On this day (February 11) in 1972, Charley Pride was at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart with Charley Pride Sings Heart Songs. It reigned over the survey for 16 consecutive weeks. However, his domination of the chart in 1972 did not stop with this album. Pride spent the majority of the year at No. 1.
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Pride released Heart Songs in November 1971, and it reached the top of the country albums chart on January 1. This was just the beginning of his months-long run at No. 1. He kicked off the year with a 32-week stay at the top. Then, he spent another 10 weeks at the top of the chart later in the year. That left only 11 weeks for other LPs to shine.
[RELATED: How Charley Pride Dominated the Country Music World in 1972]
Heart Songs was at the top of the chart until mid-April. Then, The Best of Charley Pride, Volume II topped the chart dated April 22. It held the peak position until early August, completing Pride’s initial 32-week run. Donna Fargo’s The Happiest Girl in the Whole U.S.A. dethroned his second chart-topper of the year on August 12. It spent four weeks at the top before Jerry Wallace overtook it for the week of September 9.
One week later, A Sunshiny Day with Charley Pride reached No. 1, where it stayed for 10 consecutive weeks. The Best of the Best of Merle Haggard reigned over the chart for the final six weeks of the year.
The singles from Heart Songs and Sunshiny Day–“Kiss an Angel Good Mornin’” and “It’s Gonna Take a Little Bit Longer,” respectively–were also No. 1 hits.
Charley Pride Overcame Racism to Be a Country Superstar
When Charley Pride’s label shipped copies of his debut single, “The Snakes Crawl at Night,” in 1966, they didn’t include a photo of the singer. They wanted the music to speak for itself.
After his singles started receiving widespread airplay and his star began to rise, Pride found himself on package shows with other rising stars. Crowds were initially surprised–and outraged–to see a Black man taking the stage at a country concert. Fortunately, they were able to look past or get over their bigotry.
By the 1970s, Pride was one of the biggest stars in country music. The decade saw him release 20 No. 1 singles and eight No. 1 albums.
When he died in 2020, Pride was a three-time CMA Entertainer of the Year and member of the Country Music Hall of Fame with four Grammy Awards under his belt.
Featured Image by Michael Putland/Getty Images
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