1997 In Country Music ,
1998 In Music ,
Other Events Of 1998 ,
1999 In Country Music , 1990s In Music and the List Of Years In Country Music
- – "''' Retro Country USA '''," a weekly two-hour syndicated radio program spotlighting major country hits of the 1980s (along with some from the 1970s and early 1990s), premieres. The show is hosted by Tampa radio personality Ken Cooper.
- – Johnny Cash 's album, ''Unchained'', wins a Grammy Award for Best Country Album. The album had been a critical success but was largely ignored by mainstream country radio, a fact Cash and producer Rick Rubin pick up on when they purchase a full-page advertisement in '' Billboard Magazine ''. The ad, which appeared in March, featured a young Cash displaying His Middle Finger and sarcastically "thanking" radio for supporting the album.
- June 30 – The divorce of Vince and Janis Gill (of Sweethearts Of The Rodeo ) is finalized.
- – The John F. Kennedy Center For The Performing Arts honors Willie Nelson for his lifetime contributions to the arts. Nelson is the first primarily country performer so honored.
''(As certified by Billboard Magazine )''
- – No. 1 song of the year, as determined by '' Billboard Magazine ''.
- A - First ''Billboard'' No. 1 hit for that artist.
- B - Last ''Billboard'' No. 1 hit for that artist to date.
- C - Only ''Billboard'' No. 1 hit for that artist to date.
- January 7 — Owen Bradley , 82, legendary record producer for top artists. (respiratory illness)
- January 17 – Cliffie Stone , 80, music executive and bassist.
- January 19 — Carl Perkins , 65, top picker and rockabilly artist. (complications from multiple strokes)
- January 24 - Justin Tubb , 62, singer-songwriter who fused honky-tonk and rockabilly in the 1950s.
- February 19 - Grandpa Jones , 84, banjo player, old-time country/gospel singer, comedian and regular on "" (stroke)
- April 6 — Tammy Wynette , 55, top country female vocalist of the 1960s and 1970s, best known for hits "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" and "Stand By Your Man." (blood clot)
- April 16 — Rose Maddox , 71, female honky-tonk and rockabilly pioneer who fronted the Maddox Brothers And Rose (kidney failure)
- May 7 — Eddie Rabbitt , 56, prolific songwriter and pop-country vocalist who once had 35 Top 10 hits in as many releases. (lung cancer)
- June 10 — Steve Sanders , 45, member of the Oak Ridge Boys from 1987 to 1996; replaced and succeeded by William Lee Golden . ( Suicide )
- July 6 — Roy Rogers , 86, actor, singer and "King of the Cowboys." (congestive heart failure)
- October 2 - Gene Autry , 91, actor and "The Singing Cowboy" (lymphoma).
- -- " You're Still The One ," Shania Twain
- -- "If You Ever Have Forever in Mind," Vince Gill
- -- "There's Your Trouble," Dixie Chicks
- -- "Same Old Train," Clint Black , Joe Diffie , Merle Haggard , Emmylou Harris , Alison Krauss , Patty Loveless , Earl Scruggs , Ricky Skaggs , Marty Stuart , Pam Tillis , Randy Travis , Travis Tritt and Dwight Yoakam
- -- "A Soldier's Joy," Vince Gill and Randy Scruggs
- -- "You're Still the One," Shania Twain and Robert John "Mutt" Lange
- -- '' Wide Open Spaces '', Dixie Chicks
- -- ''Bluegrass Rules!'', Ricky Skaggs & Kentucky Thunder
- 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.
|
