Apr 22, 1935: Songwriter Jack Nance is born in Newport, Arkansas. He co-writes Conway Twitty’s breakthrough 1958 pop hit “It’s Only Make Believe”
Apr 22, 1935: Drummer W.S. “Fluke” Holland is born in Saltillo, Tennessee. He plays on most of Johnny Cash’s hits–including “Ring Of Fire,” “A Boy Named Sue” and “Folsom Prison Blues”–as well as Carl Perkins’ “Blue Suede Shoes” and The Statler Brothers’ “Flowers On The Wall”
Apr 22, 1936: Glen Campbell is born in Delight, Arkansas. A session guitarist in the mid-1960s, he gains his own network television show and a string of crossover hits, ultimately landing in the Country Music Hall of Fame
Apr 22, 1944: Songwriter Danny Morrison is born in Nashville. He authors Lee Greenwood’s “You’ve Got A Good Thing Comin’,” Joe Diffie’s “Is It Cold In Here,” Razzy Bailey’s “Friends” and Kenny Rogers’ “Blaze Of Glory”
Apr 22, 1945: Guitarist Pat Enright is born in Huntington, Indiana. He becomes a founding member of The Nashville Bluegrass Band and is also a part of the fictitious Soggy Bottom Boys, providing harmonies on the award-winning “I Am A Man Of Constant Sorrow”
Apr 22, 1950: Hank Williams’ “Long Gone Lonesome Blues” reaches the #1 position on the Billboard country singles chart
Apr 22, 1973: The Houston Post quotes Ernest Tubb on Kris Kristofferson: “Representing country music, you know–with a beard, and using four-letter words in front of children…it’s just a shame. I didn’t know a Rhodes Scholar could be so dumb”
Apr 22, 1976: George Jones & Tammy Wynette record “Golden Ring”
Apr 22, 1978: Kenny Rogers & Dottie West share the top spot on the Billboard country chart with “Every Time Two Fools Collide”
Apr 22, 1989: Clint Black makes his Grand Ole Opry debut
Apr 22, 1989: Shenandoah rises to #1 on the Billboard country singles chart with “The Church On Cumberland Road”
Apr 22, 1993: George Strait records “Easy Come, Easy Go” at Nashville’s Sound Stage
Apr 22, 1995: John Michael Montgomery reaches the top of the Billboard country singles chart with “I Can Love You Like That”
Apr 22, 2002: Johnny Cash receives the National Medal of Arts from president George W. Bush during a ceremony at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C.
Apr 22, 2003: Songwriter Felice Bryant dies of cancer in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Her credits include The Osborne Brothers’ “Rocky Top,” Roy Clark’s “Come Live With Me,” The Everly Brothers’ “Bye Bye Love” and Ricky Van Shelton’s “Hole In My Pocket”
Apr 22, 2008: Singer/songwriter Paul Davis dies of a heart attack at Rush Foundation Hospital in Meridian, Mississippi. He collaborated on hits with Marie Osmond and Tanya Tucker and wrote “Bop,” “One Love At A Time” and “Meet Me In Montana”
