1937 in country music
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1937.
Events
- sales rebounded to approximately 1/3 of 1929 levels
- October 30 â Johnnie Wright and Kitty Wells are married.
Top Hillbilly (Country) Recordings
The following songs were extracted from records included in Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954,[1] 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 | Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys | "Steel Guitar Rag"[2] | Vocalion 3394 | September 29, 1936 | January 22, 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #1 |
| 2 | Roy Acuff with The Crazy Tennesseans | "Great Speckled Bird"[3] | Melotone 70159 | October 20, 1936 | January 1937 | US BB 1938 #236, US #13 for 1 week, 3 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1937 #2 |
| 3 | Jimmie Davis | "Nobody's Darling but Mine" | Decca 5090 | September 21, 1934 | January 1937 | US BB 1937 #340, US #19 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1937 #3 |
| 4 | Delmore Brothers | "Singing My Troubles Away"[4] | Bluebird 7129 | August 3, 1937 | September 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #4 |
| 5 | Al Dexter | "Honky Tonk Blues"[3] | Melotone 70365 | November 28, 1936 | March 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #5 |
| 6 | Rex Griffin | "The Last Letter"[5] | Decca 5383 | May 13, 1937 | June 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #6 |
| 7 | Gene Autry | "The One Rose (That's Left In My Heart)"[3] | Melotone 71058 | May 29, 1937 | October 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #7 |
| 8 | Jimmie Rodgers And The Carter Family | "The Carter Family And Jimmie Rodgers In Texas"[6] | Bluebird 6762 | June 12, 1931 | January 20, 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #8 |
| 9 | Jimmie Revard And His Oklahoma Playboys | "My Little Girl I Love You"[7] | Bluebird 6877 | February 26, 1937 | March 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #9 |
| 10 | Hoosier Hot Shots | "Breezin' Along with the Breeze"[8] | Vocalion 3644 | January 20, 1937 | September 1937 | US BB 1937 #227, US #13 for 1 week, 2 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1937 #10 |
| 11 | Bob Skyles & His Skyrockets | "The Arkansas Bazooka Swing"[9] | Bluebird 6876 | February 25, 1937 | March 1937 | US BB 1937 #350, US #19 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1937 #11 |
| 12 | Sweet Violet Boys | "I Haven't Got a Pot to Cook In"[2] | Vocalion 3402 | October 13, 1936 | January 1937 | US BB 1937 #264, US #15 for 1 week, 2 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1937 #12 |
| 13 | Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys | "What's the Matter With the Mill"[2] | Vocalion 3424 | September 29, 1936 | January 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #13 |
| 14 | Riverside Ramblers | "Wondering"[10] | Bluebird 6926 | February 22, 1937 | April 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #14 |
| 15 | Roy Acuff and his Crazy Tennesseans | "Steel Guitar Chimes"[3] | Melotone 70752 | March 22, 1937 | July 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #15 |
| 16 | Carson Robison | "There's A Bridle Hangin' on the Wall"[11] | Montgomery Ward 4917 | June 19, 1936 | February 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #16 |
| 17 | Cliff Bruner's Texas Wanderers | "The Right Key (But The Wrong Keyhole)"[12] | Decca 5401 | February 5, 1937 | July 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #17 |
| 18 | Robert Johnson | "Cross Road Blues"[8] | Vocalion 3519 | November 27, 1936 | February 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #18 |
| 19 | Gene Autry and His String Band | "It's Round-Up Time In Reno"[3] | Melotone 71261 | October 15, 1937 | December 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #19 |
| 20 | Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys | "Right Or Wrong"[2] | Vocalion 3451 | September 30, 1936 | February 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #20 |
| 21 | The Prairie Ramblers With Patsy Montana | "I'm A Wild And Reckless Cowboy (From The West Side Of Town)"[3] | Melotone 70469 | January 26, 1937 | April 1937 | US Hillbilly 1937 #21 |
Births
- March 20 â Jerry Reed, "swamp rock"-styled singer and guitarist best known for novelty hits, most notably "When You're Hot, You're Hot" (died 2008).
- April 6 â Merle Haggard, innovator of the Bakersfield Sound and a huge country star since the 1960s (died 2016).
- June 15 â Waylon Jennings, influential rock-styled country performer and originator of the 1970s "outlaw" movement (died 2002).
- August 26 â Don Bowman, musician, songwriter and comedian, original host of radio's American Country Countdown (died 2013).
- November 1 â Bill Anderson, prolific singer-songwriter and television personality whose success has lasted more than 50 years; known as "Whisperin' Bill."
- November 30 â Jimmy Bowen, prominent record producer and executive from the 1970s through 1990s.
- December 16 â Jim Glaser, singer-songwriter and member of Tompall & the Glaser Brothers (died 2019).
- December 26 â Ronnie Prophet, Canadian country music singer (died 2018).
Deaths
Further reading
- Kingsbury, Paul, "Vinyl Hayride: Country Music Album Covers 1947â1989," 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 1944â2005 â 6th Edition." 2005.