This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1980.
Events
- January 25 â At age 84, octogenarian comedian George Burns becomes by far the oldest performer (to that time) to have a single in the top 40 of Billboards Hot Country Singles chart with "I Wish I Was 18 Again." The song peaks at No. 15 in March.
- March 2 â The Public Broadcasting Company (PBS) telecasts the Grand Ole Opry for the third time, and this telecast lasts longer than any of the other telecasts. The telecast featured Tom T. Hall, Ronnie Milsap, Roy Acuff, Hank Snow, Minnie Pearl, Porter Wagoner, Billy Grammer, George Hamilton IV, Marty Robbins, and many others. Sissy Spacek also appeared on this telecast with Loretta Lynn, promoting the new movie Coal Miner's Daughter, which opened the next week.
- March â Alabama, a southern rock-influenced band from Fort Payne, Alabama, signs a recording contract with RCA Records, and records its first album, My Home's in Alabama. The album is released in May, and by late in the year, the band was on its way to superstardom.
- April 19 â For the first time in chart history, the top 5 positions on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart are held (or co-held) by female artists. The list:
- "It's Like We Never Said Goodbye" by Crystal Gayle
- "A Lesson in Leavin'" by Dottie West
- "Are You on the Road to Lovin' Me Again" by Debby Boone
- "Beneath Still Waters" by Emmylou Harris
- "Two Story House" by Tammy Wynette (Duet with George Jones)
- July 5 â George Jones' classic "He Stopped Loving Her Today" reaches #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles charts.
- November 18 â The country-variety TV series, Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters, debuts.
Country music goes Hollywood
- Country music had a major impact on the motion picture industry throughout the year, with no less than four major box office hits released during the year:
- March 7 â Coal Miner's Daughter, the biography of Loretta Lynn told in film, opens. Sissy Spacek wins that year's Academy Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Lynn; Tommy Lee Jones and Beverly D'Angelo also play leading roles. The movie is a huge success with critics and at the box office, and briefly sparks Spacek's singing career.
- June 6 â The movie Urban Cowboy, starring John Travolta and Debra Winger, opens in American theaters. The movie â which showcases Mickey Gilley's nightclub, Gilley's â is a huge success at the box office ($54 million), and its soundtrack includes several major hits and makes stars out of several of the artists (most notably Johnny Lee), and will have a major impact on the direction of country music of the early 1980s.
- July 18 â Honeysuckle Rose, starring Willie Nelson, opens.
- December 19 â 9 to 5 â with Dolly Parton in one of the leading roles â opens.
Top hits of the year
Singles released by American artists
Singles released by Canadian artists
Top new album releases
Other top albums
On television
Regular series
Specials
Births
Deaths
Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees
Major awards
Grammy Awards
Juno Awards
Academy of Country Music
Country Music Association
Hollywood Walk of Fame
Country stars who got a star in 1980
Anne Murray
Further reading
- Kingsbury, Paul, "The Grand Ole Opry: History of Country Music. 70 Years of the Songs, the Stars and the Stories," Villard Books, Random House; Opryland USA, 1995
- Kingsbury, Paul, "Vinyl Hayride: Country Music Album Covers 1947âÂÂ1989," Country Music Foundation, 2003 ()
- Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 ()
- Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs 1944âÂÂ2005 â 6th Edition." 2005.
References
Other links
External links