1947 in country music
Encyclopedia
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1947.
Number one hits
(As certified by Billboard magazine)- January 18 - "Rainbow at MidnightRainbow at Midnight"Rainbow at Midnight" is a a novelty song written by Lost John Miller. The song originally made the Juke Box Folk chart when it was recorded by The Carlisle Brothers...
" - Ernest TubbErnest TubbErnest Dale Tubb , nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" , marked the rise of the honky tonk style of music... - February 8 - "So Round, So Firm, So Fully PackedSo Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed"So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed" is a 1947 song by Merle Travis, written by Travis, Eddie Kirk, and Cliffie Stone. The song would be his second number one on the Folk Juke Box charts where it stayed at number one for 14 weeks and a total of 21 weeks on the chart...
" - Merle TravisMerle TravisMerle Robert Travis was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and musician born in Rosewood, Kentucky. His lyrics often discussed the life and exploitation of coal miners. Among his many well-known songs are "Sixteen Tons", "Re-Enlistment Blues" and "Dark as a Dungeon"... - May 17 - "New Jolie Blonde (New Pretty Blonde)New Jolie Blonde (New Pretty Blonde)"New Jolie Blonde " is a 1947 song by Red Foley. The song was Foley's third number one on the Folk Juke Box chart, spending two weeks at number one and a total of sixteen weeks on the chart....
" - Red Foley and the Cumberland Valley BoysRed FoleyClyde Julian Foley , better known as Red Foley, was an American singer, musician, and radio and TV personality who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II.... - May 24 - "What is Life Without LoveWhat Is Life Without Love"What Is Life Without Love" is a 1947 song by Eddy Arnold. The song was Arnold's first number one on the country chart in the US, spending one week at the top and a total of twenty-two weeks on the chart....
" - Eddy ArnoldEddy ArnoldRichard Edward Arnold , known professionally as 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 scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more... - June 7 - "Sugar MoonSugar Moon"Sugar Moon" is a Western swing love song written by Bob Wills and Cindy Walker. The title comes from a refrain in the chorus:It has been covered by Willie Nelson, k.d. lang , Asleep at the Wheel, and other artists....
" - Bob Wills and His Texas PlayboysBob WillsJames Robert Wills , better known as Bob Wills, was an American Western Swing musician, songwriter, and bandleader, considered by music authorities as the co-founder of Western Swing and universally known as the pioneering King of Western Swing.Bob Wills' name will forever be associated with... - June 1 - "It's a SinIt's a Sin (Eddy Arnold song)"It's a Sin" is a country song written by country guitarist Zeb Turner and music publisher Fred Rose. The 1947 version by Eddy Arnold was his second number one on the Country & Western charts, spending five weeks at number one and a total of thirty-eight weeks on the chart...
" - Eddy ArnoldEddy ArnoldRichard Edward Arnold , known professionally as 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 scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more... - July 19 - "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! is a Western swing novelty song written by Merle Travis and Tex Williams for Tex Williams and his talking blues style of singing. Merle Travis wrote the bulk of the song....
" - Tex WilliamsTex WilliamsSollie Paul Williams , known professionally as Tex Williams, was an American Western swing musician from Ramsey, Illinois.... - November 1 - "I'll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms)I'll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms)"I'll Hold You in My Heart " is a 1947 song by Eddy Arnold. The song was Eddy Arnold's third number one on the Juke Box Folk Records chart. "I'll Hold You in My Heart " spent forty-six weeks on the chart and twenty-one at number one.The song went on to become a major country standard...
" - Eddy ArnoldEddy ArnoldRichard Edward Arnold , known professionally as 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 scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more...
Other major hits
- "Baby Doll" — Sons of the PioneersSons of the PioneersThe Sons of the Pioneers are one of America's earliest Western singing groups whose classic recordings set a new standard for performers of Western music. Known for the high quality of their vocal performances, musicianship, and songwriting, they produced finely-crafted and innovative recordings...
- "Bang Bang" — Jimmie DavisJimmie DavisJames Houston Davis , better known as Jimmie Davis, was a noted singer of both sacred and popular songs who served two nonconsecutive terms as the 47th Governor of Louisiana...
- "Cigarettes Whiskey And Wild Wild Women" — Sons of the PioneersSons of the PioneersThe Sons of the Pioneers are one of America's earliest Western singing groups whose classic recordings set a new standard for performers of Western music. Known for the high quality of their vocal performances, musicianship, and songwriting, they produced finely-crafted and innovative recordings...
- "Don't Look Now" — Ernest TubbErnest TubbErnest Dale Tubb , nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" , marked the rise of the honky tonk style of music...
- "Fat Gal" — Merle TravisMerle TravisMerle Robert Travis was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and musician born in Rosewood, Kentucky. His lyrics often discussed the life and exploitation of coal miners. Among his many well-known songs are "Sixteen Tons", "Re-Enlistment Blues" and "Dark as a Dungeon"...
- "Feudin' And Fightin'" — Dorothy ShayDorothy ShayDorothy Shay was an American popular comedic recording artist in the late 1940s and early 1950s, who later became a character actress. She was known as the "Park Avenue Hillbillie."-Early life:...
- "Filipino Baby" — Ernest Tubb
- "Freight Train Boogie" — Red Foley and the Cumberland Valley BoysRed FoleyClyde Julian Foley , better known as Red Foley, was an American singer, musician, and radio and TV personality who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II....
- "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?" — Red Foley and the Cumberland Valley Boys
- "Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)Here Comes Santa Claus"Here Comes Santa Claus " is a Christmas song written by Gene Autry and Oakley Haldeman.Autry got the idea for the song after riding his horse in the 1946 Santa Claus Lane Parade in Los Angeles, during which crowds of spectators chanted, "Here comes Santa Claus". This inspired him to write a song...
" — Gene AutryGene AutryOrvon Grover Autry , better known as Gene Autry, was an American performer who gained fame as The Singing Cowboy on the radio, in movies and on television for more than three decades beginning in the 1930s... - "I Couldn' Believe It Was True" — Eddy ArnoldEddy ArnoldRichard Edward Arnold , known professionally as 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 scored 147 songs on the Billboard country music charts, second only to George Jones. He sold more...
- "I'll Step Aside" — Ernest Tubb
- "Missouri" — Merle TravisMerle TravisMerle Robert Travis was an American country and western singer, songwriter, and musician born in Rosewood, Kentucky. His lyrics often discussed the life and exploitation of coal miners. Among his many well-known songs are "Sixteen Tons", "Re-Enlistment Blues" and "Dark as a Dungeon"...
- "Move It On Over" — Hank Williams
- "Never Trust A Woman" — Red Foley
- "Never Trust A Woman" — Tex WilliamsTex WilliamsSollie Paul Williams , known professionally as Tex Williams, was an American Western swing musician from Ramsey, Illinois....
- "Our Own Jolie Blon" — Red Foley and the Cumberland Valley Boys
- "Pretty Blond" — Moon Mullican
- "That's How Much I Love You" — Red Foley and the Cumberland Valley Boys
- "So Round So Firm So Fully Packed" — Johnny BondJohnny BondCyrus Whitfield Bond , known professionally as Johnny Bond, was a popular American country music entertainer of the 1940s through the 1960s.-Biography:...
- "So Round So Firm So Fully Packed" — Ernest TubbErnest TubbErnest Dale Tubb , nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" , marked the rise of the honky tonk style of music...
- "Steel Guitar RagSteel Guitar Rag"Steel Guitar Rag" is the seminal Western swing instrumental credited with popularizing the steel guitar as an integral instrument in a Western band....
" — Merle Travis - "Teardrops in My Heart" — Sons of the Pioneers
- "Temptation" — Red Ingle and The Natural SevenRed IngleErnest Jansen "Red" Ingle was an American musician, singer and songwriter, arranger, cartoonist and caricaturist. He is best known for his comedy records with Spike Jones and his own Natural Seven sides for Capitol....
feat. Jo Stafford - "That's What I Like About The West" — Tex Williams
- "To My Sorrow" — Eddy Arnold
Births
- April 2 — Emmylou HarrisEmmylou HarrisEmmylou Harris is an American singer-songwriter and musician. In addition to her work as a solo artist and bandleader, both as an interpreter of other composers' works and as a singer-songwriter, she is a sought-after backing vocalist and duet partner, working with numerous other artists including...
, country-rock and alternative country-styled singer who enjoyed mainstream success during the 1970s and 1980s. - May 24 — Mike Reid, football player-turned-singer-songwriter during the 1980s.
- July 22 — Don HenleyDon HenleyDonald Hugh "Don" Henley is an American singer, songwriter and drummer, best known as a founding member of the Eagles before launching a successful solo career. Henley was the drummer and lead vocalist for the Eagles from 1971–1980, when the band broke up...
, member of the country-rock group Eagles. - September 26 — Lynn AndersonLynn AndersonLynn Rene Anderson is an American country music singer and equestrian known for a string of hits throughout the 1970s and early 1980s, most notably her Grammy Award-winning, worldwide mega-hit, " Rose Garden." Helped by her regular exposure on national television, Anderson was one of the most...
, top female country singer of the 1970s; best-remembered for her crossover pop smash, "(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden". - November 10 — Dave LogginsDave LogginsDavid Allen "Dave" Loggins is a singer, songwriter and musician. He is widely remembered for his 1974 composition "Please Come to Boston", which was a top-10 hit in the U.S. for him, and was subsequently covered by numerous other artists. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame...
, singer-songwriter who wrote a number of successful country songs during the 1980s. - December 19 — Janie FrickeJanie FrickeJanie Fricke is an American country music singer, best remembered for a series of country music hits in the early to mid 1980s....
, 1970s session/backup singer who grew to indivdiual stardom during the early and mid 1980s.
Further reading
- 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.