<!-- "none" is preferred when the title is sufficiently descriptive; see WP:SDNONE -->
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1974.
Events
- March 16 — The Grand Ole Opry moves from the Ryman Auditorium, its home of the past 41 years, to the newly constructed 4,400-seat Grand Ole Opry House, on the Opryland complex. President Richard Nixon is a guest at the Ryman's last show. The Ryman would essentially sit vacant for the next two decades before being renovated in the early 1990s as a historical landmark and concert hall.
- July 17 — Don Rich, a key member of Buck Owens' backing band, The Buckaroos, is killed in a motorcycle crash on State Route 99 north of Bakersfield, California; he was 32. Owens is deeply saddened by Rich's death, and it will gravely affect his career for many years.
- October 17 — The pilot episode of Austin City Limits, featuring Willie Nelson, is recorded, and will air during PBS' 1975 pledge drive.
No dates
- Country purists, long troubled by a growing trend of pop music-influenced country, form the Association of Country Entertainers, as a result of the outcry over the 1974 Country Music Association awards program, where pop diva Olivia Newton-John won Female Vocalist of the Year, and Danny Davis & the Nashville Brass was awarded another Instrumental Group of the Year.
- The proliferation of No. 1 hits, as certified by Billboard, extends into 1974, when 40 songs reach the top of the Hot Country Singles chart. In fact, just nine songs – 10, counting Merle Haggard's "If We Make It Through December", which spent two of its four weeks at No. 1 in January – remain at the top spot for more than one week.
- Dolly Parton leaves Porter Wagoner's band and his weekly television show, after seven years, to embark on a solo career.
- Loretta Lynn releases "The Pill", a sexually frank song about birth control. The song is deemed controversial and some country stations refuse to play it.
Top hits of the year
Number-one hits
United States
(as certified by Billboard)
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="1" style="border-collapse: collapse"
|- style="background:#00AAAA"
!Date
!Single Name
!Artist
!width="40"|Wks. No.1
!width="40"|CAN peak
!Spec. Note
|-
|January 19
|I Love
|Tom T. Hall
|align="center"|2
|
|
|-
|February 2
|Jolene
|Dolly Parton
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|February 9
|World of Make Believe
|Bill Anderson
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|February 16
|That's the Way Love Goes
|Johnny Rodriguez
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|
|-
|February 23
|Another Lonely Song
|Tammy Wynette
|align="center"|2
|
|
|-
|March 9
|There Won't Be Anymore
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|2
|
|<sup><span id="ref_1" ></span>[[#endnote_1|[1]]]</sup>
|-
|March 23
|There's a Honky Tonk Angel (Who'll Take Me Back In)
|Conway Twitty
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|March 30
|Would You Lay with Me (In a Field of Stone)
|Tanya Tucker
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|7
|
|-
|April 6
|A Very Special Love Song
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|3
|
|
|-
|April 27
|Hello Love
|Hank Snow
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_B" ></span>[[#endnote_B|[B]]]</sup>
|-
|May 4
|Things Aren't Funny Anymore
|Merle Haggard
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|
|-
|May 11
|Is It Wrong (For Loving You)
|Sonny James
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|75
|<sup><span id="ref_B" ></span>[[#endnote_B|[B]]]</sup>
|-
|May 18
|Country Bumpkin
|Cal Smith
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|
|-
|May 25
|No Charge
|Melba Montgomery
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|June 1
|Pure Love
|Ronnie Milsap
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
Written by Eddie Rabbitt.
|-
|June 8
|I Will Always Love You
|Dolly Parton
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|4
|
|-
|June 15
|I Don't See Me in Your Eyes Anymore
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|7
|
|-
|June 22
|This Time
|Waylon Jennings
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|June 29
|Room Full of Roses
|Mickey Gilley
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|6
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|July 6
|He Thinks I Still Care
|Anne Murray
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|11
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|July 20
|Marie Laveau
|Bobby Bare
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|July 27
|You Can't Be a Beacon If Your Light Don't Shine
|Donna Fargo
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|August 3
|Rub It In
|Billy "Crash" Craddock
|align="center"|2
|
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|August 17
|As Soon as I Hang Up the Phone
|Conway Twitty<br />and Loretta Lynn
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|August 24
|Old Man from the Mountain
|Merle Haggard
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|August 31
|The Grand Tour
|George Jones
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|
|-
|September 7
|Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends
|Ronnie Milsap
|align="center"|2
|
|
|-
|September 21
|I Wouldn't Want to Live If You Didn't Love Me
|Don Williams
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|10
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|September 28
|I'm a Ramblin' Man
|Waylon Jennings
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|
|-
|October 5
|I Love My Friend
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|October 12
|Please Don't Stop Loving Me
|Porter Wagoner<br />and Dolly Parton
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|45
|<sup><span id="ref_B" ></span>[[#endnote_B|[B]]] – Porter Wagoner</sup>
|-
|October 19
|I See the Want To in Your Eyes
|Conway Twitty
|align="center"|2
|
|
|-
|November 2
|I Overlooked an Orchid
|Mickey Gilley
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|15
|
|-
|November 9
|Love Is Like a Butterfly
|Dolly Parton
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|
|-
|November 16
|Country Is
|Tom T. Hall
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|November 23
|Trouble in Paradise
|Loretta Lynn
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|14
|
|-
|November 30
|Back Home Again
|John Denver
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|December 7
|She Called Me Baby
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|December 14
|I Can Help
|Billy Swan
|align="center"|2
|
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|December 28
|What a Man My Man Is
|Lynn Anderson
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_B" ></span>[[#endnote_B|[B]]]</sup>
|-
|}
;Notes
- 1<span id="endnote_1" ></span>^ No. 1 song of the year, as determined by Billboard.
- A<span id="endnote_A" ></span>^ First Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
- B<span id="endnote_B" ></span>^ Last Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
- C<span id="endnote_C" ></span>^ Only Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist to date.
Canada
(as certified by RPM)
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="1" style="border-collapse: collapse"
|- style="background:#00AAAA"
!Date
!Single Name
!Artist
!width="40"|Wks. No.1
!width="40"|U.S. peak
!Spec. Note
|-
|January 12
|Amazing Love
|Charley Pride
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|January 19
|If We Make It Through December
|Merle Haggard
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|January 26
|I Love
|Tom T. Hall
|align="center"|2
|
|
|-
|February 9
|Hey Loretta
|Loretta Lynn
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|3
|
|-
|February 16
|Jolene
|Dolly Parton
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|February 23
|World of Make Believe
|Bill Anderson
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|March 2
|A Love Song
|Anne Murray
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|5
|
|-
|March 16
|There Won't Be Anymore
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|March 23
|Another Lonely Song
|Tammy Wynette
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|March 30
|There's a Honky Tonk Angel (Who'll Take Me Back In)
|Conway Twitty
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|April 6
|Sweet Magnolia Blossom
|Billy "Crash" Craddock
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|3
|
|-
|April 13
|A Very Special Love Song
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|3
|
|
- RPM didn't publish on May 4.
|-
|May 11
|Hello Love
|Hank Snow
|align="center"|2
|
|<sup><span id="ref_B" ></span>[[#endnote_B|[B]]]</sup>
|-
|May 25
|No Charge
|Melba Montgomery
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|June 1
|Honeymoon Feelin'
|Roy Clark
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|4
|<sup><span id="ref_B" ></span>[[#endnote_B|[B]]]</sup>
|-
|June 8
|The Streak
|Ray Stevens
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|3
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|June 15
|If You Love Me (Let Me Know)
|Olivia Newton-John
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|2
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|June 29
|When the Morning Comes
|Hoyt Axton
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|10
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|July 6
|We Could
|Charley Pride
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|3
|
|-
|July 13
|This Time
|Waylon Jennings
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|July 20
|I'm Not Through Loving You Yet
|Conway Twitty
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|3
|
|-
|July 27
|They Don't Make 'em Like My Daddy
|Loretta Lynn
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|4
|
|-
|August 3
|Marie Laveau
|Bobby Bare
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|August 10
|As Soon as I Hang Up the Phone
|Conway Twitty and<br />Loretta Lynn
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|August 17
|Rub It In
|Billy "Crash" Craddock
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|August 24
|You Can't Be a Beacon If Your Light Don't Shine
|Donna Fargo
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|August 31
|Old Man from the Mountain
|Merle Haggard
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|September 7
|Talkin' to the Wall
|Lynn Anderson
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|7
|
|-
|September 21
|Dance with Me (Just One More Time)
|Johnny Rodriguez
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|2
|
|-
|September 28
|Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends
|Ronnie Milsap
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|October 5
|I Love My Friend
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|2
|
|
|-
|October 19
|Bonaparte's Retreat
|Glen Campbell
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|3
|
|-
|October 26
|I See the Want To in Your Eyes
|Conway Twitty
|align="center"|1
|
|
|-
|November 2
|Woman to Woman
|Tammy Wynette
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|4
|
|-
|November 9
|Mississippi Cotton Picking Delta Town
|Charley Pride
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|3
|
|-
|November 16
|I Honestly Love You
|Olivia Newton-John
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|6
|
|-
|November 30
|Carefree Highway
|Gordon Lightfoot
|align="center"|1
|align="center"|81
|
|-
|December 7
|Country Is
|Tom T. Hall
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_B" ></span>[[#endnote_B|[B]]]</sup>
|-
|December 14
|I Can Help
|Billy Swan
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_C" ></span>[[#endnote_C|[C]]]</sup>
|-
|December 21
|Back Home Again
|John Denver
|align="center"|1
|
|<sup><span id="ref_A" ></span>[[#endnote_A|[A]]]</sup>
|-
|December 28
|She Called Me Baby
|Charlie Rich
|align="center"|1
|
|
|}
;Notes
- A<span id="endnote_A" ></span>^ First RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.
- B<span id="endnote_B" ></span>^ Last RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.
- C<span id="endnote_C" ></span>^ Only RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.
Other major hits
Singles released by American artists
{|class="wikitable sortable"
!width="50"|<small>US</small>
!width="50"|<small>CAN</small>
!width="250"|Single
!width="150"|Artist
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|—
|After the Fire Is Gone
|Willie Nelson and Tracy Nelson
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|12
|Ain't Love a Good Thing
|Connie Smith
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|37
|Angels Are Hard to Find
|Hank Williams, Jr.
|-
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|3
|Annie's Song
|John Denver
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|24
|At the Time
|Jean Shepard
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|57
|Atta Way to Go
|Don Williams
|-
|align="center"|51
|align="center"|15
|Back in the Country
|Roy Acuff
|-
|align="center"|6
|align="center"|2
|Baby Doll
|Barbara Fairchild
|-
|align="center"|14
|align="center"|21
|The Baptism of Jesse Taylor
|Johnny Russell
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|15
|Between Lust and Watching TV
|Cal Smith
|-
|align="center"|22
|align="center"|17
|Biff, the Friendly Purple Bear
|Dick Feller
|-
|align="center"|4
|align="center"|2
|Big Four Poster Bed
|Brenda Lee
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|7
|Big Game Hunter
|Buck Owens
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|26
|Bloody Mary Morning
|Willie Nelson
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|8
|Boney Fingers
|Hoyt Axton and Renee Armand
|-
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|14
|Bring Back Your Love to Me
|Don Gibson
|-
|align="center"|24
|align="center"|2
|Can I Come Home to You
|Bill Anderson
|-
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|13
|Can You Feel It
|David Houston
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|—
|Come on In and Let Me Love You
|Lois Johnson
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|38
|Credit Card Song
|Dick Feller
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|17
|The Crude Oil Blues
|Jerry Reed
|-
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|5
|Daddy, What If
|Bobby Bare and Bobby Bare, Jr.
|-
|align="center"|14
|align="center"|15
|Delta Dirt
|Larry Gatlin
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|17
|Don't Let Go
|Mel Tillis and Sherry Bryce
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|47
|Don't Tell (That Sweet Ole Lady of Mine)
|Johnny Carver
|-
|align="center"|12
|align="center"|13
|Don't You Think
|Marty Robbins
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|—
|Drinkin' Thing
|Gary Stewart
|-
|align="center"|7
|align="center"|5
|Every Time I Turn the Radio On
|Bill Anderson
|-
|align="center"|23
|align="center"|16
|A Field of Yellow Daisies
|Charlie Rich
|-
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|6
|Get on My Love Train
|LaCosta
|-
|align="center"|12
|align="center"|17
|A Good Woman's Love
|Jerry Reed
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|—
|Goodbye
|Rex Allen, Jr.
|-
|align="center"|12
|align="center"|8
|The Great Divide
|Roy Clark
|-
|align="center"|18
|align="center"|44
|Guess Who
|Jerry Wallace
|-
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|—
|Hang in There Girl
|Freddie Hart
|-
|align="center"|26
|align="center"|13
|He Can Be Mine
|Jeannie Seely
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|4
|He Can't Fill My Shoes
|Jerry Lee Lewis
|-
|align="center"|6
|align="center"|4
|Help Me
|Elvis Presley
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|23
|Here We Go Again
|Brian Shaw
|-
|align="center"|15
|align="center"|34
|Highway Headin' South
|Porter Wagoner
|-
|align="center"|20
|align="center"|35
|Houston (I'm Comin' to See You)
|Glen Campbell
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|7
|How Lucky Can One Man Be
|Joe Stampley
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|—
|I Just Started Hatin' Cheatin' Songs Today
|Moe Bandy
|-
|align="center"|6
|align="center"|18
|I Love You, I Love You
|David Houston and Barbara Mandrell
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|—
|I Never Knew (What That Song Meant Before)
|Connie Smith
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|23
|I Wish That I Had Loved You Better
|Eddy Arnold
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|43
|I'd Fight the World
|Jim Reeves
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|—
|I'll Do Anything It Takes (To Stay with You)
|Jean Shepard
|-
|align="center"|7
|align="center"|2
|I'll Think of Something
|Hank Williams, Jr.
|-
|align="center"|6
|align="center"|—
|I'll Try a Little Bit Harder
|Donna Fargo
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|40
|I'm Having Your Baby
|Sunday Sharpe
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|7
|I'm Leaving It Up to You
|Donny and Marie Osmond
|-
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|2
|I'm Still Loving You
|Joe Stampley
|-
|align="center"|4
|align="center"|96
|I've Got a Thing About You Baby
|Elvis Presley
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|11
|I've Just Got to Know (How Loving You Would Be)
|Freddy Weller
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|2
|If I Miss You Again Tonight
|Tommy Overstreet
|-
|align="center"|16
|align="center"|—
|It'll Come Back
|Red Sovine
|-
|align="center"|6
|align="center"|9
|(It's A) Monster's Holiday
|Buck Owens
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|—
|It's That Time of Night
|Jim Ed Brown
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|77
|It's Time to Cross That Bridge
|Jack Greene
|-
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|3
|(Jeannie Marie) You Were a Lady
|Tommy Overstreet
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|—
|Last Time I Saw Him
|Dottie West
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|12
|Lean It All on Me
|Diana Trask
|-
|align="center"|15
|align="center"|—
|Like a First Time Thing
|Ray Price
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|7
|Lovin' on Borrowed Time
|Mel Street
|-
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|—
|Loving You Has Changed My Life
|David Rogers
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|17
|Lucky Ladies
|Jeannie Seely
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|38
|Makin' the Best of a Bad Situation
|Dick Feller
|-
|align="center"|4
|align="center"|10
|The Man That Turned My Mama On
|Tanya Tucker
|-
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|3
|Memory Maker
|Mel Tillis
|-
|align="center"|4
|align="center"|3
|A Mi Esposa Con Amor (To My Wife with Love)
|Sonny James
|-
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|2
|Midnight Me and the Blues
|Mel Tillis
|-
|align="center"|64
|align="center"|16
|My Girl Bill
|Jim Stafford
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|37
|My Part of Forever
|Johnny Paycheck
|-
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|3
|My Wife's House
|Jerry Wallace
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|12
|Old Home Filler-Up an' Keep On-a-Truckin' Cafe
|C. W. McCall
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|4
|The Older the Violin, The Sweeter the Music
|Hank Thompson
|-
|align="center"|9
|align="center"|13
|On the Cover of the Music City News
|Buck Owens
|-
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|65
|Once You've Had the Best
|George Jones
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|30
|One Day at a Time
|Don Gibson
|-
|align="center"|19
|align="center"|—
|One Day at a Time
|Marilyn Sellars
|-
|align="center"|16
|align="center"|22
|The Rainbow in Daddy's Eyes
|Sammi Smith
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|21
|Rainy Night in Georgia
|Hank Williams, Jr.
|-
|align="center"|21
|align="center"|19
|Red Rose from the Blue Side of Town
|George Morgan
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|9
|The River's Too Wide
|Jim Mundy
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|33
|Rosie Cries a Lot
|Ferlin Husky
|-
|align="center"|51
|align="center"|11
|Sally G
|Paul McCartney
|-
|align="center"|20
|align="center"|20
|Silver Threads and Golden Needles
|Linda Ronstadt
|-
|align="center"|15
|align="center"|10
|Smile for Me
|Lynn Anderson
|-
|align="center"|12
|align="center"|23
|Snap Your Fingers
|Don Gibson
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|6
|Some Kind of a Woman
|Faron Young
|-
|align="center"|6
|align="center"|11
|Something
|Johnny Rodriguez
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|7
|Sometime Sunshine
|Jim Ed Brown
|-
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|5
|Somewhere Between Love and Tomorrow
|Roy Clark
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|9
|Song and Dance Man
|Johnny Paycheck
|-
|align="center"|17
|align="center"|—
|Standing in Your Line
|Barbara Fairchild
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|6
|Statue of a Fool
|Brian Collins
|-
|align="center"|7
|align="center"|29
|Still Loving You
|Bob Luman
|-
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|4
|Stomp Them Grapes
|Mel Tillis
|-
|align="center"|40
|align="center"|11
|Stop and Smell the Roses
|Mac Davis
|-
|align="center"|18
|align="center"|30
|Stop the World (And Let Me Off)
|Susan Raye
|-
|align="center"|5
|align="center"|9
|Take Me Home to Somewhere
|Joe Stampley
|-
|align="center"|18
|align="center"|8
|Tell Tale Signs
|Jerry Lee Lewis
|-
|align="center"|14
|align="center"|9
|Ten Commandments of Love
|David Houston and Barbara Mandrell
|-
|align="center"|11
|align="center"|14
|That Girl Who Waits on Tables
|Ronnie Milsap
|-
|align="center"|2
|align="center"|2
|That Song Is Driving Me Crazy
|Tom T. Hall
|-
|align="center"|12
|align="center"|—
|This Time I Almost Made It
|Barbara Mandrell
|-
|align="center"|12
|align="center"|19
|Tonight Someone's Falling in Love
|Johnny Carver
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|9
|Twentieth Century Drifter
|Marty Robbins
|-
|align="center"|25
|align="center"|16
|The Uptown Poker Club
|Jerry Reed
|-
|align="center"|14
|align="center"|—
|Wake Me Into Love
|Bud Logan and Wilma Burgess
|-
|align="center"|3
|align="center"|3
|The Want-To's
|Freddie Hart
|-
|align="center"|8
|align="center"|—
|We Loved It Away
|George Jones and Tammy Wynette
|-
|align="center"|5
|align="center"|—
|We Should Be Together
|Don Williams
|-
|align="center"|15
|align="center"|16
|(We're Not) The Jet Set
|George Jones and Tammy Wynette
|-
|align="center"|16
|align="center"|26
|When I Get My Hands on You
|Diana Trask
|-
|align="center"|14
|align="center"|14
|When Your Good Love Was Mine
|Narvel Felts
|-
|align="center"|10
|align="center"|12
|Who Left the Door to Heaven Open
|Hank Thompson
|-
|align="center"|27
|align="center"|18
|Workin' at the Car Wash Blues
|Tony Booth
|-
|align="center"|6
|align="center"|5
|Wrong Ideas
|Brenda Lee
|-
|align="center"|20
|align="center"|22
|The Wrong in Loving You
|Faron Young
|-
|align="center"|15
|align="center"|34
|You Don't Need to Move a Mountain
|Jeanne Pruett
|-
|align="center"|15
|align="center"|—
|You Make Me Feel More Like a Man
|Mel Street
|-
|align="center"|16
|align="center"|20
|You're Not Getting Older (You're Getting Better)
|Freddy Weller
|}
Singles released by Canadian artists
{|class="wikitable sortable"
!width="50"|<small>US</small>
!width="50"|<small>CAN</small>
!Single
!Artist
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|4
|Anna Marie
|Bruce Miller
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|11
|Ballad of the Hotel Waitress
|Roy MacCaull
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|20
|The Balladeer
|Jim and Don Haggart
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|10
|The Battle of New Orleans
|Mike Graham
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|2
|Bitter Sweet Songs
|Dick Damron
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|2
|Bittersweet
|Donna Moon
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|19
|Blues Comin' Round
|Marg Osburne
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|14
|Cardboard Cowboys
|Bob Ruzicka
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|9
|Eastbound Highway
|Orval Prophet
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|19
|Ghost Story
|Mike Graham
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|8
|Great Canadian Tour
|Ian Tyson
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|18
|Happy Anniversary
|Con Archer
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|13
|He
|Jim and Don Haggart
|-
|align="center"|91
|align="center"|18
|The Hill
|Ray Griff
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|15
|His Kind of Woman
|Dianne Leigh
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|12
|House of Glass
|Allan Capson
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|17
|I Love Your Kind of Lovin'
|Lynn Jones
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|10
|I'd Go Through It All Again
|Carroll Baker
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|4
|Kids in the Kitchen
|Family Brown
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|16
|Little Boy Blue
|Carroll Baker
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|14
|Love Is Simple
|Family Brown
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|3
|Momma Brown
|R. Harlan Smith
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|6
|Our Loving Times
|Mercey Brothers
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|19
|Our Summer Song
|Tommy Ambrose
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|15
|Shoeshine Workin' Song
|Murray McLauchlan
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|11
|Sing-a-Long with Me
|Linda Brown
|-
|align="center"|5
|align="center"|3
|Son of a Rotten Gambler
|Anne Murray
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|14
|Standing on the Promises
|Newman Sisters
|-
|align="center"|13
|align="center"|4
|Sundown
|Gordon Lightfoot
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|11
|Sweet Jesus
|Roy Payne
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|3
|Ten Little Fingers
|Carroll Baker
|-
|align="center"|65
|align="center"|12
|That Doesn't Mean (I Don't Love My God)
|Ray Griff
|-
|align="center"|36
|align="center"|5
|That's You and Me
|Hank Snow
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|15
|What Used to Be a River
|Jim and Don Haggart
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|10
|Whisper to Me Tina
|Roy Payne
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|13
|A Window Mannikin
|Jo-Anne
|-
|align="center"|—
|align="center"|16
|You Do It Again
|Sharon Lowness
|}
Top new album releases
{|class="wikitable sortable"
!width="274"|Single
!width="200"|Artist
!width="90"|Record Label
|-
|Breakaway
|Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge
|Monument
|-
|Elvis: A Legendary Performer Volume 1
|Elvis Presley
|RCA
|-
|Elvis: As Recorded Live On Stage In Memphis
|Elvis Presley
|RCA
|-
|Good Times
|Elvis Presley
|RCA
|-
|The Grand Tour
|George Jones
|Epic
|-
|Having Fun with Elvis on Stage
|Elvis Presley
|RCA
|-
|If You Love Me, Let Me Know
|Olivia Newton-John
|MCA
|-
|Jolene
|Dolly Parton
|RCA
|-
|Junkie and the Juicehead Minus Me
|Johnny Cash
|Columbia
|-
|Long Live Love
|Olivia Newton-John
|EMI
|-
|Phases and Stages
|Willie Nelson
|Atlantic
|-
|Ragged Old Flag
|Johnny Cash
|Columbia
|-
|Spooky Lady's Sideshow
|Kris Kristofferson
|Monument
|-
|Sundown
|Gordon Lightfoot
|Reprise
|-
|This Time
|Waylon Jennings
|RCA
|-
|Would You Lay with Me (In a Field of Stone)
|Tanya Tucker
|Columbia
|}
Other top albums
{|class="wikitable sortable"
!width="250"|Single
!width="150"|Artist
!width="90"|Record Label
|-
|Another Lovely Song
|Tammy Wynette
|Epic
|-
|Back Home Again
|John Denver
|RCA
|-
|Honky Tonk Amnesia
|Moe Bandy
|GRT
|-
|Honky Tonk Angel
|Conway Twitty
|MCA
|-
|House of the Rising Sun
|Jody Miller
|Epic
|-
|Houston (I'm Coming to See You)
|Glen Campbell
|Capitol
|-
|I-40 Country
|Jerry Lee Lewis
|Mercury
|-
|I'll Do Anything It Takes
|Jean Shepard
|United Artists
|-
|If We Make It Through December
|Merle Haggard
|Capitol
|-
|I'm Not Through Loving You Yet
|Conway Twitty
|MCA
|-
|Jeanne Pruett
|Jeanne Pruett
|MCA
|-
|Lean It All on Me
|Diana Trask
|Dot
|-
|The Midnight Oil
|Barbara Mandrell
|Columbia
|-
|My Third Album
|Johnny Rodriguez
|Mercury
|-
|Never Ending Song of Love
|Conway Twitty
|MCA
|-
|No Charge
|Melba Montgomery
|Elektra
|-
|Pure Love
|Ronnie Milsap
|RCA
|-
|Reunion: The Songs of Jimmy Webb
|Glen Campbell
|Capitol
|-
|Rub It In
|Billy "Crash" Craddock
|ABC
|-
|Songs About Ladies and Love
|Johnny Rodriguez
|Mercury
|-
|"Whispering" Bill Anderson
|Bill Anderson
|MCA
|-
|Woman to Woman
|Tammy Wynette
|Epic
|-
|}
Births
- January 7 — John Rich, singer-songwriter and member of Big & Rich.
- February 17 – Chuck Dauphin, American sports radio broadcaster and country music journalist (died 2019).
- February 17 — Bryan White, singer-songwriter from the 1990s.
- March 18 – Phillip Sweet, member of Little Big Town.
- May 23 – Jewel, multi-genre singer-songwriter who released the country album Perfectly Clear in 2008.
- June 6 – Uncle Kracker, rock singer who has had major country successes with "When the Sun Goes Down" (duet with Kenny Chesney) and "Smile."
- September 12 — Jennifer Nettles, lead singer of Sugarland.
- October 14 — Natalie Maines, lead singer of the Dixie Chicks.
- November 21 — Kelsi Osborn, member of SHeDAISY.
Deaths
- January 2 — Tex Ritter, 68, silver screen cowboy and western artist (heart attack).
- April 26 – Tim Spencer, 65, member of the Sons of the Pioneers.
- July 17 — Don Rich, 32, right-hand man of Buck Owens and key member of the Buckaroos (motorcycle crash).
Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees
- Owen Bradley (1915–1998)
- Pee Wee King (1914–2000)
Major awards
Grammy Awards
- Best Female Country Vocal Performance — "A Love Song", Anne Murray
- Best Male Country Vocal Performance — "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends", Ronnie Milsap
- Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal — "Fairytale", The Pointer Sisters
- Best Country Instrumental Performance — The Atkins - Travis Traveling Show, Chet Atkins and Merle Travis
- Best Country Song — "A Very Special Love Song", Billy Sherrill and Norro Wilson (Performer: Charlie Rich)
Juno Awards
- Country Male Vocalist of the Year — Stompin' Tom Connors
- Country Female Vocalist of the Year — Shirley Eikhard
- Country Group or Duo of the Year — Mercey Brothers
Academy of Country Music
- Entertainer of the Year — Mac Davis
- Song of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Don Wayne (Performer: Cal Smith)
- Single of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Cal Smith
- Album of the Year — Back Home Again, John Denver
- Top Male Vocalist — Merle Haggard
- Top Female Vocalist — Loretta Lynn
- Top Vocal Duo — Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn
- Top New Male Vocalist — Mickey Gilley
- Top New Female Vocalist — Linda Ronstadt
Country Music Association
- Entertainer of the Year — Charlie Rich
- Song of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Don Wayne (Performer: Cal Smith)
- Single of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Cal Smith
- Album of the Year — A Very Special Love Song, Charlie Rich
- Male Vocalist of the Year — Ronnie Milsap
- Female Vocalist of the Year — Olivia Newton-John
- Vocal Duo of the Year — Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn
- Vocal Group of the Year — The Statler Brothers
- Instrumentalist of the Year — Don Rich
- Instrumental Group of the Year — Danny Davis and the Nashville Brass
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 ()
- Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 ()
- Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs 1944–2005 – 6th Edition." 2005.
References
Other links
- Country Music Association
- Inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame
External links
- Country Music Hall of Fame