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1943 in country music

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This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1943.

Events

  • September – Decca Records is the first label to come to terms with the American Federation of Musicians, which had been on strike since August 1942 over music royalties. The first song that was released was "Pistol Packin' Mama" by Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters.
  • October - Pistol Packin' Mama by Al Dexter goes where no "Hillbilly" record has ever gone, to the top of the National Best Selling Retail Records chart, on October 30. Dexter's publishing company sued "The Hit Parade" radio show for ignoring their record!
  • Mother Maybelle Carter reformed the Carter Family. This time, she was joined by daughters Anita, June and Helen.

Top Hillbilly-Folk (Country) Recordings 1943

1941 was a great year for the United States recording industry, as bad memories of the Depression-tainted 1930s were replaced by record-setting sales. Then came Pearl Harbor, and on August 1, 1942, a strike by the American Federation of Musicians, which ended all recording sessions. Record companies kept business going by releasing promising recordings from their vaults, but by mid-1943, alternate sources were running dry, as the strike continued. Decca was the first company to settle with the union in September, but year-end statistics showed a 50% drop in charted records from 1942. Scan down the "recorded"(date) column, you won't see 1943 very often.

"Pistol Packin' Mama" by Al Dexter was easily the top record of the year, becoming the first #1 Hillbilly-Folk record to cross over and reach #1 on the Popular Chart as well. 1943 featured two of the greatest double-sided Country records ever, "PPM/Rosalita" by Dexter, and the close runner-up, "No Letter Today / Born To Lose" by Ted Daffan, also a top ten crossover hit. Both records stayed on the Hillbilly-Folk chart for over a year, and all four sides made the Popular chart too.

The Top Hillbilly-Folk Records of the Year chart is, like 1942, mostly derived from The Billboard's weekly "American Folk Records" columns of 1943, with raw reports from nationwide jukebox operators, and summaries of the top records in the nation. Supplemental information came from 'Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954', record sales reported on the "Discography of American Historical Recordings" website, and other sources as specified. As always, numerical rankings are approximate.

RankArtistTitleLabelRecordedReleasedChart Positions
1Al Dexter and His Trooperstitle=OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6500 - 6747 (end of series)url=https://www.78discography.com/OK6500.htmaccess-date=2022-04-14website=www.78discography.com}}Okeh 6708US Billboard 1943 #9, US Pop #1 for 1 week, 36 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #1, Hillbilly #1 for 27 weeks, 50 total weeks, 2,500,000 sales, Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000
2Ted Daffan's Texans"No Letter Today"Okeh 6706US Billboard 1943 #64, US Pop #13 for 1 week, 20 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #2, Hillbilly #1 for 6 weeks, 53 total weeks, 1,000,000 sales
3Al Dexter and His Troopers"Rosalita"Okeh 6708US Billboard 1943 #178, US Pop #22 for 1 week, 47 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #3, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 58 total weeks
4Ted Daffan's Texans"Born To Lose"Okeh 6706US Billboard 1943 #124, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #4, Hillbilly #2 for 6 weeks, 72 total weeks, 1,000,000 sales
5Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters"Pistol Packin' Mama"Decca 23277US Billboard 1943 #22, US Pop #2 for 4 weeks, 14 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #5, Hillbilly #1 for 12 weeks, 25 total weeks
6Louise Massey and the Westerners"Honey Song"Okeh 6687US Billboard 1943 #123, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 2 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #6, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 61 total weeks
7Bob Wills and His Texas Playboystitle=OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6000 - 6500url=https://www.78discography.com/OK6000.htmaccess-date=2022-04-14website=www.78discography.com}}Okeh 6274US Billboard 1943 #127, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #7, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 56 total weeks
8Carson Robison"That Old Grey Mare Is Back Where She Used to Be"Bluebird 30-0808US Billboard 1943 #128, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #8, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 31 total weeks
9Floyd Tillman"They Took the Stars Out of Heaven"Decca 6090US Hillbilly 1943 #9, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 35 total weeks
10Bob Wills and His Texas Playboystitle=OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6500 - 6747 (end of series)url=https://www.78discography.com/OK6500.htmaccess-date=2022-01-06website=www.78discography.com}}Okeh 6710US Billboard 1943 #160, US Pop #21 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #10, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 36 total weeks
11Bob Atcher and Bonnie Blue Eyes"Pins and Needles (In My Heart)"Okeh 6689US Billboard 1943 #132, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 47 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #11, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 60 total weeks
12Roy Acuff and his Smoky Mountain Boys"Night Train to Memphis"Okeh 6693US Hillbilly 1943 #12, Hillbilly #4 for 1 week, 51 total weeks
13Gene Autry"I Hang My Head And Cry"Okeh 6627US Hillbilly 1943 #13, Hillbilly #4 for 1 week, 34 total weeks
14Ernest Tubb"You Nearly Lose Your Mind"Decca 6067US Hillbilly 1943 #14, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 38 total weeks
15Gene Autry"It Makes No Difference Now"Okeh 6274US Hillbilly 1943 #15, Hillbilly #3 for 2 weeks, 33 total weeks
16Jimmie Davis"Columbus Stockade Blues"Decca 6083US Hillbilly 1943 #16, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 23 total weeks
17Ernest Tubb"I Hate To See You Go"Decca 6684US Hillbilly 1943 #17, Hillbilly #4 for 1 week, 18 total weeks
18Elton Britt"Buddy Boy"Bluebird 9023US Hillbilly 1943 #18, Hillbilly #3 for 2 weeks, 33 total weeks
19Dick Kuhn Orchestra"Put Your Arms Around Me Honey"Decca 4337US Billboard 1943 #45, US Pop #8 for 1 week, 12 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #19, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 11 total weeks
20Ernest Tubb"I'll Get Along Somehow"Decca 5825US Hillbilly 1943 #20, Hillbilly #4 for 2 weeks, 26 total weeks

Because of the lack of fresh material, many hits from past years made chart returns.

Births

  • February 4 – Jimmy Johnson, American musician (Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section) and record producer (died 2019).
  • April 23 – Richard Sterban, member of the country-gospel group The Oak Ridge Boys (he's the bass).
  • April 29 – Duane Allen, member of the country-gospel group The Oak Ridge Boys (he's the second tenor).
  • October 11 – Gene Watson, honky tonk-styled vocalist of the 1970s and 1980s.

Deaths

Main article: Deaths in 1943

References

References

  1. (30 October 1943). "The Billboard October 30, 1943 pg 12".
  2. Wilgus, D. K.. (1970). "Country-Western Music and the Urban Hillbilly". The Journal of American Folklore.
  3. (9 January 1943). "The Billboard Jan 09, 1943 pg 63".
  4. (16 January 1943). "The Billboard Jan 16, 1943 pg 59".
  5. (30 January 1943). "The Billboard Jan 30, 1943 pg 62".
  6. (6 February 1943). "The Billboard Feb 06, 1943 pg 64".
  7. (13 February 1943). "The Billboard Feb 13, 1943 pg 63".
  8. Whitburn, Joel. (1986). "Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954". Record Research.
  9. "OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6500 - 6747 (end of series)".
  10. Okeh 6706. {{Start date. 1942. 2. 20. {{Start date. 1943. 2
  11. "Decca matrix L 3197. Pistol packin' Mama / The Andrews Sisters ; Bing Crosby - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  12. "OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6000 - 6500".
  13. "Victor matrix BS-075429. The old grey mare is back where she used to be / Carson Robison - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  14. "Decca matrix 93739. They took the stars out of heaven / Floyd Tillman - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  15. "OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6500 - 6747 (end of series)".
  16. "Decca matrix L 3101. You nearly lose your mind / Ernest Tubb - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  17. "Decca 6083 (10-in. double-faced) - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  18. "Decca matrix 93792. I hate to see you go / Ernest Tubb ; Ernest Tubb - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  19. "Victor matrix BS-072623. Buddy boy / Elton Britt - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  20. "Decca matrix 69971. Put your arms around me, honey-1 / Dick Kuhn Orchestra - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  21. "Decca matrix 92008. I'll get along somehow / Ernest Tubb - Discography of American Historical Recordings".
  22. [https://www.al.com/life/2019/09/swampers-guitarist-jimmy-johnson-has-died.html Swampers guitarist Jimmy Johnson has died]
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