List of Hot Country Albums number ones of 1966

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Eddy Arnold had three chart-topping albums in 1966. Eddy Arnold 1964.JPG
Eddy Arnold had three chart-topping albums in 1966.

Top Country Albums is a chart that ranks the top-performing country music albums in the United States, published by Billboard . In 1966, 17 different albums topped the chart, which was at the time published under the title Hot Country Albums, based on sales reports submitted by a representative sample of stores nationwide. [1]

In the issue of Billboard dated January 1, Connie Smith was at number one with Cute 'n' Country , the album's second week in the top spot. [2] The following week it was displaced from the top spot by My World by Eddy Arnold, which spent eleven consecutive weeks atop the chart, the year's longest unbroken run in the top spot. Arnold would return to number one for two weeks in April with I Want to Go with You and for a single week in September with The Last Word in Lonesome. Buck Owens and his Buckaroos also achieved three chart-toppers during the year, spending a total of 15 weeks in the top spot with Roll Out the Red Carpet for Buck Owens and his Buckaroos , Dust on Mother's Bible and the live recording Carnegie Hall Concert . Between late 1965 and early 1968 Owens and his band placed 12 albums on the chart, only one of which failed to reach number one, however after that the group never topped the chart again. [3] The only artist other than Arnold and Owens to achieve more than one chart-topping album in 1966 was Connie Smith, who returned to the top spot for a single week in December with Born to Sing , which would prove to be her final number-one album. [4]

Four singers who would go on to become amongst the most successful in country music history gained their first number-one albums in the second half of 1966. In August George Jones reached the top spot for the first time with I'm a People , [5] and in November You Ain't Woman Enough was the first chart-topper for Loretta Lynn. [6] In December Merle Haggard, along with his long-time backing band the Strangers, reached the top spot for the first time with Swinging Doors/The Bottle Let Me Down , [7] and Sonny James did the same with the compilation album The Best of Sonny James. [8] Jones, despite many problems in his personal life, accrued more than 150 hit singles and was acclaimed as the greatest vocalist in country music. [9] [10] Haggard achieved nearly 40 number ones on the country singles chart and has been called one of the genre's greatest songwriters. [11] [12] Lynn, who experienced success in six decades and was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2018 at the age of 86, [13] is regarded as one of the most influential female artists in country music and has been dubbed the "first lady of country". [14] James would achieve a string of number ones in the late 1960s and early 1970s and remain successful until he opted to retire from the music industry in 1983. [15] All four have been inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in recognition of their contributions to the genre. [16] [17] [18] [19]

Chart history

Loretta Lynn had her first number one with You Ain't Woman Enough. Loretta Lynn 1975 on tour.jpg
Loretta Lynn had her first number one with You Ain't Woman Enough .
Merle Haggard was another first-time chart-topper in 1966. Merle Haggard in 1971.jpg
Merle Haggard was another first-time chart-topper in 1966.
I'm a People was a number-one album for George Jones. George Jones.jpg
I'm a People was a number-one album for George Jones.
David Houston spent a single week at number one with Almost Persuaded, named for his number-one single of the same title. David Houston (1965).png
David Houston spent a single week at number one with Almost Persuaded, named for his number-one single of the same title.
Issue dateTitleArtist(s)Ref.
January 1 Cute 'n' Country Connie Smith [2]
January 8My World Eddy Arnold [20]
January 15 [21]
January 22 [22]
January 29 [23]
February 5 [24]
February 12 [25]
February 19 [26]
February 26 [27]
March 5 [28]
March 12 [29]
March 19 [30]
March 26Ballad of the Green BeretsSsgt Barry Sadler [31]
April 2 [32]
April 9 Roll Out the Red Carpet for Buck Owens and his Buckaroos Buck Owens and his Buckaroos [33]
April 16 [34]
April 23 I Want to Go with You Eddy Arnold [35]
April 30 [36]
May 7 Roll Out the Red Carpet for Buck Owens and his Buckaroos Buck Owens and his Buckaroos [37]
May 14 [38]
May 21 [39]
May 28 [40]
June 4 [41]
June 11 [42]
June 18Distant Drums Jim Reeves [43]
June 25 [44]
July 2 [45]
July 9 [46]
July 16 [47]
July 23 [48]
July 30 [49]
August 6 I'm a People George Jones [50]
August 13 [51]
August 20 Dust on Mother's Bible Buck Owens and his Buckaroos [52]
August 27 [53]
September 3The Last Word in Lonesome Eddy Arnold [54]
September 10 Carnegie Hall Concert Buck Owens and his Buckaroos [55]
September 17 [56]
September 24 [57]
October 1 [58]
October 8Almost Persuaded David Houston [59]
October 15I Love You Drops Bill Anderson [60]
October 22 [61]
October 29 Carnegie Hall Concert Buck Owens and his Buckaroos [62]
November 5Another Bridge to Burn Ray Price [63]
November 12 You Ain't Woman Enough Loretta Lynn [64]
November 19 [65]
November 26Another Bridge to Burn Ray Price [66]
December 3 Born to Sing Connie Smith [67]
December 10 Swinging Doors/The Bottle Let Me Down Merle Haggard and the Strangers [68]
December 17 [69]
December 24The Best of Sonny James Sonny James [70]
December 31 [71]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Top Country Albums</span> Weekly country music rankings published by Billboard magazine in the United States

Top Country Albums is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. The 50-position chart lists the most popular country music albums in the country, calculated weekly by Broadcast Data Systems based on physical sales along with digital sales and streaming. The chart was first published in the issue of Billboard dated January 11, 1964, under the title Hot Country Albums, when the number one album was Ring of Fire: The Best of Johnny Cash by Johnny Cash.

References

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  4. Whitburn, Joel (2008). Joel Whitburn Presents Hot Country Albums: Billboard 1964 to 2007. Record Research, Incorporated. p. 231. ISBN   9780898201734.
  5. Whitburn, Joel (2008). Joel Whitburn Presents Hot Country Albums: Billboard 1964 to 2007. Record Research, Incorporated. p. 128. ISBN   9780898201734.
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  8. Whitburn, Joel (2008). Joel Whitburn Presents Hot Country Albums: Billboard 1964 to 2007. Record Research, Incorporated. p. 122. ISBN   9780898201734.
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