Janet Lee Constantine: Leon Russell’s Wife, Family, and Life

Janet Lee Constantine shared decades of family life with music legend Leon Russell and later helped care for the work he left behind.

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Janet Lee Constantine, wife of musician Leon Russell

Introduction

Janet Lee Constantine is best known as Leon Russell’s longtime wife and widow. She has also appeared publicly as Jan Constantine, Jan Bridges, and Jan Russell Bridges.

Table of Contents

She kept a low profile. Very low. Yet public records, old Oklahoma material, court papers, and music-industry reports give a clear picture of her family life and her work after Leon Russell’s death.

Quick Facts About Janet Lee Constantine

Fact	Information
Full name	Janet Lee Constantine
Other names	Jan Lee Constantine, Jan Constantine, Jan Bridges, Jan Russell Bridges
Known for	Wife and widow of Leon Russell
Husband	Leon Russell
Husband’s legal name	Claude Russell Bridges
Children with Leon Russell	Sugaree Noel Bridges, Honey Bridges, Coco Bridges
Connection to Oklahoma	Hugo, Oklahoma
Former family home	Hendersonville, Tennessee
Later family connection	Nashville area, Tennessee
Husband died	November 13, 2016
Later public work	Involvement with Leon Russell’s estate and music rights

Who Is Janet Lee Constantine?

Janet Lee Constantine became widely known through her marriage to American singer, musician, and songwriter Leon Russell.

Leon was born Claude Russell Bridges. He built a long music career under the name Leon Russell and worked with some of the biggest names in American music.

Janet stayed away from celebrity life.

That makes a difference.

There are far fewer interviews and public profiles about her than about her husband. Most trustworthy records mention her through family events, Leon’s death, property records, or work linked to his music after 2016.

Janet Lee Constantine’s Oklahoma Connection

Older Oklahoma records give one of the clearest clues about Janet’s earlier life.

A 1992 family notice preserved by the Oklahoma Historical Society described her as the former Jan Constantine of Hugo.

That wording links Janet directly with Hugo, Oklahoma.

It doesn’t prove she was born there. So that claim shouldn’t be made.

The same record said Janet and Leon Russell were living in Hendersonville, Tennessee, with their daughters at the time.

This old source matters because it was published years before online celebrity pages began repeating claims about Janet.

Janet Lee Constantine and Leon Russell

Janet spent many years with Leon Russell.

Records identify her as his second wife. Leon’s legal surname was Bridges, which explains why Janet later appeared under the name Jan Bridges.

Their exact wedding date needs care.

Some major newspaper reports place the start of their marriage around the late 1970s. Other entertainment records give February 6, 1983.

Those dates don’t match.

So the safest fact is simple: Janet Lee Constantine was Leon Russell’s longtime second wife, and they remained together until his death in 2016.

Their marriage lasted for decades.

And family became a big part of their life.

Janet Lee Constantine’s Children

Janet and Leon Russell had three daughters together:

Sugaree Noel Bridges, Honey Bridges, and Coco Bridges.

A 1992 Oklahoma family notice gives a rare look at the girls during childhood.

At that time, Coco was celebrating her second birthday. Sugaree was nine, while Honey was five.

The family was then living in Tennessee.

The girls later kept ties with their father’s music.

Sugaree and Coco both sang background vocals on Leon Russell’s last studio album, On a Distant Shore.

Coco also made the cover painting.

That album was recorded during Leon’s final year and released after his death.

Family Life Away From Public Attention

Janet and Leon didn’t make their family life a constant media story.

That’s clear from the records.

By 1992, they were living in Hendersonville, Tennessee. Years later, court records tied Jan Bridges and Claude Russell Bridges to property in Maury County, Tennessee.

The case dealt with property restrictions connected with Leon’s touring equipment and vehicles.

It wasn’t a celebrity dispute.

Still, the court papers give another firm record of Janet and Leon living as husband and wife in Tennessee.

Later reports placed the family in the Nashville area.

Leon Russell’s Death

Leon Russell died on November 13, 2016, at age 74.

Janet became one of the people speaking for the family after his death.

She said Leon died in his sleep at their Nashville home.

He had undergone heart surgery earlier that year and had been recovering. Reports at the time said he hoped to return to touring.

His death brought attention back to a career stretching across rock, blues, gospel, country, and pop music.

For Janet, though, this was personal.

She had lost her husband of many years.

Janet Lee Constantine After Leon Russell’s Death

Janet didn’t suddenly become a public celebrity.

Her later appearances were mostly tied to Leon’s music.

In 2019, music company Primary Wave reached a deal with the Estate of Leon Russell involving part of his publishing and master-recording income.

Jan Russell Bridges publicly welcomed the arrangement.

Her comments showed that she was taking part in decisions connected with Leon’s music after his death.

That role continued.

A 2023 Los Angeles Times report said producer and manager Dub Cornett was working with Jan Bridges while helping oversee Leon Russell’s estate.

The work covered old recordings, reissues, tribute projects, and renewed interest in Leon’s songs.

So Janet’s story didn’t end in 2016.

She stayed connected with what her husband left behind.

The Leon Russell Book

Another public record appeared in 2023.

Writer Bill Janovitz published Leon Russell: The Master of Space and Time’s Journey Through Rock & Roll History.

The book was written with permission from Leon Russell’s estate and was described as authorised by his widow, Jan Bridges.

Janovitz spoke with many people who had known or worked with Leon.

Janet’s involvement gave the project access to a family-backed account of his life and work.

Was Janet Lee Constantine a Musician?

There is no strong public record showing Janet had a separate recording career.

Some online pages call her an artist or attach other job titles to her.

Those claims need care.

Reliable records mainly identify her through her marriage, family, and later work with Leon Russell’s estate.

There isn’t enough trustworthy material to build a separate professional history for her.

So it’s better not to guess.

Janet Lee Constantine’s Net Worth

No trustworthy financial record gives Janet Lee Constantine a personal net-worth figure.

Many websites attach dollar amounts to people connected with famous musicians.

That doesn’t make those numbers factual.

Leon Russell’s song catalogue and recording rights had commercial value, and his estate later entered a deal with Primary Wave.

But that deal does not tell us Janet’s personal wealth.

A specific net-worth number would be guesswork.

Janet Lee Constantine’s Life Today

Janet has stayed mostly outside the public eye.

The strongest later reporting connects her with Leon Russell’s estate rather than with a new public career.

By 2023, she was still tied to work involving his recordings and musical history.

There is little reason to go beyond that.

Her day-to-day personal life has not been widely documented in trusted public sources.

Why Janet Lee Constantine Still Gets Attention

Interest in Janet usually comes from people reading about Leon Russell.

Fans want to know about his family.

They also want to know who stood beside him during the later part of his life.

Janet was there for decades.

She raised three daughters with him. She spoke after his death. And she later took part in work connected with his music.

Her story is quieter than Leon’s.

But it is closely tied to his.

Final Thought

Janet Lee Constantine lived much of her life away from celebrity attention.

Public records connect her with Hugo, Oklahoma, a long marriage to Leon Russell, three daughters, years of family life in Tennessee, and later involvement with Leon Russell’s estate.

Some parts of her story remain outside public records.

That’s fine.

The facts that can be checked already tell plenty.