1.
Pell City, Alabama
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Pell City is a city in St. Clair County, Alabama, United States. The city is the county seat of St. Clair County along with Ashville, at the 2000 census the population was 9,565. At the 2010 census, the population jumped to 12,695. Pell City was founded in 1890 by railroad investors and named after Jonathan H. Pell of the Pell City Iron and Land Company, the city was incorporated on May 6,1891, but nearly failed during the Panic of 1893. The mill was the economic and social center of the town during its development, besides the textile mill, other economic endeavors included agriculture and mercantile establishments. Large cotton, soybean, and cattle farms were located in the area, Pell City increased its size in 1956 when the nearby towns of Eden and Oak Ridge were merged with the city. The first mayor was Green Evans, the residences of Sumter Cogswell and Green Evans are two of the earliest structures, dating from the late nineteenth century. The majority of the structures date from 1902 to 1905. Ashville, Alabama, in the part of St. Clair County, was the only county seat from 1821 to 1907. A constitutional amendment in 1907 established Pell City as the county seat. For many years, St. Clair County was the county in the country with two full-service county seats. Both county seats remain operational to this day although Pell City has far outstripped Ashville in growth thanks in no part to the convergence of both I-20 and Logan Martin Lake. The construction of the Logan Martin Dam in 1964 changed the geography of the town by creating a large lake and this also created a large recreational area which brought new businesses, temporary summer residents and tourists and hundreds of new permanent residents building new homes along the new lake. On April 8,1998, an F2 tornado struck north of the city limits after the F5 tornado expired in western Jefferson County and this windstorm killed two people in a mobile home. It remained for 14 mi, partially damaging a church, twenty-six homes and mobile homes, ninety other homes and mobile homes suffered minor to major destruction. An additional twelve people were injured, the twister damaged a funeral home and twenty-five homes. The Bethel Baptist Church in Odenville was destroyed a few minutes after its members left an Easter pageant rehearsal that had cancelled because of the storm. According to the U. S. Census Bureau, the city has an area of 27.2 square miles
2.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
3.
Country music
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Country music is a genre of United States popular music that originated in the southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from the genre of United States, such as folk music. Blues modes have been used throughout its recorded history. The term country music is used today to many styles and subgenres. In 2009 country music was the most listened to rush hour radio genre during the evening commute, immigrants to the Southern Appalachian Mountains of North America brought the music and instruments of Europe and Africa along with them for nearly 300 years. Country music was introduced to the world as a Southern phenomenon, Bristol, Tennessee, has been formally recognized by the U. S. Congress as the Birthplace of Country Music, based on the historic Bristol recording sessions of 1927. Since 2014, the city has been home to the Birthplace of Country Music Museum, historians have also noted the influence of the less-known Johnson City sessions of 1928 and 1929, and the Knoxville sessions of 1929 and 1930. Prior to these, pioneer settlers, in the Great Smoky Mountains region, had developed a musical heritage. The first generation emerged in the early 1920s, with Atlantas music scene playing a role in launching countrys earliest recording artists. Okeh Records began issuing hillbilly music records by Fiddlin John Carson as early as 1923, followed by Columbia Records in 1924, many hillbilly musicians, such as Cliff Carlisle, recorded blues songs throughout the 1920s. The most important was the Grand Ole Opry, aired starting in 1925 by WSM in Nashville, during the 1930s and 1940s, cowboy songs, or Western music, which had been recorded since the 1920s, were popularized by films made in Hollywood. Bob Wills was another musician from the Lower Great Plains who had become very popular as the leader of a hot string band. His mix of country and jazz, which started out as dance hall music, Wills was one of the first country musicians known to have added an electric guitar to his band, in 1938. Country musicians began recording boogie in 1939, shortly after it had played at Carnegie Hall. Gospel music remained a component of country music. It became known as honky tonk, and had its roots in Western swing and the music of Mexico. By the early 1950s a blend of Western swing, country boogie, rockabilly was most popular with country fans in the 1950s, and 1956 could be called the year of rockabilly in country music. Beginning in the mid-1950s, and reaching its peak during the early 1960s, the late 1960s in American music produced a unique blend as a result of traditionalist backlash within separate genres
4.
Country pop
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Country pop is a subgenre of country music and pop music that was developed by members of the Country genre out of a desire to reach a larger, mainstream audience. It is a continuation of efforts that began in the late 1950s originally known as Nashville sound. By the mid-1970s, many artists were transitioning to the pop-country sound which led to some records charting high on mainstream top 40 as well as country Billboard charts. According to Bill Ivey, this genre originated in Nashville, Tennessee. He believes that the Nashville Sound often produced records that sounded more pop than country, after the removal of the fiddle, Patsy Cline, Jim Reeves, and Eddy Arnold were among the most popular artists during this time. This was intended to have country singers gain more success in pop music, the first male artists to come out of this new genre were Jim Reeves and Eddy Arnold, who both grew to have widespread acceptance among both country and pop music listeners. Both Jim Reeves and Eddy Arnold had major influence on their RCA labelmate Elvis Presley, apparent not only in secular songs, the first female country singer to emerge from this new genre was Patsy Cline in the early 1960s. The example she created was followed by female country artists, such as Lynn Anderson, Crystal Gayle and Shania Twain. Country pop found its first widespread acceptance during the 1970s and it started when pop music singers, like Glen Campbell, John Denver, Olivia Newton-John and Anne Murray, began having hits on the country charts. Songs like Campbells Rhinestone Cowboy were among the biggest crossover hits in country music history and these pop-oriented singers thought that they could gain higher record sales and a larger audience if they crossed over into the country world. One of the artists who did this was Olivia Newton-John, who emerged from Australia in the mid-1970s, a group of artists, troubled by this trend, formed the Association of Country Entertainers in 1974. The debate raged into 1975, and reached its apex at that years Country Music Association Awards when reigning Entertainer of the Year Charlie Rich presented the award to his successor, as he read Denvers name, Rich set fire to the envelope with a cigarette lighter. The action was taken in some quarters as a protest against the pop style in country music. However, the ACE would only last two years, its two biggest backers, firm traditionalists George Jones and Tammy Wynette, faced a bitter divorce. In 1979 Barbara Mandrell had her highest crossover hit with her number 1 song I Dont Want to Be Right It charted number 31 on the Billboard Top 40, several of her other hits charted well on the adult contemporary charts and the Bubbling under 100 charts. Mandrell also did countrypolitan style music on her Barbara Mandrell & the Mandrell Sisters show and she had R & B artists, pop artists and country artists featured every week. It was the last successful musical variety show on TV and she is also known for her Blue-Eyed Soul sound. She was given the nickname The Princess of Steel, for her ability at the steel guitar and she was one of country musics most successful crossover artists during the 1970s and 1980s
5.
Honky-tonk
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A honky-tonk is both a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons and the style of music played in such establishments. Bars of this kind are common in the South and Southwest United States, many eminent country music artists, such as Jimmie Rodgers, Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline, Ernest Tubb, and Merle Haggard, began their careers as amateur musicians in honky-tonks. The modern-day, honk-tonk atmosphere has continued, with likes of Dwight Yoakam, the origin of the term honky-tonk is disputed, originally referring to bawdy variety shows in areas of the old West and to the actual theaters showing them. This honky-tonk music was an important influence on the piano style. Before World War II, the industry began to refer to hillbilly music being played from Texas. In the 1950s, honky-tonk entered its age, with the popularity of Webb Pierce, Hank Locklin, Lefty Frizzell, Ray Price, Faron Young, George Jones. The origin of the term honky-tonk is unknown, the Tonk brothers, William and Max, established the Tonk Bros. An early source purporting to explain the derivation of the term was an article published in 1900 by the New York Sun, the article, however, reads more like a humorous urban legend or fable, so its veracity is questionable. Some honky-tonks offered dancing to music played by pianists or small bands, katrina Hazzard-Gordon wrote that the honky-tonk was the first urban manifestation of the jook, and that the name itself became synonymous with a style of music. Related to the blues in tonal structure, honky-tonk has a tempo that is slightly stepped up. It is rhythmically suited for many African-American dance, as Chris Smith and Charles McCarron wrote in their 1916 hit song Down in Honky Tonk Town, Its underneath the ground, where all the fun is found. Although the derivation of the term is unknown, honky tonk originally referred to bawdy variety shows in the West, the earliest mention of them in print refers to them as variety theaters and describe the entertainment as variety shows. The theaters often had a gambling house and always a bar. In recollections long after the closed, writers such as Wyatt Earp. Abbott referred to honky-tonks in the cowtowns of Kansas, Nebraska and their recollections contain lurid accounts of the women and violence accompanying the shows. As late as 1913, Col. Edwin Emerson, a former Rough Rider commander, the Rough Riders were recruited from the ranches of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Indian Territories, so the term was still in popular use during the Spanish–American War. The honky-tonk sound has a rhythm section playing a two-beat rhythm with a crisp backbeat. Steel guitar and fiddle are the dominant instruments, honky-tonk music influenced the boogie-woogie piano style, as indicated by Jelly Roll Mortons 1938 record Honky Tonk Music and Meade Lux Lewiss hit Honky Tonk Train Blues
6.
Singing
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Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of sustained tonality, rhythm, and a variety of vocal techniques. A person who sings is called a singer or vocalist, Singers perform music that can be sung with or without accompaniment by musical instruments. Singing is often done in an ensemble of musicians, such as a choir of singers or a band of instrumentalists, Singers may perform as soloists, or accompanied by anything from a single instrument up to a symphony orchestra or big band. Singing can be formal or informal, arranged or improvised and it may be done as a form of religious devotion, as a hobby, as a source of pleasure, comfort, or ritual, as part of music education, or as a profession. Excellence in singing requires time, dedication, instruction, and regular practice, if practice is done on a regular basis then the sounds can become more clear and strong. Professional singers usually build their careers around one specific genre, such as classical or rock. They typically take voice training provided by teachers or vocal coaches throughout their careers. Though these four mechanisms function independently, they are coordinated in the establishment of a vocal technique and are made to interact upon one another. During passive breathing, air is inhaled with the diaphragm while exhalation occurs without any effort, exhalation may be aided by the abdominal, internal intercostal and lower pelvis/pelvic muscles. Inhalation is aided by use of external intercostals, scalenes and sternocleidomastoid muscles, the pitch is altered with the vocal cords. With the lips closed, this is called humming, humans have vocal folds which can loosen, tighten, or change their thickness, and over which breath can be transferred at varying pressures. The shape of the chest and neck, the position of the tongue, any one of these actions results in a change in pitch, volume, timbre, or tone of the sound produced. Sound also resonates within different parts of the body and an individuals size, Singers can also learn to project sound in certain ways so that it resonates better within their vocal tract. This is known as vocal resonation, another major influence on vocal sound and production is the function of the larynx which people can manipulate in different ways to produce different sounds. These different kinds of function are described as different kinds of vocal registers. The primary method for singers to accomplish this is through the use of the Singers Formant and it has also been shown that a more powerful voice may be achieved with a fatter and fluid-like vocal fold mucosa. The more pliable the mucosa, the more efficient the transfer of energy from the airflow to the vocal folds, Vocal registration refers to the system of vocal registers within the voice. A register in the voice is a series of tones, produced in the same vibratory pattern of the vocal folds
7.
Songwriter
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A songwriter is an individual who writes the lyrics, melodies and chord progressions for songs, typically for a popular music genre such as rock or country music. A songwriter can also be called a composer, although the term tends to be used mainly for individuals from the classical music genre. The pressure from the industry to produce popular hits means that songwriting is often an activity for which the tasks are distributed between a number of people. For example, a songwriter who excels at writing lyrics might be paired with a songwriter with a gift for creating original melodies, pop songs may be written by group members from the band or by staff writers – songwriters directly employed by music publishers. Some songwriters serve as their own publishers, while others have outside publishers. The old-style apprenticeship approach to learning how to write songs is being supplemented by university degrees and college diplomas, a knowledge of modern music technology, songwriting elements and business skills are necessary requirements to make a songwriting career in the 2010s. Several music colleges offer songwriting diplomas and degrees with music business modules, the legal power to grant these permissions may be bought, sold or transferred. This is governed by international copyright law, song pitching can be done on a songwriters behalf by their publisher or independently using tip sheets like RowFax, the MusicRow publication and SongQuarters. Skills associated with song-writing include entrepreneurism and creativity, songwriters who sign an exclusive songwriting agreement with a publisher are called staff writers. In the Nashville country music scene, there is a staff writer culture where contracted writers work normal 9-to-5 hours at the publishing office and are paid a regular salary. This salary is in effect the writers draw, an advance on future earnings, the publisher owns the copyright of songs written during the term of the agreement for a designated period, after which the songwriter can reclaim the copyright. In an interview with HitQuarters, songwriter Dave Berg extolled the benefits of the set-up, unlike contracted writers, some staff writers operate as employees for their respective publishers. Under the terms of work for hire agreements, the compositions created are fully owned by the publisher. In Nashville, young writers are often encouraged to avoid these types of contracts. Staff writers are common across the industry, but without the more office-like working arrangements favored in Nashville. All the major publishers employ writers under contract, songwriter Allan Eshuijs described his staff writer contract at Universal Music Publishing as a starter deal. His success under the arrangement eventually allowed him to found his own publishing company, so that he could. keep as much as possible, songwriters are also often skilled musicians. In addition to selling their songs and musical concepts for other artists to sing, songwriters need to create a number of elements for a song
8.
RCA Records
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RCA Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, Inc. It is one of SMEs three flagship labels, alongside Columbia Records and Epic Records. The label has released multiple genres of music, including pop, rock, hip hop, R&B, blues, jazz, the companys name is derived from the initials of the labels former parent company, the Radio Corporation of America. It is the second oldest recording company in US history, after sister label Columbia Records, RCAs Canadian unit is Sonys oldest label in Canada. It was one of only two Canadian record companies to survive the Great Depression, kelly, Enrique Iglesias, Foo Fighters, Kings of Leon, Kesha, Miley Cyrus, Giorgio Moroder, Jennifer Hudson, DAngelo, Pink, Tinashe, G-Eazy, Pitbull, Zayn and Wizkid. In 1929, the Radio Corporation of America purchased the Victor Talking Machine Company, then the worlds largest manufacturer of phonographs and phonograph records. The company then became RCA Victor but retained use of the Victor Records name on their labels until the beginning of 1946 when the labels were finally switched over to RCA Victor. With Victor, RCA acquired New World rights to the famous Nipper His Masters Voice trademark, in Shanghai, China, in 1931, RCA Victors British affiliate the Gramophone Company merged with the Columbia Graphophone Company to form EMI. This gave RCA head David Sarnoff a seat on the EMI board, in September 1931, RCA Victor introduced the first 33⅓ rpm records sold to the public, calling them Program Transcriptions. In the depths of the Great Depression, the format was a commercial failure, during the early part of the depression, RCA made a number of attempts to produce a successful cheap label to compete with the dime store labels. The first was the short-lived Timely Tunes label in 1931 sold at Montgomery Ward, in 1932, Bluebird Records was created as a sub-label of RCA Victor. It was originally an 8-inch record with a blue label. In 1933, RCA reintroduced Bluebird and Electradisk as a standard 10-inch label, another cheap label, Sunrise, was produced. The same musical couplings were issued on all three labels and Bluebird Records still survives eight decades after Electradisk and Sunrise were discontinued, RCA also produced records for Montgomery Ward label during the 1930s. Besides manufacturing records for themselves, RCA Victor operated RCA Custom which was the leading record manufacturer for independent record labels, RCA Custom also pressed record compilations for The Readers Digest Association. RCA sold its interest in EMI in 1935, but EMI continued to distribute RCA recordings in the UK, RCA also manufactured and distributed HMV classical recordings on the RCA and HMV labels in North America. During World War II, ties between RCA and its Japanese affiliate JVC were severed, the Japanese record company is today called Victor Entertainment and is still a JVC subsidiary. From 1942 to 1944, RCA Victor was seriously impacted by the American Federation of Musicians recording ban, virtually all union musicians could not make recordings during that period
9.
Decca Records
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Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U. S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis along with American Deccas first president Jack Kapp and later American Decca president Milton Rackmil. In 1937, as a result of anticipating Nazi aggression leading to World War II, Lewis sold American Decca, the British label was renowned for its development of recording methods, while the American company developed the concept of cast albums in the musical genre. Both wings are now part of the Universal Music Group, which is owned by Vivendi, the US Decca label was the foundation company that evolved into UMG. The name Decca was coined by Wilfred S. Samuel by merging the word Mecca with the initial D of their logo Dulcet or their trademark Dulcephone, Samuel, a linguist, chose Decca as a brand name as it was easy to pronounce in most languages. The name dates back to a gramophone called the Decca Dulcephone patented in 1914 by musical instrument makers Barnett Samuel. That company was renamed the Decca Gramophone Co. Ltd. Within years, Decca Records Ltd. was the second largest record label in the world, Decca bought the UK branch of Brunswick Records and continued to run it under that name. In the 1950s the American Decca studios were located in the Pythian Temple in New York City, in classical music, Decca had a long way to go from its modest beginnings to catch up with the established HMV and Columbia labels. The pre-war classical repertoire on Decca was not extensive, but was select, heinrich Schlusnus made important pre-war lieder recordings for Decca. John Culshaw, who joined Decca in 1946 in a junior post and he revolutionised recording – of opera, in particular. Hitherto, the practice had been to put microphones in front of the performers, Culshaw was determined to make recordings that would be a theatre of the mind, making the listeners experience at home not second best to being in the opera house, but a wholly different experience. To that end he got the singers to move about in the studio as they would onstage, used sound effects and different acoustics. His skill, coupled with Decca engineering, took Decca into the first flight of recording companies and his pioneering recording of Wagners Der Ring des Nibelungen conducted by Georg Solti was a huge artistic and commercial success. In the wake of Deccas lead, artists such as Herbert von Karajan, Joan Sutherland, however, Culshaw was, strictly speaking, not the first to do this. Far from being a mere rendering of the score, the 3-LP album set used sound effects to recreate the production as if the listener were watching a stage performance of the work. Until 1947, American Decca issued British Decca classical music recordings, afterwards, British Decca took over distribution through its new American subsidiary London Records. American Decca actively re-entered the classical music field in 1950 with distribution deals from Deutsche Grammophon, American Decca began issuing its own classical music recordings in 1956 when Israel Horowitz joined Decca to head its classical music operations
10.
Mercury Records
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Mercury Records is an American-based record label owned by Universal Music Group. In the United States, it operates through Island Records, in the UK, Mercury Record Corporation was formed in the American city of Chicago in 1945 by Irving Green, Berle Adams, Ray Greenberg and Arthur Talmadge. They were a force in jazz and blues, classical music, rock and roll. Early in the history, Mercury opened two pressing plants, one in Chicago and the other in St. Louis, Missouri. With the use of presses and providing 24-hour turnaround, they went into direct competition with major recording labels such as Columbia, Decca, Capitol. By hiring two promoters, Tiny Hill and Jimmy Hilliard, they penetrated the pop market with such as Frankie Laine, Vic Damone, Tony Fontane. Rather than rely on radio airplay, Mercury initially relied on jukeboxes to promote their music, some early Mercury recordings featured a caricature of him as its logo. In 1947 Jack Rael, a musician and publicist/manager, persuaded Mercury to let Patti Page record a song that had planned to be done by Vic Damone. The budget was too small for them to hire a second singer to provide the parts to Page. The company released a number of recordings under the Mercury label as well as its subsidiaries. In addition, they leased and purchased material by independent labels, under their own label, Mercury released a variety of recording styles from classical music to psychedelic rock. However, its subsidiaries focused on their own specialized categories of music, Mercurys jazz division had two distinct and important fathers. John Hammond brought his expertise and connections when Mercury bought Keynote Records in the late 1940s, and Mercury was the issuing company and distributor for Norman Granzs pre-Norgran/Verve recordings. Although both Hammond and Granz had departed Mercury by the mid-1950s, they established the company in the jazz world, by the early 1960s, Mercury was releasing jazz under the flagship label and was an early leader in the new stereo sound releases. Highlights of the early and mid-1960s included albums by Quincy Jones, Buddy Rich, Cannonball Adderley, Charles Mingus, Dinah Washington, Sarah Vaughan, Max Roach, in the early 1950s, Norman Granz started his own record company, Norgran, which later became Verve. In an ironic twist, both Mercury and Verve are now owned by Universal Music Group and Mercurys jazz library falls under the Verve division. Since the early 1990s, Verve has reissued many Mercury jazz titles on CD, often taking care to use original master tapes, in 1962, Mercury began marketing a line of phonographs made by Philips bearing the Mercury brand name. In July 1967, Mercury Records became the first U. S. record company to release cassette music tapes, in 1969, Mercury changed its corporate name to Mercury Record Productions Inc. while its parent Conelco became North American Philips Corp after Philips brought control of the company
11.
Marty Robbins
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Martin David Robinson, known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, and racing driver. Robbins was born in Glendale, a suburb of Phoenix in Maricopa County and his mother was mostly of Paiute Indian heritage. Robbins was reared in a family situation. His father took odd jobs to support the family of 10 children, among his warmer memories of his childhood, Robbins recalled having listened to stories of the American West told by his maternal grandfather, Texas Bob Heckle, who was a local medicine man. Robbins left the home at 17 to serve in the United States Navy as an LCT coxswain during World War II. He was stationed in the Solomon Islands in the Pacific Ocean, to pass the time during the war, he learned to play the guitar, started writing songs, and came to love Hawaiian music. After his discharge from the military in 1947, he began to play at venues in Phoenix, then moved on to host his own show on KTYL. After Little Jimmy Dickens made a guest appearance on Robbins TV show, Robbins became known for his appearances at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1980, he appeared on the PBS music program Austin City Limits during Season 5, in addition to his recordings and performances, Robbins was an avid race car driver, competing in 35 career NASCAR Grand National races with six top-10 finishes, including the 1973 Firecracker 400. In 1967, Robbins played himself in the car racing film Hell on Wheels, Robbins was partial to Dodges prepared by NASCAR Hall-of-Famer Cotton Owens, and owned and raced Chargers and then a 1978 Dodge Magnum. He was also the driver of the 60th Indianapolis 500 Buick Century pace car in 1976 and his last race was in a Junior Johnson-built 1982 Buick Regal in the Atlanta Journal 500 on November 7,1982, a month before his death. Robbins had a history of cardiovascular disease, after his third heart attack on December 2,1982, he underwent quadruple coronary bypass surgery. He did not recover and died six days later on December 8,1982 at St. Thomas Hospital in Nashville, Robbins was awarded an honorary degree by Northern Arizona University. Robbins 1957 recording of A White Sport Coat and a Pink Carnation sold over one million copies and his musical accomplishments include the Grammy Award for his 1959 hit and signature song El Paso, taken from his album Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs. El Paso was the first song to hit No.1 on the pop chart in the 1960s. It was followed up, successfully, by Dont Worry, which reached No.3 on the pop chart in 1961, becoming his third, El Paso was followed by one prequel and one sequel, Feleena and El Paso City. Also in 1961, Robbins wrote the words and music and recorded I Told the Brook, Robbins decided to keep it in the final version. The song reached No.1 on the chart
12.
Grand Ole Opry
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The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country-music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, which was founded on November 28,1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio barn dance on WSM, currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment, it is the longest-running radio broadcast in US history, albeit not the longest-running one on a radio network. It attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors from around the world and millions of radio, the Oprys current primary slogan is The Show that Made Country Music Famous. Other slogans include Home of American Music and Country’s Most Famous Stage, in the 1930s the show began hiring professionals and expanded to four hours, and WSM, broadcasting by then with 50,000 watts, made the program a Saturday night musical tradition in nearly 30 states. In 1939, it debuted nationally on NBC Radio, the Opry moved to a permanent home, the Ryman Auditorium, in 1943. As it developed in importance, so did the city of Nashville, the Grand Ole Opry holds such significance in Nashville that its name is included on the city/county line signs on all major roadways. The signs read Music City|Metropolitan Nashville Davidson County|Home of the Grand Ole Opry, membership in the Opry remains one of country musics crowning achievements. Such country music legends as Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Marty Robbins, Roy Acuff, since 1974, the show has been broadcast from the Grand Ole Opry House east of downtown Nashville, with an annual three-month winter foray back to the Ryman since 1999. Performances have been televised in addition to the radio programs. The Grand Ole Opry started as the WSM Barn Dance in the new radio studio of the National Life & Accident Insurance Company in downtown Nashville on November 28,1925. On October 18,1925, management began a program featuring Dr. Humphrey Bate, on November 2, WSM hired long-time announcer and program director George D. Hay launched the WSM Barn Dance with 77-year-old fiddler Uncle Jimmy Thompson on November 28,1925, judge Hay, however, liked the Fruit Jar Drinkers and asked them to appear last on each show because he wanted to always close each segment with red hot fiddle playing. They were the band accepted on Barn Dance, with the Crook Brothers being the first. When the Opry began having square dancers on the show, the Fruit Jar Drinkers always played for them, in 1926, Uncle Dave Macon, a Tennessee banjo player who had recorded several songs and toured the vaudeville circuit, became its first real star. The phrase Grand Ole Opry was first uttered on the air on December 10,1927, at the time, Barn Dance followed the NBC Red Networks Music Appreciation Hour, a program of classical music and selections from grand opera presented by classical conductor Walter Damrosch. On that particular night, Damrosch had remarked that there is no place in the classics for realism, in response, Opry presenter George Hay said, Friends, the program which just came to a close was devoted to the classics. Doctor Damrosch told us there is no place in the classics for realism. However, from here on out for the three hours, we will present nothing but realism
13.
Nashville, Tennessee
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Nashville is the capital of the U. S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in the central part of the state. The city is a center for the music, healthcare, publishing, banking and transportation industries and it is known as a center of the country music industry, earning it the nickname Music City, U. S. A. Since 1963, Nashville has had a consolidated city-county government which includes six municipalities in a two-tier system. Nashville is governed by a mayor, vice-mayor, and 40-member Metropolitan Council, thirty-five of the members are elected from single-member districts, five are elected at-large. Reflecting the citys position in government, Nashville is home to the Tennessee Supreme Courts courthouse for Middle Tennessee. According to 2015 estimates from the U. S. Census Bureau, the balance population, which excludes semi-independent municipalities within Nashville, was 654,610. The 2015 population of the entire 13-county Nashville metropolitan area was 1,830,345, the 2015 population of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Columbia combined statistical area, a larger trade area, was 1,951,644. The town of Nashville was founded by James Robertson, John Donelson, and it was named for Francis Nash, the American Revolutionary War hero. Nashville quickly grew because of its location, accessibility as a port on the Cumberland River, a tributary of the Ohio River. By 1800, the city had 345 residents, including 136 African American slaves and 14 free blacks, in 1806, Nashville was incorporated as a city and became the county seat of Davidson County, Tennessee. In 1843, the city was named the permanent capital of the state of Tennessee, by 1860, when the first rumblings of secession began to be heard across the South, antebellum Nashville was a prosperous city. The citys significance as a port made it a desirable prize as a means of controlling important river. In February 1862, Nashville became the first state capital to fall to Union troops, the state was occupied by Union troops for the duration of the war. Within a few years after the Civil War, the Nashville chapter of the Ku Klux Klan was founded by Confederate veteran John W. Morton, meanwhile, the city had reclaimed its important shipping and trading position and developed a solid manufacturing base. The post–Civil War years of the late 19th century brought new prosperity to Nashville and these healthy economic times left the city with a legacy of grand classical-style buildings, which can still be seen around the downtown area. Circa 1950 the state approved a new city charter that provided for the election of city council members from single-member districts. This change was supported because at-large voting diluted the minority populations political power in the city and they could seldom gain a majority of the population to support a candidate of their choice
14.
Secondary school
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A secondary school is both an organization that delivers level 2 junior secondary education or level 3 secondary education phases of the ISCED scale, and the building where this takes place. Level 2 junior secondary education is considered to be the second, Secondary schools typically follow on from primary schools and lead into vocational and tertiary education. Attendance is compulsory in most countries for students between the ages 11 and 16, the systems and terminology remain unique to each country. School building design does not happen in isolation, schools need to accommodate students, staff, storage, mechanical and electrical systems, storage, support staff, ancillary staff and administration. The number of rooms required can be determined from the roll of the school. A general classroom for 30 students needs to be 55m2, or more generously 62m2, a general art room for 30 students needs to be 83m2, but 104 m2 for 3D textile work. A drama studio or a specialist science laboratory for 30 needs to be 90 m2, examples are given on how this can be configured for a 1,200 place secondary. The building providing the education has to fulfil the needs of, The students, the teachers, the support staff, the adminstrators. It has to should meet health requirements, minimal functional requirements- such as classrooms, toilets and showers, electricity, textbooks, Government accountants having read the advice then publish minimum guidelines on schools. These enable environmental modelling and establish building costs. Future plans are audited to ensure that standards are not exceeded. The UK government published this downwardly revised space formula in 2014 and it said the floor area should be 1050m² +6. 3m²/pupil place for 11- to 16-year-olds + 7m²/pupil place for post-16s. The external finishes were to be downgraded to meet a build cost of £1113/m², a secondary school, locally may be called high school, junior high school, senior high school. Sweden, gymnasium Switzerland, gymnasium, secondary school, collège or lycée Taiwan, Junior High School, Senior High School, Vocational High School, Military School, in Nigeria, secondary school starts from JSS1 until SSS3. Most students start at the age of 10 or 11 and finish at 16 or 17, Students are required to sit for the West African Senior Secondary Certificate Examination. To progress to university students must obtain at least a credit in Maths, English, in Somalia, secondary school starts from 9th grade until 12th. Students start it when they are around 14 to 15 years of age, Students are required to study Somali and Arabic, with the option of either English or Italian depending on the type of school. Religion, chemistry, physics, biology, physical education, textile, art, design, when secondary school has been completed, students are sent to national training camp before going to either college, or military training. In South Africa, high school begins at grade 8, Students study for five years, at the end of which they write a Matriculation examination
15.
MCA Records
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MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc. which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group, of which MCA Records was still part. MCAs country division, MCA Nashville, is an active imprint of Universal Music Group Nashville. MCA was forced to exit the talent agency business in order to complete the merger, as American Decca owned Universal Pictures, MCA assumed full ownership of Universal and made it into the top film studio in town, producing hit after hit. In 1966, MCA formed Uni Records and in 1967 purchased Kapp Records which was placed under Uni Records management. In 1937, the owner of Decca, E. R. Lewis, chose to split off the U. K. Decca company from the U. S. company, companies if the emerging hostilities of Nazi Germany should lead to war – correctly foreseeing World War II. Lewis sold the remainder of his U. S. Decca holdings when war did break out, MCAs U. S. -based Decca Records kept the rights to the Decca name in North and South America and parts of Asia including Japan. U. K. Decca owned the rights to the Decca name in the rest of the world, after the war, British Decca formed a new U. S. subsidiary, London Records. During this time U. S. Decca issued records outside North America on the Brunswick, in 1967, Brunswick and Coral were replaced by the MCA label to release U. S. Decca and Kapp label material outside North America. Initial activity as MCA Records was based in London and MCA Records UK was formally launched on February 16,1968. Among the early artists on the MCA label, around 1971, were groups Wishbone Ash, Osibisa, Stackridge and Budgie, early MCA releases were distributed by U. K. Decca but it moved to EMI in 1974. In 1979, distribution moved to CBS, while the last releases in the 1980s were self-distributed, as the U. S. division of MCA Records was not established until 1972, the earliest U. K. MCA Records material was released in the U. S. on either Kapp or Decca, Uni label material was issued on the Uni label worldwide. In 1970, MCA reorganized its Canadian record company Compo Company Ltd. into MCA Records, in April 1970, former Warner Bros. Records president Mike Maitland joined MCA and initially served as Deccas general manager. Maitland was unsuccessful in his attempt to consolidate Warner Bros. Records with co-owned Atlantic Records which led to his departure from Warner, the three labels maintained their identities for a short time but were retired in favor of the MCA label in 1973. Drift Away by Dobie Gray became the final Decca pop label release in the U. S in 1973. Beginning the same year the catalogs of Decca, Uni and Kapp were reissued in the U. S. on the MCA label under the supervision of veteran Decca producer Milt Gabler. The first MCA Records release in the U. S. was former Uni artist Elton Johns Crocodile Rock single in 1972, MCA label used a black with curved rainbow design until the late 1970s. This design was inspired by the U. S. Decca label of the 1960s
16.
Bill Anderson (singer)
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James William Anderson III, known as Bill Anderson, is an American country music singer, songwriter and television personality. He has been a member in long standing of the weekly Grand Ole Opry radio program and stage performance in Nashville, twenty-nine more of his singles have reached the top ten. One of the most successful songwriters in music history, Anderson is also a popular singer, earning the nickname Whisperin Bill for his soft vocal style. Bill Anderson had his own show in the 1960s. Anderson has made television appearances, including two stints as a game show host, The Better Sex in 1977, and the country music-themed quiz show Fandango on The Nashville Network. Although Bill was born in Columbia, South Carolina, he was raised in Griffin, Georgia and Decatur, Georgia. He studied journalism at the University of Georgia with an eye toward sports writing, and worked his way through school as a radio DJ at WGAU, when he first tried songwriting and singing. He earned a degree in journalism from the universitys Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication and he also became a member of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity. Anderson took full advantage of his big break, moving to Nashville, Tennessee, before signing to Decca, Anderson recorded for the small TNT label between 1957 and 1959, where he released three singles that failed to hit the country charts, including a version of City Lights. After signing with Decca in 1959, he left TNT and his first chart hit came with 1959s Thats What Its Like to Be Lonesome, and he had his first top ten entry with 1960s Tip of My Fingers. Early hits like Po Folks, Mama Sang a Song, and 8 X10 still remain among his best-known. Anderson recorded his biggest hit and signature song, the partly spoken ballad Still, in 1963, and it not only topped the country charts, the song climbed to No.8 on the pop chart, as well as No.3 on the adult contemporary chart. He also wrote the song Papas Table Grace which was covered by Bobby Hankins. On February 15,1965, Anderson appeared—along with two imposters—on the game show To Tell The Truth, challenging the panel to determine the real Bill Anderson. According to the read at the beginning of his segment. Only two of the four panelists successfully identified Bill, at the end of the segment, he sang one of his own compositions, Po Folks. Anderson reached the top five 19 times through 1978 and this included the No.1 songs ones I Get the Fever, For Loving You, My Life, World of Make Believe, and Sometimes, a duet with Mary Lou Turner. Anderson hit the top ten for the last time in 1978 with I Cant Wait Any Longer, besides his whisper of a singing voice, he was also known for his whispering recitations during songs, such as in Mama Sang a Song and Still
17.
Soap opera
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A soap opera, soap, or soapie, is a serial drama on television or radio that examines the lives of many characters, usually focusing on emotional relationships to the point of melodrama. The term soap opera originated from such dramas being typically sponsored by soap manufacturers in the past, the first serial considered to be a soap opera was Painted Dreams, which debuted on October 20,1930 on Chicago radio station WGN. The first nationally broadcast radio soap opera was Clara, Lu, and Em, a crucial element that defines the soap opera is the open-ended serial nature of the narrative, with stories spanning several episodes. One of the features that makes a television program a soap opera. While Spanish language telenovelas are sometimes called soap operas, telenovelas have conflicts that get resolved, but with soap operas each episode ends with a promise that the storyline is to be continued in another episode. You spend more time even with the characters, the apparent villains grow less apparently villainous. Soap opera storylines run concurrently, intersect and lead into further developments, each episode may feature some of the shows current storylines, but not always all of them. Soap operas rarely bring all the current storylines to a conclusion at the same time, when one storyline ends, there are several other story threads at differing stages of development. Soap opera episodes typically end on some sort of cliffhanger, evening soap operas and those that air at a rate of one episode per week are more likely to feature the entire cast in each episode, and to represent all current storylines in each episode. Evening soap operas and serials that run for only part of the year tend to bring things to a dramatic end-of-season cliffhanger, the article explained that at that time, many prime time series lost money, while daytime serials earned profits several times more than their production costs. Fitting in with these characteristics, most soap operas follow the lives of a group of characters who live or work in a particular place, the storylines follow the day-to-day activities and personal relationships of these characters. These elements may be found across the gamut of soap operas, Due to the prominence of English-language television, most soap-operas are completely English. In many soap operas, in particular daytime serials in the US, Soap operas from the United Kingdom and Australia tend to focus on more everyday characters and situations, and are frequently set in working class environments. Many of the soaps produced in two countries explore social realist storylines such as family discord, marriage breakdown or financial problems. This diverges from US soap operas where such comedy is rare, UK soap operas frequently make a claim to presenting reality or purport to have a realistic style. Romance, secret relationships, extramarital affairs, and genuine hate have been the basis for many soap opera storylines, in US daytime serials, the most popular soap opera characters, and the most popular storylines, often involved a romance of the sort presented in paperback romance novels. Crimes such as kidnapping, rape, and even murder may go unpunished if the perpetrator is to be retained in the ongoing story, Australian and UK soap operas also feature a significant proportion of romance storylines. In Russia, most popular serials explore the romantic quality of criminal and/or oligarch life, in soap opera storylines, previously unknown children, siblings and twins of established characters often emerge to upset and reinvigorate the set of relationships examined by the series
18.
One Life to Live
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Created by Agnes Nixon, the series was the first daytime drama to primarily feature ethnically and socioeconomically diverse characters and consistently emphasize social issues. One Life to Live was expanded from 30 minutes to 45 minutes on July 26,1976, One Life to Live heavily focuses on the members and relationships of the Lord family. In 2002, the series won an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series, One Life to Live was the last American daytime soap opera taped in New York City. After nearly 43 years on the air, ABC canceled One Life to Live on April 14,2011. On July 7,2011, production company Prospect Park announced that it would continue the show as a web series after its run on ABC, but later suspended the project. The show taped its final scenes for ABC on November 18,2011, on January 7,2013, Prospect Park resumed its plan to continue One Life to Live as a daily 30-minute web series on Hulu and iTunes via The Online Network. The relaunched series premiered on April 29,2013, the new series was plagued with several behind-the-scenes problems, most notably a litigation between Prospect Park and ABC regarding the misuse of One Life to Live characters on General Hospital. On September 3,2013, Prospect Park suspended production of the series until the lawsuit with ABC was resolved, impressed with the ratings success of NBCs Another World, ABC sought out Another World writer Nixon to create a serial for them. One Life to Live would emphasize the ethnic and socioeconomic diversity of the characters in its fictional setting, Nixon would go on to create All My Children in 1970 and Loving in 1983. One Life to Lives first sponsor was the Colgate-Palmolive company, who also sponsored The Doctors, ABC bought the show from Nixon in December 1974 when they purchased all stock to her Creative Horizons, Inc. The show was originally a half-hour serial until it was expanded to 45 minutes on July 23,1976, One Life to Live is set in the fictional city of Llanview, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Long-suffering heroine Viki weathered love and loss, widowhood, rape, divorce, stroke, and breast cancer, Viki also had heart problems and received a transplant from her dying husband Ben Davidson. Featured male protagonist Dr. Larry Wolek also appeared at the episode and for 36 years. The 1980s brought great success and rose to prominence Vikis sister, Tina. One Life to Live celebrated its 40th anniversary in July 2008 with the return of former cast members. Deceased characters and even creator Agnes Nixon appeared in a storyline in which Slezaks Viki dies and visits Heaven, Daytime Emmy-nominee Andrea Evans and others returned for a tribute to Tina Lords famous 1987 plunge over the Iguazu Falls and the 1990 royal wedding in fictional Mendorra. And like the 1988 Old West storyline in which the character Clint Buchanan steps back 100 years in the past, on July 21,2008, Robert S. This studio was made available by the move of sister serial All My Children to a facility in Los Angeles
19.
Spike (TV channel)
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Spike is an American cable and satellite channel launched on March 7,1983, owned by Viacom through Viacom Media Networks and based in Los Angeles, California. Spike is an entertainment channel featuring a mix of various programs and movies. Spikes programming reaches approximately 98.7 million pay television subscribers in the United States as well as Canada. As of 2006, Spikes viewers were almost half women, although many of them are reported to be watching it with partners or family members. The average age of the viewers was 42 years old. As of February 2015, approximately 93.4 million households in the U. S. receive Spike, on February 8,2017, Viacom announced that Spike will be rebranded as the Paramount Network sometime early next year. TNN operated from the now-defunct Opryland USA theme park near Nashville, country Music Television, founded by Glenn D. Daniels, beat TNNs launch by two days, robbing them of the claim of the first country music cable television network. TNNs flagship shows included Nashville Now, The Statler Brothers Show, American Sports Cavalcade, Nashville Now and the Grand Ole Opry were broadcast live from Opryland USA. The Gaylord Entertainment Company purchased TNN and the Opryland properties in the half of 1987. Much of TNNs programming during the Gaylord era was produced by Opryland Productions. From 1983 to 1992, all of TNNs auto racing and motor sports coverage was produced by Diamond P Sports. Programming included variety shows, talk shows, game shows, outdoor shows, by 1995, TNN was acquired by Westinghouse Electric Corporation, which had recently acquired CBS around that time, two years later, Westinghouse bought CMT, TNNs chief competitor. In 1998, the channel dropped its The Nashville Network moniker, ownership shifted to Viacom in the late 1990s after its acquisition of CBS Corporation, Westinghouses successor. TNN subsequently relocated its headquarters to New York City from Nashville and was folded into Viacoms MTV Networks division, the networks name change also triggered a significant programming change in an attempt to appeal to a broader audience than the channels original rural/working-class Southern demographic. This change was catalyzed by Viacoms acquisition of the rights to World Wrestling Federation programming, including its flagship show RAW Is War and this was likely an attempt to compete with Universals USA Network which Viacom had briefly owned a stake in during the mid-1990s. Football also became prominent on the network, as it began airing games of the original Arena Football League with Eli Gold as an announcer. The National Network was also one of three networks to air games of the ill-fated XFL, as part of its contract, TNN had the rights to a late Sunday afternoon game each week except for the first week, when UPN aired the afternoon game instead. TNN aired the first opening-round game of the 2001 NCAA Mens Division I Basketball Championship when organizers expanded the field to 65 teams, the game coverage moved to ESPN in 2002
20.
Satin Sheets
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Satin Sheets is the second studio album released by American country artist Jeanne Pruett. The album was released in June 1973 on MCA Records and was produced by Walter Haynes, the album contained Pruetts first major hit and signature song of the same name as the album. The single reached number one on the Billboard Country Chart, the album was released in late spring 1973. Satin Sheets contained ten tracks of recorded material. The album was recorded in three sessions at Bradleys Barn Studio in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. The first session took place in December 1972, which recorded the title track, in January 1973, Ive Been Wrong for So Long and Lonely Women Cryin were recorded. The final songs were recorded in a session that took place in April 1973, most of the songs on the album were aimed more towards a Traditional country style, unlike the conventional Nashville Sound musical style used at the time on most country music sessions. This was seen particularly on such as the title track. Many of the songs consisted of themes about passion and romance, including the track, Is Her Love Any Better Than Mine. Most of the tracks were ballads including the seventh track What My Thoughts Do All the Time. The album was reviewed by Allmusic which gave it three out of five stars. Satin Sheets was originally released as a LP record which contained six songs on the A-side of the record, the album has never been reissued on compact disc. Satin Sheets name derived from the title track, which was the lead single. The single later returned to one on the country chart the week of June 23. In addition, it peaked at number three on the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart and number seventy six on the RPM Top Singles Chart. Satin Sheets was released around the time its single became a major hit. The album peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Magazine Top Country Albums chart, satin Sheets spent eight weeks at number one on the Top Country Albums, becoming the second-longest running album on the chart by a female artist
21.
MCA Inc.
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MCA, Inc. was an American media company. Initially starting in the business, the company next became a dominant force in the film business. MCA, Inc. is the predecessor of NBCUniversal, which since March 2013 is a wholly owned subsidiary of Comcast. MCA was formed in 1924 by Jules Stein and William R. Goodheart, Jr. as Music Corporation of America, MCA helped pioneer modern practices of touring bands and name acts. Early on, MCA booked such prominent artists as King Oliver and Jelly Roll Morton for clubs and speakeasies run by legendary notorious Chicago mobsters such as Al Capone and others. Lew Wasserman joined MCA in 1936 at the age of 23 and rose through the ranks of MCA for more than four decades, Wasserman helped create MCAs radio show, Kay Kyser and His Kollege of Musical Knowledge, which debuted on NBC Radio that same year. Following that success, Stein installed Wasserman in New York City in 1937, the company was guided by a codification of Steins pet policies known as The Rules of The Road. The Rules were passed down from the Prohibition era, Chicago–area MCA to the 1940s Los Angeles–area firm, which focused on representing movie actors. The Rules were next passed to the 1950s generation of MCA talent agents, including Jerry Perenchio, Perenchio is well known for his version of the Rules, which vary from year to year and have some internal contradictions. Its aggressive acquisition of its clientele in all entertainment sectors earned MCA the nickname of The Octopus and this behavior led U. S. Department of Justice agents to investigate not only whether MCA was a monopoly breaking anti-trust laws, but also its suspected connections to underworld criminal activities. This investigation continued for the few decades. In 1948, Jules Stein moved up as MCAs first chairman and that year, Stein and Wasserman decided to get into a new medium that would, decades later, change the entertainment landscape forever, television. Although many motion picture studios would not touch this new medium, thinking it was just a fad and would fade away, MCA decided to embrace it. First, however, the company needed to get a waiver from the Screen Actors Guild, thanks to the newly elected SAG president, Ronald Reagan, MCA was granted a waiver to start producing TV shows. After the waiver was granted, the company formed MCA Television Limited for syndication, prior to 1958, all Revues shows were filmed at the old Republic Pictures studio lot in Studio City, California. In February 1958, MCA acquired Paramount Pictures pre-1950 sound feature film library through a newly created MCA subsidiary, EMKA, Ltd. Also in 1958, MCA bought the 423-acre Universal Studios lot from Universal Pictures for $11 million and renamed it, as well as the television unit. Stein, who by this time was the owner of MCA, decided to take the company public by giving 51% of his ownership of MCA to his employees
22.
Roy Acuff
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Roy Claxton Acuff was an American country music singer, fiddler, and promoter. In 1952 Hank Williams told Ralph Gleason, Hes the biggest singer this music ever knew and you booked him and you didnt worry about crowds. For drawing power in the South, it was Roy Acuff, Acuff began his music career in the 1930s and gained regional fame as the singer and fiddler for his group, the Smoky Mountain Boys. He joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1938, and although his popularity as a musician waned in the late 1940s, he remained one of the Oprys key figures and promoters for nearly four decades. In 1942, Acuff co-founded the first major Nashville-based country music publishing company—Acuff-Rose Music—which signed such artists as Hank Williams, Roy Orbison, in 1962, Acuff became the first living inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Acuff was born on September 15,1903 in Maynardville, Tennessee to Ida and Simon E. Neill Acuff, the Acuffs were a fairly prominent family in Union County. Roys paternal grandfather, Coram Acuff, had been a Tennessee state senator, Roys father was an accomplished fiddler and a Baptist preacher, his mother was proficient on the piano, and during Roys early years the Acuff house was a popular place for local gatherings. At such gatherings, Roy would often amuse people by balancing farm tools on his chin and he also learned to play the harmonica and jaw harp at a young age. In 1919, the Acuff family relocated to Fountain City, a few south of Maynardville. Roy attended Central High School, where he sang in the chapels choir. His primary passion, however, was athletics and he was a three-sport standout at Central and, after graduating in 1925, was offered a scholarship to Carson-Newman University but turned it down. He played with several baseball clubs around Knoxville, worked at odd jobs. In 1929, Acuff tried out for the Knoxville Smokies, a baseball team then affiliated with the New York Giants. A series of collapses in spring training following a sunstroke, however, the effects left him ill for several years, and he suffered a nervous breakdown in 1930. I couldnt stand any sunshine at all, he later recalled, while recovering, Acuff began to hone his fiddle skills, often playing on the familys front porch after the sun went down. His father gave him records of regionally renowned fiddlers, such as Fiddlin John Carson and Gid Tanner. In 1932, Dr. Hauers medicine show, which toured the southern Appalachian region, the purpose of the entertainers was to draw a large crowd to whom Hauer could sell medicines for various ailments. As the medicine show lacked microphones, Acuff learned to sing loud enough to be heard above the din, a skill that would later help him stand out on early radio broadcasts
23.
Trace Adkins
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Tracy Darrell Adkins, known as Trace Adkins, is an American country music singer and actor. He made his debut in 1995 with the album Dreamin Out Loud, since then, Adkins has released ten more studio albums and two Greatest Hits compilations. I Left Something Turned on at Home went to No.1 on Canadas country chart, Adkins is widely known for his distinctive bass-baritone singing voice. In addition, Adkins has written an autobiography entitled A Personal Stand, Observations and Opinions from a Free-Thinking Roughneck and he has appeared in numerous films, including The Lincoln Lawyer and Moms Night Out. Adkins was born in Sarepta in Webster Parish in northwestern Louisiana and his paternal grandparents were Rayford D. Adkins and the former Mavis Giles, later Mavis Tilley. Adkins has two brothers, Clay Adkins, and Scott Devin Adkins, who died at age twenty-one in a truck accident near Plain Dealing in Bossier Parish. His maternal uncle was the Christian musician James W. Carraway and his musical interest came at an early age when his father taught him to play the guitar. At Sarepta High School, since defunct, Adkins joined a music group called the New Commitments. He was also a member of the FFA, later, Adkins attended Louisiana Tech University in Ruston. A walk-on offensive lineman on the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team, Adkins left the team after his season due to a knee injury. After leaving college, he worked at an oil rig and he also worked as a pharmacy technician before pursuing a career in music. He lost the finger on his left hand in an accident using a knife to open a bucket. Adkins moved to playing in honky tonk bars for the few years in the Ark-La-Tex area and eventually moved to Nashville, Tennessee. In late-1994 Adkins met Rhonda Forlaw, who was an executive at Arista Records Nashville, Forlaw had numerous music industry friends come out to hear Adkins over the next few years. Scott Hendricks of Capitol Nashville signed him on the one night while Adkins was playing at Tillie and Lucys bar in Mt. Juliet. Adkins first single, Theres a Girl in Texas, was released in 1996 and it was followed by the release of his debut album, Dreamin Out Loud, later that year. The latter single was also a Number One hit in Canada and his second album, Big Time, produced a Top 5 in The Rest of Mine, but subsequent singles proved less successful. A change in management delayed the release of Adkins third album, although the albums title track reached Top 10, More
24.
David "Stringbean" Akeman
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Akeman and his wife were murdered by burglars at their rural Tennessee home in 1973. Born in Annville, Jackson County, Kentucky, Akeman came from a musical family and he was taught to play the banjo by his father, James Akemon. He got his first real banjo when he was 12 years old in exchange for a pair of prize bantam chickens, Akeman began playing at local dances and gained a reputation as a musician, but the income was not enough to live on. He joined the Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corps, building roads and planting trees, eventually, he entered a talent contest judged by singer-guitarist-musical saw player Asa Martin. He won and was invited to join Martins band, during an early appearance, Martin forgot Akemans name and introduced him as String Bean because of his tall, thin build. Akeman used the nickname the rest of his life, Akeman originally was only a musician, but when another performer failed to show up one night, he was used as a singer and comic. From then on, Akeman did both comedy and music and he appeared on WLAP-AM in Lexington, Kentucky, and played with several groups in the late 1930s. It was as a ballplayer that he met bluegrass pioneer Bill Monroe, from 1943 to 1945, Akeman played banjo for Monroes band, performing on recordings such as Goodbye Old Pal. He also teamed with Willie Egbert Westbrook as String Beans and Cousin Wilbur, when he left Monroe, he was replaced by Earl Scruggs, a banjoist with a very different style. In 1945, Akeman married Estelle Stanfill, the same year, he formed a comedy duet with Willie Egbert Westbrook, and they were invited to perform on the Grand Ole Opry. The following year, Akeman began working with Grandpa Jones, another old-time banjo player, Jones and Akeman worked together at the Opry and years later on the Hee Haw television series. They also became neighbors near Ridgetop, Tennessee, Akeman became a protégé of Uncle Dave Macon, one of the biggest Opry stars. Near the end of his life, Macon gave Akeman one of his prized banjos, Akeman, by now known only as Stringbean, was one of the Oprys major stars in the 1950s. He adopted a costume that accentuated his height—a shirt with an exceptionally long waist and tail. This made him look like a tall man with very short legs. The costume had many antecedents, including Slim Miller, a stage comedian said to be Akemans inspiration. Akeman did not record as a solo artist until the early 1960s, by then Earl Scruggs, Akemans replacement in Bill Monroes band, had become the leading figure in banjo playing, especially among younger listeners. Scruggs-style three-finger picking became the predominant style copied by country and bluegrass banjo players, however, Akeman and Grandpa Jones remained the most celebrated performers of the old-fashioned banjo playing, clawhammer or frailing
25.
Jack Anglin
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Jack Anglin was an American country music singer best known as a member of the Anglin Brothers, and later Johnnie & Jack with Johnnie Wright. Anglin was born on a farm near Columbia, Tennessee and he worked at a local hosiery mill and became acquainted with his future wife, Louise, and through her, her brother, Johnnie Wright. At the time Wright, his wife Murial and Louise were regulars on WSIX-AM as Johnnie Wright And The Harmony Girls, when the Anglin Brothers disbanded in 1939, Anglin joined Johnnie Wright as Johnnie Wright and the Happy Roving Cowboys with Jack Anglin. In 1940, they became Johnnie & Jack, who enjoyed success as a duo until Anglins death in 1963. The duo became members of the Grand Ole Opry in the 1940s, Anglin married Louise Wright in 1933, they were 17 and 16 years old respectively. Their 30-year marriage ended with Jacks death on March 8,1963, the couple had a son, Terry. Driving alone to attend a service for Patsy Cline not far from his home, he rounded a bend in Madison. Archived from the original on 2009-10-24
26.
Eddy Arnold
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Richard Edward Eddy Arnold was an American country music singer who performed for six decades. He was a so-called Nashville sound innovator of the late 1950s and he sold more than 85 million records. A member of the Grand Ole Opry and the Country Music Hall of Fame, Arnold was born on May 15,1918, on a farm near Henderson, Tennessee. His father, a sharecropper, played the fiddle, while his mother played guitar, Arnolds father died when he was just 11, forcing him to leave school and begin helping on the family farm. This led to him later gaining his nickname—the Tennessee Plowboy, one of his brothers, PFC John Hendrix Arnold, fought in World War II and died in the Normandy landings. Arnold attended Pinson High School in Pinson, Tennessee, where he played guitar for school functions and he quit before graduation to help with the farm work, but continued performing, often arriving on a mule with his guitar hung on his back. Arnold also worked part-time as an assistant at a mortuary, in 1934, at age 16, Arnold debuted musically on WTJS-AM in Jackson, Tennessee, and obtained a job there during 1937. He performed at nightclubs and was a permanent performer for the station. During 1938, he was hired by WMPS-AM in Memphis, Tennessee and he soon quit for KWK-AM in St. Louis, Missouri, followed by a brief stint at WHAS-AM in Louisville, Kentucky. He performed for WSM on the Grand Ole Opry during 1943 as a solo artist, in 1944, Arnold signed a contract with RCA Victor, with manager Colonel Tom Parker, who later managed Elvis Presley. Arnolds first single was noticed, but the next, Each Minute Seems a Million Years. Its success began a decade of unprecedented chart performance, Arnolds next 57 singles all ranked in the top 10, in 1946, Arnold scored his first major success with Thats How Much I Love You. In 1948, he had five songs on the charts simultaneously. That year, he had nine songs in the top 10, five of these were number one, with Parkers management, Arnold continued to dominate, with 13 of the 20 best-scoring country music songs of 1947–1948. He became the host of Mutual Radios Purina-sponsored segment of the Opry and of Mutuals Checkerboard Jamboree, recorded radio programs increased Arnolds popularity, as did the CBS Radio series Hometown Reunion with the Duke of Paducah. Arnold quit the Opry during 1948, and his Hometown Reunion briefly broadcast in competition with the Opry on Saturday nights, in 1949 and 1950, he performed in the Columbia movies Feudin’ Rhythm and Hoedown. Arnold began working for television in the early 1950s, hosting The Eddy Arnold Show, the summer program was broadcast successively by all three television networks, replacing the Perry Como and Dinah Shore programs. He also performed as a guest and a guest host on the ABC-TV show Ozark Jubilee from 1955–60, Arnold featured in the syndicated Eddy Arnold Time from 1955 to 1957
27.
Ernest Ashworth
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Ernest Bert Ashworth was an American country music singer and broadcaster and longtime Grand Ole Opry star. Born Ernest Bert Ashworth in Huntsville, Alabama on December 15,1928, in 1949, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he worked for several radio stations and was signed by Wesley Rose as a songwriter for Acuff-Rose Music. Among the artists who recorded his songs between 1949 and 1955 were Jimmy Dickens, Carl Smith, Johnny Horton and Paul Anka. Success as a recording artist eluded him, however, and in 1957 he returned to Huntsville and began working at the US Armys Redstone Arsenal, three years later, Rose arranged a recording contract for him with Decca Records. Billed as Ernest Ashworth, his first single, Each Moment, later that year, You Can’t Pick A Rose In December went into the Top Ten, and in 1961, Forever Gone reached the Top 20. In 1962, Ashworth moved to Hickory Records, owned by Acuff-Rose, and he scored a Top Five hit with Everybody But Me, but it was his third release for Hickory that became a smash hit and his signature song. Talk Back Trembling Lips hit number one and stayed on the country chart for 42 weeks. Voted Most Promising Male Artist by Cashbox, Billboard and Record World magazines in 1963 and 1964, more chart records followed including The D. J. Cried, At Ease Heart and I Love To Dance With Annie, Ashworth continued to be a regular performer at the Opry, but he never had a record to match the success of Talk Back Trembling Lips. Ernie also owned a station in Flomaton, Alabama. In 1989, he purchased radio station WSLV in Ardmore, Tennessee, in 1992, Ashworth was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. In 2008, Ernie was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, throughout his career he achieved many awards and inductions into Halls of Fame across the United States Notes APeaked at No.1 on Bubbling Under Hot 100. All singles from I Wish onward credited to Ernie Ashworth, in The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Official website Ernie Ashworth at CMT Ernest Ashworth at Allmusic Ernie Ashworth at the Grand Ole Opry
28.
Chet Atkins
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Chester Burton Chet Atkins known as Mr. He was primarily known as a guitarist and he also played the mandolin, fiddle, banjo, and ukulele. Atkins signature picking style was inspired by Merle Travis, other major guitar influences were Django Reinhardt, George Barnes, Les Paul, and, later, Jerry Reed. His distinctive picking style and musicianship brought him admirers inside and outside the country scene, among many honors, Atkins received 14 Grammy Awards and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He also received nine Country Music Association awards for Instrumentalist of the Year and he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum. Atkins was born on June 20,1924, in Luttrell, Tennessee and his parents divorced when he was six, after which he was raised by his mother. He was the youngest of three boys and a girl and he started out on the ukulele, later moving on to the fiddle, but traded his brother Lowell an old pistol and some chores for a guitar when he was nine. He stated in his 1974 autobiography, We were so poor, forced to relocate to Fortson, Georgia, outside of Columbus, to live with his father because of a critical asthma condition, Atkins was a sensitive youth who made music his obsession. Because of his illness, he was forced to sleep in a chair to breathe comfortably. On those nights, he played his guitar until he fell asleep holding it, while living in Fortson, he attended the historic Mountain Hill School. He returned in the 1990s to play a series of charity concerts to save the school from demolition, Atkins became an accomplished guitarist while he was in high school. He used the restroom in the school to practice, because it gave better acoustics and his first guitar had a nail for a nut and was so bowed that only the first few frets could be used. He later purchased an electric guitar and amp, but he had to travel many miles to find an electrical outlet. Later in life, he gave himself the honorary degree CGP. In 2011, his daughter Merle Atkins Russell bestowed the CGP degree on his longtime sideman Paul Yandell and she then declared no more CGPs would be allowed by the Atkins estate. His half-brother Jim was a successful guitarist who worked with the Les Paul Trio in New York, Atkins did not have a strong style of his own until 1939, when he heard Merle Travis picking over WLW radio. This early influence dramatically shaped his unique playing style, whereas Traviss right hand used his index finger for the melody and thumb for bass notes, Atkins expanded his right-hand style to include picking with his first three fingers, with the thumb on bass. Chet Atkins was a ham radio general class licensee, formerly using the call sign WA4CZD, he obtained the vanity call sign W4CGP in 1998 to include the CGP designation
29.
DeFord Bailey
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DeFord Bailey was an American country music and blues star from the 1920s until 1941. He was the first performer to be introduced on the Grand Ole Opry and he played several instruments but is best known for his harmonica tunes. A grandson of slaves, Bailey was born near the Bellwood community in Smith County, Tennessee and he was confined to bed for a year, during which he began developing his distinctive style of playing. In 1918, he moved to Nashville and performed locally as an amateur and his first radio appearance was on June 19,1926, on Nashvilles WSM. On December 10,1927, he debuted his trademark song, Pan American Blues, at that time Barn Dance aired after NBCs classical music show, the Music Appreciation Hour. While introducing Bailey, WSM station manager and announcer George D, several records by Bailey were issued in 1927 and 1928, all of them harmonica solos. In 1927 he recorded for Brunswick Records in New York City, in addition to his well-known harmonica, Bailey also played the guitar, bones, and banjo. Bailey was a member of the WSM Grand Ole Opry and one of its most popular performers. During this period he toured with country stars, including Uncle Dave Macon, Bill Monroe. Like other black stars of his day traveling in the South and West, he faced difficulties in finding food, Bailey was fired by WSM in 1941 because of a licensing conflict with BMI-ASCAP, which prevented him from playing his best-known tunes on the radio. This effectively ended his career, and he spent the rest of his life shining shoes. Though he continued to play the harp, he almost never performed publicly, one of his rare performances occurred in 1974, when he agreed to make one more appearance on the Opry. This became the occasion for the Oprys first annual Old Timers Show and he died on July 2,1982, in Nashville, and is buried in Greenwood Cemetery there. In 2005, Nashville Public Television produced the documentary DeFord Bailey, the documentary was broadcast nationally through PBS. Bailey was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on November 15,2005, the DeFord Bailey Tribute Garden at the George Washington Carver Food Park in Nashville was dedicated on June 27,2007. The Encyclopedia of Country Music called him the most significant black country star before World War II, the Legendary DeFord Bailey Harmonica Genius, DeFord Bailey Komara, Edward, Encyclopedia of the Blues, Routledge Morton, David C. & Wolfe, Charles K. Deford Bailey, A Black Star in Early Country Music
30.
Bobby Bare
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Robert Joseph Bobby Bare, Sr. is an American country music singer and songwriter, best known for the songs Detroit City and 500 Miles Away from Home. He is the father of Bobby Bare Jr. also a musician, Bare had many failed attempts to sell his songs in the 1950s. He finally signed with Capitol Records and recorded a few rock, just before he was drafted into the Army, he wrote a song called The All American Boy and did a demo for his friend, Bill Parsons, to learn how to record. Instead of using the version Bill Parsons did later, the company, Fraternity Records. The record reached No.2 on the Billboard Hot 100, but they made an error, the same track, with the same billing error, peaked at No.22 in the UK Singles Chart in April 1959. In 1965, an album of recorded material, Tender Years, was released on the Hilltop label. The same material, but under a different cover, was released on the Sears label under the title Bobby In Song that same year and these albums are not usually included in Bares published discographies. Bares big break in music came when Chet Atkins signed him to RCA Victor. The first single he released on the label was Shame On Me in 1962 and his second RCA Victor single, Detroit City reached No.6 Country, No.16 Hot 100, and in 1964 earned him a Grammy Award for Best Country and Western Recording. Then a surge of hits followed, including 500 Miles Away from Home, in 1965 he received two Grammy nominations for Best Country & Western Vocal Performance and Best Country & Western single for the song Four Strong Winds. In 1966, he received a Grammy Nomination for Best Country & Western Male Vocal Performance for his song Talk Me Some Sense,5 on the Billboard chart earned the trio a Grammy nomination. In 1968, he recorded an album with a group from England called The Hillsiders, in 1969, he had a Top 5 hit with Tom T. He also scored a No.12 hit in 1972 with a version of Dr. Hook, after two years at Mercury, Bare returned to RCA in 1973 and scored with Billy Joe Shavers Ride Me Down Easy which nearly made the Top 10. Bare started to release novelty songs recorded live with selected audiences, one such song, Marie Laveau, reached the No.1 position on the country chart in 1974, it was his only No.1 hit. This song was co-written by his friends Shel Silverstein and Baxter Taylor, Silverstein penned other songs for Bare including a Grammy-nominated hit, Daddy What If, which he recorded with his five-year-old son, Bobby Bare, Jr. The song was a success as well not only reaching No.2 on the country charts. Bares album, Lullabys, Legends and Lies became his most commercially successful album and Bare had a new audience with pop radio once again playing his songs and these two songs, however, would become Bares last Top 10 hits. Bare later recorded a successful album with his family, written mainly by Silverstein
31.
Bashful Brother Oswald
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Beecher Ray Kirby, better known as Bashful Brother Oswald, was an American country musician who popularized the use of the resonator guitar and Dobro. He played with Roy Acuffs Smoky Mountain Boys and was a member of the Grand Ole Opry. Though he released only a few recordings as a solo artist, he played as a musician on numerous records, including the Nitty Gritty Dirt Bands 1972 triple album. Beecher Ray Kirby was born in rural Sevier County, Tennessee in the Great Smoky Mountains and his father, G. W. Kirby, was an Appalachian folk musician who played fiddle and banjo. As a child, Kirby learned to play guitar and banjo, by his teens, he was playing for square dances. In the late 1920s, Kirby followed the path of many people from the Appalachian region and he went to Flint, Michigan and worked on the Buick assembly line. He lost his job, though, in the downturn of the Great Depression in the 1930s. Kirby then returned to music, playing at informal square dance parties held in the homes of other transplanted southerners and it was at one such party that Kirby met a Hawaiian guitarist named Rudy Waikiki. That was when I first heard someone play something like my style and he was a real Hawaiian boy, from over in the islands, and he was playing this way and I loved it. Id go to them parties just to him play, Kirby said. Then Id go home and get my guitar and try to do the same thing, I was just playing a straight guitar and I had to raise the strings up, put a nut under the strings. He visited the Chicago Worlds Fair in 1933, playing in clubs, some of the clubs he played in were owned by Al Capone. In a bid to find steady work, Kirby moved to Knoxville. Taking the stage name Pete Kirby, he played guitar with local bands, among them Roy Acuffs Crazy Tennesseans. Acuff joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1938, and Kirby joined the Opry with Acuffs band on New Years Day 1939. To fit his new persona, Kirby created the clownish Oswald character, wearing a floppy, wide-brimmed hat, tattered bib overalls, oversized work shoes and adopting a braying laugh. Featured on the broadcasts of the Opry, Oswald created a sensation playing his resonator guitar on such songs as Old Age Pension Check. The instrument, developed in the late 1920s, was relatively new
32.
Dierks Bentley
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Frederick Dierks Bentley is an American singer and songwriter. In 2003, he signed to Capitol Nashville and released his debut album. Both it and its follow-up, 2005s Modern Day Drifter, are certified platinum in the United States, a third album, 2006s Long Trip Alone, is certified gold. It was followed in mid-2008 by a greatest hits package and his fourth album, Feel That Fire was released in February 2009. A bluegrass studio album, Up on the Ridge, was released on June 8,2010, Bentleys eighth and latest album, entitled Black was released in May 2016. Four more of his singles have reached the top 5, Bentley was born on November 20,1975 in Phoenix, Arizona as the son of Leon Fife Bentley, a bank vice-president, and Catherine Childs. His father was born in Glasgow, Missouri, to Richard Thomas and Mary Cecile Fife Bentley and his middle name, Dierks, is also his maternal great-grandmothers surname. He attended Culver Academies and graduated from The Lawrenceville School in 1993, afterward, he spent a year at the University of Vermont before transferring to Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where he graduated in 1997. Bentley worked at The Nashville Network, researching old footage of country performances, in 2003, Capitol Nashville released Bentleys self-titled debut album. The albums first single, What Was I Thinkin, reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts later that year, the next two singles from that album, My Last Name and How Am I Doin, reached No.17 and No. 4, respectively. The album was certified Platinum by the RIAA, Bentleys second Capitol album, Modern Day Drifter, was released in 2005. It spawned two number one singles, Settle for a Slowdown and Come a Little Closer, and the top 5 hit, the album was also certified platinum. In 2005, Bentley won the CMA Award for the Horizon Award and was invited to be a member of the Grand Ole Opry, the induction took place on October 1,2005. Bentley stands as the third youngest member after Carrie Underwood and Josh Turner, on June 10,2006, Bentley released his third album, Long Trip Alone. The album produced two No.1 hits, Every Mile a Memory in 2006 and Free and Easy in 2007, the title track reached No.10 on the country charts. The fourth single from the album, Trying to Stop Your Leaving, in 2007, Bentley released a live DVD titled Live and Loud at the Fillmore, which was filmed in Denver, Colorado. In a March 2008 interview, Bentley said he would let his fans be the producers of his first greatest hits album. The album was released on May 6,2008, an album cut, Sweet & Wild, reached No.51 on the Hot Country Songs chart
33.
Clint Black
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Clint Patrick Black is an American singer, songwriter, musician, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and actor. Signed to RCA Records in 1989, Blacks debut album Killin Time produced five straight number one singles on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts, although his momentum gradually slowed throughout the 1990s, Black consistently charted hit songs into the 2000s. He has had more than 30 singles on the US Billboard country charts, twenty-two of which have reached number one, in addition to having released twelve studio albums, in 2003, Black founded his own record label, Equity Music Group. Black has also ventured into acting, having made a appearance in the 1994 film Maverick, as well as a starring role in 1998s Still Holding On. Clint Patrick Black was born in Long Branch, New Jersey, the youngest of four born to G. A. and Ann Black. The family moved back to Texas, where G. A, Black had been raised, before Clint was one year old. He was raised in Katy, Texas, Music was always present in the house. Black taught himself to play harmonica before he was 13, and his father remarked that it was at that age that the parents first noticed that he had a great voice. By 15, Black had learned to play guitar, as a teenager Black joined his elder brothers, Mark, Kevin and Brian, in their small band. On Saturday afternoons, the family would host backyard barbecues and invite the neighborhood to listen to the boys sing, some weekends would attract up to 70 people. Black eventually dropped out of school to play with his brothers. Black was initially drawn to a variety of musical genres, for six years, Black supported himself as a construction worker, bait cutter, and fishing guide, while singing at various lounges as a solo singer and guitarist. In 1987, at one of the gigs he met another guitarist, the two men connected musically and began a song writing partnership that would last decades. In the late 1980s, Black delivered a demo of their collaboration Nobodys Home to record promoter Sammy Alfano, within two days of that delivery, Black was invited to a meeting with Bill Ham, who managed ZZ Top. Black soon signed with RCA at that time considered one of the most aggressive labels in country music and his first album, Killin Time, was released in 1989. Each song on the album was penned at least in part by Black, four of them were attributed solely to him, in a departure from most other country albums, Black used his road band instead of session musicians to record Killin Time. The album was a critical and commercial success, reaching number one on the Billboard Country Albums chart and he made his debut in 1989 with the single, A Better Man, which reached number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs in early June. This marked the first time in 14 years that a single by a male artist had peaked at the top of the chart
34.
Rod Brasfield
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Rodney Leon Brasfield was an American comedian who was prominently featured on the Grand Ole Opry from 1947 until his death in 1958. In 1987, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, Brasfield was born in Smithville, Mississippi. He began his career in the late 1920s with Bisbee’s Dramatic Shows, in 1931 he married Eleanor Humphrey, a Hohenwald, Tennessee school teacher. Brasfield was recruited by George D, hay for the Grand Ole Opry in 1944. With his trademark baggy suit, battered hat and rubbery face and he soon became the primary comic on The Prince Albert Show, the Opry’s NBC Radio broadcast, playing off the show’s host, Red Foley. Assuming the role of a hapless hayseed, he poked fun at country life—always with good humor. He formed an act in 1948 with Minnie Pearl, playing what she referred to as double comedy in which each of them delivered alternating punch lines. Some of these routines were broadcast on the Oprys live ABC television network show from 1955–56 and he lived in Hohenwald, called himself the Hohenwald Flash, and often mentioned the local restaurant, the Snip-Snap-and-Bite, in his routines. Brasfield sometimes did ventriloquist routines with a dummy named Bocephus, after whom Hank Williams, Sr. nicknamed his then-infant son Hank Williams, Jr. in March 1956, Brasfield appeared with Elvis Presley at Atlantas Fox Theatre. In A Face in the Crowd he played Andy Griffith’s ex-con sidekick, heart failure combined with an ongoing problem with alcohol led to his death at age 48 in 1958 in Martin, Tennessee
35.
Garth Brooks
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Troyal Garth Brooks is an American country singer and songwriter. His integration of rock and roll elements into the genre has earned him immense popularity in the United States. Brooks has had success in the country single and album charts, with multi-platinum recordings and record-breaking live performances. He is also one of the worlds best-selling artists of all time, since 1989, Brooks has released 21 records in all, which include,12 studio albums,1 live album,3 compilation albums,3 Christmas albums and 4 box sets, along with 77 singles. He won several awards in his career, including 2 Grammy Awards,17 American Music Awards, troubled by conflicts between career and family, Brooks retired from recording and performing from 2001 until 2009. During this time, he sold millions of albums through a distribution deal with Walmart. In 2005, Brooks started a comeback, giving select performances. In 2009, he began Garth at Wynn, a periodic weekend residency show at Las Vegas Encore Theatre from December 2009 to January 2014, following the conclusion of the residency, Brooks announced his signing with Sony Music Nashville in July 2014. In September 2014, he began his tour, The Garth Brooks World Tour, with wife. His most recent album, Gunslinger, was released in November 2016, Brooks was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on October 21,2012. Troyal Garth Brooks was born on February 7,1962, in Tulsa and this was the second marriage for each of his parents, giving Brooks four older half-siblings. The couple had two children together, Kelly and Garth, at their home in Yukon, Oklahoma, the family hosted weekly talent nights. All of the children were required to participate, either by singing or doing skits, Brooks learned to play both the guitar and banjo. As a child, Brooks often sang in casual family settings, in high school, he played football and baseball and ran track and field. He received a scholarship to Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. Brooks graduated in 1984 with a degree in advertising and his roommate, Ty England, later played guitar in his road band until going solo in 1995. In 1985, Brooks began his music career, singing and playing guitar in Oklahoma clubs and bars. Through his elder siblings, Brooks was exposed to a range of music
36.
Jim Ed Brown
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James Edward Brown was an American country singer-songwriter who achieved fame in the 1950s with his two sisters as a member of the Browns. He later had a solo career from 1965 to 1974, followed by a string of major duet hits with fellow country music vocalist Helen Cornelius. Brown was also the host of the Country Music Greats Radio Show, Brown on April 1,1934 in Sparkman, Arkansas to Floyd and Birdie Brown. His parents owned a farm and his also worked at a sawmill. As small children, Jim and his sisters, Maxine and Bonnie, moved with their parents to Pine Bluff, as young adults, the three siblings sang together and individually. This changed in 1954 when Jim Ed and Maxine signed a contract as a duo. They earned national recognition and a guest spot on Ernest Tubbs radio show for their humorous song Looking Back To See, Jim Ed and Maxine were joined in 1955 by 18-year-old Bonnie, and The Browns began performing on Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport, Louisiana. They signed with RCA Victor in 1956, and soon had two hits, I Take the Chance and I Heard the Bluebirds Sing. When Jim Ed was drafted in 1957, the continued to record while he was on leave. He was stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado, in 1959, The Browns scored their biggest hit when their folk-pop single The Three Bells reached No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop and country charts. The song also peaked at No.10 on Billboards Rhythm, remakes of the pop hits Scarlet Ribbons and The Old Lamplighter continued the hit streak, reaching the top 15 on Billboards Pop and Country surveys. The trio had moderate successes on the music charts for seven years thereafter. In 1963, they joined the Grand Ole Opry and in 1967 the group disbanded, Brown continued to record for RCA Victor and had a number of country hits, starting in 1965 while still with his sisters. In 1967, he released his first solo top ten hit, Pop a Top, beginning in 1969, he also gained his own syndicated TV series The Country Place, which would become famous for introducing Crystal Gayle. In 1970, he gained a hit with Morning which went to No.4 on the country charts. Other hits included Angels Sunday, Southern Loving, Sometime Sunshine, beginning in 1976, Brown released a string of major duet hits with Helen Cornelius starting with the No.1 hit, I Dont Want to Have to Marry You. Brown hosted the country television show Nashville On The Road, along with Jerry Clower, Helen Cornelius. The entire cast was replaced in 1981, the new host, Jim Stafford, kept hosting it until it ended in 1983
37.
The Browns
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The Browns were an American country and folk music vocal trio best known for their 1959 Grammy-nominated hit, The Three Bells. They disbanded in 1967 and were elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in March 2015. James Edward, older sister Maxine, and younger sister Bonnie Brown sang individually in Pine Bluff, Arkansas until 1954, when Maxine and Jim Ed signed a record contract as a singing duo. They earned national recognition and a guest spot on Ernest Tubbs radio show for their self-penned song Looking Back to See, the song would be a hit again nearly 20 years later for Buck Owens and Susan Raye in 1972. They were joined in 1955 by then-recent high school graduate, 18-year-old Bonnie, Jim Ed and Maxine had first appeared on the show as a duo in 1955. Producer Si Siman signed them with RCA Victor in 1956, when Jim Ed was drafted in 1957, the group continued to record while he was on leave, and sister Norma filled in for him on tours, as did Billy Walker. In 1959, The Browns scored their biggest hit when their folk-pop single The Three Bells reached No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop, the song also peaked at No.10 on Billboards Rhythm and Blues listing. Based on a song called Les trois cloches, it was originally a hit in France for Édith Piaf, the recording sold over one million copies, and was nominated for both Record of the Year and the Best Group or Vocal Performance in the Grammy award categories in 1959. Their version of Blue Christmas reached No.97 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in December 1960. The Browns appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show and American Bandstand, with an international following, they toured Europe extensively and saw further moderate success on the country music charts. In 1963, they joined the Grand Ole Opry, Jim Ed began recording as a solo artist for RCA Victor in 1965 and these efforts quickly began overshadowing the trios recordings. Maxine sang lead vocal on the final singles released in 1968, Big Daddy and I Will Bring You Water. The trio officially disbanded that year and Maxine signed with Chart Records in 1969, in the 1980s, The Browns began performing occasionally in concert for the first time in nearly 20 years. In 2006, the trio performed The Old Lamplighter and The Three Bells for the PBS special, on June 11,2015, Jim Ed Brown died from lung cancer at age 81. On July 16,2016, Bonnie Brown also died from cancer at the age of 77. AAlso peaked at #35 on Adult Contemporary charts, Looking Back to See, A Country Music Memoir. The Browns at Allmusic. com The Browns at CMT. com Jim Ed Browns artist profile at Countrypolitian. com Maxine Browns Website
38.
Archie Campbell
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Archie Campbell was an American comedian, writer, and star of Hee Haw, a country-flavored network television variety show. He was also a recording artist with several hits on the RCA label in the 1960s, Campbell studied art at Mars Hill College in Mars Hill, North Carolina, after which he began a radio career at WNOX in Knoxville. After a year alongside Roy Acuff on their Mid-Day Merry-Go-Round, he relocated to WDOD in Chattanooga, at the end of World War II, Campbell returned to WNOX. He left that station for rival WROL where he helped start Knoxvilles first country music show, Country Playhouse. At the close of that show, he moved to Nashville to replace Rod Brasfield on the nationally syndicated Prince Albert segment of the Grand Ole Opry. Shortly after, he signed a contract with RCA Victor and one of his early singles, Trouble in the Amen Corner reached the 1960 country music Top 25. After an unsuccessful stint with the Starday label, Campbell returned to RCA in 1966 and had three Top 30 singles, The Men in My Little Girls Life, The Dark End of the Street and he was named Comedian of the Year in 1969 by the Country Music Association. One of Campbells signature routines was to tell stories in Spoonerism form, the best-known of these stories was RinderCella, his re-telling of the fairy tale Cinderella, about the girl who slopped her dripper. Campbell once told the RinderCella story on an episode of the game show Juvenile Jury, at the conclusion of the story, host Jack Barry said Thats one of the funniest stories Carchie Ampbell tells. All of Campbells spoonerism routines borrowed heavily from comedy routines performed by Colonel Stoopnagle on the radio show Stoopnagle, Campbell also performed a routine with various partners generally known as Thats Bad/Thats Good. Campbell would state a troublesome occurrence, when the partner would sympathize by saying, Oh thats bad, Campbell would quickly counter, No, and then state a good result from the previous occurrence. When the partner would say, Oh thats good, Campbell would immediately counter with No, thats bad. And tell the new result, and so on, in 1969 Campbell joined Hee Haw on CBS-TV as a chief writer and on-air talent. During his Hee Haw years Campbell also recorded several albums such as Bull Session at Bulls Creek with Junior Samples. He frequently performed duets with singer Lorene Mann, in 1984, Campbell hosted TNNs Yesteryear interview show. Campbell was an amateur golfer and built one of the earliest lighted golf courses in the United States. An avid painter, he owned an art gallery and served on the school board in Knoxville. He is buried near the town of Powell, Tennessee, Campbells childhood home on Main Street in Bulls Gap has been preserved as a memorial, and has been expanded into a tourism complex and museum which hosts annual Archie Campbell Days each September
39.
Bill Carlisle
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He is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Carlisle was born in Wakefield, Kentucky southeast of Louisville and he performed in the 1920s with his older brother, Cliff Carlisle, on radio stations WLAP-AM in Lexington, Kentucky and WNOX-AM in Knoxville, Tennessee. His first solo single and hit was the 1933 recording of Rattlesnake Daddy and that year he formed the Carlisle Brothers with Cliff, and in 1938 they signed with Decca Records and continued performing on Kentucky country radio programs. He created an alter ego for the WNOXs Mid-Day Merry-Go-Round and Tennessee Barn Dance shows called Hot Shot Elmer and his leaps on stage won him the moniker Jumpin Bill. Carlisles guitar style was noted for its precision and speed, like his brother, he released many songs which included humorous, veiled references to sexuality. The duo signed with King Records after World War II, and hit big with the Ernest Tubb cover, A Rainbow at Midnight, Carlisle had a solo hit in 1948 with Tramp on the Street. Cliff retired from the business about 1950, and Bill put together an ensemble, The Carlisles. Among its members were singer Martha Carson and songwriter Betty Amos, other hits included the number one smash No Help Wanted and the top ten Taint Nice, both 1953. That year the Carlisles were invited to join the Grand Ole Opry, in the mid-1950s, Carlisle was a regular performer on ABC-TVs Ozark Jubilee. He also wrote the gospel song Gone Home, which has been recorded by Flatt & Scruggs, Ricky Skaggs, Carlisle said he never recorded the song himself because he just did so much better with the novelty stuff. In 1953, Carlisle, his wife, and children, Bill, Jr. and Sheila, moved to Minden in Webster Parish, Louisiana, at the time Tillman Franks of Shreveport was his manager. His children became members of The Carlisles group in the 1960s, his last hit was What Kind of Deal Is This, released in 1965. After his fame receded, he continued as a regular at the Opry, Carlisle was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in September 2002. Bill Carlisle biography at CMT. com Bill Carlisle
40.
Martha Carson
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Martha Carson, born Irene Amburgey, was an American gospel-country music singer most popular during the 1950s. Amburgey was born in Neon, Kentucky and she and her two sisters were spotted by radio barn-dance impresario John Lair and invited to join the cast of the WSB Barn Dance in Atlanta in 1938. The Amburgey sisters were given the names of Minnie, Marthie. After Amburgey left the group and teamed with her husband, mandolin player James Carson, in the 1940s, the duo performed as the Barn Dance Sweethearts. By the time of her divorce from James Carson in 1950, however, she couldnt record because the Barn Dance Sweethearts label, Capitol, had them contracted through 1957 and refused to let her go solo, instead trying to pair her up with other male singers. She began doing session work instead, appearing on The Carlisles Too Old to Cut the Mustard, things began to change after Carson met Fred Rose in Nashville. He helped convince Capitol to let her alone, and in 1951 she made her solo-single debut with Satisfied. The combination of Carsons powerful alto voice and the songs propulsive handclap backbeat formed one of the blocks on which early rock & roll was built, the song featured backup by Carlisle, Chet Atkins, and Carsons sister, Opal, now known as Jean Chapel. Although the song was not a hit at first, it gained momentum continuously over the several years. By this time, Carson had written over 24 songs, and toured with country stars, such as Ferlin Husky, Jimmy Dickens, and Elvis Presley. After their performances, she and Presley sang gospel duets, in 1954, she married her second husband, Xavier Cosse, a pop music promoter. Thanks in part to her husband, Carson was able to acquire a contract with RCA Records in 1955. By 1955, Carson was living and recording all her work in New York and she had a series of minor hits that included Journey to the Sky, This Ole House, and Saints and Chariot, a combination of two old favorites that Presley later covered in concert. After signing with the William Morris Agency in 1957, Carson and Crosse became full-time residents of New York and it was a successful move for a time, but by the late 1950s, her star began to wane. Carson agreed, and also recorded some of the new songs she had recently written, in the late 1970s, with her two sons grown, she began to devote more time to her love of music, playing many areas of the southern states. Audiences greeted her with great affection, goes the Country and Nashville Now, and one of her songs was featured on an episode of the TV series Fame in 1983. Her comeback was cut short by the illness of her husband and she went into retirement to care for him until his death in November 1990. In 2001, Carsons 80th birthday party was attended by many singers including Melba Montgomery, Sonny James, Kitty Wells
41.
Maybelle Carter
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Mother Maybelle Carter was an American country musician. She is best known as a member of the historic Carter Family act in the 1920s and 1930s and also as a member of Mother Maybelle and the Carter Sisters. Maybelle Carter was born Maybelle Addington on May 10,1909 in Nickelsville, Virginia, according to family lore, the Addington family of Virginia is descended from former British prime minister Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth. On March 13,1926, Maybelle married Ezra Carter and they had three daughters, Helen, Valerie June, and Anita. She was a member of the original Carter Family, which was formed in 1927 by her brother-in-law, A. P. Carter, the Carter Family was one of the first commercial rural country music groups. Perhaps the most remarkable of Maybelles many talents was her skill as a guitarist and she revolutionized the instruments role by developing a style in which she played melody lines on the bass strings with her thumb while rhythmically strumming with her fingers. Her innovative technique, to this day known as the Carter Scratch, Maybelle briefly reunited with former Carter Family member, Sara Carter, during the 1960s folk music craze, with Sara singing lead and Maybelle providing harmony as before. Maybelle Carter made occasional solo recordings during the 1960s and 1970s and her final such work, a two-record set released on Columbia Records, placed on Billboards best-selling country albums chart in 1973 when she was 64. Maybelle was also featured on The Nitty Gritty Dirt Bands 1972 recording Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Maybelle Carter died in 1978 after a few years of poor health, and was interred next to her husband, Ezra, in Hendersonville Memory Gardens, Hendersonville, Tennessee. All three of their daughters, The Carter Sisters – Helen, June, and Anita – are buried nearby in the same cemetery, Maybelle Carter was inducted as part of The Carter Family in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1970. In 1993, her image appeared on a U. S. postage stamp honoring the Carter Family, in 2001 she was initiated into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor. She would rank No.8 in CMTs 40 Greatest Women of Country Music in 2002, in 2005, she was portrayed by Sandra Ellis Lafferty in the Johnny Cash biographical film Walk the Line. She was the subject of her granddaughter Carlene Carters 1990 song Me and her death was the subject of Johnny Cashs song Tears in the Holston River. In 2010, Lipscomb University in Nashville named the stage in Collins Alumni Auditorium after her, in 2007 Carter was honored as one of the Library of Virginias Virginia Women in History because of her musical career. Maybelle Carter at Find a Grave Carters biography at the Library of Virginia Wolfe, in The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Will You Miss Me When Im Gone, the Carter Family and Their Legacy in American Music
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Johnny Cash
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Johnny Cash was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, actor, and author. He is widely considered one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century and one of the music artists of all time. Although primarily remembered as an music icon, his genre-spanning songs and sound embraced rock and roll, rockabilly, blues, folk. This crossover appeal won Cash the rare honor of multiple inductions in the Country Music, Rock and Roll and he traditionally began his concerts with the simple Hello, Im Johnny Cash, followed by his signature Folsom Prison Blues. Much of Cashs music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation and redemption and his signature songs include I Walk the Line, Folsom Prison Blues, Ring of Fire, Get Rhythm, and Man in Black. During the last stage of his career, Cash covered songs by several late 20th-century rock artists, notably Hurt by Nine Inch Nails, Cash was born on February 26,1932, in Kingsland, Arkansas, one of seven children born to Ray Cash and Carrie Cloveree. He was mostly of Scottish and English ancestry, and as an adult traced his surname to 11th-century Fife, Scotland, after meeting with the then-laird of Falkland, Fife, Cash Loch and other locations in Fife bear the name of his family. At birth, Cash was named J. R. Cash, when Cash enlisted in the United States Air Force, he was not permitted to use initials as a first name, so he changed his name to John R. Cash. In 1955, when signing with Sun Records, he took Johnny Cash as his stage name, the Cash children were, Roy, Margaret Louise, Jack, J. R. Reba, Joanne, and Tommy. Tommy Cash also became a country artist. In March 1935, when Cash was three years old, the family settled in Dyess, Arkansas and he started working in cotton fields at age five, singing along with his family while working. The family farm was flooded on at least two occasions, which inspired him to write the song Five Feet High and Rising. His familys economic and personal struggles during the Great Depression inspired many of his songs, Cash was very close to his older brother, Jack. In May 1944, Jack was pulled into a head saw in the mill where he worked and was almost cut in two. He suffered for over a week before he died on May 20,1944, Cash often spoke of the horrible guilt he felt over this incident. Jack insisted on working, as the family needed the money, on his deathbed, Jack said he had visions of Heaven and angels. Decades later, Cash spoke of looking forward to meeting his brother in Heaven, Cashs early memories were dominated by gospel music and radio. Taught guitar by his mother and a friend, Cash began playing and writing songs at the age of twelve
