- Today in 1954, Elvis Presley made his debut at the Grand Ole Opry. It was the only time he ever performed there.
- Today in 1961, the single, “I Fall To Pieces,” by Patsy Cline peaked at #12 on the pop singles chart.
- Today in 1973, Charlie Rich’s single, “Behind Closed Doors,” was certified gold.
- Today in 1981, the album, “Saddle Tramp,” by Charlie Daniels Band was certified gold.
- Today in 1981, George Strait’s album, “Strait Country,” was released.
- Today in 1984, John Anderson’s “Greatest Hits” album arrived in stores.
- Today in 1990, the “Rumor Has It” album by Reba McEntire was released.
- Today in 1991, Dottie West died at the age of 58 as a result of injuries she sustained five days earlier in a car accident. As the first female country GRAMMY winner, Dottie was considered by many as a trailblazer for female country performers.
- Today in 1998, Jo Dee Messina was certified for the first time, scoring a gold album for “I’m Alright” and a gold single for the double-sided hit “I’m Alright” and “Bye Bye.”
- Today in 2001, Jeff Carson’s album, “Real Life,” and Hal Ketchum’s “Lucky Man” project arrived in stores.
- Today in 2001, Trace Adkins and his wife, Rhonda, welcomed their second child, Brianna Rhea. The newest addition to the family joined the couple’s other daughter, Mackenzie and Trace’s two teenage daughters (from his previous marriage). Here’s a piece of fun trivia for you: while Brianna Rhea weighed in at 6-lbs, 6-oz at birth – ironically, her daddy is 6′, 6″ tall.
- Today in 2002, the Dixie Chicks’ album, “Home,” debuted at #1 on the multi-genre Billboard 200 chart and the “Billboard” Country Albums charts with the highest first full week’s sales of any female group in the SoundScan era. In fact, fans snapped up 779,828 copies of “Home” in its first week of release. The accomplishment also set the record for the highest first week sales for any female country artist and any country group. In case you were wondering, the previous record holder was the Chicks themselves. They previously held the title in both categories.
- Today in 2008, Trace Adkins performed the national anthem at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, where John McCain accepted the presidential nomination during the Republican National Convention.
- Today in 2012, Gary Allan’s single, “Every Storm (Runs Out Of Rain),” was released.
- Today in 2014, Garth Brooks officially ended his retirement from the road as he and Trisha Yearwood launched an 11-show run at the Allstate Arena in Chicago.
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