179-416: Montgomery Gentry were an American country music duo founded by singers Eddie Montgomery and Troy Gentry, both Kentucky natives. They began performing together in the 1990s as part of two different bands with Montgomery's brother, John Michael Montgomery . Although Gentry won a talent contest in 1994, he reunited with Eddie Montgomery after Gentry was unable to find a solo record deal, and Montgomery Gentry
358-474: A black bear named "Cubby" from a facility called the Minnesota Wildlife Connection and subsequently shot the bear from inside an electrified enclosure, a practice commonly known as canned hunting . On November 27, 2006, Gentry pleaded guilty to a charge of falsely tagging a bear that was killed in a fenced enclosure as if it had been killed in the wild. Under the plea agreement, he agreed to pay
537-428: A "sweet, high tenor" while Montgomery "complements with an earthy, sometimes raspy, baritone", and notes that the duo has an "energetic stage show and dress". Many of the duo's mid-tempo songs, such as "My Town", centralized on a theme of rural lifestyles. Others, such as "You Do Your Thing" and "Some People Change", contained messages of tolerance towards others with differing opinions. Gerald Edward "Eddie" Montgomery
716-568: A $ 15,000 fine; give up hunting, fishing, and trapping in Minnesota for five years; and forfeit Cubby's taxidermied remains and the bow he used to shoot Cubby. In a statement that he posted on the duo's website on November 9, 2010, he apologized for his actions as well as the unethical manner in which he killed Cubby. On September 8, 2017, Gentry died in a helicopter crash while taking a helicopter tour of Medford , New Jersey, where he and Montgomery were set to perform that evening. Through social media,
895-439: A Gravel Road , which would have included past hits and three new songs. Its first single, "While You're Still Young", peaked at number 32 in mid-2010. On September 17, 2010, a day before the extended play's slated release, Montgomery Gentry exited the label, and Hits and More was shelved. Both members told Country Weekly that they decided to leave Columbia because "there were so many people trying to encourage us to do something
1074-575: A Greatest Hits package. These albums produced more than twenty chart singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, including the No. 1 hits, " If You Ever Stop Loving Me ", " Something to Be Proud Of ", " Lucky Man ", " Back When I Knew It All ", and " Roll with Me ". Ten more of their songs reached the Top 10 on the country chart, including the No. 3 hit, " Gone ", the most played country song by
1253-473: A Hot 100 Top 40 hit in each of the four decades from the 1980s through the 2010s: Michael Jackson , Madonna , "Weird Al" Yankovic , U2 , and Kenny G . Mariah Carey is the first artist to have a number-one single in four different decades. SiriusXM Pop2K uses the Hot 100 charts for the 2000s for the "Pop2Kountdown", where radio personal Rich Davis plays the top 30 songs on the Hot 100 from that specific week in
1432-577: A Rainy Night " by Eddie Rabbitt (these two back-to-back at the top in early 1981); and " Islands in the Stream ", a duet by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers in 1983, a pop-country crossover hit written by Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees . Newton's "Queen of Hearts" almost reached No. 1, but was kept out of the spot by the pop ballad juggernaut " Endless Love " by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie . The move of country music toward neotraditional styles led to
1611-452: A collection of musicians that came to be known as the outlaw movement revolutionized the genre of country music in the early 1970s. "After I left Nashville (the early 70s), I wanted to relax and play the music that I wanted to play, and just stay around Texas, maybe Oklahoma. Waylon and I had that outlaw image going, and when it caught on at colleges and we started selling records, we were O.K. The whole outlaw thing, it had nothing to do with
1790-526: A commercially fallow period. This subgenre was notable for borrowing from 1950s pop stylings: a prominent and smooth vocal, backed by a string section (violins and other orchestral strings) and vocal chorus. Instrumental soloing was de-emphasized in favor of trademark "licks". Leading artists in this genre included Jim Reeves , Skeeter Davis , Connie Smith , the Browns , Patsy Cline , and Eddy Arnold . The "slip note" piano style of session musician Floyd Cramer
1969-427: A cultural fad had died down after the late 1970s (with Jennings noting in 1978 that it had gotten out of hand and led to real-life legal scrutiny), many western and outlaw country music artists maintained their popularity during the 1980s by forming supergroups , such as The Highwaymen , Texas Tornados , and Bandido . Country pop or soft pop, with roots in the countrypolitan sound, folk music, and soft rock ,
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#17328695119372148-453: A duo called Deuce, which played at local nightclubs. The duo later changed its name to Montgomery Gentry, and signed with Columbia Records ' Nashville division in 1999. Montgomery Gentry released its debut single, " Hillbilly Shoes ", in early 1999. It entered the Billboard country singles charts two weeks before its scheduled release date, peaking at number 13 on the country charts and 62 on
2327-699: A duo in 2005. Tattoos & Scars , My Town , and You Do Your Thing are all certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America . In 1999, they were awarded Favorite New Artist—Country at the American Music Awards . Both the Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association named them Duo of the Year in 2000, awards for which they were nominated by one or both associations in every year until 2012. In 2009, they were inducted into
2506-475: A little bit of that, a little bit of black and a little bit of white ... just loud enough to keep you from thinking too much and to go right on ordering the whiskey." East Texan Al Dexter had a hit with "Honky Tonk Blues", and seven years later " Pistol Packin' Mama ". These "honky tonk" songs were associated with barrooms, and was performed by the likes of Ernest Tubb , Kitty Wells (the first major female country solo singer), Ted Daffan , Floyd Tillman ,
2685-529: A little different musically. Some of it worked and some of it didn't." Montgomery Gentry signed to Average Joes Entertainment , a label co-owned by country rap artist Colt Ford , in March 2011. Their first release for the label, " Where I Come From ", appears on their seventh album Rebels on the Run , released on October 18. The album was produced by Michael Knox , who also produces for Jason Aldean . Jurek thought that
2864-561: A marked decline in country/pop crossovers in the late 1980s, and only one song in that period— Roy Orbison 's " You Got It ", from 1989—made the top 10 of both the Billboard Hot Country Singles " and Hot 100 charts, due largely to a revival of interest in Orbison after his sudden death. The only song with substantial country airplay to reach number one on the pop charts in the late 1980s was " At This Moment " by Billy Vera and
3043-460: A new single, featuring the former B-side as the A-side, along with a "new" B-side. The inclusion of album cuts on the Hot 100 put the double-sided hit issues to rest permanently. As many Hot 100 chart policies have been modified over the years, one rule always remained constant: songs were not eligible to enter the Hot 100 unless they were available to purchase as a single. However, on December 5, 1998,
3222-511: A part of the Outlaw country movement. Originating in the bars, fiestas, and honky-tonks of Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas, their music supplemented outlaw country's singer-songwriter tradition as well as 21st-century rock -inspired alternative country and hip hop -inspired country rap artists. Outlaw country was derived from the traditional western, including Red Dirt , New Mexico , Texas country , Tejano , and honky-tonk musical styles of
3401-577: A point system that typically gave sales (purchases) more weight than radio airplay. The first No. 1 in that chart was " Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing " by The Four Aces . The Best Sellers in Stores , Most Played by Jockeys and Most Played in Jukeboxes charts continued to be published concurrently with the new Top 100 chart. On June 17, 1957, Billboard discontinued the Most Played in Jukeboxes chart, as
3580-537: A portion of all profits from the album to the Wounded Warrior Project . On November 30, 2009, Montgomery Gentry released the single "Oughta Be More Songs About That". It was to have been included on an album titled Freedom , which was to have included a song that the two wrote with Gary Hannan and Phil O'Donnell titled "Freedom Never Goes Out of Style". The label scrapped Freedom and instead chose to release an extended play titled Hits and More: Life Beside
3759-713: A restaurant he owned in Harrodsburg , Kentucky. The restaurant closed abruptly in Spring 2013. The couple had four children and had been married for over 20 years. Montgomery posted to Twitter and Facebook that she divorced him because she did not want to "cope with his illness," but she subsequently denied it. Montgomery subsequently married his longtime girlfriend, Jennifer Belcher, in 2014. On September 27, 2015, Montgomery wrote that his and ex-wife Tracy Nunan's 19-year-old son, Hunter, had been killed in an accident. Nunan subsequently clarified that Hunter died of an overdose, which she believed
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#17328695119373938-474: A result of traditionalist backlash within separate genres. In the aftermath of the British Invasion , many desired a return to the "old values" of rock n' roll. At the same time there was a lack of enthusiasm in the country sector for Nashville-produced music. What resulted was a crossbred genre known as country rock . Early innovators in this new style of music in the 1960s and 1970s included Bob Dylan , who
4117-516: A role in the larger country music, with western wear , cowboy boots , and cowboy hats continues to be in fashion for country artists. West of the Mississippi River , many of these western genres continue to flourish, including the Red Dirt of Oklahoma , New Mexico music of New Mexico , and both Texas country music and Tejano music of Texas . During the 1950s until the early 1970s,
4296-428: A series of hugely successful songs blending country and folk-rock musical styles. By the mid-1970s, Texas country and Tejano music gained popularity with performers like Freddie Fender . During the early 1980s country artists continued to see their records perform well on the pop charts. In 1980 a style of "neocountry disco music" was popularized. During the mid-1980s a group of new artists began to emerge who rejected
4475-531: A significant shift in sound from earlier country music. The song was written by actual truckers and contained numerous references to the trucker culture of the time like "ICC" for Interstate Commerce Commission and "little white pills" as a reference to amphetamines . Starday Records in Nashville followed up on Dudley's initial success with the release of Give Me 40 Acres by the Willis Brothers . Rockabilly
4654-434: A single until airplay was at its absolute peak, thus prompting a top ten or, in some cases, a number-one debut. In many cases, a label would delete a single from its catalog after only one week, thus allowing the song to enter the Hot 100, make a high debut and then slowly decline in position as the one-time production of the retail single sold out. It was during this period that several popular mainstream hits never charted on
4833-459: A solo artist titled Ain't No Closing Me Down via Average Joes Entertainment label. The album features two singles "Alive And Well" and "My Son". While maintaining his solo career, Montgomery has also continued to tour with the backing band under the Montgomery Gentry name. Montgomery Gentry's sound was defined by Southern rock influences. Steve Huey of Allmusic wrote that the duo "evokes
5012-629: A specific year from the 2000s. '90s on 9 also does a similar countdown show called the "Back in the Day Replay Countdown" hosted by Downtown Julie Brown ; however, this focuses on the Hot 100 charts from the 1990s. A new chart, the Pop 100 , was created by Billboard in February 2005 to answer criticism that the Hot 100 at the time was too dominated by hip hop and R&B. It was discontinued in June 2009 due to
5191-487: A style of "neocountry disco music" was popularized by the film Urban Cowboy . It was during this time that a glut of pop-country crossover artists began appearing on the country charts: former pop stars Bill Medley (of the Righteous Brothers ), "England Dan" Seals (of England Dan and John Ford Coley ), Tom Jones , and Merrill Osmond (both alone and with some of his brothers ; his younger sister Marie Osmond
5370-529: A torrent of brash lyrics, wailing guitars, and pounding percussion". Jurek wrote that it "is easily the finest outing by modern country's most relevant duo; it rocks, it's soulful, and it's memorable". Montgomery Gentry toured in late 2004 – early 2005 with Trace Adkins in support of the album. "Something to Be Proud Of" also served as the title track to Montgomery Gentry's first greatest hits album, Something to Be Proud Of: The Best of 1999–2005 . Also included on this disc were "Didn't I", "Merry Christmas from
5549-435: A trend they had started in the 1960s by putting the same song on both sides of the singles provided to radio. More complex issues began to arise as the typical A-and-B-side format of singles gave way to 12 inch singles and maxi-singles, many of which contained more than one B-side. Further problems arose when, in several cases, a B-side would eventually overtake the A-side in popularity, thus prompting record labels to release
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5728-537: A very long time to gain mainstream success. These rare cases are handled on a case-by-case basis and ultimately determined by Billboard ' s chart managers and staff. Older songs are allowed to re-enter to the Hot 100 provided they chart higher than number 50. Christmas songs have been a regular presence on the Hot 100 each December since the relaxation of recurrent rules, culminating in Mariah Carey 's 1994 recording " All I Want for Christmas Is You " reaching No. 1 on
5907-552: A very straightforward cumulative total of yearlong sales, streaming, and airplay points. This gives a more accurate picture of any given year's most popular tracks, as the points accrued by one song during its week at number one in March might be less than those accrued by another song reaching number three in January. Songs at the peak of their popularity at the time of the November/December chart-year cutoff many times end up ranked on
6086-403: A week spent at position 100, two points for a week spent at position 99 and so forth, up to 100 points for each week spent at number one). Other factors including the total weeks a song spent on the chart and at its peak position were calculated into its year-end total. After Billboard began obtaining sales and airplay information from Nielsen SoundScan, the year-end charts are now calculated by
6265-407: Is Jennifer Lopez 's " I'm Real ". Originally entering the Hot 100 in its album version, a "remix" was issued in the midst of its chart run that featured rapper Ja Rule . This new version proved to be more popular than the album version and the track was propelled to number one. To address this issue, Billboard now separates airplay points from a song's original version and its remix, if the remix
6444-491: Is a subgenre that first emerged in the 1970s. Although the term first referred to country music songs and artists that crossed over to top 40 radio, country pop acts are now more likely to cross over to adult contemporary music . It started with pop music singers like Glen Campbell , Bobbie Gentry , John Denver , Olivia Newton-John , Anne Murray , B. J. Thomas , the Bellamy Brothers , and Linda Ronstadt having hits on
6623-516: Is also tracked on the same Friday–Thursday cycle, effective with the chart dated July 17, 2021. Previously, radio was tracked Monday–Sunday and, before July 2015, Wednesday–Tuesday. The first number-one song of the Billboard Hot 100 was " Poor Little Fool " by Ricky Nelson , on August 4, 1958. As of the issue for the week ending on November 30, 2024, the Billboard Hot 100 has had 1,175 different number-one entries. The current number-one song on
6802-452: Is determined to be a "new song". Since administering this new chart rule, several songs have charted twice, normally credited as "Part 1" and "Part 2". The remix rule is still in place. Billboard , in an effort to allow the chart to remain as current as possible and to give representation to new and developing artists and tracks, has (since 1991) removed titles that have reached certain criteria regarding its current rank and number of weeks on
6981-682: Is good about Americans." In 2008, the duo went to the Ardent studios in Memphis , Tennessee, to record their sixth album, Back When I Knew It All . Once again, they worked with Blake Chancey as producer. This album's title track , co-written by Trent Willmon , was the duo's fastest-climbing single. Both it and followup " Roll with Me ", which included a backing vocal from Five for Fighting , went to number 1. " One in Every Crowd ", co-written by Montgomery with Kim Tribble and former Trick Pony bassist Ira Dean,
7160-433: Is post-dated with the "week-ending" issue date four days after the charts are refreshed online (i.e., the following Saturday). For example: The methods and policies by which this data is obtained and compiled have changed many times throughout the chart's history. Although the advent of a singles music chart spawned chart historians and chart-watchers and greatly affected pop culture and produced countless bits of trivia,
7339-411: Is primarily rooted in various forms of American folk music , such as old-time music and Appalachian music , many other traditions, including Mexican , Irish , and Hawaiian music , have had a formative influence on the genre. Blues modes from blues music have been used extensively throughout its history as well. Once called " hillbilly music", the term country music gained popularity in
Montgomery Gentry - Misplaced Pages Continue
7518-520: The Billboard Hot 100 . High radio demand for the single led to the label advancing the release date of the duo's debut album, Tattoos & Scars , from early May to April 6. " Lonely and Gone " was the album's second single, peaking at number 5 on the country charts by year's end. The song was co-written by Dave Gibson and former Pirates of the Mississippi lead singer Bill McCorvey. Following it
7697-641: The Bakersfield sound . It has the tempo of country rock and the emotion of honky-tonk, and its lyrics focus on a truck driver 's lifestyle. Truck-driving country songs often deal with the profession of trucking and love. Well-known artists who sing truck driving country include Dave Dudley , Red Sovine , Dick Curless , Red Simpson , Del Reeves , the Willis Brothers and Jerry Reed , with C. W. McCall and Cledus Maggard (pseudonyms of Bill Fries and Jay Huguely, respectively) being more humorous entries in
7876-468: The Billboard Hot 100 tracks paid digital downloads from such internet services as iTunes , Musicmatch , and Rhapsody . Billboard initially started tracking downloads in 2003 with the Hot Digital Tracks chart. However, these downloads did not count towards the Hot 100 and that chart (as opposed to Hot Digital Songs ) counted each version of a song separately. This was the first major overhaul of
8055-725: The First National Band ), the Grateful Dead , Neil Young , Commander Cody , the Allman Brothers Band , Charlie Daniels , the Marshall Tucker Band , Poco , Buffalo Springfield , Stephen Stills ' band Manassas and Eagles , among many, even the former folk music duo Ian & Sylvia , who formed Great Speckled Bird in 1969. The Eagles would become the most successful of these country rock acts, and their compilation album Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) remains
8234-504: The Grand Ole Opry . On September 8, 2017, Gentry died in a helicopter crash in Medford , New Jersey, where the duo was scheduled to perform that evening. The helicopter pilot died at the scene and Gentry died as he was being rushed to the hospital. Despite Gentry's death, Montgomery continues to tour under the Montgomery Gentry name and has pursued a solo career. Gerald Edward Montgomery
8413-817: The Great Depression . However, radio became a popular source of entertainment, and "barn dance" shows featuring country music were started by radio stations all over the South, as far north as Chicago, and as far west as California. The most important was the Grand Ole Opry , aired starting in 1925 by WSM in Nashville and continuing to the present day. Some of the early stars on the Opry were Uncle Dave Macon , Roy Acuff and African American harmonica player DeFord Bailey . WSM's 50,000-watt signal (in 1934) could often be heard across
8592-480: The Maddox Brothers and Rose , Lefty Frizzell and Hank Williams ; the music of these artists would later be called "traditional" country. Williams' influence in particular would prove to be enormous, inspiring many of the pioneers of rock and roll, such as Elvis Presley , Jerry Lee Lewis , Chuck Berry and Ike Turner , while providing a framework for emerging honky tonk talents like George Jones . Webb Pierce
8771-573: The Mountain City Fiddlers Convention , held in 1925, helped to inspire modern country music. Before these, pioneer settlers, in the Great Smoky Mountains region, had developed a rich musical heritage. The first generation emerged in the 1920s, with Atlanta's music scene playing a major role in launching country's earliest recording artists. James Gideon "Gid" Tanner (1885–1960) was an American old-time fiddler and one of
8950-512: The Ozarks . As Webb Pierce put it in 1956, "Once upon a time, it was almost impossible to sell country music in a place like New York City. Nowadays, television takes us everywhere, and country music records and sheet music sell as well in large cities as anywhere else." The Country Music Association was founded in 1958, in part because numerous country musicians were appalled by the increased influence of rock and roll on country music. Beginning in
9129-541: The music of Hawaii . The U.S. Congress has formally recognized Bristol, Tennessee as the "Birthplace of Country Music", based on the historic Bristol recording sessions of 1927. Since 2014, the city has been home to the Birthplace of Country Music Museum . Historians have also noted the influence of the less-known Johnson City sessions of 1928 and 1929, and the Knoxville sessions of 1929 and 1930. In addition,
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#17328695119379308-526: The " I Can't Stop Loving You " single, and recording the landmark album Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music . Another subgenre of country music grew out of hardcore honky tonk with elements of western swing and originated 112 miles (180 km) north-northwest of Los Angeles in Bakersfield, California , where many " Okies " and other Dust Bowl migrants had settled. Influenced by one-time West Coast residents Bob Wills and Lefty Frizzell , by 1966 it
9487-588: The "Best Female Country Vocal Performance" as well as the Country Music Association's most coveted award for females, "Female Vocalist of the Year". In response George Jones, Tammy Wynette, Jean Shepard and other traditional Nashville country artists dissatisfied with the new trend formed the short-lived "Association of Country Entertainers" in 1974; the ACE soon unraveled in the wake of Jones and Wynette's bitter divorce and Shepard's realization that most others in
9666-399: The 10 top selling records of three leading record companies, as reported by the companies themselves. In October 1938, a review list, "The Week's Best Records", was retitled "The Billboard Record Buying Guide" by incorporating airplay and sheet music sales, which would eventually become the first trade survey of record popularity. This led to the full-page "Billboard Music Popularity Chart" for
9845-597: The 1920s, were popularized by films made in Hollywood. Some of the popular singing cowboys from the era were Gene Autry , the Sons of the Pioneers , and Roy Rogers . Country music and western music were frequently played together on the same radio stations, hence the term country and western music, despite country and western being two distinct genres. Cowgirls contributed to the sound in various family groups. Patsy Montana opened
10024-461: The 1940s. The genre came to encompass western music , which evolved parallel to hillbilly music from similar roots, in the mid-20th century. Contemporary styles of western music include Texas country , red dirt , and Hispano- and Mexican American -led Tejano and New Mexico music , which still exists alongside longstanding indigenous traditions . In 2009, in the United States, country music
10203-468: The 1950s to the mid-1960s, western singer-songwriters such as Marty Robbins rose in prominence as did others, throughout western music traditions, like New Mexico music 's Al Hurricane . The late 1960s in American music produced a unique blend as a result of traditionalist backlash within separate genres. In the aftermath of the British Invasion , many desired a return to the "old values" of rock n' roll. At
10382-444: The 1980s. Country music propelled Kenny Rogers’ career, making him a three-time Grammy Award winner and six-time Country Music Association Awards winner. Having sold more than 50 million albums in the US, one of his Song "The Gambler," inspired several TV films, with Rogers as the main character. Artists like Crystal Gayle , Ronnie Milsap and Barbara Mandrell would also find success on
10561-473: The 1990s many record companies stopped releasing singles altogether (see Album Cuts , below). Eventually, a song's airplay points were weighted more so than its sales. Billboard has adjusted the sales/airplay ratio many times to more accurately reflect the true popularity of songs. Billboard has also changed its Hot 100 policy regarding "two-sided singles" several times. The pre-Hot 100 chart "Best Sellers in Stores" listed popular A- and-B-sides together, with
10740-565: The Beaters, an R&B song with slide guitar embellishment that appeared at number 42 on the country charts from minor crossover airplay. The record-setting, multi-platinum group Alabama was named Artist of the Decade for the 1980s by the Academy of Country Music. Country rock is a genre that started in the 1960s but became prominent in the 1970s. The late 1960s in American music produced a unique blend as
10919-503: The Carters recorded some 300 old-time ballads, traditional tunes, country songs and gospel hymns, all representative of America's southeastern folklore and heritage. Maybelle Carter went on to continue the family tradition with her daughters as The Carter Sisters ; her daughter June would marry (in succession) Carl Smith , Rip Nix and Johnny Cash , having children with each who would also become country singers. Record sales declined during
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#173286951193711098-503: The Family" and the new song " She Don't Tell Me To " (also co-written by Rutherford, Shapiro, and DiPiero), which peaked at number 5 on the country charts in early 2006. Something to Be Proud Of was certified gold. Some People Change was the title of Montgomery Gentry's fifth album, which was released in 2006 under the production of Rutherford and Wright. Its title track , co-written by Neil Thrasher , Jason Sellers , and Michael Dulaney,
11277-518: The Grand Ole Opry. That was the ordination of bluegrass music and how Bill Monroe came to be known as the "Father of Bluegrass." Gospel music , too, remained a popular component of bluegrass and other sorts of country music. Red Foley , the biggest country star following World War II, had one of the first million-selling gospel hits (" Peace in the Valley ") and also sang boogie, blues and rockabilly. In
11456-471: The Hot 100 (then called Top 40 Radio Monitor ). The ongoing splintering of Top 40 radio in the early 1990s led stations to lean into specific formats, meaning that practically no station would play the wide array of genres that typically composed each weekly Hot 100 chart. An artist or band's ability to have hits in the Hot 100 across multiple decades is recognized as a sign of longevity and being able to adapt to changing musical styles. Only five artists had
11635-416: The Hot 100 changed from being a "singles" chart to a "songs" chart. During the 1990s, a growing trend in the music industry was to promote songs to radio without ever releasing them as singles. It was claimed by major record labels that singles were cannibalizing album sales, so they were slowly phased out. During this period, accusations began to fly of chart manipulation as labels would hold off on releasing
11814-401: The Hot 100's chart formula since December 1998. The change in methodology has shaken up the chart considerably, with some songs debuting on the chart strictly with robust online sales and others making drastic leaps. In recent years, several songs have been able to achieve 80-to-90 position jumps in a single week as their digital components were made available at online music stores. Since 2006,
11993-420: The Hot 100's early history, singles were the leading way by which people bought music. At times, when singles sales were robust, more weight was given to a song's retail points than to its radio airplay. As the decades passed, the recording industry concentrated more on album sales than singles sales. Musicians eventually expressed their creative output in the form of full-length albums rather than singles, and by
12172-479: The Hot 100, or charted well after their airplay had declined. During the period that they were not released as singles, the songs were not eligible to chart. Many of these songs dominated the Hot 100 Airplay chart for extended periods of time: As debate and conflicts occurred more and more often, Billboard finally answered the requests of music industry artists and insiders to include airplay-only songs (or "album cuts") in
12351-426: The Hot 100, while the retail component was reduced from 40% to 25%. Extended play (EP) releases were listed by Billboard on the Hot 100 and in pre-Hot 100 charts (Top 100) until the mid-to-late 1960s. With the growing popularity of albums, it was decided to move EPs (which typically contain four to six tracks) from the Hot 100 to the Billboard 200 , where they are included to this day. Since February 12, 2005,
12530-523: The Judds . Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital ), online streaming , and radio airplay in the U.S. A new chart is compiled and released online to the public by Billboard' s website on Tuesdays but post-dated to
12709-448: The Kids", which was released as a single. The duo spent the better part of 2012 and 2013 touring. They signed to Blaster Records in February 2014 and announced that a new album, to be produced by Michael Knox , would be released within the year. However, the album's lead single, titled "Headlights", did not perform as expected on the charts, peaking at number 44 on Country Airplay. As a result,
12888-737: The Lane " for Okeh Records on June 14, 1923. Vernon Dalhart was the first country singer to have a nationwide hit in May 1924 with " Wreck of the Old 97 ". The flip side of the record was "Lonesome Road Blues", which also became very popular. In April 1924, "Aunt" Samantha Bumgarner and Eva Davis became the first female musicians to record and release country songs. The record 129-D produced by Columbia features Samantha playing fiddle and singing Big-Eyed Rabbit while Eva Davis plays banjo. The other side features Eva Davis playing banjo while singing Wild Bill Jones. Many of
13067-564: The Montgomery brothers and Gentry briefly performed as Young Country, with John Michael as lead vocalist. John Michael left for a solo career in the early 1990s. Gentry went solo and won the Jim Beam National Talent Contest in 1994, which led to him opening for Patty Loveless and Tracy Byrd . Gentry initially wanted to pursue a solo career, but after he was unable to find a record deal, he reunited with Eddie Montgomery to form
13246-506: The Rest of My Life) " and Darrell Scott 's "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive". Later in the year, the label released a deluxe version with additional songs. At the time of the album's release, Montgomery said that he planned to continue touring under the Montgomery Gentry name even after Gentry's death, and that he wanted to honor Gentry by releasing songs that they had worked on prior. On October 29, 2021, Montgomery released his first studio album as
13425-450: The South, as far north as Chicago, and as far west as California. The most important was the Grand Ole Opry , aired starting in 1925 by WSM in Nashville and continuing to the present day. During the 1930s and 1940s, cowboy songs, or western music, which had been recorded since the 1920s, were popularized by films made in Hollywood, many featuring Gene Autry , who was known as king of the "singing cowboys," and Hank Williams . Bob Wills
13604-664: The Southwestern United States, it was the Rocky Mountains , American frontier , and Rio Grande that acted as a similar backdrop for Native American , Mexican , and cowboy ballads, which resulted in New Mexico music and the development of western music , and it is directly related to Red Dirt, Texas country, and Tejano music styles. In the Asia-Pacific , the steel guitar sound of country music has its provenance in
13783-524: The Straw " by fiddlers Henry Gilliland & A.C. (Eck) Robertson on June 30, 1922, for Victor Records and released in April 1923. Columbia Records began issuing records with "hillbilly" music (series 15000D "Old Familiar Tunes") as early as 1924. The first commercial recording of what is widely considered to be the first country song featuring vocals and lyrics was Fiddlin' John Carson with " Little Log Cabin in
13962-579: The West Coast. Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family are widely considered to be important early country musicians. From Scott County, Virginia , the Carters had learned sight reading of hymnals and sheet music using solfege . Their songs were first captured at a historic recording session in Bristol, Tennessee , on August 1, 1927, where Ralph Peer was the talent scout and sound recordist. A scene in
14141-407: The album a "C", criticizing the duo for the contradictory viewpoints of personal changes on the title track versus the "defense of the American right to piss off your neighbors" in "What Do Ya Think About That". Jurek comparatively called it a "masterpiece" and said that it was "a new pinnacle for the duo", calling the title track "one of those tunes that defines something that lies at the heart of what
14320-504: The album that will win over many new ones." On May 26, 2009, Montgomery Gentry was formally invited by Charlie Daniels to become members of the Grand Ole Opry . Marty Stuart and Little Jimmy Dickens inducted them on June 23. Also in May 2009, Cracker Barrel restaurants released an exclusive compilation titled For Our Heroes , which included some of their hits along with "Didn't I" and three other songs which had previously been released only as bonus tracks. The restaurant chain donated
14499-486: The album was "the most consistent offering" since Some People Change "even if it doesn't quite scale those heights", and Country Weekly reviewer Jessica Nicholson called it "classic Montgomery Gentry". In early 2012, "Where I Come From" peaked at number 8 on the country charts. It was followed by "So Called Life", which failed to make Top 40. On October 23, 2012, the duo released a digital-only EP titled Friends and Family. The EP contains four tracks, including "I'll Keep
14678-404: The album's poor sales were because it "strayed musically from what the base had been. They have an edge to their sound, and I think we got a little too soft." Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times gave a mixed review, saying that it was more "touchy-feely" than You Do Your Thing , and that "no one works a snarling country chorus like Montgomery Gentry". Chris Willman of Entertainment Weekly gave
14857-405: The album's release was delayed. The album's second single "Folks Like Us", was released to country radio in March 2015. Folks Like Us was released on June 9, 2015. In November 2016, the duo left Blaster Records and re-signed with Average Joes Entertainment . They began working on a new album, then slated for a 2017 release. Following Gentry's death on September 8, 2017, the label announced that
15036-403: The album. Steele also co-wrote "Gone" and "Something to Be Proud Of" with Bob DiPiero and Chris Wallin, respectively, while Rutherford and DiPiero co-wrote "If You Ever Stop Loving Me" with Tom Shapiro . In October 2005, You Do Your Thing became the duo's third platinum album. Rick Bell gave the album a favorable review on Country Standard Time , saying that the duo "unleash [Southern rock] in
15215-535: The all-time record for the biggest single-week upward movement was broken nine times. In the issue dated August 11, 2007, Billboard began incorporating weekly data from streaming media and on-demand services into the Hot 100. The first two major companies to provide their statistics to Nielsen BDS on a weekly basis were AOL Music and Yahoo! Music . On March 24, 2012, Billboard premiered its On-Demand Songs chart, which ranks web radio streams from services such as Spotify , as well as on-demand audio titles. Its data
15394-423: The appeal of the Nashville sound, many traditional country artists emerged during this period and dominated the genre: Loretta Lynn , Merle Haggard , Buck Owens , Porter Wagoner , George Jones , and Sonny James among them. In 1962, Ray Charles surprised the pop world by turning his attention to country and western music, topping the charts and rating number three for the year on Billboard's pop chart with
15573-454: The band released the following statement: "It is with great sadness that we confirm that Troy Gentry, half of the popular country duo, Montgomery Gentry, was tragically killed in a helicopter crash which took place at approximately 1:00 p.m. today in Medford, New Jersey." On September 14, 2017, a public memorial service for Gentry was held at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville . On November 5, 2018,
15752-572: The basic ensemble consisted of classical guitar , bass guitar , dobro or steel guitar, though some larger ensembles featured electric guitars , trumpets , keyboards (especially the honky-tonk piano, a type of tack piano ), banjos , and drums . By the early 1950s it blended with rock and roll , becoming the rockabilly sound produced by Sam Phillips , Norman Petty , and Bob Keane . Musicians like Elvis Presley , Buddy Holly , Jerry Lee Lewis , Ritchie Valens , Carl Perkins , Roy Orbison , and Johnny Cash emerged as enduring representatives of
15931-402: The best pop records of the year. Period." and Alanna Nash of Entertainment Weekly rated it "B", saying that the album was "testosterone-laden". In comparison, Country Standard Time reviewer Jeffrey B. Remz thought that many of the duo's songs lacked distinctiveness, saying that they seemed to be derivative of Daniels and Travis Tritt . Montgomery Gentry's second album, Carrying On ,
16110-467: The chart in December 2019. Billboard altered its tracking-week for sales, streaming and radio airplay in order to conform to a new Global Release Date, which now falls on Fridays in all major-market territories (United States product was formerly released on Tuesdays before June 2015). This modified tracking schedule took effect in the issue dated July 25, 2015. Billboard ' s "chart year" runs from
16289-612: The chart is " A Bar Song (Tipsy) " by Shaboozey . The first chart published by Billboard was "Last Week's Ten Best Sellers Among the Popular Songs", a list of best-selling sheet music, in July 1913. Other charts listed popular song performances in theatres and recitals. In 1928, "Popular Numbers Featured by Famous Singers and Leaders" appeared, which added radio performances to in-person performances. On January 4, 1936, Billboard magazine published "Ten Best Records for Week Ending", which listed
16468-417: The chart. Recurrent criteria have been modified several times and currently (as of 2015 ), a song is permanently moved to "recurrent status" if it has spent 20 weeks on the Hot 100 and fallen below position number 50. Additionally, descending songs are removed from the chart if ranking below number 25 after 52 weeks. Exceptions are made to re-releases and sudden resurgence in popularity of tracks that have taken
16647-507: The charts becoming increasingly similar. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched June 16, 2007. Like the Hot 100 chart, it uses sales and airplay tracking compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and BDS . The Billboard Japan Hot 100 was launched in the issue dated May 31, 2008, using the same methodologies as the Hot 100 charts for the U.S. and Canada, using sales and airplay data from SoundScan Japan and radio tracking service Plantech. The Vietnamese edition of Hot 100, Billboard Vietnam Hot 100 ,
16826-464: The country charts. Between 1972 and 1975, singer/guitarist John Denver released a series of hugely successful songs blending country and folk-rock musical styles (" Rocky Mountain High ", " Sunshine on My Shoulders ", " Annie's Song ", " Thank God I'm a Country Boy ", and " I'm Sorry "), and was named Country Music Entertainer of the Year in 1975. The year before, Olivia Newton-John, an Australian pop singer, won
17005-545: The country top 20. In March 2004, My Town became the duo's second platinum-certified album. Ruhlmann gave the album a generally positive review, saying that it "rocks harder as it goes along". On the same site, Rick Cohoon praised "My Town" for "painting in words and music both the pace of living in a small town", and "Speed" for being "slower and more deliberate than the recklessness the title suggests". On Country Standard Time , Tom Netherland called it "their third and finest release". You Do Your Thing , their fourth album,
17184-465: The country. Many musicians performed and recorded songs in any number of styles. Moon Mullican , for example, played western swing but also recorded songs that can be called rockabilly . Between 1947 and 1949, country crooner Eddy Arnold placed eight songs in the top 10. From 1945 to 1955 Jenny Lou Carson was one of the most prolific songwriters in country music. In the 1930s and 1940s, cowboy songs, or western music, which had been recorded since
17363-812: The cowboy ballads, New Mexico , Texas country and Tejano music rhythms of the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico , reached its peak in popularity in the late 1950s, most notably with the song " El Paso ", first recorded by Marty Robbins in September 1959. Western music's influence would continue to grow within the country music sphere, western musicians like Michael Martin Murphey , New Mexico music artists Al Hurricane and Antonia Apodaca , Tejano music performer Little Joe , and even folk revivalist John Denver , all first rose to prominence during this time. This western music influence largely kept
17542-826: The door for female artists with her history-making song "I Want To Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart". This would begin a movement toward opportunities for women to have successful solo careers. Bob Wills was another country musician from the Lower Great Plains who had become very popular as the leader of a " hot string band ," and who also appeared in Hollywood westerns . His mix of country and jazz , which started out as dance hall music, would become known as western swing . Cliff Bruner , Moon Mullican , Milton Brown and Adolph Hofner were other early western swing pioneers. Spade Cooley and Tex Williams also had very popular bands and appeared in films. At its height, western swing rivaled
17721-407: The duo had completed their new album prior to the fatal helicopter crash. "Better Me", the lead single, was released on September 15, 2017. In November 2017, the album's title Here's to You was announced, as was its release date of February 2, 2018. Montgomery has confirmed that he will continue the Montgomery Gentry name as a solo act due to Gentry's death and he plans to tour in 2018 in support of
17900-497: The duo was "playing it safe", although he described the singles favorably. The album was certified gold for shipments of 500,000 copies. On August 27, 2002, Montgomery Gentry released My Town . After working with producer Joe Scaife on their first two albums, they switched to Blake Chancey . He allowed them to pick different session musicians than typically used on mainstream country albums, such as Chuck Leavell and Johnny Neel of The Allman Brothers Band , whose "Good Clean Fun"
18079-664: The earliest stars of what would come to be known as country music. His band, the Skillet Lickers , was one of the most innovative and influential string bands of the 1920s and 1930s. Its most notable members were Clayton McMichen (fiddle and vocal), Dan Hornsby (vocals), Riley Puckett (guitar and vocal) and Robert Lee Sweat (guitar). New York City record label Okeh Records began issuing hillbilly music records by Fiddlin' John Carson as early as 1923, followed by Columbia Records (series 15000D "Old Familiar Tunes") ( Samantha Bumgarner ) in 1924, and RCA Victor Records in 1927 with
18258-408: The early 1960s, however, it was rare for a country band not to have a drummer. Bob Wills was one of the first country musicians known to have added an electric guitar to his band, in 1938. A decade later (1948) Arthur Smith achieved top 10 US country chart success with his MGM Records recording of " Guitar Boogie ", which crossed over to the US pop chart, introducing many people to the potential of
18437-613: The early country musicians, such as the yodeler Cliff Carlisle , recorded blues songs into the 1930s. Other important early recording artists were Riley Puckett , Don Richardson , Fiddlin' John Carson , Uncle Dave Macon , Al Hopkins , Ernest V. Stoneman , Blind Alfred Reed , Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers and the Skillet Lickers . The steel guitar entered country music as early as 1922, when Jimmie Tarlton met famed Hawaiian guitarist Frank Ferera on
18616-514: The early eighties: Nelson charted " Always on My Mind " (#5, 1982) and " To All the Girls I've Loved Before " (#5, 1984, a duet with Julio Iglesias ), and Newton achieved success with " Queen of Hearts " (#2, 1981) and " Angel of the Morning " (#4, 1981). Four country songs topped the Billboard Hot 100 in the 1980s: " Lady " by Kenny Rogers , from the late fall of 1980; " 9 to 5 " by Dolly Parton , " I Love
18795-524: The electric guitar. For several decades Nashville session players preferred the warm tones of the Gibson and Gretsch archtop electrics, but a "hot" Fender style, using guitars which became available beginning in the early 1950s, eventually prevailed as the signature guitar sound of country. Country musicians began recording boogie in 1939, shortly after it had been played at Carnegie Hall , when Johnny Barfield recorded "Boogie Woogie". The trickle of what
18974-481: The end of World War II with "mountaineer" string band music known as bluegrass , which emerged when Bill Monroe , along with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs , were introduced by Roy Acuff at the Grand Ole Opry. Gospel music remained a popular component of country music. The Native American , Hispano, and American frontier music of the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico , became popular among poor communities in New Mexico , Oklahoma , and Texas ;
19153-485: The end of 2000, Montgomery Gentry charted at number 38 with a cover of Robert Earl Keen 's " Merry Christmas from the Family ", itself the b-side to "All Night Long". Tattoos & Scars was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2001, for shipments of one million copies. The album received generally positive reviews for the duo's Southern rock influences. Thom Jurek of Allmusic gave it four stars out of five, calling it "one of
19332-420: The final National Transportation Safety Board report was issued, with the accident being primarily attributed to the pilot's "failure to maintain rotor rpm... which resulted in an uncontrolled descent." †Honorary former member; was scheduled to be invited, but died before the invitation was extended Country music Country (also called country and western ) is a music genre originating in
19511-520: The first all-country radio station was established in Lubbock, Texas . The music of the 1960s and 1970s targeted the American working class, and truckers in particular. As country radio became more popular, trucking songs like the 1963 hit song Six Days on the Road by Dave Dudley began to make up their own subgenre of country. These revamped songs sought to portray American truckers as a "new folk hero", marking
19690-406: The first famous pioneers of the genre Jimmie Rodgers , who is widely considered the "Father of Country Music", and the first family of country music the Carter Family . Many "hillbilly" musicians recorded blues songs throughout the 1920s. During the second generation (1930s–1940s), radio became a popular source of entertainment, and "barn dance" shows featuring country music were started all over
19869-446: The first single for Columbia Records' Nashville division to spend more than one week at number 1 since " Daddy's Money " by Ricochet in 1996. "Gone" was also the most-played single by a country music duo in 2005, and it received a digital gold certification for 500,000 certified music downloads . You Do Your Thing became their third platinum-selling album. Scaife, Chancey, Rutherford, Steele, and Mark Wright split production duties on
20048-462: The first week of December to the final week in November. This altered calendar allows for Billboard to calculate year-end charts and release them in time for its final print issue in the last week of December. Before Nielsen SoundScan, year-end singles charts were calculated by an inverse-point system based solely on a song's performance on the Hot 100 (for example, a song would be given one point for
20227-422: The following Saturday, when the printed magazine first reaches newsstands. The weekly tracking period for sales is currently Friday–Thursday, after being changed in July 2015. It was initially Monday–Sunday when Nielsen started tracking sales in 1991. This tracking period also applies to compiling online streaming data. Radio airplay is readily available on a real-time basis, unlike sales figures and streaming, but
20406-413: The following year's chart as well, as their cumulative points are split between the two chart-years, but often are ranked lower than they would have been had the peak occurred in a single year. The Hot 100 served for many years as the data source for the weekly radio countdown show American Top 40 . This relationship ended on November 30, 1991, as American Top 40 started using the airplay-only side of
20585-454: The former crossing over to the US pop charts. Other country boogie artists included Moon Mullican , Merrill Moore and Tennessee Ernie Ford . The hillbilly boogie period lasted into the 1950s and remains one of many subgenres of country into the 21st century. By the end of World War II , "mountaineer" string band music known as bluegrass had emerged when Bill Monroe joined with Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs , introduced by Roy Acuff at
20764-411: The industry lacked her passion for the movement. During the mid-1970s, Dolly Parton , a successful mainstream country artist since the late 1960s, mounted a high-profile campaign to cross over to pop music, culminating in her 1977 hit " Here You Come Again ", which topped the U.S. country singles chart, and also reached No. 3 on the pop singles charts. Parton's male counterpart, Kenny Rogers , came from
20943-690: The industry standard and Billboard discontinued the Best Sellers In Stores chart on October 13, 1958. The Hot 100 was created by journalists Tom Noonan, Paul Ackerman , and Seymour Stein ; Stein did not recall who chose the name. The Billboard Hot 100 is still the standard by which a song's popularity is measured in the United States. The Hot 100 is ranked by radio airplay audience impressions as measured by Nielsen BDS, sales data compiled by Nielsen Soundscan (both at retail and digitally) and streaming activity provided by online music sources. There are several component charts that contribute to
21122-549: The initial blending of the two polar opposite genres, other offspring soon resulted, including Southern rock , heartland rock and in more recent years, alternative country . In the decades that followed, artists such as Juice Newton , Alabama , Hank Williams, Jr. (and, to an even greater extent, Hank Williams III ), Gary Allan , Shania Twain , Brooks & Dunn , Faith Hill , Garth Brooks , Dwight Yoakam , Steve Earle , Dolly Parton , Rosanne Cash and Linda Ronstadt moved country further towards rock influence. In 1980,
21301-406: The late 1950s and 1960s. Songs such as the 1963 Johnny Cash popularized " Ring of Fire " show clear influences from the likes of Al Hurricane and Little Joe , this influence just happened to culminate with artists such as Ray Price (whose band, the "Cherokee Cowboys", included Willie Nelson and Roger Miller ) and mixed with the anger of an alienated subculture of the nation during the period,
21480-407: The late 2000s and early 2010s. Most of the best-selling country songs of this era were those by Lady A , Florida Georgia Line , Carrie Underwood , and Taylor Swift . Hip hop also made its mark on country music with the emergence of country rap . The first commercial recordings of what was considered instrumental music in the traditional country style were " Arkansas Traveler " and " Turkey in
21659-600: The latter part of the western heyday in country music, many of these genres featured popular artists that continue to influence both their distinctive genres and larger country music. Red Dirt featured Bob Childers and Steve Ripley ; for New Mexico music Al Hurricane , Al Hurricane Jr. , and Antonia Apodaca ; and within the Texas scenes Willie Nelson , Freddie Fender , Johnny Rodriguez , and Little Joe . As Outlaw country music emerged as subgenre in its own right, Red Dirt, New Mexico, Texas country, and Tejano grew in popularity as
21838-413: The main purpose of the Hot 100 is to aid those within the music industry: to reflect the popularity of the "product" (the singles, the albums, etc.) and to track the trends of the buying public. Billboard has (many times) changed its methodology and policies to give the most precise and accurate reflection of what is popular. A very basic example of this would be the ratio given to sales and airplay. During
22017-417: The mid-1950s, and reaching its peak during the early 1960s, the Nashville sound turned country music into a multimillion-dollar industry centered in Nashville, Tennessee . Under the direction of producers such as Chet Atkins , Bill Porter , Paul Cohen , Owen Bradley , Bob Ferguson , and later Billy Sherrill , the sound brought country music to a diverse audience and helped revive country as it emerged from
22196-585: The more polished country-pop sound that had been prominent on radio and the charts in favor of more traditional "back-to-basics" production. During the fifth generation (the 1990s), neotraditionalists and stadium country acts prospered. The sixth generation (2000s–present) has seen a certain amount of diversification in regard to country music styles. It has also, however, seen a shift into patriotism and conservative politics since 9/11 , though such themes are less prevalent in more modern trends. The influence of rock music in country has become more overt during
22375-400: The movie O Brother, Where Art Thou? depicts a similar occurrence in the same timeframe. Rodgers fused hillbilly country, gospel, jazz, blues, pop, cowboy, and folk, and many of his best songs were his compositions, including " Blue Yodel ", which sold over a million records and established Rodgers as the premier singer of early country music. Beginning in 1927, and for the next 17 years,
22554-489: The music of the folk revival and folk rock from influencing the country music genre much, despite the similarity in instrumentation and origins (see, for instance, the Byrds ' negative reception during their appearance on the Grand Ole Opry ). The main concern was largely political: most folk revival was largely driven by progressive activists, a stark contrast to the culturally conservative audiences of country music. John Denver
22733-419: The music, it was something that got written in an article, and the young people said, 'Well, that's pretty cool.' And started listening." (Willie Nelson) The term outlaw country is traditionally associated with Willie Nelson , Jerry Jeff Walker , Hank Williams, Jr. , Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings and Joe Ely . It was encapsulated in the 1976 album Wanted! The Outlaws . Though the outlaw movement as
22912-450: The new album. On November 16, Average Joes issued the new compilation 20 Years of Hits , which includes new re-recordings of the duo's biggest hits that were completed before Gentry's death. This was followed in 2019 by the studio album Outskirts , a seven-song compilation recorded a week prior to Gentry's death. Produced by Noah Gordon and Shannon Houchins, the album includes a cover of Merle Haggard 's 1983 hit " What Am I Gonna Do (With
23091-553: The opposite direction, aiming his music at the country charts, after a successful career in pop, rock and folk music with the First Edition , achieving success the same year with " Lucille ", which topped the country charts and reached No. 5 on the U.S. pop singles charts, as well as reaching Number 1 on the British all-genre chart. Parton and Rogers would both continue to have success on both country and pop charts simultaneously, well into
23270-433: The overall calculation of the Hot 100. The most significant ones are: The tracking week for sales, streaming and airplay begins on Friday and ends on Thursday (airplay used to have a tracking week from Monday to Sunday, but effective with the chart dated July 17, 2021, the week was adjusted to align with the other two metrics ). A new chart is compiled and officially released to the public by Billboard on Tuesday. Each chart
23449-584: The pop charts with their records. In 1975, author Paul Hemphill stated in the Saturday Evening Post , "Country music isn't really country anymore; it is a hybrid of nearly every form of popular music in America." During the early 1980s, country artists continued to see their records perform well on the pop charts. Willie Nelson and Juice Newton each had two songs in the top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100 in
23628-614: The popularity of big band swing music. Drums were scorned by early country musicians as being "too loud" and "not pure", but by 1935 western swing big band leader Bob Wills had added drums to the Texas Playboys . In the mid-1940s, the Grand Ole Opry did not want the Playboys' drummer to appear on stage. Although drums were commonly used by rockabilly groups by 1955, the less-conservative-than-the-Grand-Ole-Opry Louisiana Hayride kept its infrequently used drummer backstage as late as 1956. By
23807-485: The popularity of jukeboxes waned and radio stations incorporated more and more rock-oriented music into their playlists. The week of July 28, 1958, had the final Most Played by Jockeys and Top 100 charts, both of which had Perez Prado 's instrumental version of " Patricia " ascending to the top. On August 4, 1958, Billboard premiered one main all-genre singles chart: the Hot 100 , with " Poor Little Fool " by Ricky Nelson its first No. 1. The Hot 100 quickly became
23986-438: The post-war period, country music was called "folk" in the trades, and "hillbilly" within the industry. In 1944, Billboard replaced the term "hillbilly" with "folk songs and blues," and switched to "country and western" in 1949. Another type of stripped-down and raw music with a variety of moods and a basic ensemble of guitar, bass, dobro or steel guitar (and later) drums became popular, especially among rural residents in
24165-436: The pseudonym "Thumper Jones", wanting to capitalize on the popularity of rockabilly without alienating his traditional country base. Cash and Presley placed songs in the top 5 in 1958 with No. 3 "Guess Things Happen That Way/Come In, Stranger" by Cash, and No. 5 by Presley "Don't/I Beg of You." Presley acknowledged the influence of rhythm and blues artists and his style, saying "The colored folk been singin' and playin' it just
24344-408: The same time there was a lack of enthusiasm in the country sector for Nashville-produced music. What resulted was a crossbred genre known as country rock . Fourth generation (1970s–1980s) music included outlaw country with roots in the Bakersfield sound , and country pop with roots in the countrypolitan , folk music and soft rock . Between 1972 and 1975 singer/guitarist John Denver released
24523-410: The second-best-selling album in the US with 29 million copies sold. The Rolling Stones also got into the act with songs like " Dead Flowers "; the original recording of " Honky Tonk Women " was performed in a country style, but it was subsequently re-recorded in a hard rock style for the single version, and the band's preferred country version was later released on the album Let It Bleed , under
24702-465: The senior vice president of sales and marketing at Sony Music Nashville , thought that Carrying On showed an artistic growth over Tattoos & Scars , and the duo itself thought that Carrying On was more "edgy" in comparison. It was less favorably received than its predecessor; William Ruhlmann thought that many of the songs "sound like they're trying to [ sic ] hard to be macho", and Country Standard Time ' s Mike Clark thought that
24881-506: The side that was played most often (based on its other charts) listed first. One of the most notable of these, but far from the only one, was Elvis Presley 's "Don't Be Cruel" / "Hound Dog". During the Presley single's chart run, top billing was switched back and forth between the two sides several times. But on the concurrent "Most Played in Juke Boxes", "Most Played by Jockeys" and the "Top 100",
25060-483: The song peaked at number 7, followed by the two-week number 1 hit " Lucky Man " and the number 3 " What Do Ya Think About That ". In 2008, "Lucky Man" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal , the duo's first Grammy nomination. Some People Change was Montgomery Gentry's lowest-selling album at the time. Joe Galante, then-president of Sony Music Nashville, thought that
25239-837: The sound and spirit of Southern rockers like Lynyrd Skynyrd , the Marshall Tucker Band , and Charlie Daniels, painting themselves as rowdy redneck rebels who still hold small-town values." They cite Daniels, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Hank Williams, Jr. as primary musical influences. Montgomery and Gentry alternated as lead vocalists, with Gentry often accompanying on acoustic guitar . Jurek wrote that "Montgomery's rough hewn baritone and Gentry's almost unreal range and trademark phrasing make something highly original". In his book Country , Richard Carlin describes Montgomery Gentry as "rock[ing] harder than Brooks & Dunn , although their music could be seen as an extension of that successful pair's boot-scootin' sound." He also wrote that Gentry sings with
25418-661: The southern regions of the United States, both the American South and the Southwest . First produced in the 1920s, country music is primarily focused on singing stories about working-class and blue-collar American life. Country music is known for its ballads and dance tunes (i.e., " honky-tonk music ") with simple form, folk lyrics, and harmonies generally accompanied by instruments such as banjos , fiddles , harmonicas , and many types of guitar (including acoustic , electric , steel , and resonator guitars). Though it
25597-404: The style. Beginning in the mid-1950s, and reaching its peak during the early 1960s, the Nashville sound turned country music into a multimillion-dollar industry centered in Nashville, Tennessee ; Patsy Cline and Jim Reeves were two of the most broadly popular Nashville sound artists, and their deaths in separate plane crashes in the early 1960s were a factor in the genre's decline. Starting in
25776-659: The subgenre. Dudley is known as the father of truck driving country. During the mid-1980s, a group of new artists began to emerge who rejected the more polished country-pop sound that had been prominent on radio and the charts, in favor of more, traditional, "back-to-basics" production. Many of the artists during the latter half of the 1980s drew on traditional honky-tonk, bluegrass, folk and western swing. Artists who typified this sound included Travis Tritt , Reba McEntire , George Strait , Keith Whitley , Alan Jackson , John Anderson , Patty Loveless , Kathy Mattea , Randy Travis , Dwight Yoakam , Clint Black , Ricky Skaggs , and
25955-467: The three states of Texhomex , those being Tex as , Okla ho ma , and New Mex ico . It became known as honky tonk and had its roots in western swing and the ranchera music of Mexico and the border states, particularly New Mexico and Texas, together with the blues of the American South. Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys personified this music which has been described as "a little bit of this, and
26134-481: The title "Country Honk". Described by AllMusic as the "father of country-rock", Gram Parsons' work in the early 1970s was acclaimed for its purity and for his appreciation for aspects of traditional country music. Though his career was cut tragically short by his 1973 death, his legacy was carried on by his protégé and duet partner Emmylou Harris ; Harris would release her debut solo in 1975, an amalgamation of country, rock and roll, folk, blues and pop. Subsequent to
26313-475: The track "Didn't I", a cut from the soundtrack to the film We Were Soldiers which was never officially released as a single. The duo promoted the album both on a headline tour sponsored by Jim Beam, and on the Brooks & Dunn Neon Circus & Wild West Tour, which included Toby Keith and Keith Urban . Later in 2002, they toured with Kenny Chesney on his No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems tour. Mike Kraski, then
26492-437: The trucking song subgenre following the success of Six Days on the Road and asked Red Simpson to record an album of trucking songs. Haggard's White Line Fever was also part of the trucking subgenre. The country music scene of the 1940s until the 1970s was largely dominated by western music influences, so much so that the genre began to be called "country and western". Even today, cowboy and frontier values continue to play
26671-428: The two songs were listed separately, as was true of all songs. With the initiation of the Hot 100 in 1958, A- and-B-sides charted separately, as they had on the former Top 100. Starting with the Hot 100 chart for the week ending November 29, 1969, this rule was altered; if both sides received significant airplay, they were listed together. This started to become a moot point by 1972, as most major record labels solidified
26850-405: The way I'm doin' it now, man for more years than I know." Within a few years, many rockabilly musicians returned to a more mainstream style or had defined their own unique style. Country music gained national television exposure through Ozark Jubilee on ABC-TV and radio from 1955 to 1960 from Springfield, Missouri . The program showcased top stars including several rockabilly artists, some from
27029-410: The week ending July 20, 1940, and published in the July 27 issue, with lists covering jukebox play, retail sales, sheet music sales, and radio play. Listed were 10 songs of the national "Best Selling Retail Records", which was the fore-runner of today's pop chart, with " I'll Never Smile Again " by Tommy Dorsey its first number one. Starting on March 24, 1945, Billboard ' s lead popularity chart
27208-473: The year of rockabilly in country music. Rockabilly was an early form of rock and roll , an upbeat combination of blues and country music. The number two, three and four songs on Billboard's charts for that year were Elvis Presley , " Heartbreak Hotel "; Johnny Cash , " I Walk the Line "; and Carl Perkins , " Blue Suede Shoes ". Reflecting this success, George Jones released a rockabilly record that year under
27387-584: Was "introduced to the world as a Southern phenomenon." Migration into the southern Appalachian Mountains , of the Southeastern United States , brought the folk music and instruments of Europe and the Mediterranean Basin along with it for nearly 300 years, which developed into Appalachian music . As the country expanded westward, the Mississippi River and Louisiana became a crossroads for country music, giving rise to Cajun music . In
27566-405: Was a tactic generally used by certain artists to boost their chart positions. Instead, such physical releases are now only counted when they are shipped to the consumer, rendering the tactic "ineffectual". A growing trend early in the first decade of the 21st century was to issue a song as a "remix" that was so drastically different in structure and lyrical content from its original version that it
27745-548: Was accidental. Troy Gentry was born on April 5, 1967, in Lexington, Kentucky, to Patricia and Lloyd Gentry. He had a brother, Keith Gentry, and a sister, Jana Gentry Eckhardt. He graduated from Lexington Community College and attended the University of Kentucky. Gentry married Angie McClure in 1999. They had a child, Kaylee, who was born in November 2002. He also had a child, Taylor, from a previous marriage. In 2004, Gentry purchased
27924-438: Was already an established country star) all recorded significant country hits in the early 1980s. Sales in record stores rocketed to $ 250 million in 1981; by 1984, 900 radio stations began programming country or neocountry pop full-time. As with most sudden trends, however, by 1984 sales had dropped below 1979 figures. Truck-driving country music is a genre of country music and is a fusion of honky-tonk , country rock and
28103-609: Was also Daniels' first appearance in the top 40 since "Mister DJ" in 1990. The duo won the Vocal Duo of the Year award at the Country Music Association Awards in late 2000, the first time in eight years that Brooks & Dunn did not win this award. They also won the Top New Vocal Duo or Group award from the Academy of Country Music and the 2000 Favorite New Artist—Country award at the American Music Awards . By
28282-563: Was an important component of this style. The Nashville Sound collapsed in mainstream popularity in 1964, a victim of both the British Invasion and the deaths of Reeves and Cline in separate airplane crashes. By the mid-1960s, the genre had developed into countrypolitan . Countrypolitan was aimed straight at mainstream markets, and it sold well throughout the later 1960s into the early 1970s. Top artists included Tammy Wynette , Lynn Anderson and Charlie Rich , as well as such former "hard country" artists as Ray Price and Marty Robbins . Despite
28461-593: Was another country musician from the Lower Great Plains who had become very popular as the leader of a " hot string band ," and who also appeared in Hollywood westerns . His mix of country and jazz , which started out as dance hall music, would become known as western swing . Wills was one of the first country musicians known to have added an electric guitar to his band, in 1938. Country musicians began recording boogie in 1939, shortly after it had been played at Carnegie Hall , when Johnny Barfield recorded "Boogie Woogie". The third generation (1950s–1960s) started at
28640-587: Was born September 30, 1963, in Danville , Kentucky. Troy Lee Gentry (April 5, 1967 – September 8, 2017) was born in Lexington , Kentucky. When Montgomery was 13 years old, he played drums in his parents' band, Harold Montgomery and the Kentucky River Express. In 1990, Montgomery founded the band Early Tymz, which included his younger brother, John Michael Montgomery , and Troy Gentry. After Early Tymz disbanded,
28819-427: Was born in Danville , Kentucky, on September 30, 1963, to parents Carol Dean (née Lay) and Harold Edward Montgomery (1941–1994). In November 2010, Eddie Montgomery told Great American Country that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer . The cancer was successfully removed a month later. The same month, his wife, Tracy Nunan Montgomery, announced their divorce, serving him papers at Eddie Montgomery's Steakhouse,
28998-456: Was covered on it. They also chose songs co-written by songwriters who had not appeared on their previous albums, including Jeffrey Steele and Rivers Rutherford . The album produced three singles, all co-written by Steele: the title track and " Speed " both at number 5, and " Hell Yeah " at number 4. Along with Blake Shelton and Andy Griggs , they contributed a guest appearance on Tracy Byrd's mid-2003 single " The Truth About Men ", which made
29177-447: Was essentially a whole new song. Under normal circumstances, airplay points from a song's album version, "radio" mix and/or dance music remix, etc. were all combined and factored into the song's performance on the Hot 100, as the structure, lyrics and melody remained intact. Criticisms began when songs were being completely re-recorded to the point that they no longer resembled the original recording. The first such example of this scenario
29356-467: Was formed in 1999. The duo is known for its Southern rock influences, and has collaborated with Charlie Daniels , Toby Keith , Five for Fighting , and members of The Allman Brothers Band . Montgomery Gentry released six studio albums for Columbia Records ' Nashville division: Tattoos & Scars (1999), Carrying On (2001), My Town (2002), You Do Your Thing (2004), Some People Change (2006), and Back When I Knew It All (2008), and
29535-584: Was initially called hillbilly boogie, or okie boogie (later to be renamed country boogie), became a flood beginning in late 1945. One notable release from this period was the Delmore Brothers ' "Freight Train Boogie", considered to be part of the combined evolution of country music and blues towards rockabilly . In 1948, Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith achieved top ten US country chart success with his MGM Records recordings of " Guitar Boogie " and "Banjo Boogie", with
29714-618: Was issued in January 2009 as the third single. By the middle of the year, this song peaked at number 5. The fourth single, the number 23 " Long Line of Losers ", was co-written and previously recorded by Kevin Fowler . Toby Keith , with whom Montgomery Gentry toured in mid-2008, contributed a guest vocal on the Terri Clark co-write "I Pick My Parties", and Lillie Mae Rische of Jypsi made an appearance on "God Knows Who I Am". Thom Jurek wrote of this album, "The hardcore fans will love it, but this isn't
29893-471: Was issued in mid-2004. It was led off by " If You Ever Stop Loving Me ", which in mid-2004 became Montgomery Gentry's first number 1 single on the country charts. It was also their biggest hit on the Hot 100, reaching number 30 there. Following it, the album's title track went to number 22 on the country charts, while " Gone " peaked at number 3 and " Something to Be Proud Of " became their second number 1 single. The song spent two weeks at number 1, thus making it
30072-634: Was known as the Bakersfield sound . It relied on electric instruments and amplification, in particular the Telecaster electric guitar, more than other subgenres of the country music of the era, and it can be described as having a sharp, hard, driving, no-frills, edgy flavor—hard guitars and honky-tonk harmonies. Leading practitioners of this style were Buck Owens , Merle Haggard , Tommy Collins , Dwight Yoakam , Gary Allan , and Wynn Stewart , each of whom had his own style. Ken Nelson , who had produced Owens and Haggard and Rose Maddox became interested in
30251-536: Was most popular with country fans in the 1950s; one of the first rock and roll superstars was former western yodeler Bill Haley , who repurposed his Four Aces of Western Swing into a rock and roll band in the early 1950s and renamed it the Comets . Bill Haley & His Comets are credited with two of the first successful rock and roll records, " Crazy Man, Crazy " of 1953 and " Rock Around the Clock " in 1954. 1956 could be called
30430-413: Was perhaps the only musician to have major success in both the country and folk revival genres throughout his career, later only a handful of artists like Burl Ives and Canadian musician Gordon Lightfoot successfully made the crossover to country after folk revival fell out of fashion. During the mid-1950s a new style of country music became popular, eventually to be referred to as rockabilly. In 1953,
30609-540: Was previously recorded by Kenny Chesney on his 2004 album When the Sun Goes Down . Gentry told the Edmonton Sun that Some People Change "is based more on family issues, the love of the family, the love of neighbors, relationships", and said that the title track "is about being able to challenge your inner demons and the things that can bring people down, alcoholism, or hatred or racism." Montgomery Gentry's version of
30788-403: Was released in mid-2001. Lead-off single " She Couldn't Change Me " peaked at number 2 on the country charts and number 37 on the Hot 100, making their first Top 40 entry there. The album's only other single, "Cold One Comin' On", reached number 23 on the country charts. Also included on the album was a cover of Waylon Jennings ' " I'm a Ramblin' Man ". In March 2002, they charted at number 45 with
30967-456: Was the Best Sellers in Stores chart, and the magazine refers to that when discussing a song's performance before the creation of the Hot 100. In its issue of November 12, 1955, Billboard published The Top 100 for the first time (for the survey weeks ending October 26 and November 2). The Top 100 combined all aspects of a single's performance (sales, airplay and jukebox activity), based on
31146-506: Was the Honor Roll of Hits . This chart ranked the most popular songs regardless of performer (it combined different versions of the same song by different artists) based on record and sheet sales, disk jockey, and jukebox performances as determined by Billboard ' s weekly nationwide survey. At the start of the rock era in 1955, there were three charts that measured songs by individual metrics: Billboard ' s primary chart among these
31325-574: Was the first to revert to country music with his 1967 album John Wesley Harding (and even more so with that album's follow-up, Nashville Skyline ), followed by Gene Clark , Clark's former band the Byrds (with Gram Parsons on Sweetheart of the Rodeo ) and its spin-off the Flying Burrito Brothers (also featuring Gram Parsons), guitarist Clarence White , Michael Nesmith ( the Monkees and
31504-576: Was the most-listened-to rush-hour radio genre during the evening commute, and second-most popular in the morning commute. The main components of the modern country music style date back to music traditions throughout the Southern United States and Southwestern United States , while its place in American popular music was established in the 1920s during the early days of music recording. According to country historian Bill C. Malone , country music
31683-476: Was the top 20 " Daddy Won't Sell the Farm ", which won its co-writer, Canadian country singer Steve Fox , the 2000 Society of Composers, Authors, and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) award for Song of the Year. After it, Montgomery Gentry charted the number 31 singles "Self Made Man" and "All Night Long". The latter, which featured guest vocals from Charlie Daniels , was previously the b-side to "Hillbilly Shoes". It
31862-452: Was the top-charting country artist of the 1950s, with 13 of his singles spending 113 weeks at number one. He charted 48 singles during the decade; 31 reached the top ten and 26 reached the top four. By the early 1950s, a blend of western swing, country boogie, and honky tonk was played by most country bands, a mixture which followed in the footsteps of Gene Autry , Lydia Mendoza , Roy Rogers , and Patsy Montana . Western music, influenced by
32041-602: Was then incorporated into the equation that compiles the Hot 100, and this was expanded to a broader Streaming Songs chart in January 2013. In February 2013, U.S. views for a song on YouTube were added to the Hot 100 formula. " Harlem Shake " was the first song to reach number one after the changes were made. In July 2020, Billboard announced that they would no longer allow sales of physical/digital bundles to be reported as digital sales. This refers to songs being bought along with merchandise , either from an artists website or through another vendor. The magazine stated that this
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