The fact is simple: on artistic and commercial achievement alone, The Judds' story remains among one of country music's greatest successes.

Naomi Judd and her eldest daughter Wynonna were a pair of raven-haired hitmakers who put 14 songs at the top of Billboard's country charts (and another six in the Top 10). In every year from 1984 (the year they issued their first full-length album, Why Not Me) to 1990 (the year they issued their last, Love Can Build a Bridge), they were named Top Vocal Duo by the Academy of Country Music. In that same span, they were named Vocal Group of the Year by the Country Music Association from 1985 to 1987 and Vocal Duo of the Year from 1988 to 1991, and took home five Grammy Awards for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

As is so often the case, though, the numbers and achievements only tell one part of the story.

Country music in the '80s was a time of public transition. The decade started with the rise of slick, polished country-pop tunes as heard on the Urban Cowboy soundtrack or in the discographies of already-proven legends like Kenny Rogers or Dolly Parton and newcomers like Alabama. By the end of the '80s, the pendulum started to swing in another direction, with "new traditionalists" ushering in a new wave of throwback-minded neo-honky-tonkers like Alan Jackson, Lyle Lovett and Dwight Yoakam. Not until Billboard started tracking sales figures through SoundScan and Garth Brooks' arena-filling country/pop/rock hybrid started putting up Beatlesque numbers did critics on the coast strive to take Nashville as seriously as New York, Los Angeles or Seattle.

Through that change, The Judds represented a bridge from one era to the other - upholding the sonic traditions of their forebears while opting for the same stylish productions of their contemporaries. From romantic woes to good old days, their songs were of a piece with the lyrical country experience; but in the voices of Naomi and (particularly) the powerful delivery of Wynonna, they stood to reclaim the genre from its male expectations. ("Love Can Build a Bridge," from their farewell album of the same name, was a U.K. No. 1 hit for the powerful female trio of Cher, Neneh Cherry and Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders when they covered it for the country's Comic Relief charity event.)

So there's the story of The Judds' success, the story of their art - and then, there's the tale of the duo themselves, which could've been its own ballad or two. Naomi, a single mother to Wynonna and her younger sister Ashley (who'd go on to become a successful actress), worked tirelessly to provide for her family and eventually get a foot in the door as musicians. The Judds' big break came thanks to a producer who Naomi met while taking care of his child as a nurse, one of the many jobs she held down before making it. So when the duo sang about what women went through - particularly working-class or overlooked women - it wasn't artifice.

And Naomi wasn't afraid to show the tougher side of her struggles to the top, from the bout of hepatitis C that semi-permanently sidelined the duo in 1991 - she'd later recover, and they'd reunite for tours through the new millennium - to the bouts of depression that, it's been reported, sadly ended her life on April 30, just one day before the duo's induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame and one last planned reunion tour.

"Nobody can understand it unless you've been there," she'd tell People years before her passing. "Think of your very worst day of your whole life - someone passed away, you lost your job, you found out you were being betrayed, that your child had a rare disease - you can take all of those at once and put them together and that's what depression feels like."

No easy answers or platitudes can offer explanation or clarity in this sad chapter of The Judds' story. But as is so often in these situations, we are left with music and memories - treasures of the heart in remembrance of someone who inspired us to achieve the impossible and build a bridge between your heart and mine.

If you or someone you love is dealing with depression or thoughts of suicide, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 to help you. Call them at 1-800-273-8255 or chat with them online.