Jul 7, 1927
Charlie Louvin, of The Louvin Brothers, is born in Section, Alabama. Along with brother Ira, they mix gospel and country, landing on the Grand Ole Opry in 1955. Charlie remains with the Opry following his brother’s death in 1965
Jul 7, 1930
Doyle Wilburn is born in Hardy, Arkansas. He teams with younger sibling Teddy to form The Wilburn Brothers, debuting on the Grand Ole Opry as pre-teens. They net 14 Top 10 hits from 1954-1966 and publish Loretta Lynn’s first songs
Jul 7, 1940
Drummer Richard Starkey–a.k.a. Ringo Starr–is born in Liverpool, England. He rises to fame as a member of The Beatles, who have songs covered by Sweethearts Of The Rodeo, Rosanne Cash and Johnny Rodriguez
Jul 7, 1947
Songwriter Randy Goodrum is born in Hot Springs, Arkansas. He authors Anne Murray’s “You Needed Me,” Michael Johnson’s “Bluer Than Blue” and Dottie West’s “A Lesson In Leavin"”
Jul 7, 1952
Keyboard player Floyd Domino is born. He becomes a member of Asleep At The Wheel and plays with George Strait, appearing on such hits as “Love Without End, Amen,” “I’ve Come To Expect It From You” and “If You Ain’t Lovin’ (You Ain’t Livin’)”
Jul 7, 1956
After Carl Smith’s introduction, Johnny Cash makes his Grand Ole Opry debut at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, performing “I Walk The Line,” “Get Rhythm” and “So Doggone Lonesome.” Backstage, Cash also meets his future wife, June Carter, for the first time
Jul 7, 1968
Cal Smith concludes a five-year run as a member of Ernest Tubb’s Texas Troubadours
Jul 7, 1969
Tom T. Hall records “Homecoming” and “Shoeshine Man” at the Monument Recording Studio in Nashville
Jul 7, 1973
Kris Kristofferson’s “Why Me” reaches #1 on the Billboard country singles chart
Jul 7, 1975
George Morgan dies in Nashville, five days after undergoing open heart surgery. Voted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, the smooth-voiced Grand Ole Opry member was best known for his 1949 hit “Candy Kisses.” He was the father of Lorrie Morgan
Jul 7, 1979
Barbara Mandrell and The Oak Ridge Boys are booed off stage in favor of more traditional acts Roy Clark and Doc Watson at the first Montreux Country Festival in Switzerland. Irby Mandrell calls the crowd “a bunch of barbarians”
Jul 7, 1982
Charley Pride records the George Jones classic “Why Baby Why”
Jul 7, 1987
Warner/Curb releases Hank Williams Jr.’s “Born To Boogie” album
Jul 7, 1992
MCA releases Marty Stuart’s “This One’s Gonna Hurt You” album
Jul 7, 1998
Tim McGraw bats against his father, former all-star Tug McGraw, prior to major league baseball’s all-star game at Denver’s Coors Field. Faith Hill sings the national anthem, and the American League defeats the National, 13-8
Jul 7, 2004
Jimmy Buffett’s “Hey, Good Lookin"” video–featuring appearances by George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Toby Keith, Clint Black and Alan Jackson–debuts on CMT
Jul 7, 2010
Recording engineer Bill Porter dies in Ogden, Utah. Among his credits are Elvis Presley’s “It’s Now Or Never,” The Browns’ “The Three Bells” and Skeeter Davis’ “The End Of The World”
