Today In Country Music History
Today in 1925, WSM first broadcast the radio show "Barn Dance," the program that eventually became the "Grand Ole Opry."
Today in 1960, "Are You Lonesome Tonight" by Elvis Presley peaked at number one on the pop singles chart and stayed there for six weeks.
Today in 1964, Willie Nelson made his debut performance at the Grand Ole Opry, following his induction.
Today in 1987, Steve Wariner held the number one country chart position with "Lynda."
Today in 1992, Marty Stuart joined the Grand Ole Opry.
Today in 1996, Deana Carter made her debut on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno."
Today in 1996, Alan Jackson had more than a "little" to be happy about. He hit number one with the single "Little Bitty."
Today in 1998, Faith Hill topped the charts with "Let Me Let Go."
Today in 1999, Jo Dee Messina appeared on CBS-TV's "Touched by an Angel" for the first time.
Today in 2000, with two albums (his debut project, "One Voice," and his Christmas album, "Classic Christmas") in the Top ten, Billy Gilman was the country's top-selling artist.
Today in 2000, the finalists for the 2000 "Billboard" Music Awards were announced, and Faith Hill was the leading nominee.
Today in 2002, NBC-TV aired Faith Hill's TV special, "Faith Hill: When The Lights Go Down." The show performed very well among the holiday offerings. Barely edging out her husband Tim McGraw's first-ever special, which aired the night before, Faith's show was watched in six-point-nine-million U.S. households.
Today in 2003, Vince Gill and Amy Grant launched their "Simply Christmas" tour in Nashville, singing the standards and covering some country favorites such as "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," "Blue Christmas" and "Mr. Santa." The couple was backed by the Nashville Chamber Orchestra and joined by comedian Henry Cho. During the course of the show, Amy also encouraged the crowd to sponsor a child through Compassion International.
Today in 2004, Martina McBride and her husband John announced they were expecting their third child with a posting on Martina's website. Daughter Ava was born the following June.
Today in 2005, Keith Urban and Tim McGraw both got tabbed in "People" magazine's annual sexiest men issue.
Today in 2006, Little Big Town's Kimberly Roads married longtime friend Stephen Schlopman in the Caribbean.
Today in 2006, Carrie Underwood's "Before He Cheats" marked its fifth week at the top of the "Radio & Records" country chart, bringing her year-to-date total weeks at number one to eleven -- more than any other country artist in 2006.
Today in 2007, Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift were on hand for the 75th tree-lighting ceremony in New York's Rockefeller Center.
Today in 2007, Brad Paisley celebrated the number one successes of his singles "Ticks" and "Online" at a reception in Nashville.
Today in 2007, Keith Urban was among the performers at a benefit for the Georgia chapter of the Alzheimer's Association in Atlanta.< |