The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Country Music was a multi-volume set of recordings released by the Smithsonian Institution. Released in 1981, the collection contains 143 tracks deemed to be significantly important to the history of country music.
Classic Country Music was issued in eight volumes — either vinyl albums, cassette tapes or 8-track cartridges. It also contained an illustrated 56-page book by Bill C. Malone, a country music historian and professor of history at Tulane University. Malone's extensively annotated essay details country music's history era by era, from its beginnings in the 1920s and commercialization during the 1930s, and its evolution from the 1940s through the 1970s. Included are many songs from the 1920s and 1930s, as well as bluegrass and other related genres to country music.
Everything was contained within a denim-covered box, with the name emblazoned on the front.
This collection would be replaced by Classic Country Music: A Smithsonian Collection, a 100-track collection issued in 1990 (and whose liner notes were also written by Malone), and includes songs released through 1987.
Track listing
Note: All volumes have 18 tracks unless otherwise stated.
A honky-tonk is both a bar that provides country music for the entertainment of its patrons and the style of music played in such establishments. It can also refer to the type of piano used to play such music. Bars of this kind are common in the South and Southwest United States. Many eminent country music artists, such as Jimmie Rodgers, Ernest Tubb, Lefty Frizzelll, Hank Williams, Loretta Lynn, Patsy Cline, Johnny Horton, and Merle Haggard to name a few, began their careers as amateur musicians in honky-tonks.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in 1965.
Same Train, A Different Time is the ninth studio album by American country music artist Merle Haggard backed by The Strangers, released in 1969, featuring covers of songs by legendary country music songwriter Jimmie Rodgers. It was originally released as a 2 LP set on Capitol (SWBB-223).
Classic Country Music: A Smithsonian Collection was a multi-volume set of recordings released by the Smithsonian Institution. Released in 1990, the collection contains 100 tracks deemed to be significantly important to the history of country music.
Country USA was a 23-volume series issued by Time-Life Music during the late 1980s and early 1990s, spotlighting country music of the 1950s through early 1970s.
Contemporary Country was a 22-volume series issued by Time-Life during the early 1990s, spotlighting country music of the 1970s through mid 1990s.
This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1927.
The first season of the Theme Time Radio Hour, hosted by Bob Dylan, ran from May 3, 2006, to April 18, 2007 on XM Satellite Radio for a total of 50 shows.
Alsie "Rex" Griffin was an American country musician and songwriter.
Henry Ellis Stewart, better known as Redd Stewart, was an American country music songwriter and recording artist who co-wrote "Tennessee Waltz" with Pee Wee King in 1948.
The Way I Am is the thirtieth studio album by American country music artist Merle Haggard, released in 1980.
Texas in My Soul is the seventh studio album by country singer Willie Nelson. It was an early concept album that aimed to pay tribute to the State of Texas. The original album artwork features the Alamo, along with three San Antonio construction projects completed in 1968: the Tower of the Americas, HemisFair Arena and the HemisFair monorail system.
On Tour is a live and studio album by American country singer Ernest Tubb, released in 1962.
The Legend and the Legacy is a compilation album by American country singer Ernest Tubb, released in 1979. The initial release was issued on LP as The Legend and the Legacy Volume 1. It was released on First Generation Records, but due to legal issues, was withdrawn and released on Cachet Records.
"The Last Letter" is a song written by country music singer Rex Griffin. Griffin wrote the song in 1937, after he was left by his wife. The song tells through a suicidal letter the feelings of an older man who is left by his young wife. The song, released on Decca Records became a hit for Griffin.
Shelly Lee Alley was an American singer, musician, songwriter and western swing bandleader. As a songwriter, Alley wrote "Travelin' Blues" for Jimmie Rodgers, a song which has been recorded by over 20 artists, including Merle Haggard and Ernest Tubb. He is a member of the Western Swing Hall of Fame. He is considered one of Texas' best bandleaders of the 1930s and 1940s and a pioneer of western swing music.
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