In 1944, Louis
Jordan went to Number One on the charts as he asked the music question,
"Is You Is Or Is You Ain't (Me Baby). I think we were in English class
together.
In 1954, Pete Cassell passed away. Born near Atlanta, Georgia, this blind singer and musician who played both guitar and piano became a legend in the Atlanta area, and also on the WVA airwaves. He was said to be a smooth singer such as George Morgan or Eddie Arnold, and was a major influence on the career of Marty Robbins.
In 1967, Marty Robbins went to the top of the country charts with "Tonight Carmen". It was his twelfth of sixteen Number Ones in his career. He also had 47 Top Tens and and 85 Top Forties among his 94 charted releases.
In 1988, steel guitarist Pete Drake passed away after a long battle with emphysema. He backed such greats as Don Gibson and Marty Robbins, and played as a session player on many cuts, as well as recording on his own. He played on the hits "Rose Garden", "Behind Closed Doors" and "Lay Lady Lay" and many, many more. He also worked as a producer. He is buried in the Spring Hill Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee.
In 1989, Reba McIntyre's version of "Cathy's Clown" went to Number One. The video that accompanied this video was meant for her to be Miss Kitty, and Bruce Boxleitner to be Matt Dillon, characters of "Gunsmoke". It also featured many more Western characters from the past.
In 1997, Mercury Records released "Takin' The Country Back" by John Anderson. This album contained the single by the same name that was written by Curtis Wright and Marty Stuart, and that single and the video was the inspiration for this website which, in the nineties and early 2000s was a major player in the internet country music field.
In 1999, Anita Carter, a member of the Carter Sisters, passed away in Hendersonville, Tennessee. In 1950, she joined the Grand Ole Opry as a member of the Carter Sisters, and opened shows for both Elvis and Johnny Cash. She performed in duets with several male singers including Hank Snow, Don Davis, and Waylon Jennings. There is a video available of "I Can't Help It" with her and Hank Williams. She also recorded as a solo artist, and allegedly was the first one to record what became a big Johnny Cash hit entitled "Ring Of Fire". She and Don Davis, who was her husband twice, were the major stars on a Mobile, Alabama Country Music morning show on WKRG that aired for five years in the sixties.
