Hiram "Hank" Williams was an American singer-songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century. Williams recorded 55 singles that reached the top 10 of the Billboard Country & Western Best Sellers chart, five of which were released posthumously, and 12 of which reached No.1.
"Elvis has left the building" is a phrase that was often used by public address announcers at the conclusion of Elvis Presley concerts in order to disperse audiences who lingered in hopes of an encore. It has since become a catchphrase and punchline.
Douglas James Kershaw is an American fiddle player, singer and songwriter from Louisiana. Active since 1948, he began his career as part of the duo Rusty and Doug, along with his brother, Rusty Kershaw. He had an extensive solo career that included fifteen albums and singles that charted on the Hot Country Songs charts. He is also a member of the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame, being inducted in 2009.
Michael Webb Pierce was an American honky-tonk vocalist, songwriter and guitarist of the 1950s, one of the most popular of the genre, charting more number one hits than any other country artist during the decade.
Floyd Cramer was an American pianist who became famous for his use of melodic "half step" attacks. He was inducted into both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. His signature playing style was a cornerstone of the pop-oriented "Nashville sound" of the 1950s and 1960s. Cramer's "slip-note" or "bent-note" style, in which a passing note slides almost instantly into or away from a chordal note, influenced a generation of pianists. His sound became popular to the degree that he stepped out of his role as a sideman and began touring as a solo act. In 1960, his piano instrumental solo, "Last Date" went to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 pop music chart and sold over one million copies. Its follow-up, "On the Rebound", topped the UK Singles Chart in 1961. As a studio musician, he became one of a cadre of elite players dubbed the Nashville A-Team and he performed on scores of hit records.
Claude King was an American country music singer and songwriter, best known for his million selling 1962 hit, "Wolverton Mountain".
Tillman Ben Franks, Sr., was an American bassist and songwriter and the manager for a number of country music artists including Johnny Horton, David Houston, Webb Pierce, Claude King, and the Carlisles.
"Jambalaya (On the Bayou)" is a song written and recorded by American country music singer Hank Williams that was first released in July 1952. It is Williams' most recorded song. Named for a Creole and Cajun dish, jambalaya, it spawned numerous recordings and has since achieved popularity in several different music genres.
Woodrow Wilson "Red" Sovine was an American country music singer and songwriter associated with truck driving songs, particularly those recited as narratives but set to music. His most noted examples are "Giddyup Go" (1965) and "Teddy Bear" (1976), both of which topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1954.
Leon Roger Payne, "the Blind Balladeer", was an American country music singer and songwriter.
Cherry Springs Dance Hall, was one of the oldest and most historic dance halls in Texas. It was located at 17662 North U.S. Highway 87, Cherry Springs, TX 78624. The Texas farming community of Cherry Spring is 16 miles (26 km) NW of Fredericksburg, Texas, in Gillespie County's portion of the Texas Hill Country. The dance hall was established along the old Pinta Trail in 1889 as a stop for cattle drives. It was originally run by Herman Lehmann, son of German immigrants, Apache captive and adopted son of Comanche chief Quanah Parker.
KWKH is a sports radio station serving Shreveport, Louisiana. The 50-kilowatt station broadcasts at 1130 kHz. Formerly owned by Clear Channel Communications and Gap Central Broadcasting, it is now owned by Townsquare Media. Its studios are shared with its other five sister stations on Westport Avenue in West Shreveport, and the transmitter is a three-tower array in Belcher, Louisiana.
Jerry Glenn Kennedy is an American record producer, songwriter and guitar player.
Andrew Jackson "Jack" Rhodes was an American country music producer and songwriter, with songwriting credits on over 625 released songs. Several of his songs became hit records, including "A Satisfied Mind", "Silver Threads and Golden Needles", "Conscience I'm Guilty", "The Waltz of the Angels", "Beautiful Lies", and "Till the Last Leaf Shall Fall". Inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame posthumously in 1972, he was more recently celebrated as one of the founding fathers of rockabilly, having written for Gene Vincent and Capitol Records. He was inducted into the Rockabilly Hall of Fame in 2009. Jack Rhodes memorabilia is on exhibit at the Mineola Historical Museum in Mineola, Texas and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in Nashville.
Shreveport Municipal Memorial Auditorium is a historic performance and meeting venue at 705 Elvis Presley Boulevard in Shreveport, Louisiana. It is an Art Deco building constructed between 1926 and 1929 during the administration of Mayor Lee Emmett Thomas as a memorial to the servicemen of World War I. In 1991, the auditorium was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and on October 6, 2008, it was designated a National Historic Landmark.
The Blue Moon Boys were an American rock and roll band that was formed by Elvis Presley, lead guitarist Scotty Moore and double bass player Bill Black. The group members were introduced by Sun Studio owner Sam Phillips in 1954, except for D.J. Fontana, who joined the group during a Louisiana Hayride tour in 1955. The Blue Moon Boys were inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2007. The band was named after Bill Monroe's song "Blue Moon of Kentucky".
"Blue Love (In My Heart)" is a song written by Fred Rose (credited under the pseudonym "Floyd Jenkins") and recorded by Hank Williams. It was released as a posthumous single by MGM Records in 1956. Williams recorded the song while living in Shreveport working the Louisiana Hayride in 1948 and 1949. It was one of his several Rose compositions he performed on the Johnny Fair Syrup radio show on KWKH in Shreveport. Rose produced Hank's records and published his songs through his company Acuff-Rose.
Horace Lee Logan, Jr., known as Hoss Logan, was the program director for the Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport, Louisiana, which showcased country music singing stars in the 1950s. He originated the catch-phrase "Elvis has left the building."
Jimmy Day was an American steel guitarist active in the 1950s and 1960s whose career in country music blossomed about the time the pedal steel guitar was invented after pedals were added to the lap steel guitar. He was a pioneer on pedal steel in the genres of Western swing and Honky tonk and his modifications of the instrument's design have become a standard on the modern pedal steel. Day's first job after high school was performing on the Louisiana Hayride as a sideman accompanying developing country artists including Hank Williams, Webb Pierce, Willie Nelson, Jim Reeves, Ray Price and Elvis Presley. He recorded and toured with all these artists and was featured on hit records by of many of them, including Ray Price's, "Crazy Arms" and "Heartaches by the Number". He was a member of Elvis Presley's band for about a year, but, along with fellow bandmate Floyd Cramer, resigned after Presley requested them to re-locate to Hollywood; instead, Day moved to Nashville to work as a session player and Grand Ole Opry musician. He was a member of the Western Swing Hall of Fame (1994) and the International Steel Guitar Hall of Fame (1999). Day died of cancer in 1999.
