1943 in country music

none This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1943. 1943 1943 country music 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.The Billboard October 30, 1943 pg 12 https://books.google.com/books?id=vwwEAAAAMBAJ google books 30 October 1943 14 July 2021 Dexter's publishing company sued "The Hit Parade" radio show for ignoring their record!Wilgus D. K. 1970 Country-Western Music and the Urban Hillbilly https://www.jstor.org/stable/539105 The Journal of American Folklore 83 328 157–179 10.2307/539105 539105 0021-8715 subscription 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.The Billboard Jan 09, 1943 pg 63 https://books.google.com/books?id=XQwEAAAAMBAJ&dq=The+Billboard+Jan+09%2C+1943&pg=PT68 google books 9 January 1943 15 July 2021The Billboard Jan 16, 1943 pg 59 https://books.google.com/books?id=pQwEAAAAMBAJ&dq=The+Billboard+Jan+16%2C+1943&pg=PT67 google books 16 January 1943 15 July 2021The Billboard Jan 30, 1943 pg 62 https://books.google.com/books?id=kgwEAAAAMBAJ&q=The+Billboard+Jan+30%2C+1943 google books 30 January 1943 15 July 2021The Billboard Feb 06, 1943 pg 64 https://books.google.com/books?id=lwwEAAAAMBAJ&dq=The+Billboard+Feb+06%2C+1943&pg=PT42 google books 6 February 1943 15 July 2021The Billboard Feb 13, 1943 pg 63 https://books.google.com/books?id=qAwEAAAAMBAJ&dq=The+Billboard+Feb+13%2C+1943&pg=PT65 google books 13 February 1943 15 July 2021 Supplemental information came from 'Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954',Whitburn Joel Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954 Record Research 1986 record sales reported on the "Discography of American Historical Recordings" website, and other sources as specified. As always, numerical rankings are approximate. Rank Artist Title Label Recorded Released Chart Positions 1 Al Dexter and His Troopers "Pistol Packin' Mama"OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6500 - 6747 (end of series) https://www.78discography.com/OK6500.htm 2022-04-14 www.78discography.com Okeh 6708 1942 3 20 1943 4 10 US 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 2 Ted Daffan's Texans "No Letter Today" Okeh 6706 1942 2 20 1943 2 US 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 3 Al Dexter and His Troopers "Rosalita" Okeh 6708 1942 3 18 1943 4 10 US Billboard 1943 #178, US Pop #22 for 1 week, 47 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #3, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 58 total weeks 4 Ted Daffan's Texans "Born To Lose" Okeh 6706 1942 2 20 1943 2 US 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 5 Bing Crosby and the Andrews Sisters "Pistol Packin' Mama"Decca matrix L 3197. Pistol packin' Mama / The Andrews Sisters; Bing Crosby - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/2000269620/L_3197-Pistol_packin_Mama 2022-08-16 adp.library.ucsb.edu Decca 23277 1943 9 27 1943 10 14 US Billboard 1943 #22, US Pop #2 for 4 weeks, 14 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #5, Hillbilly #1 for 12 weeks, 25 total weeks 6 Louise Massey and the Westerners "Honey Song" Okeh 6687 1941 1 26 1942 8 15 US Billboard 1943 #123, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 2 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #6, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 61 total weeks 7 Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys "New San Antonio Rose"OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6000 - 6500 https://www.78discography.com/OK6000.htm 2022-04-14 www.78discography.com Okeh 6274 1940 4 16 1942 7 US Billboard 1943 #127, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #7, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 56 total weeks 8 Carson Robison "That Old Grey Mare Is Back Where She Used to Be"Victor matrix BS-075429. The old grey mare is back where she used to be / Carson Robison - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/200055688/BS-075429-The_old_grey_mare_is_back_where_she_used_to_be 2022-08-16 adp.library.ucsb.edu Bluebird 30-0808 1942 7 17 1943 1 8 US Billboard 1943 #128, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #8, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 31 total weeks 9 Floyd Tillman "They Took the Stars Out of Heaven"Decca matrix 93739. They took the stars out of heaven / Floyd Tillman - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/2000285090/93739-They_took_the_stars_out_of_heaven 2022-01-18 adp.library.ucsb.edu Decca 6090 1941 4 30 1943 5 25 US Hillbilly 1943 #9, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 35 total weeks 10 Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys "Home in San Antone"OKeh (by CBS) 78rpm numerical listing discography: 6500 - 6747 (end of series) https://www.78discography.com/OK6500.htm 2022-01-06 www.78discography.com Okeh 6710 1942 7 14 1942 11 30 US Billboard 1943 #160, US Pop #21 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #10, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 36 total weeks 11 Bob Atcher and Bonnie Blue Eyes "Pins and Needles (In My Heart)" Okeh 6689 1942 5 5 1942 7 US Billboard 1943 #132, US Pop #19 for 1 week, 47 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #11, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 60 total weeks 12 Roy Acuff and his Smoky Mountain Boys "Night Train to Memphis" Okeh 6693 1942 5 28 1942 9 14 US Hillbilly 1943 #12, Hillbilly #4 for 1 week, 51 total weeks 13 Gene Autry "I Hang My Head And Cry" Okeh 6627 1941 12 13 1942 3 27 US Hillbilly 1943 #13, Hillbilly #4 for 1 week, 34 total weeks 14 Ernest Tubb "You Nearly Lose Your Mind"Decca matrix L 3101. You nearly lose your mind / Ernest Tubb - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/2000269524/L_3101-You_nearly_lose_your_mind 2022-02-03 adp.library.ucsb.edu Decca 6067 1942 7 17 1942 8 17 US Hillbilly 1943 #14, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 38 total weeks 15 Gene Autry "It Makes No Difference Now" Okeh 6274 1941 6 18 1941 7 US Hillbilly 1943 #15, Hillbilly #3 for 2 weeks, 33 total weeks 16 Jimmie Davis "Columbus Stockade Blues"Decca 6083 (10-in. double-faced) - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/objects/detail/314495/Decca_6083 2022-02-03 adp.library.ucsb.edu Decca 6083 1942 7 27 1943 3 18 US Hillbilly 1943 #16, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 23 total weeks 17 Ernest Tubb "I Hate To See You Go"Decca matrix 93792. I hate to see you go / Ernest Tubb; Ernest Tubb - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/2000285143/93792-I_hate_to_see_you_go 2022-02-03 adp.library.ucsb.edu Decca 6684 1941 11 17 1943 3 11 US Hillbilly 1943 #17, Hillbilly #4 for 1 week, 18 total weeks 18 Elton Britt "Buddy Boy"Victor matrix BS-072623. Buddy boy / Elton Britt - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/200054825/BS-072623-Buddy_boy 2022-08-16 adp.library.ucsb.edu Bluebird 9023 1942 3 19 1942 7 24 US Hillbilly 1943 #18, Hillbilly #3 for 2 weeks, 33 total weeks 19 Dick Kuhn Orchestra "Put Your Arms Around Me Honey"Decca matrix 69971. Put your arms around me, honey-1 / Dick Kuhn Orchestra - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/2000298084/69971-Put_your_arms_around_me_honey-1 2022-02-03 adp.library.ucsb.edu Decca 4337 1941 11 26 1943 10 US Billboard 1943 #45, US Pop #8 for 1 week, 12 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1943 #19, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 11 total weeks 20 Ernest Tubb "I'll Get Along Somehow"Decca matrix 92008. I'll get along somehow / Ernest Tubb - Discography of American Historical Recordings https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/index.php/matrix/detail/2000283359/92008-Ill_get_along_somehow 2022-02-03 adp.library.ucsb.edu Decca 5825 1940 11 29 1940 12 29 US 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. "Wabash Cannonball 1939"Roy Acuff and his Smoky Mountain Boys"New San Antonio Rose 1940"Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys"Back In the Saddle Again 1939"Gene Autry"It Makes No Difference Now 1941"Gene Autry"I'm Knocking At Your Door Again 1941"Jimmie Davis"Sitting on Top of the World 1936"Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys"Sitting on Top of the World 1935"Shelton Brothers"The Precious Jewel 1941"Roy Acuff and his Smoky Mountain Boys Births February 4 – Jimmy Johnson, American musician (Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section) and record producer (died 2019).Swampers guitarist Jimmy Johnson has died 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 Deaths in 1943 Category:1943 deaths References Further reading Kingsbury, Paul, "Vinyl Hayride: Country Music Album Covers 1947–1989," Country Music Foundation, 2003 (0-8118-3572-3) Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 (0-06-273244-7) Whitburn, Joel. "Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890–1954: The History of American Popular Music," Record Research Inc., Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, 1986 (0-89820-083-0). Country Category:Country music by year