On This Day in 1975, Glen Campbell Was at No. 1 with a Song He Believed He Was Destined to Record

On this day (August 26) in 1975. Glen Campbell was atop the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The song spent three nonconsecutive weeks atop the country chart. Additionally, it was a crossover hit, topping the all-genre Hot 100 for two weeks. More impressively, it was one of only a handful of songs to top both charts simultaneously.

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Campbell didn’t write “Rhinestone Cowboy,” nor was he the first to record it. However, he was the one who made it a hit. Larry Weiss penned the song and released it as a single from his album Black and Blue Suite. It didn’t see chart success in the United States, but was a minor hit in Australia. Campbell heard it for the first time while on tour in Australia and connected with it almost instantly. He bought a copy of the single and listened to it repeatedly to learn it.

[RELATED: On This Day in 1968, Glen Campbell Began a Six-Week Run Atop the Country Chart with His Fourth Consecutive No. 1 Album]

It’s easy to see why Campbell resonated with “Rhinestone Cowboy.” The song is about an artist who has been working in Nashville for years and is still waiting for his ship to come in. Campbell released his debut single, “Dreams for Sale,” in 1958. His first top 40 country hit came in late 1966, when “Burning Bridges” peaked at No. 18. His 1967 single, “Hey Little One,” was his first No. 1 on the country chart. He didn’t find consistent chart success until 1969, after the success of hits like “Galveston” and “Wichita Lineman.”

Glen Campbell Felt He Was Destined to Record “Rhinestone Cowboy”

Glen Campbell knew he wanted to record “Rhinestone Cowboy.” So, when he returned to the United States, he approached Al Coury, an executive at Capitol Records, to tell him he’d found the perfect song. According to Songfacts, Coury replied, telling Campbell he’d found a great song for him as well. It was called “Rhinestone Cowboy,” and he was going to love it.

He recorded it and released it as a single on May 26, 1975. It topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart on August 23 and occupied the top spot for two consecutive weeks. Then, Loretta Lynn & Conway Twitty’s “Feelins” took the summit for a week before “Rhinestone” returned to No. 1 for the week of September 6, the same week it claimed the top spot on the Hot 100, overtaking “Get Down Tonight” by KC and the Sunshine Band. It topped the all-genre chart for two weeks.

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