1998 in country music

See also: 1997 in country music, 1998 in music, other events of 1998, 1999 in country music, 1990s in music and the List of years in Country Music

Events

• January 10 – "Retro Country USA," a weekly two-hour syndicated radio program spotlighting major country hits of the 1980s (along with some from the 1970s and early 1990s), premieres. The show is hosted by Tampa radio personality Ken Cooper.
• February 25 – Johnny Cash's album, Unchained, wins a Grammy Award for Best Country Album. The album had been a critical success but was largely ignored by mainstream country radio, a fact Cash and producer Rick Rubin pick up on when they purchase a full-page advertisement in Billboard magazine. The ad, which appeared in March, featured a young Cash displaying his middle finger and sarcastically "thanking" radio for supporting the album.

Top hits of the year

Number one hits

(As certified by Billboard magazine)

• ¹ – No. 1 song of the year, as determined by Billboard magazine.

Other major hits

• "26 Cents" -- The Wilkinsons
• "Absence of the Heart" - Deana Carter
• "Angel in My Eyes" -- John Michael Montgomery
• "A Chance" -- Kenny Chesney
• "Between the Devil and Me" -- Alan Jackson
• "Come Some Rainy Day" -- Wynonna Judd
• "Commitment" -- LeAnn Rimes
• "Cover You in Kisses" -- John Michael Montgomery
• "The Day She Left Tulsa (in a Chevy)" -- Wade Hayes
• "Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)" -- Shania Twain
• "Dream Walkin'" -- Toby Keith
• "Everything's Changed" -- Lonestar
• "Forever Love" -- Reba McEntire
• "From This Moment On" -- Shania Twain with Bryan White
• "Getcha Some" -- Toby Keith
• "Happy Girl" -- Martina McBride
• "He's Got You" -- Brooks & Dunn
• "High On Love" -- Patty Loveless
• "The Hole" -- Randy Travis
• "Holes in the Floor of Heaven" -- Steve Wariner
• "How Do You Fall in Love" -- Alabama
• "I Can Love You Better" -- Dixie Chicks
• "I Might Even Quit Lovin' You" -- Mark Chesnutt
• "I Said a Prayer" -- Pam Tillis
• "I Wanna Feel That Way Again" -- Tracy Byrd
• "I Wanna Fall in Love" -- Lila McCann
• "I'll Go On Lovin' You" -- Alan Jackson
• "I'm From the Country" -- Tracy Byrd
• "If You Can't Be Good (Be Good At It)" -- Neal McCoy
• "If You Have Forever in Mind" -- Vince Gill
• "Imagine That" -- Diamond Rio
• "It Would Be You" -- Gary Allan
• "It's Not Over" -- Mark Chesnutt
• "It's Your Song" -- Garth Brooks
• "Just Between You and Me" -- The Kinleys
• "Just to Hear You Say That You Love Me" -- Faith Hill (featuring Tim McGraw)
• "A Little Past Little Rock" -- Lee Ann Womack
• "Little Red Rodeo" -- Collin Raye
• "Lonely Won't Leave Me Alone" -- Trace Adkins
• "Love of My Life" -- Sammy Kershaw
• "Love Working On You" -- John Michael Montgomery
• "A Man Holdin' On (To a Woman Letting Go)" -- Ty Herndon
• "The Note" -- Daryle Singletary
• "Nothing New Under the Moon" -- LeAnn Rimes
• "Now That I Found You" -- Terri Clark
• "One of These Days" -- Tim McGraw
• "One of Those Nights" -- Lorrie Morgan
• "Out of My Bones" -- Randy Travis
• "Say When" -- Lonestar
• "She's Gonna Make It" -- Garth Brooks
• "She's Got That Look in Her Eyes" -- Alabama
• "Texas Sized Heartache" -- Joe Diffie
• "Then What" -- Clay Walker
• "To Have You Back Again" -- Patty Loveless
• "Too Good to Be True" -- Michael Peterson
• "True" - George Strait
• "Valentine" -- Martina McBride (featuring Jim Brickman)
• "We Really Shouldn't Be Doing This" -- George Strait
• "What If" -- Reba McEntire
• "What's Come Over You" – Paul Brandt
• "Yeah!" – Paul Brandt
• "You Move Me" -- Garth Brooks
• "You Walked In" -- Lonestar
• "You'll Never Know" -- Mindy McCready
• "You're Gone" -- Diamond Rio
• "You've Got to Talk to Me" -- Lee Ann Womack

Top new album releases

• Burnin' the Roadhouse Down – Steve Wariner (Captiol Nashville)
• The Cold Hard Truth – George Jones (Asylum)
• Double Live – Garth Brooks (Capitol Nashville)
• Every Time - Pam Tillis (Arista Nashville)
• Everything's Gonna Be Alright - Deanna Carter (Capitol Nashville]]
• Faith – Faith Hill (Warner Bros.)
• For the Record – Alabama (RCA)
• How I Feel – Terri Clark (Mercury Nashville)
• I'm Alright - Jo Dee Messina (Curb)
• If You See Him – Reba McEntire (MCA Nashville)
• If You See Her – Brooks & Dunn (Arista Nashville)
• It's Now! It's Live! - The Mavericks (MCA Nashville)
• The Limited Series – Garth Brooks (Capitol Nashville)
• One Step at a Time – George Strait (MCA Nashville)
• Sitting On Top of the World – LeAnn Rimes (Curb)
• Some Things I Know – Lee Ann Womack (MCA Nashville)
• The Walls Came Down – Collin Raye (Epic/Sony)
• Trampoline - The Mavericks (MCA Nashville)
• Wide Open Spaces – Dixie Chicks (Monument/Sony)
• You and You Alone - Randy Travis

Deaths

• January 7 — Owen Bradley, 82, legendary record producer for top artists. (respiratory illness)
• January 17 – Cliffie Stone, 80, music executive and bassist.
• January 19 — Carl Perkins, 65, top picker and rockabilly artist. (complications from multiple strokes)
• January 24 - Justin Tubb, 62, singer-songwriter who fused honky-tonk and rockabilly in the 1950s.
• February 19 - Grandpa Jones, 84, banjo player, old-time country/gospel singer, comedian and regular on "Hee Haw" (stroke)
• April 6 — Tammy Wynette, 55, top country female vocalist of the 1960s and 1970s, best known for hits "D-I-V-O-R-C-E" and "Stand By Your Man." (blood clot)
• April 16 — Rose Maddox, 71, female honky-tonk and rockabilly pioneer who fronted the Maddox Brothers and Rose (kidney failure)
• May 7 — Eddie Rabbitt, 56, prolific songwriter and pop-country vocalist who once had 35 Top 10 hits in as many releases. (lung cancer)
• June 10 — Steve Sanders, 45, member of the Oak Ridge Boys from 1987 to 1996; replaced and succeeded by William Lee Golden. (suicide)
• July 6 — Roy Rogers, 86, actor, singer and "King of the Cowboys." (congestive heart failure)
• October 2 - Gene Autry, 91, actor and "The Singing Cowboy" (lymphoma).

Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees

• George Morgan (1924-1975)
• Elvis Presley (1935-1977)
• E.W. “Bud” Wendell (born 1927)
• Tammy Wynette (1942-1998)

Major Awards

Grammy awards

Academy of Country Music

• Entertainer Of The Year -- Garth Brooks
• Song Of The Year -- "Holes in the Floor of Heaven" - Steve Wariner, Billy Kirsch
• Single Of The Year -- "This Kiss" - Faith Hill
• Album Of The Year -- Wide Open Spaces - Dixie Chicks
• Top Male Vocalist -- Tim McGraw
• Top Female Vocalist -- Faith Hill
• Top Vocal Duo -- Dixie Chicks
• Top Vocal Group -- Dixie Chicks
• Top New Male Vocalist -- Mark Wills
• Top New Female Vocalist -- Jo Dee Messina
• Top New Vocal Duo Or Group -- Dixie Chicks
• Video Of The Year -- "This Kiss" - Faith Hill (Director: Steven Goldmann)
• Vocal Event Of The Year -- "Just to Hear You Say That You Love Me" - Faith Hill with Tim McGraw

Country Music Association

• Entertainer of the Year -- Garth Brooks
• Male Vocalist of the Year -- George Strait
• Female Vocalist of the Year -- Trisha Yearwood
• Vocal Group of the Year -- Dixie Chicks
• Vocal Duo of the Year -- Brooks & Dunn
• Horizon Award -- Dixie Chicks
• Musician of the Year -- Brett Mason
• Vocal Event of the Year -- "You Don't Seem to Miss Me" -- Patty Loveless with George Jones
• Single of the Year -- "Holes in the Floor of Heaven" -- Steve Wariner
• Song of the Year -- "Holes in the Floor of Heaven" -- Steve Wariner and Billy Kirsch
• Album of the Year -- Everywhere -- Tim McGraw
• Music Video of the Year -- "This Kiss" -- Faith Hill (Director: Steven Goldmann)

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 1947-1989," Country Music Foundation, 2003 (ISBN 0-8118-3572-3)
• Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 (ISBN 0-06-273244-7)
• Whitburn, Joel, "Top Country Songs 1944-2005 - 6th Edition." 2005.

Other links

• Country Music Association
• Inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame

External links

• Country Music Hall of Fame

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