June 19th: On this day
1914
Born on this day in Overton County, Tennessee, was Lester Flatt, bluegrass musician best known for his work in the Bluegrass duo The Foggy Mountain Boys. He was also known as “Flatt and Scruggs,” with banjo picker Earl Scruggs who performed “The Ballad of Jed Clampett”, which was used as the theme for the television show The Beverly Hillbillies. He also released many solo and collaboration works and hed been a member of Bill Monroe’s band during the 1940s. He died on May 11th 1979.
1954
“I Don’t Hurt Anymore” by Hank Snow began a 20 week run at #1 on the Country Best Seller list. Also on the chart, “One by One” by Red Foley and Kitty Wells began a 21 week run at #2 on same chart, managing a single week at #1 later in the year.
1956
Born on this day, in Newnan, Georgia, was Doug Stone, country music artist who had the 1991 US #1 Country hit “In A Different Light.” Stone made his acting debut in the film Gordy.
1956
Born on this day in Nacogdoches, Texas, was Jim Collins, country music singer-songwriter. Between 1985 and 1998, Collins released three studio albums. As a songwriter, Collins has had more than fifty of his songs cut, including singles by Kenny Chesney (“She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy”, “The Good Stuff”, “Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven”), Chad Brock (“Yes!”), Jason Aldean (“Big Green Tractor”), and Gretchen Wilson (“I Don’t Feel Like Loving You Today”). “The Good Stuff” was Billboard’s #1 country single of 2002.
2001
Lonestar released their fourth album I’m Already There. Serving as singles from this album were the title track (which spent six weeks at #1 on the Hot Country Songs charts), “Not a Day Goes By” (#3 on Hot Country Songs), “With Me” (#10), and “Unusually Unusual” (#12).
2006
Gretchen Wilson and Josh Gracin performed for president George W. Bush along with 6,000 guests at the President’s Dinner at the Washington Convention Center.
2008
Loretta Lynn joined the Songwriters Hall of Fame during a ceremony at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York City. Anne Murray also received the Hitmaker Award.
2013
Ottis Dewey Whitman, Jr. who became known professionally as Slim Whitman died at the age of ninety. The American country music singer and songwriter, known for his yodelling abilities sold in excess of 120 million albums. His 1955 hit single “Rose Marie” held the Guinness World Record for the longest time at #1 on the UK charts until Bryan Adams broke the record in 1991. Beatle George Harrison cited Whitman as an early influence: “The first person I ever saw playing a guitar was Slim Whitman”.
