1974 in country music

This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1974.

Events

 * March 16 — The Grand Ole Opry moves from the Ryman Auditorium, its home of the past 41 years, to the newly constructed 4,400-seat Grand Ole Opry House, on the Opryland complex. President Richard Nixon is a guest at the Ryman's last show. The Ryman would essentially sit vacant for the next two decades before being renovated in the early 1990s as a historical landmark and concert hall.
 * July 17 — Don Rich, a key member of Buck Owens' backing band, The Buckaroos, is killed in a motorcycle crash on State Route 99 north of Bakersfield, California; he was 32. Owens is deeply saddened by Rich's death, and it will gravely affect his career for many years.
 * October 17 — The pilot episode of Austin City Limits, featuring Willie Nelson, is recorded, and will air during PBS' 1975 pledge drive.

No dates

 * Country purists, long troubled by a growing trend of pop music-influenced country, form the Association of Country Entertainers, as a result of the outcry over the 1974 Country Music Association awards program, where pop diva Olivia Newton-John won Female Vocalist of the Year, and Danny Davis & the Nashville Brass was awarded another Instrumental Group of the Year.
 * The proliferation of No. 1 hits, as certified by Billboard, extends into 1974, when 40 songs reach the top of the Hot Country Singles chart. In fact, just nine songs – 10, counting Merle Haggard's "If We Make It Through December", which spent two of its four weeks at No. 1 in January – remain at the top spot for more than one week.
 * Dolly Parton leaves Porter Wagoner's band and his weekly television show, after seven years, to embark on a solo career.
 * Loretta Lynn releases "The Pill", a sexually frank song about birth control. The song is deemed too controversial and most country stations refuse to play it.

United States
(as certified by Billboard)


 * Notes
 * 1 ^ No. 1 song of the year, as determined by Billboard.
 * A ^ First Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
 * B ^ Last Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist.
 * C ^ Only Billboard No. 1 hit for that artist to date.

Canada
(as certified by RPM)


 * Notes
 * A ^ First RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.
 * B ^ Last RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.
 * C ^ Only RPM No. 1 hit for that artist.

Births

 * January 7 — John Rich, singer-songwriter and member of Big & Rich.
 * February 17 – Chuck Dauphin, American sports radio broadcaster and country music journalist (died 2019).
 * February 17 — Bryan White, singer-songwriter from the 1990s.
 * March 18 – Phillip Sweet, member of Little Big Town.
 * May 23 – Jewel, multi-genre singer-songwriter who released the country album Perfectly Clear in 2008.
 * June 6 – Uncle Kracker, rock singer who has had major country successes with "When the Sun Goes Down" (duet with Kenny Chesney) and "Smile."
 * September 12 — Jennifer Nettles, lead singer of Sugarland.
 * October 14 — Natalie Maines, lead singer of the Dixie Chicks.
 * November 21 — Kelsi Osborn, member of SHeDAISY.

Deaths

 * January 2 — Tex Ritter, 68, silver screen cowboy and western artist (heart attack).
 * April 26 – Tim Spencer, 65, member of the Sons of the Pioneers.
 * July 17 — Don Rich, 32, right-hand man of Buck Owens and key member of the Buckaroos (motorcycle crash).

Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees

 * Owen Bradley (1915–1998)
 * Pee Wee King (1914–2000)

Grammy Awards

 * Best Female Country Vocal Performance — "A Love Song", Anne Murray
 * Best Male Country Vocal Performance — "Please Don't Tell Me How the Story Ends", Ronnie Milsap
 * Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal — "Fairytale", The Pointer Sisters
 * Best Country Instrumental Performance — The Atkins - Travis Traveling Show, Chet Atkins and Merle Travis
 * Best Country Song — "A Very Special Love Song", Billy Sherrill and Norro Wilson (Performer: Charlie Rich)

Juno Awards

 * Country Male Vocalist of the Year — Stompin' Tom Connors
 * Country Female Vocalist of the Year — Shirley Eikhard
 * Country Group or Duo of the Year — Mercey Brothers

Academy of Country Music

 * Entertainer of the Year — Mac Davis
 * Song of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Don Wayne (Performer: Cal Smith)
 * Single of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Cal Smith
 * Album of the Year — Back Home Again, John Denver
 * Top Male Vocalist — Merle Haggard
 * Top Female Vocalist — Loretta Lynn
 * Top Vocal Duo — Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn
 * Top New Male Vocalist — Mickey Gilley
 * Top New Female Vocalist — Linda Ronstadt

Country Music Association

 * Entertainer of the Year — Charlie Rich
 * Song of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Don Wayne (Performer: Cal Smith)
 * Single of the Year — "Country Bumpkin", Cal Smith
 * Album of the Year — A Very Special Love Song, Charlie Rich
 * Male Vocalist of the Year — Ronnie Milsap
 * Female Vocalist of the Year — Olivia Newton-John
 * Vocal Duo of the Year — Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn
 * Vocal Group of the Year — The Statler Brothers
 * Instrumentalist of the Year — Don Rich
 * Instrumental Group of the Year — Danny Davis and the Nashville Brass

Other links

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