Top 100 Country Songs of All Time
Bob Marshall
of All Time" in the October 1992 issue. The list was generated by asking
the readers for their favorite songs, and then merging these lists with
lists from a group of "country music critics". They only counted songs
that appeared on *BOTH* top-100 lists, taking the average of the two.
I had some free time, so I figured, what the hell, I'll type in all
100 song titles!
It is heartening to see that most of the entries are older songs, some
of them going back to the 1930's! While *** HOT NEW COUNTRY *** is
represented, it certainly does not dominate the list, which is heartening
to us "traditionalists" (don't you dare call it *** COLD OLD COUNTRY ***!!!).
Anyway, here's the list :
1. "He Stopped Loving Her Today", George Jones
2. "When I Call Your Name", Vince Gill
(Great song, great guy, but #2 of all time???)
3. "The Dance", Garth Brooks
(:-| OK, he deserves the top 10, and at least it's not "Shameless")
4. "Crazy", Patsy Cline
5. "I Fall to Pieces", Patsy Cline
6. "El Paso", Marty Robbins
7. "Your Cheatin' Heart", Hank Williams
8. "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry", Hank Williams
9. "Sixteen Tons", Tennessee Ernie Ford
10. "Lovesick Blues", Hank Williams
(OK, except for #2, can't really argue with that top 10, except
maybe it's unrealistic to have Hank and Patsy take five of the spots.
On the other hand, maybe not!)
11. "San Antonio Rose", Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys
12. "Tennessee Waltz", Patti Page
(Somewhat of a surprise, but it is a wonderful song.)
13. "Coat of Many Colors", Dolly Parton (Ahhh, Dolly....!)
14. "He'll Have To Go", Jim Reeves (truly a classic...)
15. "Walking The Floor Over You", Ernest T. Tubb
16. "For the Good Times", Ray Price
17. "Forever and Ever, Amen", Randy Travis
18. "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain", Willie Nelson
19. "Stand By Your Man", Tammy Wynette
20. "I Can't Stop Loving You", Don Gibson
21. "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky-Tonk Angels", Kitty Wells
(A follow-up to Hank Thompson's "Wild Side of Life, which was #79)
22. "Today I Started Loving You Again", Merle Haggard (way to go, Merle!)
23. "Help Me Make It Through the Night", Sammi Smith
24. "Faded Love", Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys (another real classic!)
25. "Wabash Cannonball", Roy Acuff (glad to see Roy represented here)
26. "I Walk The Line", Johnny Cash
27. "Where've You Been", Kathy Mattea (a real tear-jerker!)
28. "The Cattle Call", Eddy Arnold
29. "I'm Movin' On", Hank Snow
30. "Mama Tried", Merle Haggard
(OK, that's the top 30; of those, 26 are "old" songs, and only four
are "new" songs, i.e., after 1980. I like it!)
31. "Always On My Mind", Willie Nelson
32. "Chiseled in Stone", Vern Gosdin
(Fine song, inspired in part by the death of co-writer Max Barnes's son
and by the deterioration of Gosdin's own marriage)
33. "Don't Rock the Jukebox", Alan Jackson
34. "Here In the Real World", Alan Jackson
35. "You Are My Sunshine", Jimmie Davis
(From 1944! Davis used it in his campaign for governor of Louisiana,
and he won! His opponent said "How do you fight a song?")
36. "Waltz Across Texas", Ernest T. Tubb
37. "Tumbling Tumbleweeds", Sons of the Pioneers (gotta include this one!)
38. "Friends in Low Places", Garth Brooks ( :-| )
39. "Here's a Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares)", Travis Tritt (WHAT!!??)
40. "Hello Darlin'", Conway Twitty (now that's more like it!)
41. "Sweet Dreams", Patsy Cline (Ahhh...!!)
42. "Wildwood Flower", Carter Family (well-deserved!)
43. "Sunday Morning Comin' Down", Johnny Cash (but Kris Kristofferson
deserves all the credit here)
44. "God Bless the USA", Lee Greenwood (OK, everyone hates this song now,
but the video still gives me goosebumps at the part where they show
the Statue of Liberty.)
45. "Hey Good Lookin'", Hank Williams
46. "I Can't Help It If I'm Still In Love With You", Hank Williams
47. "Rocky Top", Osborne Brothers (My all-time favorite song! And my
wife's all-time unfavorite! She's never forgiven me for the time
I put "Rocky Top" on the speakers in the bedroom *FULL BLAST* one
morning when I was having trouble dragging her out of bed!)
48. "On the Other Hand", Randy Travis (A Paul Overstreet song)
49. "Amarillo By Morning", George Strait (*EVERYONE*'s favorite George
Strait song.)
50. "Rose Garden", Lynn Anderson (big crossover hit)
51. "Old Dogs, Children, and Watermelon Wine", Tom T. Hall (a true story)
52. "King of the Road", Roger Miller
53. "80's Ladies", K.T. Oslin (IMHO, the only decent song K.T. ever recorded)
54. "Oh, Lonesome Me", Don Gibson
55. "Make the World Go Away", "Eddy Arnold/Ray Price"
56. "That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine", Gene Autry (have to admit, I've
never even heard this one).
57. "She's Got You", Patsy Cline
58. "I Will Always Love You", Dolly Parton
(The original was the best version, but it was re-released in 1982
from the soundtrack to "Best Little Whorehouse in Texas", and it
went to #1 again!)
59. "A Better Man", Clint Black (well-deserved!)
60. "Old Flame", Alabama
61. "Detroit City", Bobby Bare
62. "Cold, Cold Heart", Hank Williams
63. "If We Make It Through December", Merle Haggard
64. "Blue Yodel", Jimmie Rodgers
65. "Cool Water", Bob Nolan and the Sons of the Pioneers
66. "Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind", George Strait
67. "Wichita Lineman", Glen Campbell
68. "Amanda", Waylon Jennings
69. "The Devil Went Down To Georgia", Charlie Daniels
70. "Green, Green Grass of Home", Porter Wagoner
71. "Gentle On My Mind", Glen Campbell
72. "Night Life", Willie Nelson
73. "Uncle Pen", Bill Monroe
74. "She Thinks I Still Care", George Jones
75. "Together Again", Buck Owens
76. "There's a Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere", Elton Britt (???,
another one I've never heard. From 1942.)
77. "Almost Persuaded", David Houston (gotta include this one!)
78. "Flowers on the Wall", Statlers
79. "The Wild Side of Life", Hank Thompson
80. "You're the Reason God Made Oklahoma", David Frizzell/Shelly West
81. "Will The Circle Be Unbroken", Carter Family
82. "Kentucky Rain", Elvis Presley ( :-| )
83. "Harper Valley P.T.A", Jeannie C. Riley
84. "My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys", Willie Nelson (surprised to see
this one; I've always loved the song, but didn't know others did, too)
85. "North To Alaska", Johnny Horton (my favorite Johnny Horton song was
always "Sink the Bismarck"; my brother and I used to play it over and
over and shoot the Bismarck down from our bunk beds!)
86. "Meet Me In Montana", Dan Seals/Marie Osmond (or Marie Osmond/Dan Seals)
87. "All the Gold in California", Gatlin Brothers
88. "Georgia on My Mind", Willie Nelson (but he can't touch Ray Charles's
version)
89. "Don't Come Home A'drinking (With Lovin' On Your Mind)", Lorretta Lynn
(a better title than it was a song)
90. "The Grand Tour", George Jones
91. "There Stands the Glass", Webb Pierce (expected this to be higher)
92. "Born To Lose", Ted Daffan (never heard of him; again, Ray Charles had
a good version of this)
93. "Heaven's Just a Sin Away", Kendalls (surprised again, but well-deserved)
94. "Long Black Veil", Lefty Frizzell
95. "Sixteenth Avenue", Lacy J. Dalton (a great song by a great songwriter,
Thom Schuyler).
96. "Good Ol' Boys", Waylon Jennings
97. "Desperado", Eagles (well, maybe the version by Linda Rondstadt)
98. "Act Naturally", Buck Owens
99. "Y'all Come Back Saloon", Oak Ridge Boys
100. "Funny How Time Slips Away", Willie Nelson
=============================================================================
Bob Marshall \\ "It ain't age
Lockheed Missiles & Space Co. \\ That makes me look this way
Sunnyvale, CA \\ It ain't the years, boys,
mars...@force.ssd.lmsc.lockheed.com\\ It's the miles"
"I tell the truth 'cept when I lie" \\ - Chris LeDoux
=============================================================================
Dave Laudicina
Garth, Marty, Travis can really wail and rock
but when you put it all together
George Jones is still the KING.
Toby . Hughes
Nice list, but I wonder about a couple of things.
Hank Williams, even as a legend, with 6 of the top 100 of ALL TIME?
Well, those 6 are good songs, but there are a lot of great classics that
are not on the list.
I've Been Everywhere / Hank Snow
Ghost Riders in the Sky / Several Artists
You Needed Me / Anne Murray
Ode to Billy Joe / Bobby Gentry
Daddy Frank / Merle Haggard
Mr. Bojangles / Dirt Band (Favorite song of Sammy Davis,Jr and Richard Nixon!)
Big John / Jimmy Dean
Lucille / Kenny Rogers
Let's Think About Living / Bob Luman
Walk On By / Leroy VanDyke
Crazy Arms / Ray Price
And others.
But, of course, these are just IMHO. The selection process seems fair the way
it was described. I wonder, though, if maybe a song should be off the charts
for a while before being eligible for consideration as a 'best of all time.'
One of the marks of a timeless classic is that it is remembered long after it
is no longer played regularly, and I really wonder if "Don't Rock the Jukebox"
and "Here's a Quarter" will still be instantly recalled five years from now.
TH
Lynda Peterson
thu...@lonestar.utsa.edu (Toby . Hughes) writes:
>
> > [stuff deleted]
>
>
> But, of course, these are just IMHO. The selection process seems fair
> the way it was described. I wonder, though, if maybe a song should be
> off the charts for a while before being eligible for consideration as a
> 'best of all time.'
> One of the marks of a timeless classic is that it is remembered long
> after it is no longer played regularly, and I really wonder if "Don't
> Rock the Jukebox" and "Here's a Quarter" will still be instantly
> recalled five years from now.
>
A few comments on DRTJ and HAQ. DRTJ was voted number one by readers
according to the editor notes but, it only ended up as 33 on the list. Go
figure. Do you think that it is a coincidence that it was voted this way?
They promoted the contest with Alan and his jukebox from the video. I,
myself entered this contest and included it in my favorites but, Alan
Jackson is one of my very favorites and I DO think this song will be a
classic. People on the radio and TV called it a "country music anthem."
However, I think HAQ is a "fad" song like Achy Breaky Heart. It is a good
"kiss off" song but not a classic. Besides, some of the songs that made
their list are not always "instantly recalled." BTW, how did Willie Nelson
get on the list so many times? This is all MHO.
lynda peterson
lyn...@novell.com
Archie Warnock
|> However, I think HAQ is a "fad" song like Achy Breaky Heart. It is a good
|> "kiss off" song but not a classic. Besides, some of the songs that made
Luckily, my traditionalist credentials are pretty well established here,
but IMHO, "Here's A Quarter" has just the right "hook" and sentiment to
rank up there with the classics. The proof in pudding (or perhaps,
putting) was the version George Jones did on the Songwriter's Award Show
last spring (?)...
Of course, George could make a killer song out of the phone book, too...
--
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-- Archie Warnock Internet: war...@hypatia.gsfc.nasa.gov
-- Hughes STX "Unix --- JCL For The 90s"
-- NASA/GSFC
m...@comserver.canberra.edu.au
list of 100 top country songs, or was he considered too rock'n'roll by the
Nashville establishment? Otherwise it is not a bad list.
John Bergquist
Marshall, mars...@nebula.ssd.lmsc.lockheed.com writes:
>I had some free time, so I figured, what the hell, I'll type in all
>100 song titles!
Bob,
Thanks a lot for taking the time to key all this in. I'm also gratified
that the list covers the full range and history of Country music, without
being heavily skewed toward the last few years. (Or should I say the last
few weeks, the way things seem to be going.)
> 56. "That Silver-Haired Daddy of Mine", Gene Autry (have to admit, I've
> never even heard this one).
I have it on a Gene Autry reissue album from the '70s on Harmony.
> 76. "There's a Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere", Elton Britt (???,
> another one I've never heard. From 1942.)
It's on The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Country Music.
> 92. "Born To Lose", Ted Daffan (never heard of him)
a Western Swing bandleader, contemporary of Bob Wills
> 94. "Long Black Veil", Lefty Frizzell
Too bad that Lefty placed no higher than 94, considering the enormous
influence he has had on vocal stylings.
Peter S. Shenkin
>> 76. "There's a Star-Spangled Banner Waving Somewhere", Elton Britt (???,
>> another one I've never heard. From 1942.)
>It's on The Smithsonian Collection of Classic Country Music.
This one could go on Toby's list of the "Bottom 10" as well, but it's
definitely in the class of "so bad it's good," rather than "so bad it's
bad."
There's also a WWII vintage song that I've never heard, called "I'd rather
die for my country than live with my wife."
About 3 years ago Doug Tuchman put on a "Hillbilly Festival" at Floyd
Bennett Field in Queens. Some guy got up and sang this, except for the
line that says how we'll crush the "axis," this guy substituted "commies...."
Times change I guess. (Or do they?)
-P.
--
************************f*u*cn*rd*ths*u*cn*gt*a*gd*jb*************************
Peter S. Shenkin, Department of Chemistry, Columbia Univ., New York, NY 10027
(212)854-8402 she...@avogadro.barnard.columbia.edu she...@cunixf.BITNET
*********************** UNIX: the wave of the present ***********************
Stuart Lewis
lot of surprise at seeing such an old one as this make the top 100 -
if for no other reason than the one stated.... "Who???, WHat???"
Basically, it's a WWII "rallying" song (propoganda - and I don't
mean that derogatorily). I concerns a young man who wants to join
the armed forces and fight for his country, but (if I remember
right) he's crippled and they won't take him. The song goes on and
names off a buch of famous Americans who did great things, and the
chorus is that there's a Star Spangled Banner waving somewhere for
him (and he hopes he gets there).
Like I said, it's real propaganda-ish and sort of equates being a
good American by going off to fight, and that even a crippled man
wants to enlist for his country.
For those of you in the Puget Sound region, you can hear this song
at least twice a year: every Memorial Day, and every Veterans Day.
Actually, the Sunday before, or so. Tune in "Music with Moscowitz"
on 106.1, KRPM, on Sundays at 7pm. He's sort of a local version of
Dr. Demento, for those of you who are familiar with him. Anyway, he
plays this song at least during those times of the year (and maybe
others, if requested).
Stuart Lewis
s...@ssc-vax.boeing.com