1944 In Country Music
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1944 In Country Music
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1944. Events * January 8 – ''Billboard'' publishes its first "Most Played Juke Box Folk Records" chart, the first widespread method of tracking the nationwide popularity of current country music songs. The first No. 1 song is " Pistol Packin' Mama" by both Al Dexter and Bing Crosby and The Andrews Sisters. However, from January to August 26, 1944, "Race" records were also included. The September 2, 1944 chart forward is the predecessor to today's Hot Country Songs chart. * 1944 - Elton Britt received the first gold record for a hillbilly/country music song, 1942's " There's a Star Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere." Top hits of the year Number one hits from The Billboard's "Most Played Juke Box Folk Records" chart ''(As certified by Billboard magazine)'' Top Hillbilly-Folk (Country) Recordings 1944 On August 1, 1942, a strike by the American Federation of Musicians ended all recording session ...
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Billboard (magazine)
''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music industry. Its music charts include the Hot 100, the 200, and the Global 200, tracking the most popular albums and songs in different genres of music. It also hosts events, owns a publishing firm, and operates several TV shows. ''Billboard'' was founded in 1894 by William Donaldson and James Hennegan as a trade publication for bill posters. Donaldson later acquired Hennegan's interest in 1900 for $500. In the early years of the 20th century, it covered the entertainment industry, such as circuses, fairs, and burlesque shows, and also created a mail service for travelling entertainers. ''Billboard'' began focusing more on the music industry as the jukebox, phonograph, and radio became commonplace. Many topics it covered were spun-off ...
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Straighten Up And Fly Right
"Straighten Up and Fly Right" is a 1943 song written by Nat King Cole and Irving Mills and one of the first vocal hits for the King Cole Trio. It was the trio's most popular single, reaching number one on the Harlem Hit Parade for ten nonconsecutive weeks. The single also peaked at number nine on the pop charts. "Straighten Up and Fly Right" also reached number one for six nonconsecutive weeks on the Most Played Jukebox Hillbilly Records. Background The song was based on a black folk tale that Cole's father had used as a theme for one of his sermons. In the tale, a buzzard takes different animals for a joy ride. When he gets hungry, he throws them off on a dive and eats them for dinner. A monkey who had observed this trick goes for a ride; he wraps his tail around the buzzard's neck and gives the buzzard a big surprise by nearly choking him to death. The King Cole Trio recorded the song, along with "Gee, Baby, Ain't I Good to You," "If You Can’t Smile and Say Yes," and "Jum ...
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Okeh Records
Okeh Records () is an American record label founded by the Otto Heinemann Phonograph Corporation, a phonograph supplier established in 1916, which branched out into phonograph records in 1918. The name was spelled "OkeH" from the initials of Otto K. E. Heinemann but later changed to "OKeh". Since 1926, Okeh has been a subsidiary of Columbia Records, a subsidiary of Sony Music. Okeh is a jazz imprint, distributed by Sony Masterworks, a specialty label of Columbia. Early history Okeh was founded by Otto (Jehuda) Karl Erich Heinemann (Lüneburg, Germany, 20 December 1876 - New York, USA, 13 September 1965) a German-American manager for the U.S. branch of Odeon Records, which was owned by Carl Lindstrom. In 1916, Heinemann incorporated the Otto Heinemann Phonograph Corporation, set up a recording studio and pressing plant in New York City, and started the label in 1918. The first discs were vertical cut, but later the more common lateral-cut method was used. The label's parent ...
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Capitol Records
Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note in the United States in 1942 by Johnny Mercer, Buddy DeSylva, and Glenn E. Wallichs. Capitol was acquired by British music conglomerate EMI as its North American subsidiary in 1955. EMI was acquired by Universal Music Group in 2012, and was merged with the company a year later, making Capitol and the Capitol Music Group both distributed by UMG. The label's circular headquarters building is a recognized landmark of Hollywood, California. Both the label itself and its famous building are sometimes referred to as "The House That Nat Built." This refers to one of Capitol's most famous artists, Nat King Cole. Capitol is also well known as the U.S. record label of the Beatles, especially during the years of Beatlemania in America from 1964 ...
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Decca Records
Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American Decca's president. In 1937, anticipating Nazi Germany, Nazi aggression leading to World War II, Lewis sold American Decca and the link between the U.K. and U.S. Decca labels was broken for several decades. The British label was renowned for its development of recording methods, while the American company developed the concept of cast albums in the musical genre. Both wings are now part of the Universal Music Group. The U.S. Decca label was the foundation company that evolved into UMG (Universal Music Group). Label name The name dates back to a portable phonograph, gramophone called the "Decca Dulcephone" patented in 1914 by musical instrument makers Barnett Samuel and Sons. The name "Decca" was coined by Wilfred S. Samuel by merging the w ...
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American Federation Of Musicians
The American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada (AFM/AFofM) is a 501(c)(5) labor union representing professional instrumental musicians in the United States and Canada. The AFM, which has its headquarters in New York City, is led by president Raymond M. Hair Jr. Founded in Cincinnati in 1896 as the successor to the National League of Musicians, the AFM is the largest organization in the world to represent professional musicians. It negotiates fair agreements, protects ownership of recorded music, secures benefits such as healthcare and pension, and lobbies legislators. In the U.S., it is known as the American Federation of Musicians (AFM), and in Canada, it is known as the Canadian Federation of Musicians/Fédération Canadienne des Musiciens (CFM/FCM). The AFM is affiliated with AFL–CIO, the largest federation of unions in the United States and the Canadian Labour Congress, the federation of unions in Canada. Among the best known AFM actions was the 19 ...
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1942–1944 Musicians' Strike
On August 1, 1942, the American Federation of Musicians, at the instigation of union president James C. Petrillo, began a strike against the major American record companies because of disagreements over royalty payments. Beginning at midnight, July 31, 1942, no union musician could make commercial recordings for any commercial record company. That meant that a union musician was allowed to participate on radio programs and other kinds of musical entertainment, but not in a recording session. The 1942–1944 musicians' strike remains the longest strike in entertainment history. The strike did not affect musicians performing on live radio shows, in concerts, or, after October 27, 1943, on special recordings made by the record companies for V-Discs for distribution to the armed forces fighting World War II, because V-Discs were not available to the general public. However, the union did frequently threaten to withdraw musicians from the radio networks to punish individual network aff ...
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Tex Ritter
Woodward Maurice Ritter (January 12, 1905 – January 2, 1974) was a pioneer of American country music, a popular singer and actor from the mid-1930s into the 1960s, and the patriarch of the Ritter acting family (son John, grandsons Jason and Tyler, and granddaughter Carly). He is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Early life Woodward Maurice Ritter was born on January 12, 1905, in Murvaul, Texas, to Martha Elizabeth (''née'' Matthews) and James Everett Ritter. He grew up on his family's farm in Panola County, Texas, and attended grade school in Carthage, Texas. He attended South Park High School in Beaumont, Texas. After graduating with honors, he entered the University of Texas at Austin in 1922 to study pre-law and major in government, political science, and economics. After traveling to Chicago with a musical troupe, he entered Northwestern Law School. Career Radio and Broadway An early pioneer of country music, Ritter soon became interested in show bus ...
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I'm Wastin' My Tears On You
"I'm Wastin' My Tears on You" is a song written by Frank Harford, and recorded in 1944 by Tex Ritter. The song was the first of three number ones on the Juke Box Folk records chart. "I"m Wastin' My Tears on You" stayed at number one for six weeks with a total of twenty weeks on the chart. The B-side of the song, entitled " There's a New Moon Over My Shoulder", peaked at number two on the same chart. References 1944 songs 1944 singles Tex Ritter songs Capitol Records singles {{1940s-country-song-stub ...
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Red Foley
Clyde Julian "Red" Foley (June 17, 1910 – September 19, 1968) was an American musician who made a major contribution to the growth of country music after World War II. For more than two decades, Foley was one of the biggest stars of the genre, selling more than 25 million records. His 1951 hit, "Peace in the Valley", was among the first million-selling gospel records. A Grand Ole Opry veteran until his death, Foley also hosted the first popular country music series on network television, ''Ozark Jubilee'', from 1955 to 1960. He is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, which called him "one of the most versatile and moving performers of all time" and "a giant influence during the formative years of contemporary Country music." Biography Foley was born on a farm in Blue Lick, Kentucky, and grew up in nearby Berea. He gained the nickname Red for his hair color. He was born into a musical family, and by the time he was nine was giving impromptu concerts at his father's ...
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Smoke On The Water (Red Foley Song)
"Smoke on the Water" is a song written by Zeke Clements and Earl Nunn and recorded by Red Foley in 1944. The patriotic song, which forecasts destruction for the Axis powers, particularly Japan, was Foley's first song to reach No. 1 on the Most-Played Juke Box Folk Records chart, spending 13 weeks at the top and a total of 24 weeks on the chart. "Smoke on the Water" also peaked at No. 7 on the Most-Played Juke Box Records chart. The B-side, "There's a Blue Star Shining Bright (In a Window Tonight)", peaked at No. 5 on the Most-Played Juke Box Folk Records chart. In 1945, Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys recorded the song, which also became a No. 1 song on the Most-Played Juke Box Folk Records chart. The B-side, a song entitled, "Hang Your Head in Shame" peaked at No. 3. References {{Red Foley 1944 songs 1944 singles Red Foley songs Bob Wills songs American patriotic songs Songs of World War II Songs written by Zeke Clements ...
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Ernest Tubb
Ernest Dale Tubb (February 9, 1914 – September 6, 1984), nicknamed the Texas Troubadour, was an American singer and songwriter and one of the pioneers of country music. His biggest career hit song, "Walking the Floor Over You" (1941), marked the rise of the honky tonk style of music. In 1948, he was the first singer to record a hit version of Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson's " Blue Christmas", a song more commonly associated with Elvis Presley and his late-1950s version. Another well-known Tubb hit was "Waltz Across Texas" (1965) (written by his nephew Quanah Talmadge Tubb, known professionally as Billy Talmadge), which became one of his most requested songs and is often used in dance halls throughout Texas during waltz lessons. Tubb recorded duets with the then up-and-coming Loretta Lynn in the early 1960s, including their hit "Sweet Thang". Tubb is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Biography Early years The youngest of five children, Tubb was born on a cot ...
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