More than any other artist, Eddy Arnold was responsible for bringing country music to mainstream audiences. Like his hero Gene Autry, Arnold combined a winning, smooth vocal style and pop production values, thereby making country music palatable to those who found the sound of sawing fiddles and whining pedal steel guitars too harsh. From the mid-1940s until the early 1980's, Arnold was the standard-bearer for "countrypolitan," not only cranking out a remarkable run of hits but also paving the way for such giants as Marty Robbins, Conway Twitty, and Patsy Cline.