1966 in country music
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This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in 1966.
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Events
- March 15 — Roger Miller wins six Grammy Awards, five of them related to his hit "King of the Road". The Statler Brothers take two awards for "Flowers on the Wall".
- April — One of the last broadcasts of The Jimmy Dean Show features the first-ever Academy of Country Music awards. Big winners include Male Vocalist of the Year Buck Owens, Female Vocalist Bonnie Owens, and New Male Vocalist Merle Haggard; Haggard also shared the Vocal Duet/Group award with Bonnie Owens. Taped for later broadcast that year, the ACM Awards would in time become among the most anticipated events of the year by country fans.
- September – Buck Owens' first nationally syndicated program, Buck Owens Ranch Show, debuts in syndication, running primarily in the rural South. The show eventually lasts six years, the final three years overlapping with Owens' stint as co-host of Hee Haw.
- October 15 — Billboard increases the length of its Hot Country Singles chart to 75 positions, up from 50.
- October 22 — At age 48, Eddy Arnold becomes the youngest (to that time) living inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
No dates
- The single "The Snakes Crawl at Night", by a then-unknown singer named "Country" Charley Pride, is released in the spring but does not chart. After the follow-up single "Before I Met You" also does not chart, a third single, "Just Between You and Me" is released in December and early in 1967 becomes the singer's first major hit, and the first top 10 country hit by an African-American singer in more than 20 years. Pride, who will later drop the "Country" moniker from his name (although disc jockeys will continue using it to this day), goes on to become the most successful black singer in country music history.
Top hits of the year
Number-one hits
United States
(as certified by Billboard)
| Date | Single Name | Artist | Wks. No.1 | US Pop | Spec. Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 8 | Giddyup Go | Red Sovine | 6 | 82 |
|
| February 19 | Waitin' in Your Welfare Line/ In the Palm of Your Hand |
Buck Owens and the Buckaroos | 7 | 57 | |
| April 9 | I Want to Go with You | Eddy Arnold | 6 | 36 | |
| May 21 | Distant Drums | Jim Reeves | 4 | 45 | |
| June 18 | Take Good Care of Her | Sonny James | 2 | ||
| July 2 | Think of Me | Buck Owens and the Buckaroos | 6 | 74 | |
| August 13 | Almost Persuaded | David Houston | 9 | 24 | [1], [A] |
| October 15 | Blue Side of Lonesome | Jim Reeves | 1 | 59 | |
| October 22 | Open Up Your Heart | Buck Owens and the Buckaroos | 4 | ||
| November 19 | I Get the Fever | Bill Anderson | 1 | ||
| November 26 | Somebody Like Me | Eddy Arnold | 4 | 53 | |
| December 24 | There Goes My Everything | Jack Greene | 8 | 65 | [A] |
- Notes
Canada
(as certified by RPM)
| Date | Single Name | Artist | Wks. No.1 | Spec. Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 3 | Shadows of Your Heart | Dianne Leigh | 2 | [A] |
| January 17 | Iron Town | Rhythm Pals | 5 | [A] |
| February 21 | Don’t Knock on My Door | The Canadian Sweethearts | 1 | [C] |
| February 28 | This They Say Is Me | Rhythm Pals | 2 | [B] |
| March 14 | The Auctioneer | Irwin Prescott | 1 | [C] |
| December 5 | Whistling on the River | Mercey Brothers | 7 | [A], [2]
|
- Notes
Other major hits
Singles released by American artists
| US | US Pop | Single | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Ain't Had No Lovin' | Connie Smith | |
| 6 | 58 | Almost Persuaded No. 2 | Ben Colder |
| 17 | Anita, You're Dreaming | Waylon Jennings | |
| 16 | Another Story | Ernest Tubb | |
| 13 | At Ease Heart | Ernest Ashworth | |
| 7 | Baby | Wilma Burgess | |
| 15 | Baby Ain't That Fine | Gene Pitney and Melba Montgomery | |
| 10 | Back Pocket Money | Jimmy C. Newman | |
| 10 | Bad Seed | Jan Howard | |
| 2 | 1 | Ballad of the Green Berets | Staff Sgt. Barry Sadler |
| 12 | Blues Plus Booze (Means I Lose) | Stonewall Jackson | |
| 12 | A Born Loser | Don Gibson | |
| 3 | The Bottle Let Me Down | Merle Haggard | |
| 18 | Bottom of a Mountain | Tex Williams | |
| 18 | The Box It Came In | Wanda Jackson | |
| 13 | Catch a Little Raindrop | Claude King | |
| 19 | Coming Back to You | The Browns | |
| 8 | The Company You Keep | Bill Phillips | |
| 14 | Count Me Out | Marty Robbins | |
| 14 | 35 | Day for Decision | Johnny Sea |
| 4 | Dear Uncle Sam | Loretta Lynn | |
| 2 | 85 | Don't Touch Me | Jeannie Seely |
| 12 | Don't Touch Me | Wilma Burgess | |
| 11 | Don't You Ever Get Tired (Of Hurting Me) | Ray Price | |
| 9 | Early Morning Rain | George Hamilton IV | |
| 3 | 8 | England Swings | Roger Miller |
| 17 | 96 | Everybody Loves a Nut | Johnny Cash |
| 5 | Evil on Your Mind | Jan Howard | |
| 2 | 4 | Flowers on the Wall | The Statler Brothers |
| 5 | Four-O-Thirty-Three | George Jones | |
| 5 | The Game of Triangles | Bobby Bare, Norma Jean and Liz Anderson | |
| 14 | Get Your Lie the Way You Want It | Bonnie Guitar | |
| 10 | Giddyup Go – Answer | Minnie Pearl | |
| 11 | Golden Guitar | Bill Anderson | |
| 18 | Guess My Eyes Were Bigger Than My Heart | Conway Twitty | |
| 9 | Happy to Be with You | Johnny Cash | |
| 2 | 39 | History Repeats Itself | Buddy Starcher |
| 6 | How Long Has It Been | Bobby Lewis | |
| 3 | The Hurtin's All Over | Connie Smith | |
| 5 | 26 | Husbands and Wives | Roger Miller |
| 13 | I Can't Keep Away from You | The Wilburn Brothers | |
| 17 | I Hear Little Rock Calling | Ferlin Husky | |
| 4 | I Love You Drops | Bill Anderson | |
| 16 | I'd Just Be Fool Enough | The Browns | |
| 9 | I'll Take the Dog | Jean Shepard and Ray Pillow | |
| 18 | 57 | I'm a Nut | Leroy Pullins |
| 6 | I’m a People | George Jones | |
| 9 | 99 | I'm Living in Two Worlds | Bonnie Guitar |
| 13 | 103 | I've Been a Long Time Leavin' (But I'll Be a Long Time Gone) | Roger Miller |
| 10 | If Teardrops Were Silver | Jean Shepard | |
| 7 | 105 | If You Can't Bite, Don't Growl | Tommy Collins |
| 4 | It Takes a Lot of Money | Warner Mack | |
| 14 | It's All Over (But the Crying) | Kitty Wells | |
| 15 | It's Only Love | Jeannie Seely | |
| 2 | 40 | Last Word in Lonesome Is Me | Eddy Arnold |
| 17 | Little Buddy | Claude King | |
| 13 | Lonelyville | Dave Dudley | |
| 15 | Long Time Gone | Dave Dudley | |
| 8 | The Lovin' Machine | Johnny Paycheck | |
| 13 | Many Happy Hangovers to You | Jean Shepard | |
| 16 | The Men in My Little Girl's Life | Archie Campbell | |
| 2 | A Million and One | Billy Walker | |
| 4 | Misty Blue | Wilma Burgess | |
| 14 | My Dreams | Faron Young | |
| 4 | Nobody But a Fool (Would Love You) | Connie Smith | |
| 19 | One in a Row | Willie Nelson | |
| 2 | 46 | The One on the Right Is on the Left | Johnny Cash |
| 6 | Put It Off Until Tomorrow | Bill Phillips | |
| 20 | Rainbows and Roses | Roy Drusky | |
| 2 | Room in Your Heart | Sonny James | |
| 3 | The Shoe Goes On the Other Foot Tonight | Marty Robbins | |
| 3 | Sittin' On a Rock (Crying in a Creek) | Warner Mack | |
| 3 | Skid Row Joe | Porter Wagoner | |
| 2 | 66 | Snowflake | Jim Reeves |
| 8 | Someone Before Me | The Wilburn Brothers | |
| 10 | Stand Beside Me | Jimmy Dean | |
| 5 | Standing in the Shadows | Hank Williams, Jr. | |
| 17 | Stateside | Mel Tillis | |
| 15 | Steel Rail Blues | George Hamilton IV | |
| 15 | Stop the Start (Of Tears in My Heart) | Johnny Dollar | |
| 5 | 124 | Streets of Baltimore | Bobby Bare |
| 4 | Sweet Thang | Nat Stuckey | |
| 5 | Swinging Doors | Merle Haggard | |
| 8 | Take Me | George Jones | |
| 3 | Talkin' to the Wall | Warner Mack | |
| 17 | Thank You Ma'am | Ray Pillow | |
| 9 | (That's What You Get) For Lovin' Me | Waylon Jennings | |
| 17 | Time to Bum Again | Waylon Jennings | |
| 3 | 43 | The Tip of My Fingers | Eddy Arnold |
| 2 | 44 | Tippy Toeing | The Harden Trio |
| 3 | Touch My Heart | Ray Price | |
| 3 | True Love's a Blessing | Sonny James | |
| 17 | The Twelfth of Never | Slim Whitman | |
| 7 | Unmitigated Gall | Faron Young | |
| 12 | 127 | Viet Nam Blues | Dave Dudley |
| 7 | Walking on New Grass | Kenny Price | |
| 7 | A Way to Survive | Ray Price | |
| 4 | What Kinda Deal Is This | Bill Carlisle | |
| 4 | What We're Fighting For | Dave Dudley | |
| 15 | Where Is the Circus | Hank Thompson | |
| 14 | Where'd Ya Stay Last Night | Webb Pierce | |
| 15 | A Woman Half My Age | Kitty Wells | |
| 9 | Women Do Funny Things to Me | Del Reeves | |
| 10 | The World Is Round | Roy Drusky | |
| 5 | Would You Hold It Against Me | Dottie West | |
| 16 | Write Me a Picture | George Hamilton IV | |
| 6 | (Yes) I'm Hurting | Don Gibson | |
| 2 | You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man) | Loretta Lynn | |
| 15 | You Finally Said Something Good (When You Said Goodbye) | Charlie Louvin |
Singles released by Canadian artists
| US | CAN | Single | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|
| — | 3 | Come Home Newfoundlander | Tom Jim Garth |
| — | 2 | Goodbye My Friend | Bob King |
| — | 10 | I Don't Never | Odie Workman |
| 18 | — | I've Cried a Mile | Hank Snow |
| — | 7 | Ice on the Road | Graham Townsend |
| — | 2 | Lost Love | Artie MacLaren |
| — | 4 | Loving You Again | Johnny Burke |
| — | 6 | Muddy Water | Bert Cuff |
| — | 8 | Play Me One More Country Song | Ron McMunn |
| — | 4 | Rambling Shoes | Bob King |
| — | 3 | Three Plays for a Quarter | Ralph Carlson |
| — | 2 | Working on the Country Road | Bob King |
Top new album releases
| Single | Artist | Record Label |
|---|---|---|
| Bad Seed | Jan Howard | Decca |
| The Best of Bobby Bare | Bobby Bare | RCA |
| Born to Sing | Connie Smith | RCA |
| Confessions of a Broken Man | Porter Wagoner | RCA |
| Conway Twitty Sings | Conway Twitty | Decca |
| Distant Drums | Jim Reeves | RCA |
| Don't Touch Me | Wilma Burgess | Decca |
| Folk-Country | Waylon Jennings | RCA |
| The Girls Get Prettier | Hank Locklin | RCA |
| I Love You Drops | Bill Anderson | Decca |
| I Want to Go with You | Eddy Arnold | RCA |
| I'm a People | George Jones | Musicor |
| Jan Howard Sings Evil on Your Mind | Jan Howard | Decca |
| Jimmy Dean's Greatest Hits | Jimmy Dean | Columbia |
| Look Into My Teardrops | Conway Twitty | Decca |
| The Seely Style | Jeannie Seely | Monument |
| Somebody Like Me | Eddy Arnold | RCA |
| The Streets of Baltimore | Bobby Bare | RCA |
| Suffer Time | Dottie West | RCA |
| There Goes My Everything | Jack Greene | Decca |
Births
- January 4 — Deana Carter, singer-songwriter who enjoyed a string of hits in the mid-to-late 1990s.
- May 13 — Darius Rucker, African-American singer and Hootie & the Blowfish lead vocalist who became a rising country star in the late 2000s (decade).
- July 29 — Martina McBride, crossover-styled female vocalist who rose to fame in the 1990s.
- August 19 — Lee Ann Womack, new traditionalist-styled singer of the 1990s and 2000s (decade) most famous for her crossover hit "I Hope You Dance."
- October 6 - Tim Rushlow, lead singer of Little Texas from 1988 to 1997.
- December 17 — Tracy Byrd, male honky tonk-styled vocalist since the 1990s.
Deaths
- July 1 — Slim Willet, 46, disc jockey and singer-songwriter (heart attack).
Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees
- Eddy Arnold (1918–2008)
- James R. Denny (1911–1963)
- George D. Hay (1895–1968)
- Uncle Dave Macon (1870–1952)
Major awards
Grammy Awards
- Best Country and Western Vocal Performance, Female — "Don't Touch Me", Jeannie Seely
- Best Country and Western Vocal Performance, Male — "Almost Persuaded", David Houston
- Best Country and Western Recording — "Almost Persuaded", David Houston
- Best Country and Western Song — "Almost Persuaded", Billy Sherrill and Glenn Sutton (Performer: David Houston)
Academy of Country Music
- Top Male Vocalist — Merle Haggard
- Top Female Vocalist — Bonnie Guitar
- Top New Male Vocalist — Billy Mize
- Top New Female Vocalist — Cathie Taylor
See also
Further reading
- Kingsbury, Paul, "The Grand Ole Opry: History of Country Music. 70 Years of the Songs, the Stars and the Stories," Villard Books, Random House; Opryland USA, 1995
- Kingsbury, Paul, "Vinyl Hayride: Country Music Album Covers 1947–1989," Country Music Foundation, 2003 (ISBN 0-8118-3572-3)
- Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 (ISBN 0-06-273244-7)
- Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs 1944–2005 – 6th Edition." 2005.