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1961 in country music

 
Wikipedia: 1961 in country music
 
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This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1961.

List of years in country music (Table)
… 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1954 • 1955 • 1956 • 1957 •   
1958 • 1959 • 1960 – 1961 – 1962 • 1963 • 1964 •
   1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 • 1970 • 1971 …
Related time period or subjects
… 1958 • 1959 • 1960 – 1961 – 1962 • 1963 • 1964 …
… 1930s • 1940s • 1950s – 1960s – 1970s • 1980s • 1990s …
… 19th century – 20th century – 21st century …
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Contents

Events

No dates

  • The Country Music Association (CMA) develops and finalizes plans for the new Country Music Hall of Fame, to honor performers and others who were influential in the history of the genre. The first three inductees, honored on November 3, are all posthumous:
    • Jimmie Rodgers, a songwriter who - despite poor health - merged hillbilly and blues music into a revolutionary new sound.
    • Fred Rose, a pioneering song publisher who formed the Acuff-Rose music publishing company in the 1940s. Also a talented songwriter, and record producer/executive.
    • Hank Williams, legendary singer-songwriter whose songs are still sought after today.
With just a $1,500 budget, bronze plaques honoring each of the singers would be cast, a tradition that continues today.
  • Spade Cooley is arrested in connection with the beating death of his second wife, Ella Mae Evans. He is convicted and sentenced to prison. En route to prison, he suffers a heart attack, from which he will recover.

Top hits of the year

Number one hits

United States

(as certified by Billboard)

Date Single Name Artist Wks. No.1 Spec. Note
January 9 North to Alska Johnny Horton 7 [B]
February 27 Don't Worry Marty Robbins 10
May 8 Hello Walls Faron Young 9
  • Young's first Billboard Number One since "Alone With You" in 1951.
July 10 Heartbreak U.S.A. Kitty Wells 4 [B]
August 7 I Fall to Pieces Patsy Cline 2 [1], [A]
August 21 Tender Years George Jones 5
September 25 Walk on By Leroy Van Dyke 8 [C]
November 20 Big Bad John Jimmy Dean 17 [A]
Notes
  • 1^ No. 1 song of the year, as determined by Billboard.
  • A^ First Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
  • B^ Last Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
  • C^ Only Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist to date.

Other major hits

Top new album releases

Births

  • July 8 — Toby Keith, country star of the 1990s who became a mega-superstar in the 2000s, thanks to his fusion of honky tonk and rock.
  • August 25 — Billy Ray Cyrus, honky-tonk "Achy Breaky Heart" heartthrob of the 90's and 2000's, thanks to the huge success of "Achy Breaky".

Deaths

Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees

Major awards

Grammy Awards

Further reading

  • Kingsbury, Paul, "The Grand Ole Opry: History of Country Music. 70 Years of the Songs, the Stars and the Stories," Villard Books, Random House; Opryland USA, 1995
  • Kingsbury, Paul, "Vinyl Hayride: Country Music Album Covers 1947-1989," Country Music Foundation, 2003 (ISBN 0-8118-3572-3)
  • Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 (ISBN 0-06-273244-7)
  • Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs 1944-2005 - 6th Edition." 2005.

Other links

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

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