GRAMMY^®-winning country star June Carter Cash [ tickets ], wife of country legend Johnny Cash [ tickets ], died on Thursday (5/15) of complications from heart surgery. She was 73.

June Carter, who had been hospitalized at Baptist Hospital in Nashville and in critical condition since a May 7 heart-valve replacement, reportedly died with her husband and family members by her bedside.

Johnny Cash released a brief statement on Friday (5/16) morning.

"Thanks to June's friends, fans and loved ones at this terrible time. I love you all."

Carter's accomplishments include co-writing one her husband's best-known songs, "Ring of Fire," which was a No. 1 hit in 1963. She, along with Merle Kilgare, penned the tune during her tenure as a member of the influential country group the Carter Family.

Carter married Cash in 1968, and is credited in biographies with helping Cash to rediscover religion and overcome his drug problems.

In 1999, June Carter Cash released "Press On," which was her first solo album in more than 25 years.

Carter's death comes just weeks after her husband returned home following a lengthy hospitalization due to pneumonia. Cash, 71, suffers from autonomic neuropathy, and has been hospitalized numerous times in recent years.

Fans who wish to send flowers can direct them to: Hendersonville Funeral Home, 353 Johnny Cash Pkwy, Hendersonville, TN 37075.