On This Day in 1994, Faith Hill Was at the Top of the Charts With a Hit She Tried to Leave in the Past

On this day (January 2) in 1994, Faith Hill was at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart with her debut single, “Wild One.” It stayed at the top of the chart for four consecutive weeks, giving Hill the longest-running chart-topper from a female artist since late 1977. Years later, she would try and fail to leave this song in the rear view mirror.

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Hill’s early run of hits was the result of years of hard work. She dropped out of college to move to Nashville and chase her dream of being a country star. However, she didn’t immediately find a record deal. She worked in retail and fast food before taking a job as a receptionist at a publishing firm. One day, though, a co-worker heard her singing and was impressed. This led to her becoming a demo singer for the firm and, later, a backup singer for Gary Burr. Warner Bros. Records executive Martha Sharp saw her performing with Burr at the Bluebird Cafe one evening and knew she needed to sign the future star.

[RELATED: On This Day in 1993, Faith Hill Cemented Her Place as Country Royalty with a “Wild” Debut Single]

Hill released “Wild One” in September 1993. The song took off, topping the Hot Country Songs chart dated January 1, 1994. It retained the top spot for four weeks. This made Hill’s debut the longest-running No. 1 from a female country artist since 1977. Dolly Parton’s “Here You Come Again” was at the top of the chart for five consecutive weeks in late 1977.

Faith Hill Tried to Leave “Wild One” in the Past

Faith Hill released her compilation album The Hits in 2007. While most artists would want to put their most successful singles on their greatest hits collection. Hill, on the other hand, had a different plan.

“When I first realized I was going to be able to have a greatest hits this year, I didn’t go back so far. I just started thinking, ‘What songs can I put on here that I thought should have been hits,’” she said in an interview. “For my way of thinking, I wouldn’t allow myself to just pull off all the layers and go all the way back ot the beginning. I turned in my list of songs for the album, and I get this phone call back, ‘It’s important that you revisit the beginning of your career, the songs that actually were the hits and that brought your fans to notice you in the first place.’ And so I did that,” she added. “I went back, and I started with ‘Wild One,’ which was my first single and which I had not listened to in years.”

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