Dates of Note in Country Music, September 16-30

Category: News

(Hall of Fame members in bold on birth/death date, followed by hall[s] of fame in which they are enshrined and the year enshrined.  CM=Country Music; BG=Bluegrass; NS=Nashville Songwriter; SG=Southern Gospel; StG=Steel Guitar; RR=country performer also in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)

September 16:

David Bellamy of the Bellamy Brothers born in Darby, Florida, 1950 (now 64)

Bobby Randall of Sawyer Brown born in Midland, Michigan, 1952 (now 62)
Terry McBride of McBride & the Ride born in Austin, Texas, 1958 (now 56)

Ralph Mooney (Steel Guitar 83) born in Duncan, Oklahoma, 1928 (died 2011)

Sheb Wooley died in Nashville, Tennessee (leukemia), 2003 (was 82)

September 17:

Hank Williams (CM 61, NS 70, RR 87) born in Mount Olive, Alabama, 1923 (died 1953)

Jimmie Crawford (Steel Guitar 00) born in Obetz, Ohio, 1935 (died 2005)

John Ritter, son of Tex Ritter, born in Burbank, California, 1948 (died 2003)

Steve Sanders (William Lee Golden's one-time replacement in the Oak Ridge Boys) born in Richland, Georgia, 1952 (died 1998)

Bill Black born in Memphis, Tennessee, 1926 (died 1965)

RCA's 33 1/3 RPM "long-playing" (LP) record first appeared, 1931

September 18:

Priscilla Mitchell born in Marietta, Georgia, 1941 (now 73). In addition to her own singing career, she was married to Jerry Reed from 1959 until his death in 2008.

Carl Jackson born in Louisville, Mississippi, 1953 (now 61)

Lydia Rogers of the Secret Sisters born in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, 1988 (now 26)

Ervin T. Rouse born in Craven County, North Carolina, 1917 (died 1981)

Michael "Bea" Lilly (BG 02) died in Plymouth, Massachusetts (Alzheimer's disease), 2005 (was 83)

September 19:

Trisha Yearwood born in Monticello, Georgia, 1964 (now 50)

Clyde Moody born in Cherokee, North Carolina, 1915 (died 1989)
Danny Dill (NS 75) born in Carroll County, Tennessee, 1924 (died 2008)

Carlton Haney (BG 98) born in Rockingham County, North Carolina, 1928 (died 2011)

Clyde "Sonny' Burns born in Lufkin, Texas, 1930 (died 1992)

Red Foley (CM 67) died in Fort Wayne, Indiana (heart attack), 1968 (was 58)

Gram Parsons died in Joshua Tree, California (drug overdose), 1973 (was 26)

Skeeter Davis died in Nashville, Tennessee (cancer), 2004 (was 72)

Slim Dusty (ne David Kirkpatrick, the "Australian King of Country Music") died in St. Ives, New South Wales (cancer), 2003 (was 76)
Carl Smith married singer Goldie Hill, 1957

September 20:

Bob Miller (NS 70) born in Memphis, Tennessee, 1895 (died 1955)

Pearl Butler born in Nashville, Tennessee, 1927 (died 1988)

Karl Farr (CM 80) died in West Springfield, Massachusetts (heart attack), 1961 (was 52)
Jim Croce died in Natchitoches, Louisiana (plane crash), 1973 (was 30). The folk singer/songwriter's pop hit "I'll Have to Say I Love You in a Song" made the country charts a year after his death.

Steve Goodman died in Seattle, Washington (liver and kidney failure/leukemia), 1984 (was 36)
Hank Williams re-joined the Louisiana Hayride after being fired from the Grand Ole Opry, 1952

September 21:

Dickey Lee (NS 95) born in Memphis, Tennessee, 1936 (now 78)

Don Felder, former guitarist/steel guitarist for the Eagles, born in Gainesville, Florida, 1947 (now 67)
Kenny Starr born in Topeka, Kansas, 1952 (now 62)

Daryl Mosley of New Tradition born in Waverly, Tennessee, 1964 (now 50)

Ronna Reeves born in Big Spring, Texas, 1966 (now 48)

Ted Daffan (NS 70) born in Beauregard Parish, Louisiana, 1912 (died 1996)

Walter Brennan died in Oxnard, California (emphysema), 1974 (was 80). Among the actor's charted hits were "Old Rivers" and a version of Bill Anderson's "Mama Sang a Song."

September 22:

June Forester of the Forester Sisters born in Lookout Mountain, Georgia, 1952 (now 62)
Debby Boone born in Hackensack, New Jersey, 1956 (now 58). The "You Light Up My Life" singer is Red Foley's granddaughter.
James Roy "Pop" Lewis Sr. of the Lewis Family (BG 06) born in Pickens, South Carolina, 1905 (died 2004)

September 23:

Pat Alger (NS 10) born in Long Island City, New York, 1947 (now 67)

Don Herron Jr. of BR5-49 born in Steubenville, Ohio, 1962 (now 52)
Roy Drusky died in Nashville, Tennessee (emphysema), 2004 (was 74)

Bradley Kincaid (NS 71) died in Springfield, Ohio (natural causes), 1989 (was 94)

O.B. McClinton died in Nashville, Tennessee (abdominal cancer), 1987 (was 45)

Jimmy Wakely (NS 71) died in Mission Hills, California (emphysema), 1982 (was 68)
Roy Horton (CM 82) died in Nashville, Tennessee (diabetes/congestive heart failure), 2003 (was 88)
First recording session for Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys, 1935

September 24:

Rosalie Allen died in Palmdale, California (congestive heart failure), 2003 (was 79)
Jim Denny fired as Opry manager, 1956

September 25:

Ian Tyson born in Victoria, British Columbia, 1933 (now 81)

Larry Sparks born in Lebanon, Ohio, 1947 (now 67)

Shel Silverstein (NS 02) born in Chicago, Illinois, 1930 (died 1999)

Royce Kendall born in St. Louis, Missouri, 1934 (died 1998)
Little Jimmy Dickens became a member of the Grand Ole Opry, 1948.  Although his health has kept from performing most of this year, 2014 marks his 66th year as an Opry member, which is one of the longest tenures in the history of the show.

September 26:

David Frizzell born in El Dorado, Arkansas, 1941 (now 73)

Lynn Anderson born in Grand Forks, North Dakota, 1947 (now 67)

Carlene Carter born in Madison, Tennessee, 1955 (now 59)

Doug Supernaw born in Bryan, Texas, 1960 (now 54)

Marty Robbins (CM 82, NS 75) born in Glendale, Arizona, 1925 (died 1982)
The Beverly Hillbillies debuted on CBS, 1962. The program featured appearances by Roy Clark as Cousin Roy and Flatt and Scruggs as friends of the Clampetts, and the show was frequently sponsored by Kellogg's Corn Flakes with ads featuring Homer and Jethro.

September 27:

Beasley Smith (NS 83) born in McEwen, Tennessee, 1902 (died 1968)

Uncle Josh Graves (BG 97) born in Tellico Plains, Tennessee, 1928 (died 2006)

Charlie Monroe died in Reidsville, North Carolina (cancer), 1975 (was 72)

Johnnie Wright died in Madison, Tennessee (natural causes), 2011 (was 97)

Johnny Mathis died in Cornersville, Tennessee (pneumonia), 2011 (was 80)

September 28:

Ronnie Reno born in Buffalo, South Carolina, 1947 (now 67)

Laurie Lewis born in Long Beach, California, 1950 (now 64)

Mandy Barnett born in Crossville, Tennessee, 1975 (now 39)

Joseph Falcon born in Rayne, Louisiana, 1900 (died 1965). Falcon is credited with the first Cajun recording, "Allons a Lafayette," in 1928.

Jim Boyd (of Bill Boyd and the Cowboy Ramblers) born in Fannin County, Texas, 1914 (died 1993)

Jerry Clower born in Liberty, Mississippi, 1926 (died 1998)

Tommy Collins (ne Leonard Sipes) (NS 99) born in Bethany, Oklahoma, 1930 (died 2000)

Johnny Mathis born in Maud, Texas, 1930 (died 2011). Because of the rise of a pop singer by the same name in the mid 1950's, Mathis became known as "Country Johnny Mathis."

Glenn Sutton (NS 99) born in Hodge, Louisiana, 1937 (died 2007)

Johnny Horton married Billie Jean Williams (widow of Hank Williams), 1953

September 29:

Jerry Lee Lewis (RR 86) born in Ferriday, Louisiana, 1935 (now 79)

Gene Autry (CM 69, NS 70) born in Tioga Springs, Texas, 1907 (died 1998)

Bill Boyd born in Fannin County, Texas, 1910 (died 1977)

Tillman Franks born in Stamps, Arkansas, 1920 (died 2006)

Wesley Tuttle died in San Fernando, California (natural causes), 2003 (was 85)

Mickey Newbury (NS 80) died in Springfield, Oregon (emphysema), 2002 (was 62)

September 30:

Richard Bowden born in Linden, Texas, 1945 (now 69)

Johnny Burns born in Knoxville, Tennessee, 1948 (now 66).  The son of Jethro Burns is a singer/songwriter/guitarist on his own, and worked for many years with country-folk icon John Prine.

Deborah Allen born in Memphis, Tennessee, 1953 (now 61)

Marty Stuart born in Philadelphia, Mississippi, 1958 (now 56)

Mary Ford died in Arcadia, California (diabetes complications), 1977 (was 53)

Uncle Josh Graves (BG 97) died in Nashville, Tennessee (lengthy illness), 2006 (was 81)

Ruby Wright died in Nashville, Tennessee (heart disease), 2009 (was 69)

Billboard magazine changed the name of the "Hillbilly and Western" chart to the "Folk Country and Western" chart, 1950. Ernest Tubb is considered by many to be one of the people responsible for this, as he claimed that "hillbilly" was a derogatory term.