December 26th: On this day

1937
Born on this day in Calumet, Quebec, was Canadian American country musician and comedy performer Ronnie Prophet. Prophet died on 2 March 2018 at his home in Florida following cardiac and kidney failure age 80.

1941
Born on this day in Puryear, Tennessee, was Rattlesnake Annie, country singer and songwriter. She earned her nickname as a child from her respect of snakes. She recorded her debut album, Rattlesnakes and Rusty Water, on her own label, Rattlesnake Records. At the time, it was unusual for a woman to play guitar in public, and it was also rare for a woman to produce her own songs.

1958
Johnny Cash topped a country and western concert at the Showboat Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada; also appearing on the same bill were Tex Ritter and the Sons of the Pioneers.

1968
Glen Campbell was at #1 on the US Country chart with "Wichita Lineman". Jimmy Webb's inspiration for the lyrics came while driving through Washita County in northern Oklahoma. Webb was driving through an endless litany of telephone poles, each looking exactly the same as the last. Then, in the distance, he noticed the silouette of a solitary lineman atop a pole. Webb then "put himself atop that pole and put that phone in his hand" as he considered what the lineman was saying into the receiver.

1982
Roger Bowling, Nashville based songwriter died. His best known songs included "Lucille" (co-written with Hal Bynum), and "Coward of the County" (co-written with Billy Ed Wheeler), both recorded by Kenny Rogers, and "Blanket on the Ground", "What I've Got In Mind", and "57 Chevrolet", which were recorded by Billie Jo Spears.

1984
American country music singer Sheila Andrews died. She recorded three studio albums in her career and released several singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs including "It Don't Get Better Than This", her highest charting single.

1996
Johnny Cash was hailed on CBS-TV's The Kennedy Center Honors, featuring Emmylou Harris, Kris Kristofferson and Lyle Lovett.

2000
Tim McGraw was at #1 on the US Country chart with "My Next Thirty Years", the fifth and final single from McGraw's A Place in the Sun album.

2015
Chris Stapleton was at #1 on the US Country chart with his debut studio album Traveller which was later named Album of the Year at the 2015 Country Music Association Awards.