DECEMBER 17
1910: Spade Cooley was born in Grand, OK. A fiddler and bandleader, he brought the phrase “western swing” into widespread use, building such 1940s hits as “Shame On You” and “Detour.”
1933: Nat Stuckey was born in Cass County, TX. He netted several hits as a recording artist and made a lasting impression as a songwriter, writing Buck Owens’ “Waitin’ In Your Welfare Line” and “Pop A Top,” a hit for both Jim Ed Brown and Alan Jackson.
1935: Comedian George “Goober” Lindsey was born in Fairfield, AL. Beginning in 1972, he spent 20 years as a “Hee Haw” cast member.
1956: Bass player Roy Huskey Jr. was born in Nashville. He appeared on recordings by Alan Jackson, Ricky Van Shelton, Travis Tritt, Ricky Skaggs and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, among others.
1953: Sharon White, of The Whites, was born in Wichita Falls, TX. Along with father Buck and sister Cheryl, she participated in several bluegrass-tinged early-’80s hits and joined husband Ricky Skaggs on the duet “Love Can’t Ever Get Better Than This.”
1955: Tennessee Ernie Ford’s “Sixteen Tons” worked its way up to #1 on the Billboard country singles chart.
1961: Patsy Cline recorded “She’s Got You” during an evening session at Nashville’s Bradley Film & Recording Studio.
1966: Tracy Byrd was born in Vidor, TX. Pledging a love for traditional country, he emerged in 1993 to record a series of hits, including “Lifestyles Of The Not So Rich And Famous,” “Watermelon Crawl” and “The Keeper Of The Stars.”
1984: The album, “City Of New Orleans,” by Willie Nelson was certified gold.
1990: Trisha Yearwood held her first recording session for MCA Records, recording “She’s In Love With The Boy,” among others. She was unhappy with the tracks, however, and re-recorded the song two months later with different musicians.
1990: George Jones’ “Still The Same Ole Me” album was certified gold.
1992: Alan Jackson hit the top of the country singles charts with “She’s Got The Rhythm (I’ve Got The Blues).”
1993: The tribute album “Common Thread: The Songs Of The Eagles” went gold, platinum and double-platinum. It features Travis Tritt, Little Texas, Clint Black, John Anderson, Alan Jackson, Suzy Bogguss, Vince Gill, Diamond Rio, Trisha Yearwood, Billy Dean, Tanya Tucker, Brooks & Dunn and Lorrie Morgan.
1999: Silver-screen cowboy Rex Allen died in Tucson, AZ, when a caregiver accidentally hit him in his driveway with a car. Allen notched three Top 10 singles from 1951-1962 and appeared in numerous western movies.
2001: Lee Ann Womack’s single “I Hope You Dance” was certified gold.
2002: The numbers were made final and Faith Hill was tapped as logging a record setting 6-million streams as AOL’s “Artist of the Month” campaign. The achievement proved to be the online provider’s most successful in history. This news also came on the heels of Faith’s nomination as Favorite Female Artist by the People’s Choice Awards and the highest network ratings for any music special broadcast during Thanksgiving week.
2003: Reba McEntire gained a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy Series, for her work in the WB’s “Reba.” Among her competition was “Will and Grace” star Debra Messing and “Sex and the City” actress Sarah Jessica Parker.
2012: Darius Rucker’s version of “Wagon Wheel,” featuring Lady Antebellum on backing vocals, hit the airwaves.
2016: Brad Paisley performed “Out Behind The Barn,” then unveiled a wax statue of Little Jimmy Dickens during the Grand Ole Opry at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. The figure went on display when Madame Tussauds opened its Music City location the following spring.
