List of Billboard number-one country songs of 1956

In 1956, Billboard magazine published three charts covering the best-performing country music songs in the United States. At the start of the year, the charts were published under the titles Most Played in Juke Boxes, Best Sellers in Stores, and Most Played By Jockeys, with the genre denoted in an overall page heading. With effect from the issue of Billboard dated June 30, the genre was added to the specific titles of the charts, which were thus published as Most Played C&W in Juke Boxes, C&W Best Sellers in Stores, and Most Played C&W By Jockeys, the C&W standing for "country and western". All three charts are considered part of the lineage of the current Hot Country Songs chart, which was first published in 1958.[1]

The early recordings of "King of Rock and Roll" Elvis Presley were successful on the country charts, and he achieved four number ones on the best sellers chart in 1956.

The number-one positions on both the juke box and best sellers charts were dominated in 1956 by Elvis Presley, who spent a total of 26 weeks in the top spot on the best sellers listing and 28 weeks (including one tied with another single) atop the juke box chart with four different singles. Presley achieved the first country chart-topper of his career in February when he reached the number one spot on the best sellers chart with "I Forgot to Remember to Forget";[2] its B-side, "Mystery Train" was listed jointly at number one for the first week of the run only. The release was the final single which he recorded for Sun Records, the label for which he had honed his early rockabilly style. After he signed for new label RCA Victor, his recordings began to show more of a pop music influence, but for a time continued to appear on the country charts, and one week after "I Forgot to Remember to Forget" was replaced at number one, Presley regained the top spot with the two-sided success "Heartbreak Hotel" / "I Was the One", which remained atop the listing for 17 consecutive weeks. He would go on to be regarded as the most successful and influential recording artist of all time and feted as the "King of Rock and Roll".[3][4]

Presley's songs were less successful on the jockeys chart: "Heartbreak Hotel" was his only number one on the airplay-based listing. During the second half of the year, the jockeys chart was dominated by "Crazy Arms" by Ray Price, which spent 20 non-consecutive weeks at number one, a single week short of the record for the most weeks spent atop one of Billboard's country charts by a single song.[5] Despite its popularity on the radio, Price's song spent only a single week at number one on the juke box chart. In addition to Presley, four other artists reached number one for the first time, two of whom were among his fellow members of the so-called "Million Dollar Quartet" of early rock and roll stars: Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash.[6] Perkins gained his first country chart-topper with a song which would go on to be considered a rock and roll standard,[7] "Blue Suede Shoes".[8] Cash achieved the first of his thirteen country number ones when he topped the juke box chart with "I Walk the Line",[9] a track which Rolling Stone magazine ranked as the greatest country song of all time in 2014,[10] and its flip side "Get Rhythm". Red Sovine and the Louvin Brothers also achieved their debut chart-toppers in 1956.[11][12] "Singing the Blues" by Marty Robbins was the year's final number one on all three charts.

Chart history

In 1956, Billboard sometimes listed both sides of a single jointly at number one on the Best Sellers and Juke Box charts, based on a methodology which combined the survey data for both songs if "significant action [was] reported on both sides of a record".[13] This does not indicate that the single was officially released or promoted as a double A-side.

Carl Perkins (pictured in later life) topped the juke box chart with the rock and roll standard "Blue Suede Shoes".
Marty Robbins ended the year at number one on all three charts.
Ray Price's "Crazy Arms" spent 20 weeks at number one on the jockeys chart but only one on the juke box chart.
Issue date Most Played in Juke Boxes Best Sellers in Stores Most Played by Jockeys Ref.
Title Artist(s) Title Artist(s) Title Artist(s)
January 7 "Love, Love, Love" Webb Pierce "Sixteen Tons" Tennessee Ernie Ford "Sixteen Tons" Tennessee Ernie Ford [13]
January 14 "Sixteen Tons" Tennessee Ernie Ford "Love, Love, Love" Webb Pierce [14]
January 21 "Sixteen Tons" Tennessee Ernie Ford [15]
January 28 [16]
February 4 "Love, Love, Love" Webb Pierce [17]
February 11 "Why Baby Why" Webb Pierce and Red Sovine [18]
February 18 [19]
February 25 "Why Baby Why" Webb Pierce and Red Sovine "I Forgot to Remember to Forget"[a] Elvis Presley "Love, Love, Love" Webb Pierce [20]
March 3 "I Forgot to Remember to Forget" / "Mystery Train"[b] Elvis Presley "Why Baby Why" Webb Pierce and Red Sovine [21]
March 10 "Why Baby Why" Webb Pierce and Red Sovine [22]
March 17 "Heartbreak Hotel" / "I Was the One"[c] Elvis Presley "I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby" The Louvin Brothers [23]
March 24 [24]
March 31 "Heartbreak Hotel" Elvis Presley [25]
April 7[d] "Heartbreak Hotel" Elvis Presley [26]
"Blue Suede Shoes" Carl Perkins [26]
April 14 [27]
April 21 [28]
April 28 "Heartbreak Hotel" / "I Was the One"[b] Elvis Presley [29]
May 5 [30]
May 12 [31]
May 19 [32]
May 26 [33]
June 2 [34]
June 9 [35]
June 16 [36]
June 23 "Crazy Arms" Ray Price [37]
June 30 [38]
July 7 [39]
July 14 "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You"[e] Elvis Presley [40]
July 21 "I Walk the Line" / "Get Rhythm"[b] Johnny Cash [41]
July 28 "Crazy Arms" / "You Done Me Wrong"[b] Ray Price "Crazy Arms"[f] Ray Price [42]
August 4 "I Walk the Line" / "Get Rhythm"[b] Johnny Cash [43]
August 11[g] "I Want You, I Need You, I Love You" / "My Baby Left Me"[b] Elvis Presley [44]
August 18 "I Walk the Line" / "Get Rhythm"[b] Johnny Cash [45]
August 25 [46]
September 1 [47]
September 8 [48]
September 15 "Don't Be Cruel" / "Hound Dog"[b] Elvis Presley [49]
September 22 [50]
September 29 "Don't Be Cruel" / "Hound Dog"[b] Elvis Presley [51]
October 6 [52]
October 13
October 20 [53]
October 27 "I Walk the Line" Johnny Cash [54]
November 3 "Crazy Arms" Ray Price "Crazy Arms" Ray Price [55]
November 10 "Singing the Blues" Marty Robbins [56]
November 17 "Singing the Blues" Marty Robbins "Crazy Arms" Ray Price [57]
November 24 "Singing the Blues" Marty Robbins "Singing the Blues" Marty Robbins [58]
December 1 [59]
December 8 [60]
December 15 [61]
December 22 [62]
December 29 [63]
Notes

a. ^ B-side "Mystery Train" listed jointly at number one in the March 3 issue only
b. ^ Both sides listed jointly at number one
c. ^ "I Was the One" not listed jointly at number one in the April 19, June 16 and July 7 issues
d. ^ Two singles tied for number one on the juke box chart.
e. ^ B-side "My Baby Left Me" listed jointly at number one in the July 21 issue only
f. ^ B-side "You Done Me Wrong" listed jointly at number one in the July 28 issue only
g. ^ The Jockeys and Juke Box charts in this issue have the wrong headings, but which is really which can be deduced from the "last week" placings in this issue and the next as well as the fact that only one of the two charts permitted both sides of a single to be listed jointly.

See also

References
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