![]() Key Tracks: “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue,” “When I Dream,” “Ready for the Times to Get Better” In addition to her country pedigree she’s been a consistently sophisticated interpreter of pop standards and was made a member of the Grand Ole Opry in January 2017. The Grammy-winning “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue” was a country chart-topper and Number Two pop monster, followed by two more Top 20 pop singles and a total of 18 country Number Ones. But I love those songs.” Her earliest singles only dented the charts, but in the late Seventies and early Eighties, Gayle hit her stride. I wouldn’t have made it if I had just done that. “I went middle-of-the-road because Loretta said, ‘Don’t sing my songs and don’t sing anything I would sing, because you’ll be compared,'” Gayle told Rolling Stone in 2014. Image Credit: Tim Mosenfelder/ImageDirectīrenda Gail Webb, unlike her Kentucky-born older sister Loretta Lynn, was raised in Indiana, cultivating a polished persona and singing style tailor-made for country-pop crossover. Key Tracks: “You Shouldn’t Kiss Me Like This,” “As Good As I Once Was,” “Honkytonk U” His wonderfully self-deprecating “As Good As I Once Was” and the heartbreaking “Cryin’ for Me (Wayman’s Song)” mine country tradition and highlight one of the richest baritones in the business. Despite all the flag-waving, Keith isn’t a one-note artist. Striking a defiant tone, the song and its “boot up your ass” hook became synonymous with Keith, who released a string of pro-America songs in the years following: “American Soldier,” “American Ride” and “Made in America,” all of which topped the charts. Keith has released 17 studio albums, sold more than 40 million copies and tallied 20 Number Ones hits to date – including “Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American),” which was written in response to the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. With a booming voice and roughneck persona, he’s gone on to become one of the most successful, recognizable and controversial artists in the modern country era. Key Tracks: “Take Me Home, Country Roads,” “Thank God I’m a Country Boy”Īn Oklahoma native and former oil-rig worker, Toby Keith has tapped into the blue-collar lifestyle with humor and sincerity since his debut single, “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” hit Number One in 1993. His influence on country music remains apparent – decades after its release, “Country Roads” was the backbone of 2016’s “Forever Country,” a mash-up celebrating the CMA Awards’ 50th anniversary. But Denver, with his goofy grin and aHis fans didn’t mind, either, and by the decade’s end, Denver had racked up nine Number One hits on multiple charts. When Denver was named Entertainer of the Year by the CMA in 1975, presenter Charlie Rich responded by setting fire to the envelope containing Denver’s name, which many viewers interpreted as a repudiation of country’s pop-friendly crossover. The man had vices, but he largely kept them out of his songs, choosing instead to glorify the great outdoors in hits like “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” Uncool? Perhaps. Hitting his streak during the war-torn 1970s, John Denver kept things peppy and pleasant, walking the family-friendly line between country, soft folk and easy listening. “Here’s the thing about history,” Vince Gill told Rolling Stone in 2014, “the greatest artists that had the greatest longevity were all original.” Some of the contemporary artists we included – all of them already trailblazers – also benefited from our speculation that their best work may in fact be ahead of them.īut in the end, the common denominator for both legends and today’s stars was that they are all one-of-a-kind. And we omitted both Elvis Presley and Ray Charles, whose admittedly important contributions to country music took a backseat to their work in rock & roll and soul.įor those who made the cut, we considered their lasting impact on the genre, their recorded output and even their legacy as an entertainer. We respectfully skipped past Chet Atkins, who, though an architect of the Nashville Sound and a solo artist, was chiefly a sideman and producer. We didn’t include those who were primarily songwriters, like Hank Cochran and Harlan Howard. Of course, while 100 artists is a lengthy list, there isn’t room for everyone. ![]() ![]() Likewise, we reevaluated exactly where Hank Williams fits into country music, the true influence of Merle Haggard, and if an artist as clearly in the pop realm as Taylor Swift deserves inclusion. For decades Citizen Kane topped nearly every list as the greatest film ever made, but with time, some started to realize that, hey, just maybe The Godfather is the better picture. ![]() When putting together this ranking of country music’s all-time greats, we looked to movie criticism for inspiration.
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