See also: 2007 in country music, 2008 in music, other events of 2008, 2009 in country music and the List of years in Country Music
Events
Top hits of the year
Number one hits
United States
Canada
- Notes
- A^ First Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
- 2^ Song dropped from No. 1 and later returned to top spot.
Other major hits
Single released by American artists
| US |
CAN |
Single |
Artist |
Notes |
| 14 |
49 |
All I Ever Wanted |
Chuck Wicks |
B |
| 4 |
4 |
All Summer Long |
Kid Rock |
B
|
| 18 |
20 |
Already Gone |
Sugarland |
B |
| 15 |
45 |
Another Try |
Josh Turner with
Trisha Yearwood |
|
| 15 |
26 |
Bob That Head |
Rascal Flatts |
|
| 20 |
50 |
Chicken Fried |
Zac Brown Band |
B
- Previously a #52-peaking single in 2006 for The Lost Trailers, whose version was withdrawn from radio rotation.
|
| 18 |
16 |
Come On Over |
Jessica Simpson |
- Simpson's first release to country radio.
|
| 10 |
28 |
Country Man |
Luke Bryan |
B |
| 5 |
2 |
Everybody |
Keith Urban |
|
| 2 |
5 |
Every Day |
Rascal Flatts |
|
| 15 |
16 |
Every Other Weekend |
Reba McEntire |
- The radio edit of this song featured Skip Ewing as a duet partner, while the album version featured Kenny Chesney. Neither duet partner was credited on the charts for most of the song's chart run.
|
| 11 |
8 |
Get My Drink On |
Toby Keith |
|
| 11 |
11 |
God Must Be Busy |
Brooks & Dunn |
|
| 7 |
19 |
Gunpowder & Lead |
Miranda Lambert |
|
| 21 |
30 |
Here |
Rascal Flatts |
B |
| 9 |
36 |
Holler Back |
The Lost Trailers |
|
| 21 |
|
I Can Sleep When I'm Dead |
Jason Michael Carroll |
|
| 2 |
9 |
I Still Miss You |
Keith Anderson |
|
| 16 |
|
I'll Walk |
Bucky Covington |
B |
| 21 |
|
In Color |
Jamey Johnson |
B
- Johnson's first chart single since "The Dollar" in late 2005-early 2006.
- Co-written by James Otto.
|
| 10 |
28 |
International Harvester |
Craig Morgan |
|
| 16 |
38 |
It Ain't No Crime |
Joe Nichols |
|
| 11 |
32 |
It's Good to Be Us |
Bucky Covington |
|
| 11 |
40 |
Johnny & June |
Heidi Newfield |
B
- This is the first solo single for Newfield, who was lead singer for the group Trick Pony until 2007.
|
| 6 |
2 |
Just a Dream |
Carrie Underwood |
B |
| 16 |
19 |
Kristofferson |
Tim McGraw |
|
| 6 |
6 |
Laughed Until We Cried |
Jason Aldean |
|
| 13 |
23 |
Learning How to Bend |
Gary Allan |
|
| 9 |
7 |
Let It Go |
Tim McGraw |
B |
| 28 |
30 |
Life in a Northern Town |
Sugarland with
Little Big Town
and Jake Owen |
- This song, a cover of British band The Dream Academy's 1985 debut single, charted in the Top 30 based on unsolicited airplay of a live recording from Sugarland's 2007 tour.
|
| 19 |
29 |
Lookin' for a Good Time |
Lady Antebellum |
B |
| 3 |
5 |
Love Don't Live Here |
Lady Antebellum |
|
| 2 |
17 |
Love Is a Beautiful Thing |
Phil Vassar |
- This song was previously released in late 1999 by Canadian singer Paul Brandt under the title "It's a Beautiful Thing".
|
| 19 |
|
Love Remembers |
Craig Morgan |
B |
| 9 |
19 |
Love Story |
Taylor Swift |
B |
| 24 |
|
Maybe She'll Get Lonely |
Jack Ingram |
|
| 32 |
24 |
Muddy Water |
Trace Adkins |
B |
| 4 |
7 |
Ready, Set, Don't Go |
Billy Ray Cyrus with
Miley Cyrus |
- Billy Ray's first Top 5 since "Busy Man" in late 1998-early 1999.
- Miley's first Top 5 on any Billboard chart, and her first release to country radio.
|
| 15 |
50 |
Relentless |
Jason Aldean |
B |
| 13 |
14 |
Roll with Me |
Montgomery Gentry |
B
|
| 25 |
|
Rollin' with the Flow |
Mark Chesnutt |
|
| 3 |
4 |
She Never Cried in Front of Me |
Toby Keith |
B |
| 13 |
17 |
She's a Hottie |
Toby Keith |
|
| 2 |
2 |
Shiftwork |
Kenny Chesney with
George Strait |
- This song was credited only to Chesney from its release until the chart week of February 9, when Strait's name was added.
|
| 15 |
48 |
Something About a Woman |
Jake Owen |
|
| 24 |
24 |
Start a Band |
Brad Paisley with
Keith Urban |
B |
| 2 |
5 |
Stay |
Sugarland |
A |
| 5 |
11 |
Stealing Cinderella |
Chuck Wicks |
|
| 13 |
30 |
Stronger Woman |
Jewel |
- Jewel's first release to country radio.
|
| 12 |
12 |
Suspicions |
Tim McGraw |
|
| 20 |
|
Takin' Off This Pain |
Ashton Shepherd |
|
| 18 |
|
That Song in My Head |
Julianne Hough |
- Originally a professional ballroom dancer, Hough had previously been a two-time winner of the show Dancing with the Stars. This is her first release to country radio as a singer.
|
| 16 |
33 |
Things That Never Cross a Man's Mind |
Kellie Pickler |
|
| 25 |
|
This Is Me You're Talking To |
Trisha Yearwood |
|
| 7 |
3 |
Troubadour |
George Strait |
B |
| 5 |
13 |
Trying to Stop Your Leaving |
Dierks Bentley |
|
| 2 |
11 |
Watching Airplanes |
Gary Allan |
A |
| 10 |
38 |
We Weren't Crazy |
Josh Gracin |
|
| 3 |
8 |
What Do Ya Think About That |
Montgomery Gentry |
|
| 3 |
4 |
What Kinda Gone |
Chris Cagle |
|
| 2 |
2 |
Winner at a Losing Game |
Rascal Flatts |
|
| 19 |
19 |
Workin' for a Livin' |
Garth Brooks with
Huey Lewis |
|
Single released by Canadian artists
- The following songs were also/only released in U.S.
- A Reached #1 on U.S. Mediabase 24/7 country singles charts.
- B Current singles.
Top new album releases
Other top albums
Announced
Deaths
- January 6 — Ken Nelson, 96, record producer for artists including Hank Thompson, Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and many others.
- April 22 — Paul Davis, 60, crossover artist whose collaborations with Marie Osmond and Tanya Tucker reached No. 1 in the 1980s. (heart attack)
- May 1 - Jim Hager, 61, country singer and actor who along with his twin brother Jon were regulars on Hee Haw from 1969 to 1986. (heart attack)
- May 5 - Jerry Wallace, 79, crossover artist who scored several country hits during the 1970's including the No. 1 "If You Leave Me Tonight I'll Cry" in 1972. (congestive heart failure)
- May 8 - Eddy Arnold, 89, country and pop singer whose career spanned seven decades. (natural causes)
- May 11 - Dottie Rambo, 74, southern gospel singer-songwriter. (bus accident)
- July 16 - Jo Stafford, 90, crossover artist from the 1940s with hits "Feudin’ and Fightin" and "Temptation". (congestive heart failure)
- August 11 – Don Helms, 81, steel guitarist and member of Hank Williams' Drifting Cowboys. (heart attack) [3]
- August 31 - Jerry Reed, 71, country singer and actor best known for his 1971 crossover hit "When You're Hot, You're Hot" (emphysema)
- September 12 - Charlie Walker, 81, honky tonk singer best known for "Pick Me Up On Your Way Down" (colon cancer)
Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees
- Tom T. Hall (born 1936), singer and songwriter, known as "The Storyteller"
- Emmylou Harris (born 1947), neo-traditional singer and songwriter
- The Statler Brothers (Harold Reid (born 1939), Don Reid (born 1945), Phil Balsley (born 1939), Lew DeWitt (1938-1990), Jimmy Fortune (born 1955), diverse country music group known for pop-styled, nostalgic and gospel songs.
- Ernest "Pop" Stoneman (1893-1968), singer, songwriter, and musician, patriarch of the family group The Stonemans
Major Awards
Grammy awards
(Presented on February 10 in Los Angeles)
CMT Music Awards
(Presented April 14 in Nashville)
- Video of the Year — "Our Song", Taylor Swift
- Male Video of the Year — "I Got My Game On", Trace Adkins
- Female Video of the Year — "Our Song", Taylor Swift
- Group Video of the Year — "Take Me There", Rascal Flatts
- Duo Video of the Year — "Stay", Sugarland
- USA Weekend Breakthrough Video of the Year — "I Wonder", Kellie Pickler
- Collaborative Video of the Year — "Till We Ain't Strangers Anymore", Bon Jovi & LeAnn Rimes
- Performance of the Year — "I Wonder", Kellie Pickler
- Supporting Character of the Year — Rodney Carrington in "I Got My Game On"
- Wide Open Country Video of the Year — "Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)", Alison Krauss & Robert Plant
- Tearjerker Video of the Year — "I Wonder", Kellie Pickler
- Comedy Video of the Year — "Online", Brad Paisley
- Video Director of the Year — Michael Salomon
Academy of Country Music
(Presented May 18 in Las Vegas)
Canadian Country Music Association
(Presented September 8 in Winnipeg)
- Fans' Choice Award — Doc Walker
- Male Artist of the Year — Johnny Reid
- Female Artist of the Year — Jessie Farrell
- Group or Duo of the Year — Doc Walker
- Songwriter(s) of the Year — "Beautiful Life", written by Murray Pulver, Chris Thorsteinson and Dave Wasyliw
- Single of the Year — "Beautiful Life", performed by Doc Walker
- Album of the Year — Beautiful Life, Doc Walker
- Top Selling Album — The Ultimate Hits, Garth Brooks
- Top Selling Canadian Album — Kicking Stones, Johnny Reid
- CMT Video of the Year — "Beautiful Life", Doc Walker
- Rising Star Award — Jessie Farrell
- Roots Artist or Group of the Year — Corb Lund
Country Music Association
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.
References
Other links
External links
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