FEBRUARY 25

1927: Ralph Stanley, of The Stanley Brothers, was born in Stratton, VA. His duo The Stanley Brothers is one of the pioneering acts in bluegrass, and his later band, the Clinch Mountain Boys, graduated Ricky Skaggs and Keith Whitley.

1932: Faron Young was born in Shreveport, LA. One of country’s most colorful figures, he founded The Music City News and launched more than 40 hits from 1953-1974 on his way to admission in 2000 to the Country Music Hall of Fame.

1949:  Hank Williams Sr.’s “Lovesick Blues” was released. It was the song that got him his first invitation to perform on the Grand Ole Opry.

1956: Elvis Presley collected his first #1 record as “I Forgot To Remember To Forget” reaches the top on the Billboard country singles chart.

1964: Lyricist Johnny Burke died in New York. Known for such standards as “Pennies From Heaven” and “Swing On A Star,” he also co-wrote Erroll Garner’s “Misty,” which became a country hit for Ray Stevens in 1975.

1977: Ronnie Milsap recorded “It Was Almost Like A Song” at Woodland Sound in Nashville.

1977: Merle Haggard recorded “Ramblin’ Fever” in an afternoon session at Nashville’s Fireside Studio. He also cut “There Ain’t No Good Chain Gang,” a hit the following year for Johnny Cash & Waylon Jennings.

1981: George Jones won Best Country Vocal Performance, Male, for “He Stopped Loving Her Today,” during the 23rd annual Grammy Awards in New York.

1982: RCA released Alabama’s “Mountain Music” album.

1986: Rosanne Cash won Best Country Vocal Performance, Female, during the 28th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, for “I Don’t Know Why You Don’t Want Me,” a song she wrote after losing in 1983.

1988: Randy Travis set a new concert attendance record at the Houston Astrodome, attracting 49,702 fans.

1989: Dwight Yoakam took “I Sang Dixie” to #1 on the Billboard country chart.

1992: Garth Brooks won his first Grammy for the album “Ropin’ The Wind.” Mary Chapin Carpenter also took home her first Grammy, for “Down at the Twist and Shout.”

1993: Marshall Tucker Band guitarist Toy Caldwell died of respiratory failure at his home in Spartanburg, SC. He was 45.

2003: Five years after the death of her father and former duet partner, Jeannie Kendall’s first solo album was released by Rounder Records. The eponymous project includes an appearance by Alan Jackson.

2003: Johnny PayCheck was laid to rest at Woodlawn Memorial Park in Nashville. Johnny was buried in a plot donated by and next to one reserved for his longtime friend, George Jones.

2009: Martina McBride took part in a concert at the White House honoring Stevie Wonder as the recipient of the Library of Congress’ Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.