1924 in country music
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1924.
Events
- First broadcast of WLS Barn Dance in Chicago, led by the "Solemn Old Judge" George D. Hay.
- Beginning of the "Old Times Tunes" series on Okeh Records.
- Beginning of the "Special Records for Southern States" series on Vocalion Records.
- August 13 Vernon Dalhart records "The Prisoner's Song" and "Wreck of the Old 97."[1]
Top Hillbilly (Country) Recordings
The following songs were extracted from records included in Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954,[2] record sales reported on the "Discography of American Historical Recordings" website, and other sources as specified. Numerical rankings are approximate, they are only used as a frame of reference.
| Rank | Artist | Title | Label | Recorded | Released | Chart Positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wendell Hall | "It Ain't Gonna Rain No Mo'"[3] | Victor 19171 | October 12, 1923 | November 23, 1923 | US BB 1924 #1, US #1 for 6 weeks, 20 total weeks, 678,403 sales[4] |
| 2 | Henry Whitter | "Wreck On the Southern Old 97"[5] | Okeh 40015 | December 12, 1923 | May 1924 | US BB 1924 #163, US #14 for 1 week, 1 total weeks |
| 3 | Vernon Dalhart | "Wreck On the Southern Old 97"[1] | Victor 19427 | August 13, 1924 | November 1924 | US BB 1925 #38, US #4 for 1 week, 8 total weeks, 1,085,985 sales |
| 4 | Fiddlin' John Carson | "Arkansaw Traveler"[6] | Okeh 40108 | April 3, 1924 | June 1924 | US BB 1924 #172, US #14 for 1 week, 1 total weeks |
| 5 | Fiddlin' John Carson | "You Will Never Miss Your Mother Until She is Gone"[7] | Okeh 4994 | November 7, 1923 | February 1924 | US BB 1924 #18, US #2 for 1 week, 8 total weeks |
| 6 | Uncle Dave Macon | "Keep My Skillet Good and Greasy"[8] | Vocalion 14848 | July 8, 1924 | October 1924 | |
| 7 | Eck Robertson and Henry Gilliland | "Done Gone"[9] | Victor 19372 | July 1, 1922 | October 1924 | |
| 8 | Fiddlin' John Carson | "Fare You Well, Old Joe Clark"[10] | Okeh 40038 | November 7, 1923 | April 1924 | |
| 9 | Ernest Thompson | "Little Rosewood Casket"[11] | Columbia 216 | September 9, 1924 | November 1924 | |
| 10 | Fiddlin' John Carson | "John Henry Blues"[12] | Okeh 7004 | March 24, 1924 | November 1924 | US BB 1924 #122, US #10 for 1 week, 1 total weeks |
| 11 | Wendell Hall and Carson Robison | "Whistling the Blues Away"[13] | Victor 19338 | May 1, 1924 | October 1924 | US BB 1924 #129, US #10 for 1 week, 1 total weeks |
| 12 | Eck Robertson and Henry Gilliland | "Sallie Johnson And Billy In The Low Ground"[14] | Victor 19372 | July 1, 1922 | October 1924 | |
| 13 | Riley Puckett | "Rock All Our Babies To Sleep"[15] | Columbia 107 | March 8, 1924 | May 1924 | |
| 14 | Henry Whitter | "Lonesome Road Blues"[16] | Okeh 40015 | December 12, 1923 | May 1924 |
Births
- January 6 â Earl Scruggs, early bluegrass pioneer who, with Lester Flatt, formed the Foggy Mountain Boys (died 2012).
- February 16 â Jo Walker-Meador, Country Music Association Executive Director from 1962 to 1991 (died 2017).
- March 29 â Jimmy Work, 94, American country singer-songwriter ("Making Believe") (died 2018).[17][18]
- April 21 â Ira Louvin, member of The Louvin Brothers (with brother Charlie). (died 1965)
- June 20 â Chet Atkins, session musician and record producer, primarily with RCA Records (died 2001).
- June 28 â George Morgan, pop-styled singer of the 1940s and 1950s; Grand Ole Opry stalwart and father of 1990s star Lorrie Morgan (died 1975).
- July 22 â Margaret Whiting, female country and pop vocalist of the 1940s and early 1950s; first female vocalist to top the Billboard country charts (1949's "Slippin' Around," as part of a duet with Jimmy Wakely). (died 2011)
- September 19 â Don Harron, Canadian comedian and playwright best known to country audiences as "Charlie Farquharson" on television's Hee Haw (died 2015).