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This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1964.
Events - January 11 Billboard increases the length of its Hot Country Singles chart to 50 positions, up from 30.
- February 1 Buck Owens' mega-hit, "Love's Gonna Live Here," finishes its 16-week run at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. To date, it is the most recent song to spend 10 or more weeks atop the chart.
- July 31 A private aircraft piloted by Jim Reeves crashes during a thunderstorm near Nashville, Tennessee. Both Reeves and business partner Dean Manuel are killed in the crash; their bodies are found two days later following a massive search for the two missing men. Reeves, already a huge country star, would leave behind hundreds of un-released recordings; many of those songs became huge posthumous hits during the next decade. Reeves' death comes just 16 months after the airplane crash deaths of Patsy Cline, Hawkshaw Hawkins and Cowboy Copas, leaving a huge void among country music fans.
- November 28 "Once a Day," by Connie Smith, begins an eight-week stay at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. To date, it is the longest-running No. 1 song by a solo female act, and will make the 23-year-old Smith a native of Elkhart, Indiana an overnight sensation.
Top hits of the year Number one hits United States (as certified by Billboard) - Notes
- 1^ No. 1 song of the year, as determined by Billboard.
- 2^ Song dropped from No. 1 and later returned to top spot.
- A^ First Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
- B^ Last Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
- C^ Only Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist to date.
Canada (as certified by RPM) - Notes
- 2^ Song dropped from No. 1 and later returned to top spot.
- A^ First RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.
- C^ Only RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.
Other major hits Singles released by American artists Singles released by Canadian artists Top new album releases Births Deaths - June 9 - Alton Delmore, 55, one half of the old-time harmony duo Delmore Brothers.
- July 31 Jim Reeves, 39, velvet-voiced singer and leading force in the Nashville Sound; many of his hits came posthumously. (plane crash)
Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees Major awards Grammy Awards - Best Country and Western Vocal Performance, Female "Here Comes My Baby," Dottie West
- Best Country and Western Vocal Performance, Male "Dang Me," Roger Miller
- Best Country and Western Single "Dang Me," Roger Miller
- Best Country and Western Song "Dang Me," Roger Miller (Performer: Roger Miller)
- Best Country and Western Album Dang Me/Chug-a-Lug, Roger Miller
- Best New Country and Western Artist Roger Miller
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 (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.
Other links External links
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