1990 in country music

See also:
1989 in country music, 1990 in music, other events of 1990, 1991 in country music, 1990s in music and the List of years in Country Music

Events

* January 20 – Billboard magazine begins basing the Hot Country Singles chart entirely on radio airplay through Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems (BDS), which uses a computerized system to detect actual airplay. The number of chart positions is reduced from 100 to 75. The new system has an immediate effect on how long the year's biggest songs stay at No. 1:
** February 3 – "Nobody's Home" by Clint Black becomes the first three-week No. 1 since Randy Travis' "Forever and Ever, Amen" in 1987.
** April 7 – Travis' "Hard Rock Bottom Of Your Heart" breaks the four-week barrier, the first since 1978's "Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys" by Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson.
** July 7 – "Love Without End, Amen" by George Strait is "Billboard"'s first five-week No. 1 song, matching 1977's "Here You Come Again" by Dolly Parton. Incidentally, "Love Without End, Amen" is Strait's first multi-week chart-topper, after his first 18 No. 1s had spent just a week on top.: Just 23 songs would reach the chart's summit in 1990, 13 of them multi-weekers; this was less than half the number that reached the top of the chart a year earlier, and the fewest since 1972.
* February 17 – Billboard's Hot Country Singles chart is retitled "Hot Country Singles & Tracks," reflecting the growing number of radio-popular songs that were not released commercially as singles.

No dates

*The Smithsonian Institution releases "", a 100-track, four-volume set including the most important and notable songs in the genre's history, from 1924 to 1987. The set, which includes an 84-page booklet by historian Bill Malone, replaces the Smithsonian's eight-volume, 143-track set – titled "The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Country Music" – issued in 1981.: The release of "Classic Country Music: A Smithsonian Collection" continues a trend toward issuing chronicling the genre's history via compact disc during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Time-Life Music's "Country USA" series continued to issue new albums, while Columbia Records issues its five-volume "Country Classics" series during the summer. Rhino Records also releases ten volumes of "Billboard Top Country Singles", each depicting the top 10 songs from the years 1959 through 1968.

Top hits of the year

Number one hits

"(as certified by Billboard magazine)"

*¹ - No. 1 song of the year, as determined by "Billboard magazine".
*^A - First "Billboard" No. 1 hit for that artist.
*^B - Last "Billboard" No. 1 hit for that artist to date.

Other major hits

* "Ain't Necessarily So" — Willie Nelson (#17)
* "Ain't Nobody's Business" — Hank Williams, Jr. (#15)
* "American Boy" — Eddie Rabbitt (#11)
* "Back in My Younger Days" — Don Williams (#2)
* "Back Where I Come From" — Mac McAnally (#14)
* "The Battle Hymn of Love" — Kathy Mattea with Tim O'Brien (#9)
* "Black Coffee" — Lacy J. Dalton (#15)
* "Black Velvet" — Robin Lee (#12)
* "Born to Be Blue" — The Judds (#5)
* "Bring Back Your Love to Me" — Earl Thomas Conley (#11)
* "Chasin' That Neon Rainbow" — Alan Jackson (#2)
* "Crazy in Love" — Conway Twitty (#2)
* "Dancy's Dream" — Restless Heart (#5)
* "The Domino Theory" — Steve Wariner (#7)
* "Don't Go Out" — Tanya Tucker with T. Graham Brown (#6)
* "Drinking Champagne" — George Strait (#4)
* "Dumas Walker" — The Kentucky Headhunters (#15)
* "(Every Now and Then There's) A Fool Such As I" — Baillie & the Boys (#5)
* "Fast Movin' Train" — Restless Heart (#4)
* "Feed This Fire" — Anne Murray (#5)
* "A Few Ole Country Boys" — Randy Travis with George Jones (#8)
* "Fourteen Minutes Old" — Doug Stone (#6)
* "Ghost in This House" — Shenandoah (#5)
* "Good Friends, Good Whiskey, Good Lovin'" — Hank Williams, Jr. (#10)
* "Guardian Angels" — The Judds (#16)
* "He Talks to Me" — Lorrie Morgan (#4)
* "He Walked on Water" — Randy Travis (#2)
* "He Was on to Something (So He Made You)" — Ricky Skaggs (#25)
* "Heartbreak Hurricane" — Ricky Skaggs (#13)
* "Here in the Real World" — Alan Jackson (#3)
* "Hillbilly Rock" — Marty Stuart (#8)
* "Holdin' a Good Hand" — Lee Greenwood (#2)
* "Honky Tonk Blues" — Pirates of the Mississippi (#26)
* "Hummingbird" — Ricky Skaggs (#20)
* "I Can't Turn the Tide" — Baillie & the Boys (#9)
* "I Could Be Persuaded" — The Bellamy Brothers (#7)
* "I Fell in Love" — Carlene Carter (#3)
* "I Meant Every Word He Said" — Ricky Van Shelton (#2)
* "I Watched It All (On My Radio)" — Lionel Cartwright (#8)
* "I'd Be Better Off (In a Pine Box)" — Doug Stone (#4)
* "I'm Gonna Be Somebody" — Travis Tritt (#2)
* "I'm Over You" — Keith Whitley (#3)
* "If Looks Could Kill" — Rodney Crowell (#6)
* "If You Could Only See Me Now" — T. Graham Brown (#6)
* "If You Want to Be My Woman" — Merle Haggard (#23)
* "If Your Heart Should Ever Roll This Way Again" — Jo-El Sonnier (#24)
* "In Another Lifetime" — Desert Rose Band (#13)
* "In My Eyes" — Lionel Cartwright (#12)
* "Island" — Eddy Raven (#10)
* "It's You Again" — Skip Ewing (#5)
* "Just as Long as I Have You" — Don Williams (#4)
* "Keep It in the Middle of the Road" — Exile (#17)
* "Leave It Alone" — The Forester Sisters (#7)
* "Little Girl" — Reba McEntire (#7)
* "Love Is Strange" — Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton (#21)
* "Many a Long and Lonesome Highway" — Rodney Crowell (#3)
* "Maybe" — Kenny Rogers and Holly Dunn (#25)
* "Maybe That's All It Takes" — Don Williams (#22)
* "Moonshadow Road" — T. Graham Brown (#18)
* "My Arms Stay Open All Night" — Tanya Tucker (#2)
* "My Heart Is Set on You" — Lionel Cartwright (#7)
* "My Past Is Present" — Rodney Crowell (#22)
* "Never Knew Lonely" — Vince Gill (#3)
* "The Night's Too Long" — Patty Loveless (#20)
* "Nobody's Talking" — Exile (#2)
* "Not Counting You" — Garth Brooks (#2)
* "Nothing's News" — Clint Black (#3)
* "Oh Lonesome Me" — The Kentucky Headhunters (#8)
* "Oklahoma Swing" — Vince Gill and Reba McEntire (#13)
* "On Down the Line" — Patty Loveless (#5)
* "One Man Woman" — The Judds (#8)
* "Overnight Success" — George Strait (#8)
* "Pass It on Down" — Alabama (#3)
* "Perfect" — Baillie & the Boys (#23)
* "Precious Thing" — Steve Wariner (#8)
* "Put Yourself in My Shoes" — Clint Black (#4)
* "Quittin' Time" — Mary Chapin Carpenter (#7)
* "Richest Man on Earth" — Paul Overstreet (#3)
* "Right in the Wrong Direction" — Vern Gosdin (#10)
* "Rock 'N' Roll Angel" — The Kentucky Headhunters (#23)
* "Runnin' with the Wind" — Eddie Rabbitt (#8)
* "Searchin' for Some Kind of Clue" — Billy Joe Royal (#17)
* "See If I Care" — Shenandoah (#6)
* "Seein' My Father in Me" — Paul Overstreet (#2)
* "She Came from Fort Worth" — Kathy Mattea (#2)
* "Silver Stallion" — The Highwaymen (#25)
* "Someone Else's Trouble Now" — Highway 101 (#14)
* "Something of a Dreamer" — Mary Chapin Carpenter (#14)
* "Sooner or Later" — Eddy Raven (#6)
* "Start All Over Again" — Desert Rose Band (#6)
* "Statue of a Fool" — Ricky Van Shelton (#2)
* "Story of Love" — Desert Rose Band (#10)
* "Stranger Things Have Happened" — Ronnie Milsap (#2)
* "Tell Me Why" — Jann Browne (#18)
* "That Just About Does It" — Vern Gosdin (#4)
* "There You Are" — Willie Nelson (#8)
* "This Ain't My First Rodeo" — Vern Gosdin (#14)
* "This Heart" — Sweethearts of the Rodeo (#25)
* "This Side of Goodbye" — Highway 101 (#11)
* "'Til a Tear Becomes a Rose" — Keith Whitley and Lorrie Morgan (#13)
* "'Til I Can't Take It Anymore" — Billy Joe Royal (#2)
* "Too Cold at Home" — Mark Chesnutt (#3)
* "Unchained Melody" — Ronnie McDowell (#26)
* "Walk On" — Reba McEntire (#2)
* "Walkin', Talkin', Cryin', Barely Beatin', Broken Heart" — Highway 101 (#4)
* "Walking Shoes" — Tanya Tucker (#3)
* "Wanted" — Alan Jackson (#3)
* "Western Girls" — Marty Stuart (#20)
* "When I Call Your Name" — Vince Gill (#2)
* "When I Could Come Home to You" — Steve Wariner (#5)
* "When It's Gone" — Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (#10)
* "When Somebody Loves You" — Restless Heart (#21)
* "Where've You Been" — Kathy Mattea (#10)
* "Wrong" — Waylon Jennings (#5)
* "Yet" — Exile (#7)

Top new album releases

*"America (The Way I See It)" — Hank Williams, Jr. (Curb/Warner Bros.)
*"A Collection of Hits" — Kathy Mattea (Mercury)
*"Country Club" — Travis Tritt (Warner Bros.)
*"Doug Stone" — Doug Stone (Epic)
*"Duets" — Emmylou Harris (Warner Bros.)
*"The Eagle" — Waylon Jennings (RCA)
*"Extra Mile" — Shenandoah (Epic)
*"Fast Movin' Train" — Restless Heart (RCA)
*"Greatest Hits" — Highway 101 (Warner Bros.)
*"Greatest Hits" — Sawyer Brown (Capitol/Curb)
*"Greatest Hits" — Keith Whitley (RCA)
*"Greatest Hits Volume II" — Earl Thomas Conley (RCA)
*"Here in the Real World" — Alan Jackson (Arista)
*"Heroes & Friends" — Randy Travis (Warner Bros.)
*"Highwayman 2" — The Highwaymen (Columbia)
*"I Fell in Love" — Carlene Carter (Reprise)
*"I Watched It All on the Radio" — Lionel Cartwright (MCA)
*"If There Was a Way" — Dwight Yoakam (Reprise)
*"Interiors" — Rosanne Cash (Columbia)
*"Laredo" — Steve Wariner (MCA)
*"Livin' It Up" — George Strait (MCA)
*"Lone Wolf" — Hank Williams, Jr. (Curb/Warner Bros.)
*"Love Can Build a Bridge" — The Judds (RCA)
*"Love in a Small Town" — K. T. Oslin (RCA)
*"No Fences" — Garth Brooks (Capitol)
*"On Arrival" — Dan Seals (Capitol)
*"On Down the Line" — Patty Loveless (MCA)
*"Pages of Life" — Desert Rose Band (Curb/MCA)
*"Pass It on Down" — Alabama (RCA)
*"Pirates of the Mississippi" — Pirates of the Mississippi (Capitol)
*"Put Yourself in My Shoes" — Clint Black (RCA)
*"Rumor Has It" — Reba McEntire (MCA)
*"RVS III" — Ricky Van Shelton (Columbia)
*"Shooting Straight in the Dark" — Mary Chapin Carpenter (Columbia)
*"Tennessee Woman" — Tanya Tucker (Capitol)
*"A Thousand Winding Roads" — Joe Diffie (Epic)
*"Too Cold at Home" — Mark Chesnutt (MCA)

Other top albums

*"10 Years of Greatest Hits" — Vern Gosdin (Columbia)
*"Billboard Top Country Hits" — Various Artists (Rhino)
*"Black Velvet" — Robin Lee (Atlantic)
*"Blue Jungle" — Merle Haggard (Curb)
*"Born for Trouble" — Willie Nelson (Columbia)
*"Brand New Dance" — Emmylou Harris (Reprise)
*"Breaking New Ground" — Wild Rose (Capitol)
*"Buffalo Zone" — Sweethearts of the Rodeo (Columbia)
*"Bumper to Bumper" — T. Graham Brown (Capitol)
*"" — Various Artists (BMG/Smithsonian)
*"Columbia Country Classics" — Various Artists (Columbia)
*"Come Hold Me" — The Forester Sisters (Warner Bros.)
*"County Line" — Southern Pacific (Warner Bros.)
*"Cowboy Songs" — Michael Martin Murphey (Warner Bros.)
*"Crazy in Love" — Conway Twitty (MCA)
*"Different Kind of Fire" — Prairie Oyster (RCA)
*"Down That River Road" — Larry Boone (Mercury)
*"Greatest Hits, Vol. III" — Conway Twitty (MCA)
*"Hardin County Line" — Mark Collie (MCA)
*"Have a Little Faith" — Jo-El Sonnier (RCA)
*"Heart Full of Love" — Holly Dunn (Warner Bros.)
*"Heart Over Mind" — Tammy Wynette (Epic)
*"Holdin' a Good Hand" — Lee Greenwood (Capitol)
*"Home for Christmas" — Dolly Parton (Columbia)
*"How 'bout Us" — Girls Next Door (Atlantic)
*"Imagine That" — The O'Kanes (Columbia)
*"Jersey Boy" — Eddie Rabbitt (Capitol)
*"Keepin' Me Up Nights" — Asleep at the Wheel (Arista)
*"Kevin Welch" — Kevin Welch (Reprise)
*"Lacy J." — Lacy J. Dalton (Capitol)
*"The Lights of Home" — Baillie & the Boys (RCA)
*"Live at Liberty Lunch" — Joe Ely (MCA)
*"Lying to the Moon" — Matraca Berg (RCA)
*"Marsha Thornton" — Marsha Thornton (MCA)
*"Missing You" — The Marcy Brothers (Warner Bros.)
*"Music, Memories and You" — The Statler Brothers (Mercury)
*"Neck and Neck" — Chet Atkins & Mark Knopfler (Columbia)
*"No Nonsense" — Barbara Mandrell (Capitol)
*"Out of the Shadows" — Billy Joe Royal (Atlantic)
*"Reality Check" — The Bellamy Brothers (MCA)
*"The Rest of the Dream" — Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (MCA)
*"Simple Life" — Mac McAnally (Warner Bros.)
*"Still Standing" — Exile (Arista)
*"Stone by Stone" — Tim Mensy (Columbia)
*"Tell Me Why" — Jann Browne (Curb)
*"Texas Tornados" — Texas Tornados (Reprise)
*"Tim Ryan" — Tim Ryan (Epic)
*"Tough All Over" — Shelby Lynne (Epic)
*"True Love" — Don Williams (RCA)
*"Version of the Truth" — Foster & Lloyd (RCA)
*"Well Travelled Love" — Kelly Willis (MCA)
*"What a Way to Go" — Ray Kennedy (Atlantic)
*"Wood, Wind and Stone" — David Lynn Jones (Mercury)
*"You Oughta Be Here with Me" — George Jones (Epic)
*"You Will" — Anne Murray (Capitol)

On television

Regular series

* "Hee Haw" (1969-1993, syndicated)

pecials

Deaths

* August 15 – Lew DeWitt, 52, tenor and founding member of the Statler Brothers (complications from Crohn's disease)

Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees

*Tennessee Ernie Ford (1919–1991)

Major Awards

Grammy awards

*Best Female Country Vocal Performance -- "Where've You Been," Kathy Mattea
*Best Male Country Vocal Performance -- "When I Call Your Name," Vince Gill
*Best Country Vocal Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal -- "Pickin' on Nashville", The Kentucky Headhunters
*Best Country Collaboration With Vocals -- "Poor Boy Blues," Chet Atkins and Mark Knopfler
*Best Country Instrumental Performance -- "So Soft, Your Goodbye," Chet Atkins and Mark Knopfler
*Best Country Song -- "Where've You Been," Don Henry and Jon Vesner
*Best Bluegrass Recording -- "I've Got That Old Feeling," Alison Krauss

Academy of Country Music

*Entertainer Of The Year -- Garth Brooks
*Song Of The Year -- "The Dance," Tony Arata (Performer: Garth Brooks)
*Single Of The Year -- "Friends in Low Places," Garth Brooks
*Album Of The Year -- "No Fences", Garth Brooks
*Top Male Vocalist -- Garth Brooks
*Top Female Vocalist -- Reba McEntire
*Top Vocal Duo -- The Judds
*Top Vocal Group -- Shenandoah
*Top New Male Vocalist -- Alan Jackson
*Top New Female Vocalist -- Shelby Lynne
*Top New Vocal Duo Or Group -- Pirates of the Mississippi
*Video Of The Year -- "The Dance," Garth Brooks (Director: John Lloyd Miller)

Country Music Association

*Entertainer of the Year -- George Strait
*Song of the Year -- "Where've You Been," Don Henry and Jon Vezner (Performer: Kathy Mattea)
*Single of the Year -- "When I Call Your Name," Vince Gill
*Album of the Year -- "Pickin' on Nashville", The Kentucky Headhunters
*Male Vocalist of the Year -- Clint Black
*Female Vocalist of the Year -- Kathy Mattea
*Vocal Duo of the Year -- The Judds
*Vocal Group of the Year -- The Kentucky Headhunters
*Horizon Award -- Garth Brooks
*Music Video of the Year -- "The Dance," Garth Brooks (Director: John Lloyd Miller)
*Vocal Event of the Year -- Lorrie Morgan and Keith Whitley
*Musician of the Year -- Johnny Gimble

Further reading

*Kingsbury, Paul, "The Grand Ole Opry: History of Country Music. 70 Years of the Songs, the Stars and the Stories," Villard Books, Random House; Opryland USA, 1995
*Kingsbury, Paul, "Vinyl Hayride: Country Music Album Covers 1947-1989," Country Music Foundation, 2003 (ISBN 0-8118-3572-3)
*Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 (ISBN 0-06-273244-7)
*Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs 1944-2005 - 6th Edition." 2005.

Other links

*Country Music Association
*Inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame

External links

* [http://www.cmaawards.com/2004/hof/default.asp Country Music Hall of Fame]