Never Be Free”, “If the World Ran Out of Love Tonight”, “Don’t Bother to Knock”, “Lying in Love with You”, and finally notching a solo hit with “Whatcha Doin’ After Midnight Baby”.
In 1981, after topping the U.S. Country charts one last time with Brown with “Morning Comes too Early”, Cornelius separated with Brown, and enjoyed moderate success as a solo artist, touring with The Statler Brothers and performing in an Annie Get Your Gun road show. In 1988, she and Brown reunited for a nationwide tour.
Cornelius opened Nashville South in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, in the 1990s, where she performed with a house band nightly. Early in the 2000s, she took a regular gig at the Jim Stafford Theater in Branson, Missouri. Most recently, Cornelius has been an active participant in the Country’s Family Reunion series.
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Jim Ed Brown’s singing partner was Helen Cornelius. They were a popular country duo in the 1970s and early 1980s, and they had a string of hit songs, including “I’m Leaving It Up to You,” “Six Days on the Road,” and “Baby I’m Yours.” They were also named the Country Music Association’s Vocal Duo of the Year in 1977.
Jim Ed Brown and Helen Cornelius were a country music duo that was active from the mid-1970s to the early 1980s. They released 10 studio albums together and had a string of hit singles, including “I’m Leaving It Up to You,” “Six Days on the Road,” and “Baby I’m Yours.”
The duo disbanded in 1981, but they reunited for a few concerts in the 1990s. They were inducted into the Missouri Country Music Hall of Fame in 2005.
Helen Cornelius (born Helen Lorene Johnson; December 6, 1941) is an American country singer-songwriter, best remembered for a series of hit duets with Jim Ed Brown, many of which reached the U.S. country singles top ten during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Cornelius was born in Monroe City, Missouri, and was raised on a farm nearby. Her older brothers played in country bands, and she formed a singing trio with sisters Judy and Sharon. Together they toured locally with the blessing of their father. Subsequently, Helen began touring on her own with a backup band called The Crossroads. After completing high school, Cornelius wed and became employed as a secretary. She began touring again at the end of the 1960s and signed with Screen Gems Music as a songwriter in 1970.
In 1973, Cornelius signed with RCA Records and released her debut album, Helen Cornelius. The album produced two top ten singles, “I Never Will Marry” and “Six White Horses.” In 1974, she released her second album, Born Believer, which produced the top ten single “I’m No Angel.”
In 1976, Cornelius began a series of hit duets with Jim Ed Brown. Their first duet, “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” reached number one on the country charts. The duo went on to have several more hit duets, including “(You’re the) Devil in Disguise,” “I’ll Be There (If You Ever Need Me),” and “After the Fire Is Gone.”
Cornelius and Brown continued to tour and record together throughout the 1980s. They released their final album together, Together Again, in 1989.
In addition to her work as a singer, Cornelius has also had a successful career as an actress. She has appeared in several television shows and movies, including Dolly (1976), Johnny Cash and the Country Girls (1977), and A Belle for Christmas (2014).
Cornelius is a member of the Grand Ole Opry and the Missouri Country Music Hall of Fame. She continues to tour and perform today.
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