This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1990.
Kathleen Alice Mattea is an American country music and bluegrass singer. Active since 1984 as a recording artist, she has charted more than 30 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts, including four that reached No. 1: "Goin' Gone", "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses", "Come from the Heart", and "Burnin' Old Memories", plus 12 more that charted within the top ten. She has released 14 studio albums, two Christmas albums, and one greatest hits album. Most of her material was recorded for Universal Music Group Nashville's Mercury Records Nashville division between 1984 and 2000, with later albums being issued on Narada Productions, her own Captain Potato label, and Sugar Hill Records. Among her albums, she has received five gold certifications and one platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). She has collaborated with Dolly Parton, Michael McDonald, Tim O'Brien, and her husband, Jon Vezner. Mattea is also a two-time Grammy Award winner: in 1990 for "Where've You Been", and in 1993 for her Christmas album Good News. Her style is defined by traditional country, bluegrass, folk, and Celtic music influences.
"He Thinks He'll Keep Her" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Mary Chapin Carpenter. It was released in December 1993 as the sixth single from the album Come On Come On. The song peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. It was written by Carpenter and Don Schlitz.
Lionel Burke Cartwright is an American country music artist. Between 1988 and 1992, Cartwright charted twelve singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts, including a No. 1 single in 1991's "Leap of Faith". He also charted in the Top 10 on the same chart with "Give Me His Last Chance", "I Watched It All " and "My Heart is Set on You". Cartwright has also released three studio albums, all on MCA Records.
The discography of Kathy Mattea, an American country music singer, comprises 18 studio albums, four compilation albums, and 42 singles. From 1983 to 2000, Mattea recorded for Mercury Records, the label with which she achieved her greatest commercial success. During this time period, she had six consecutive albums, five studio and one compilation, certified Gold or Platinum by the RIAA. To date, Mattea has a total of 17 Top 10 singles on the Billboard charts as either a solo artist or as part of a collaborative effort. Of those Top 10 singles, four of them, "Goin' Gone", "Eighteen Wheels and a Dozen Roses", "Come from the Heart", and "Burnin' Old Memories", peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
"Song for the Life" is a song written by American singer Rodney Crowell and originally recorded by The Seldom Scene. Crowell recorded the song in 1978 on his debut album Ain't Living Long Like This, and since then, the song has been covered by several other artists. One version, recorded by Alan Jackson, was released as a single in 1995, and was a Top Ten country hit for him that year.
Willow in the Wind is the fifth studio album by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in 1989 on Mercury Records. The album is her highest-peaking entry on the Top Country Albums charts, where it reached number 6. It was also certified gold by the RIAA. Four singles were released from it, and all four reached Top Ten on the Billboard country singles charts. First were the back-to-back number 1 hits "Come from the Heart" and "Burnin' Old Memories", followed by the number 10 "Where've You Been" and number 2 "She Came from Fort Worth". "Where've You Been" also charted on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks charts, peaking at number 25 there. This song also earned her the 1990 Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance.
Untold Stories: A Collection of Hits is the first greatest hits compilation released by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in 1990 on Mercury Records and has been certified platinum by the RIAA. The album includes eight of her previous singles, as well as one newly recorded track, and an album cut from 1987's Untasted Honey, the Tim O'Brien duet "The Battle Hymn of Love". Both of these songs were released as singles in 1990, and both reached #9 on the Billboard country charts.
Time Passes By is the sixth studio album released by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in 1991 on Mercury Records. The album, like her last two studio albums before it, was certified gold by the RIAA. Singles released from it include the title track at #7, "Whole Lotta Holes" at #18, and "Asking Us to Dance" at #27. "From a Distance" was originally recorded by Nanci Griffith and later versions were released by Bette Midler and Judy Collins.
Walking Away a Winner is the eighth studio album released by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in May 1994, eight months after her Christmas album Good News. Walking Away a Winner was the final album of her career to be certified gold by the RIAA. Its title track, which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts in early 1994, was also her final Top Ten country hit. Following this single were "Nobody's Gonna Rain on Our Parade" at #13, "Maybe She's Human" at #34 and "Clown in Your Rodeo" at #20.
Love Travels is the ninth studio album released by American country music singer Kathy Mattea. It was released in 1997 on Mercury Records, the label to which she had been signed since 1984. Four singles were released from it: "455 Rocket", "I'm on Your Side", the title track, and "Patiently Waiting". "455 Rocket" was the highest charting, reaching a peak of #21 on the Billboard country charts, while "Love Travels" was her final Top 40 country entry at #39. Suzy Bogguss sang background vocals on "Further and Further Away."
"Burnin' Old Memories" is a song written by Larry Boone, Paul Nelson and Gene Nelson, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in July 1989 as the second single from the album Willow in the Wind. The song was Mattea's fourth and final number one on the country chart. It was number one for one week and spent fourteen weeks on the country chart.
"Come from the Heart" is a country music song written by Richard Leigh and Susanna Clark and published in 1987. It is most known through the 1989 single by Kathy Mattea, released in conjunction with her album Willow in the Wind, though the song was first recorded and released on the 1987 Don Williams album Traces and also released in 1988 by Clark's husband on his album Old Friends.
"She Came from Fort Worth" is a song written by Pat Alger and Fred Koller, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in April 1990 as the fourth single from the album Willow in the Wind. The song reached #2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
"A Few Good Things Remain" is a song written by Jon Vezner and Pat Alger, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in November 1990 as the second single from her compilation album A Collection of Hits. The song reached #9 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
"Time Passes By" is a song written by Jon Vezner and Susan Longacre, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in March 1991 as the first single and title track from the album Time Passes By. The song reached #7 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. The song features Trisha Yearwood on harmony vocals.
"Whole Lotta Holes" is a song written by Jon Vezner and Don Henry, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in July 1991 as the second single from the album Time Passes By. The song reached #18 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
"455 Rocket" is a song written by Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, and recorded by American country music artist Kathy Mattea. It was released in January 1997 as the first single from the album Love Travels. The song reached number 21 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
The Innocent Years is the tenth studio album by American country music singer Kathy Mattea. It was released on May 16, 2000. It was her last album for Mercury Records, a label Mattea had been with since 1984. After that album's release, Mattea left Mercury Records. The album includes the singles "The Trouble with Angels" and "BFD". Mattea produced the entire album with Ben Wisch except for "I Have Always Loved You", which she produced with Keith Stegall. The album itself charted at No. 35 on Top Country Albums.
Don Henry is an American country music singer and songwriter. His career took off when the Kathy Mattea single "Where've You Been", which he co-wrote with Jon Vezner, won numerous awards in 1990 and 1991. These included the "song of the year" award at the 25th annual Academy of Country Music Awards in 1990, and a Grammy Award for Best Country Song at the 33rd Annual Grammy Awards. He went on to team up with Vezner to write another song, "Whole Lotta Holes", which was also later recorded by Kathy Mattea and released as a single.
