Country Music 1961

Events

• March 17 - NBC airs the weekly show Five Star Jubilee for the first time .
• June 14th - Patsy Cline is seriously injured in a car accident. During her hospital stay, the single I Fall to Pieces becomes a huge crossover hit.

Top hits of the year

Number 1 hits

• January 9 - North To Alaska - Johnny Horton
• February 27 - Don't Worry - Marty Robbins
• May 8 - Hello Walls - Faron Young
• July 10th - Heartbreak USA . - Kitty Wells
• August 7th - I Fall to Pieces - Patsy Cline
• August 21 - Tender Years - George Jones
• September 25th - Walk on By - Leroy Van Dyke
• November 20 - Big Bad John - Jimmy Dean

More big hits

• Backtrack - Faron Young
• Beggar to a King - Hank Snow
• Big River, Big Man - Claude King
• The Blizzard - Jim Reeves
• Foolin 'Around - Buck Owens
• Heart Over Mind - Ray Price
• Hello Fool - Ralph Emery
• How Do You Talk to a Baby - Webb Pierce
• I Dreamed of a Hill-Billy Heaven - Tex Ritter
• It's Your World - Marty Robbins
• Last Date - Floyd Cramer
• Loose Talk - Buck Owens and Rose Maddox
• My Last Date (With You) - Skeeter Davis
• Oh Lonesome Me - Johnny Cash
• Optimistic - Skeeter Davis
• San Antonio Rose - Floyd Cramer
• Sea of ​​Heartbreak - Don Gibson
• Signed Sealed and Delivered - Cowboy Copas
• Sweet Dreams - Don Gibson
• Sweet Lips - Webb Pierce
• Through That Door - Ernest Tubb
• When Two Worlds Collide - Roger Miller
• Window Up Above - George Jones
• Your Old Love Letters - Porter Wagoner

Albums (selection)

• At the Golden Nugget - Hank Thompson (Capitol)
• Buck Owens - Buck Owens (Capitol)
• Buck Owens Sings Harlan Howard - Buck Owens (Capitol)
• Chet Atkins' Workshop - Chet Atkins (RCA)
• Cowboy Copas Sings The Songs That Made Him Famous - Cowboy Copas (Starday)
• Got You on My Mind - Jean Shepard (Capitol)
• Here's the Answer - Skeeter Davis (RCA)
• Hank Snow Souvenirs - Hank Snow (RCA)
• Chet Atkins in Hollywood - Chet Atkins (RCA)
• Let's Make Memories Tonight - Eddy Arnold (RCA)
• A Man and His Guitar - Chet Atkins (RCA)
• The Most Popular Guitar - Chet Atkins (RCA)
• Our Favorite Folk Songs - The Browns (RCA)
• Patsy Cline Showcase - Patsy Cline (Decca)
• Right or Wrong - Wanda Jackson (Capitol)
• San Antonio Rose - Ray Price (Columbia)
• The Wild, Wicked But Wonderful West - Johnny Bond (Starday)
• The Versatile Burl Ives - Burl Ives (Decca)

Born

• July 8 - Toby Keith
• August 25 - Billy Ray Cyrus

Died

• September 20 - Karl Farr, member of the Sons of the Pioneers .

New inductees into the Country Music Hall of Fame

• Jimmie Rodgers (1897-1933)
• Fred Rose (1898-1954)
• Hank Williams (1923-1953)

Important awards

Grammys

• Best Country and Western Recording - "Big Bad John," Jimmy Dean