Patsy Smithson Bruce, a musical pioneer and a woman of power, beauty, creativity, elegance, and impeccable taste, died on May 16. She was 81. Her unprecedented resume spanned industries, skill sets, and states as she found success in the entertainment industry, event planning, tourism, journalism, activism, and politics.
She proudly viewed herself first and foremost as a songwriter and dedicated herself to protecting songwriters’ rights. She co-wrote the No. 1 country standard “Mama, Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys,” as well as “Texas (When I Die),” Tell ‘Em I’ve Gone Crazy,” and “Girls, Women, and Ladies.” She served as president of the Nashville Songwriters Association International in the late Seventies and early Eighties.
In 2017, she and her son Trey Bruce, also a hit songwriter, launched Songbird Tours to educate tourists about the history and importance of songwriters.
She was born in Kosciusko, Miss., and traveled the world as part of a military family. She relished the time she spent living on her grandparents’ farm in Brownsville, Tenn., and maintained her love for that land throughout her life. While working as a secretary in Nashville, she met Ed Bruce, a car salesman and aspiring singer/songwriter. They married on Oct. 2, 1964, in Memphis and two years later moved to Nashville, where she worked for a publishing company. The mother of four later attended Middle Tennessee State University.
She became her husband’s manager and was tremendously successful in making him nationally famous as a singer, songwriter, actor, and star of commercials. She was a casting director, operating from her office on a movie lot in Burbank, CA, and worked on the TV show Maverick and the movie Urban Cowboy. She also ran the couple’s publishing companies and booking agency.
She was influential during country music’s heyday of Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings and was successful when very few women were in leadership positions on Music Row. She served as den mother to a generation of songwriters and musicians, whom she nurtured, advised, and fed. She lived on the road and saw country music’s impact on people firsthand.
A woman who never lost touch with the lives of everyday Americans, she was also a brilliant strategist who understood imaging and the importance of personal communication. She mingled with titans of music, entertainment, television, advertising, and business while also operating a Franklin bed and breakfast called Lyric Springs Country Inn, featured in Better Homes & Gardens and Southern Living.
She expanded into events planning in the eighties and reinvented herself after her 1987 divorce. As the owner of Events Unlimited, she converted the Super Dome into a one-third replica of the famed French Quarter for a $9 million Honda event with a team of 1,300 people, which helped her win Events magazine’s Gala Award, the event industry’s top award. She also launched Patsy Bruce Productions Inc., a film and television production company.
At the turn of the century, she emerged as a political activist and community leader, in addition to a newspaper columnist and freelance magazine writer. She was so committed to ensuring Phil Bredesen’s election to the governor that she became the campaign manager/chief of staff of Andrea Conte, Bredesen’s wife and a victims’ rights activist.
After his successful election, Governor Bredesen appointed her to serve on the Tennessee State Board of Probation and Parole, where she remained for 12 years. That relationship also led to her involvement in Conte’s non-profit, You Have the Power, serving as board president and member. She was the West Nashville Presidents Council organizer, a board member of Safe Haven Domestic Violence House in Cheatham County, and vice-chair of the Arts at the Airport Foundation. She was a recent graduate of Leadership Cheatham County.
Her homes and parties were perfect, down to the smallest detail. Many of which were custom-made by or for her. She always had the best recipe for this or the most outstanding collection of that. Her parties were always the best blend of personalities, all of whom enjoyed her delicious Southern cooking and colorful stories.
She had the highest standards and strove for excellence in everything she did, and expected the same of those around her. She didn’t hesitate to share her opinions and wasn’t easy to please. But she was usually right. She remained on the cutting edge of trends in business, culture, and fashion. She dedicated herself to mentoring numerous females from all walks of life, many of whom have become Nashville leaders. Her influence will be felt in Nashville for decades to come.
After years of taking care of everyone else, whether as a producer, manager, family member, or friend, she finally met someone who dedicated himself to her when she crossed paths with Jim Trout. He became her devoted partner. He brought her tremendous love, support, and joy and remained by her side until the end. They enjoyed cooking, boating and traveling together, and sharing each other’s cultural influences.
She was preceded in death by her son, Beau Bruce, who died in 2019, and her parents, Henry and Hazel Smithson.
She is survived by her partner, Jim Trout; son Trey Bruce (Laci); daughters Ginny Bruce and AnnMarie Bruce Pinhal (Joey); grandchildren Sara Bruce Manual (Greg), Maggie Bruce Emmick (Cory), Sela Bruce, Railee Bruce, Patrick Elder, Chelsea Jensen, Joseph Pinhal (Katie), Cathrine Pinhal and Juliana Pinhal; and great-grandchildren Eisley, Elynn, Lilah, Cason, Addison, Bentley, Bella and Cade; and her angel on the ground and caregiver, Meaghan Gay.