OCTOBER 16
1918: Dale “Stoney” Cooper was born in Harman, WV. Along with wife Wilma Cooper, he was part of a successful marital team that joined the Grand Ole Opry in 1957.
1925: Guitarist Bob McNett was born in Roaring Branch, PA. He played with Hank Williams’ Drifting Cowboys from 1945-1950.
1946: The Stanley Brothers–Ralph and Carter–performed together publicly for the first time in Bristol, VA.
1954: Elvis Presley made his first appearance on “The Louisiana Hayride,” singing “That’s All Right” and “Blue Moon Of Kentucky” two times each. Drummer D.J. Fontana plays with Presley for the first time, though he’s forced to play behind a curtain.
1967: Conway Twitty recorded “The Image Of Me,” his first country hit, in the afternoon at the Columbia Studios in Nashville.
1972: Creedence Clearwater Revival dissolved. Bass player Stu Cook would go on to join Southern Pacific, whose strong harmonies and breezy playing made them a staple of country radio in the late-1980s.
1972: Jimmie Davis was added to the Country Music Hall Of Fame during the sixth annual Country Music Association awards at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium.
1972: Loretta Lynn became the first woman to win the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year in the sixth annual awards at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. She also took Female Vocalist and shares Vocal Duo with Conway Twitty.
1982: Dolly Parton took “I Will Always Love You” to #1 for the second time. The new version was recorded for the movie “The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas.”
1982: Doyle Wilburn died in Nashville. Along with younger sibling Teddy, The Wilburn Brothers were longtime members of the Grand Ole Opry and recorded for Decca Records, where they mounted nearly 15 hits from 1954-1966.
1984: Banjo player Don Reno died from circulation problems in Charlottesville, VA. With partner Red Smiley, Reno & Smiley had created a significant bluegrass duo in 1950 which reached its peak in the late ’50s and early ’60s.
1993: Clay Walker earned his first #1 single in Billboard with “What’s It To You.”
2003: Pat Benatar joined Martina McBride to tape an installment of the Radney Foster-hosted “CMT Crossroads” in Nashville. Among the songs they perform together: “Independence Day,” “We Belong” and “When God-Fearin’ Women Get The Blues.”
2005: Vince Gill, Jerry Reed, “Prisoner Of The Highway” songwriter Mike Reid, “What Mattered Most” composer Gary Burr and “Don’t Rock The Jukebox” creator Roger Murrah were added to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame during an event at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel.
2016: Randy Travis, Charlie Daniels and Monument Records founder Fred Foster were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.