Your daily look at this day in country history, from classic Opry nights to the newest No. 1 hits.
On March 9, 1970, Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton released Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca, their fourth album as a duo. It’s also Mickey Gilley’s birthday.
Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton released Porter Wayne and Dolly Rebecca, their fourth album as a duo. It reached No. 4 on the country albums chart, and "Just Someone I Used to Know" earned a Grammy nomination.
Steel guitar great Jerry Byrd was born in Lima, Ohio. He played on records by Hank Williams, Ernest Tubb and Red Foley, and he was one of the first to sign a young Dolly Parton. He died in Hawaii in 2005.
Mickey Gilley was born in Natchez, Mississippi. A cousin of Jerry Lee Lewis, he scored hits with "Room Full of Roses," "Don't the Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time" and "Stand by Me." He died in 2022.
Chris LeDoux, singer and 1976 world champion bareback rider, died at 56 in Casper, Wyoming. He made 36 albums, many on his own, and won the ACM Pioneer Award.
Songwriter Wayne Kemp died at 74 in Lafayette, Tennessee. He wrote Johnny Cash's No. 1 hit "One Piece at a Time" and gave Conway Twitty his first No. 1 with "Next in Line." George Strait cut his song "The Fireman."
Canadian singer and songwriter Ray Griff died at 75. Born in Vancouver, he wrote songs cut by Faron Young, Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, Gene Watson and many more, including "Canadian Pacific" for George Hamilton IV.
Mickey Gilley (1936) was born on this date.
Every entry is checked by the Country Thang Daily editors. Spot something we got wrong? Let us know and we’ll fix it and note the change.