1976 in country music

Events

• January 3 — Austin City Limits debuts as a regular series on PBS. For many years, the show is taped at the University of Texas at Austin. Although not exclusively country — styles would range from western swing, Texas blues, Tejano music, progressive country, rock n' roll, jazz, alternative country, alternative rock, folk music and jam band — the show is widely hailed as a showcase of music of diverse styles and would be heavily influential in many country music artists' styles.

  No dates

• The CB radio craze was sweeping country music, as no less than three No. 1 songs are about citizens-band radios. C. W. McCall's "Convoy" — about a band of truck drivers who fight back against redneck police officers — spends four of its six weeks at No. 1 in January, and goes on to be Billboard's No. 1 country song of 1976. Other top songs where CB radios were central to the plot were:
• * "The White Knight" by Cledus Maggard & The Citizen's Band, about a lead-footed truck driver who is led into a speed trap by a corrupt state trooper.
• * "Teddy Bear" by Red Sovine, a sentimental recitation about a fatherless, physically handicapped boy who keeps in touch with truck drivers. He states his lone wish is to ride around with his father, but since that can't happen, other truck drivers make good on the wish by showing up at the young lad's home and giving him rides.
• Production began on Dolly Parton's syndicated variety show Dolly! Though Parton was said to have been less than pleased with the end result, and the show only lasted for one season, it expanded her audience at a time when she was in the midst of refocusing her career from that of a specifically country performer to an entertainer with broader pop and mainstream appeal.

  Top hits of the year

Number one hits

United States

• 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

• 2^ Song dropped from No. 1 and later returned to top spot.
• 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.

  Other major hits

Singles released by American artists

Singles released by Canadian artists

Top Albums

Other new albums

Births

• June 18 — Blake Shelton, neotraditionalist of the 2000s.
• June 18 — busbee, songwriter and producer of the 2010s.
• July 17 – Luke Bryan, singer-songwriter who rose to fame with songs like "Someone Else Calling You Baby" and "I Don't Want This Night to End".
• October 19 — Cyndi Thomson, female vocalist who enjoyed brief fame in the early 2000s.
• October 30 — Kassidy Osborn, member of SHeDAISY.
• November 26 — Joe Nichols, neotraditionalist of the 2000s.
• December 7 – Sunny Sweeney, female vocalist of the 2010s, with hits like "From a Table Away."

  Deaths

Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees

• Paul Cohen
• Kitty Wells

  Major awards

Grammy Awards

• Best Female Country Vocal Performance — Elite Hotel, Emmylou Harris
• Best Male Country Vocal Performance — " Stand by My Woman Man", Ronnie Milsap
• Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal — "The End is Not in Sight ", Amazing Rhythm Aces
• Best Country Instrumental Performance — Chester and Lester, Chet Atkins and Les Paul
• Best Country Song — "Broken Lady", Larry Gatlin

  Juno Awards

• Country Male Vocalist of the Year — Murray McLauchlan
• Country Female Vocalist of the Year — Anne Murray
• Country Group or Duo of the Year — Mercey Brothers

  Academy of Country Music

• Entertainer of the Year — Mickey Gilley
• Song of the Year — "Don't the Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time", Baker Knight
• Single of the Year — "Bring It On Home to Me", Mickey Gilley
• Album of the Year — Gilley's Smoking, Mickey Gilley
• Top Male Vocalist — Mickey Gilley
• Top Female Vocalist — Crystal Gayle
• Top Vocal Duo — Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn
• Top New Male Vocalist — Moe Bandy
• Top New Female Vocalist — Billie Jo Spears

  Country Music Association

• Entertainer of the Year — Mel Tillis
• Song of the Year — "Rhinestone Cowboy", Larry Weiss
• Single of the Year — "Good Hearted Woman", Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson
• Album of the Year — Wanted! The Outlaws, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Tompall Glaser and Jessi Colter
• Male Vocalist of the Year — Ronnie Milsap
• Female Vocalist of the Year — Dolly Parton
• Vocal Duo of the Year — Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson
• Vocal Group of the Year — The Statler Brothers
• Instrumentalist of the Year — Hargus "Pig" Robbins
• Instrumental Group of the Year — Roy Clark and Buck Trent

  Other links

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