JULY 17

1918: Red Sovine was born in Charleston, WV. A Grand Ole Opry member beginning in 1954, he specialized in recitations, hitting paydirt with “Giddyup Go” and the million-selling CB special “Teddy Bear.”

1954: Elvis Presley made his first live appearance since holding his inaugural sessions at the Sun Recording Studio. He sang “That’s All Right” and “Blue Moon Of Kentucky” during the set at Memphis’ Bon Air Club.

1958: Johnny Cash held what amounts to his final recording session for Sun Records in Memphis, with Charlie Rich playing piano.

1969: Merle Haggard recorded the studio version of “Okie From Muskogee” at the Capitol Recording Studios in Hollywood.

1973: Lefty Frizzell recorded his classics “I Never Go Around Mirrors” and “That’s The Way Love Goes” at Nashville’s Woodland Sound Studio.

1974: Guitarist/harmony vocalist Don Rich died in a motorcycle accident near Morro Beach, CA. A member of Buck Owens’ Buckaroos, he provided some of the inspiration in the group’s sound and co-wrote “Before You Go” and “Waitin’ In Your Welfare Line.”

1975: A Russian version of Conway Twitty’s “Hello Darlin’” played internationally when American astronauts docked in outer space with Soviet cosmonauts. Twitty watched from a motel room in Oakland, CA.

1985: Wynn Stewart died from a heart attack at his home in Hendersonville, TN. A major link in the Bakersfield Sound, he had a half-dozen hits from 1960-1976, topped by 1967’s “It’s Such A Pretty World Today.”

1985: Warner Bros. released Randy Travis’ label debut, “On The Other Hand.” The single failed, but was re-released the following year and became a classic.

1993: Alan Jackson’s “Chattahoochee” kicked off a four-week run at #1 on the Billboard country singles list.

1999: Lonestar’s ballad “Amazed” began an eight-week stay at the top of the Billboard country singles chart.