MARCH 21
1882: Bascom Lunsford was born in Mars Hill, NC. A folk music collector and promoter, he also co-wrote the country classic “Mountain Dew.”
1922: Vaudeville singer Elsie Clark became the first artist to record “Lovesick Blues.” The song eventually became a watershed in the career of Hank Williams.
1942: Carol Lee Cooper was born, the only daughter of singers Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper. She led the Grand Ole Opry’s background vocal group, The Carol Lee Singers.
1955: Johnny Cash had an unscheduled audition with producer Sam Phillips at Sun Records in Memphis. Phillips passed on the bulk of Cash’s material, but after hearing “Hey, Porter,” had the youngster come back the next day to record.
1963: Songwriter Arthur Q. Smith died. His legacy includes Ernest Tubb’s “Missing In Action” and the future Ricky Skaggs hit “I Wouldn’t Change You If I Could.”
1973: Tanya Tucker began two days of recording at Nashville’s Columbia Recording Studio, netting “Blood Red And Goin’ Down.”
1975: Ray Stevens filed suit against neighbor Webb Pierce to prohibit Pierce from building a parking ramp for tour buses in his driveway. Says Pierce: “That’s the price you have to pay for living across from a star.”
1978: Con Hunley recorded his first two hits, “Week-End Friend” and “You’ve Still Got A Place In My Heart,” at Nashville’s Columbia Studio B.
1979: Porter Wagoner filed a $3-million lawsuit against former duet partner Dolly Parton, charging she breached a 1970 management contract.
1981: “Angel Flying Too Close To The Ground” lifted Willie Nelson to #1 on the Billboard country chart.
1983: Merle Haggard set a new world’s record for the largest round of whiskey by buying 5,095 shots at Billy Bob’s Texas in Fort Worth. Intended to promote his “C.C. Waterback” duet with George Jones, it cost him $12,737.50.
1984: Earl Thomas Conley recorded “Love Don’t Care (Whose Heart It Breaks).”
1985: Epic released Merle Haggard’s “Kern River” album.
1987: Restless Heart’s “I’ll Still Be Loving You” rose to #1 on the Billboard country chart.
1988: Randy Travis won three times at the 23rd annual Academy Of Country Music awards, aired on NBC from Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, CA. He earned Top Male Vocalist, and “Forever And Ever, Amen” took Single Record and Song of the Year.
1998: Clint Black stopped at #1 on the Billboard country chart with “Nothin’ But The Taillights,” co-written with Steve Wariner.
1999: Garth Brooks experienced the beginning of spring training, getting a single up the middle off pitcher Mike Sirotka during a San Diego Padres game, as they lost to the Chicago White Sox.
