This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1941.

Events January 1 – Radio programmers begin a 10-month ban on the ASCAP catalog when they fail to reach an agreement. Instead, disc jockeys begin to rely on BMI and its catalog of "hillbilly" music. October – The Grand Ole Opry organizes a "Camel Country" tour in a show of support for American servicemen, many of whom would be off to war two months later.

Top Hillbilly (Country) Recordings

The following songs achieved the highest positions in Billboard magazine's 'Best Sellers in Stores' chart, monthly 'Hillbilly Hits' chart, supplemented by 'Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954' and record sales reported on the "Discography of American Historical Recordings" website, and other sources as specified, during 1941. Numerical rankings are approximate.

Rank Artist Title Label Recorded Released Chart Positions 1 Gene Autry "You Are My Sunshine" Okeh 6274 US Billboard 1941 #131, US Pop #23 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #1, Hillbilly #1 for 20 weeks, 50 total weeks, 403 points, 1,000,000 sales 2 Ernest Tubb "Walking the Floor Over You" Decca 5958 US Billboard 1941 #154, US Pop #18 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #2, Hillbilly #1 for 10 weeks, 72 total weeks, 292 points, 1,000,000 sales (see 1942, 8 more weeks at #1), Grammy Hall of Fame 1998, presented gold record 1964. 3 Gene Autry "Be Honest with Me" Okeh 5980 US Billboard 1941 #147, US Pop #23 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #3, Hillbilly #1 for 6 week, 58 total weeks, 262 points, 1941 Best Original Song Nominee 4 Louise Massey and the Westerners "My Adobe Hacienda" Okeh 6077 US Billboard 1941 #99, US Pop #13 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #4, Hillbilly #1 for 1 week, 21 total weeks, 107 points 5 Curly Hicks And His Taproom Boys "Frisky Fiddler Polka" Bluebird 8740 US Hillbilly 1941 #5, Hillbilly #4 for 2 weeks, 34 total weeks, 101 points 6 Gene Autry "Tears On My Pillow" Okeh 6239 US Hillbilly 1941 #6, Hillbilly #4 for 3 weeks, 41 total weeks, 100 points 7 Gene Autry "You Waited Too Long" Okeh 5781 US Hillbilly 1941 #7, Hillbilly #2 for 6 weeks, 21 total weeks, 95 points 8 Roy Rogers and his Saddle Pals "New Worried Mind" Decca 5906 US Hillbilly 1941 #8, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 15 total weeks, 90 points 9 Jimmie Davis "I'm Sorry Now" Decca 5926 US Hillbilly 1941 #9, Hillbilly #3 for 3 weeks, 27 total weeks, 84 points 10 Tennessee Ramblers "Come Swing With Me" Bluebird 8742 US Hillbilly 1941 #10, Hillbilly #3 for 4 weeks, 21 total weeks, 81 points 11 Rice Brothers' Gang "My Carolina Sunshine Girl" Decca 5959 US Hillbilly 1941 #11, Hillbilly #3 for 5 weeks, 26 total weeks, 75 points 12 Karl And Harty "Let's All Have Another Beer" Okeh 6066 US Hillbilly 1941 #12, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 15 total weeks, 72 points 13 Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys "Take Me Back to Tulsa" Okeh 6101 US Hillbilly 1941 #13, Hillbilly #1 for 1 weeks, 19 total weeks, 72 points, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 500 14 Delmore Brothers "When It's Time For The Whip-Poor-Will To Sing" Decca 5925 US Hillbilly 1941 #14, Hillbilly #1 for 1 week, 14 total weeks, 72 points 15 Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys "Maiden's Prayer" Okeh 6205 US Hillbilly 1941 #15, Hillbilly #1 for 3 weeks, 14 total weeks, 69 points 16 Roy Rogers and his Saddle Pals "Time Changes Everything" Decca 5906 US Hillbilly 1941 #16, Hillbilly #2 for 2 weeks, 21 total weeks, 69 points 17 Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys "New Worried Mind" Okeh 6101 US Billboard 1941 #108, US Pop #14 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #17, Hillbilly #2 for 3 weeks, 17 total weeks, 64 points 18 Sons of the Pioneers "Cool Water" Decca 5844 US Billboard 1941 #142, US Pop #17 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #18, Hillbilly #1 for 1 weeks, 18 total weeks, 63 points, Grammy Hall of Fame 1986 19 Delmore Brothers "She Won't Be My Little Darling" Decca 5907 US Hillbilly 1941 #19, Hillbilly #2 for 2 weeks, 14 total weeks, 60 points 20 Texas Jim Robertson "I'll Be Back In A Year (Little Darlin')" Bluebird 8606 US Billboard 1941 #204, US Pop #21 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #20, Hillbilly #1 for 1 weeks, 15 total weeks, 59 points 21 Adolph Hofner And His San Antonians "Alamo Rag" Okeh 6139 US Hillbilly 1941 #21, Hillbilly #1 for 1 weeks, 18 total weeks, 57 points 22 Louise Massey and the Westerners "Beer and Skittles" Okeh 5916 US Billboard 1941 #129, US Pop #16 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #22, Hillbilly #1 for 1 week, 16 total weeks, 54 points 23 Bill Boyd And His Cowboy Ramblers "If You'll Come Back" Bluebird 8533 US Hillbilly 1941 #23, Hillbilly #2 for 1 week, 15 total weeks, 54 points 24 Tiny Hill and His Orchestra "Spin The Bottle" Okeh 6160 US Hillbilly 1941 #24, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 14 total weeks, 53 points 25 Prairie Ramblers "I'll Be Back In A Year (Little Darlin')" Okeh 6053 US Hillbilly 1941 #25, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 13 total weeks, 53 points 26 Ted Daffan and his Texans "Those Blue Eyes Don't Sparkle Anymore" Okeh 6160 US Hillbilly 1941 #7, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 14 total weeks, 52 points 28 Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys "Mule Skinner Blues" Bluebird 8568 US Hillbilly 1941 #28, Hillbilly #1 for 1 week, 17 total weeks, 47 points, Grammy Hall of Fame 2009 29 Shelton Brothers "What's The Matter With Deep Elm" Decca 5898 US Hillbilly 1941 #32, Hillbilly #1 for 1 week, 15 total weeks, 46 points 31 The Jesters "Repasz Band" Decca 3719 US Billboard 1941 #205, US Pop #21 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Hillbilly 1941 #30, Hillbilly #1 for 2 weeks, 11 total weeks, 44 points 32 Jimmie Davis and Jimmy Wakely "Too Late" Decca 5940 US Hillbilly 1941 #31, Hillbilly #1 for 1 week, 16 total weeks, 43 points

Births January 18 – Bobby Goldsboro, middle-of-the-road artist best known for 1968's "Honey." February 8 – Henson Cargill, best known for 1968's "Skip a Rope" (died 2007). March 28 – Charlie McCoy, harmonica specialist. April 2 – Sonny Throckmorton, songwriter. May 31 – Johnny Paycheck, outlaw country-styled singer best known for "Take This Job and Shove It" (died 2003). June 8 — Alf Robertson, Swedish country musician (died 2008). August 14 – Connie Smith, female vocalist who grew to fame in the 1960s; Grand Ole Opry mainstay. September 21 – Dickey Lee, pop-country singer-songwriter. September 26 – David Frizzell, brother of Lefty Frizzell who grew into a country star in his own right. October 17 – Earl Thomas Conley, singer-songwriter who became one of country's biggest stars of the 1980s (died 2019). November 6 – Guy Clark, alternative-outlaw country singer-songwriter (died 2016). November 27 – Eddie Rabbitt, singer-songwriter who crossed over to pop in the early 1980s with hits such as "I Love a Rainy Night" and "Drivin' My Life Away" (died 1998). November 29 – Jody Miller, female vocalist best known for "Queen of the House" (answer song to Roger Miller's "King of the Road") (died 2022).

Deaths November 7 – Henry Whitter, 49, early country musician.

Further reading Kingsbury, Paul, "Vinyl Hayride: Country Music Album Covers 1947–1989," Country Music Foundation, 2003 () Millard, Bob, "Country Music: 70 Years of America's Favorite Music," HarperCollins, New York, 1993 () Whitburn, Joel. "Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890–1954: The History of American Popular Music," Record Research Inc., Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, 1986 ().

References