This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1950.

Events

* February 14 — "

Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy "Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy" (also known as "Chattanooga Shoe Shine Boy") is a popular song written by Harry Stone and Jack Stapp and published in 1950. It is the signature song of Red Foley who recorded it in late 1949. The song has been covered ...

" by

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 gen ...

#1 selling Country record becomes first Country cross over on Pop Best Seller chart. * August 19 —

Hank Snow Clarence Eugene "Hank" Snow (May 9, 1914 – December 20, 1999) was a Canadian-American country music artist. Most popular in the 1950s, he had a career that spanned more than 50 years, he recorded 140 albums and charted more than 85 singles on ...

begins a 21-week run at No. 1 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' country charts with his landmark " I'm Movin' On." Until 2013 (when changes to chart methodology will result in longer chart runs), the song – a

12-bar blues The 12-bar blues (or blues changes) is one of the most prominent chord progressions in popular music. The blues progression has a distinctive form in lyrics, phrase, chord structure, and duration. In its basic form, it is predominantly based ...

song metaphorically using a train trip to describe a young man's breakup with a high-class girlfriend – is one of just three that will stay as long atop the charts in chart history. * September 30 — The

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a div ...

is televised for the first time.

Top hits of the year

Number one hits

''(As certified by

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 musi ...

)'' :''Note'': Several songs were simultaneous No. 1 hits on the separate "Most Played Juke Box Folk (Country & Western) Records," "Best Selling Retail Folk (Country & Western) Records" and "Country & Western Records Most Played by Folk Disk Jockeys" charts.

Other major hits

Births

* January 1 –

Steve Ripley Paul Steven Ripley (January 1, 1950 – January 3, 2019) was an American recording artist, record producer, songwriter, studio engineer, guitarist, and inventor. He entered the music industry in 1977. He was also the leader/producer of country rock ...

, leader/producer of

The Tractors The Tractors were an American country rock band composed of a loosely associated group of musicians headed by guitarist Steve Ripley. The original lineup consisted of Steve Ripley (lead vocals, guitar), Ron Getman (guitar, Dobro, mandolin, tenor ...

(died

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

).Oklahoma music artist Steve Ripley dies
/ref> * February 16 — Paul Worley, record producer whose success dates from the mid-1980s onward. * March 26 — Ronnie McDowell, male vocalist of the 1970s and 1980s, who first rose to fame with his

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

tribute " The King Is Gone". * August 7 —

Rodney Crowell Rodney Crowell (born August 7, 1950) is an American musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music. Crowell has had five number one singles on Hot Country Songs, all from his 1988 album '' Diamonds & Dirt''. ...

, singer-songwriter who enjoyed mainstream fame in the late 1980s before becoming a leader in the

alternative country Alternative country, or alternative country rock (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, Americana, or y'allternative), is a loosely defined subgenre of country music and/or country rock that includes acts that differ significantly in style ...

movement; ex-husband of

Rosanne Cash Rosanne Cash (born May 24, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter and author. She is the eldest daughter of country musician Johnny Cash and Vivian Liberto Cash Distin, Johnny Cash's first wife. Although she is often classified as a country art ...

. * September 16 — David Bellamy, of

The Bellamy Brothers The Bellamy Brothers are an American pop and country music duo consisting of brothers David Milton Bellamy (born September 16, 1950) and Homer Howard Bellamy (born February 2, 1946), from Dade City, Florida. The duo had considerable musical suc ...

Deaths

References

{{Reflist

Country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

Country music by year