Entertainer of the Year - 1968

Today in Music History: November 30, 1968

Great stories evolve from life events. The dramas of life keep the stories coming and the music playing. Many entertainers come from impoverished situations, doors open, doors close, windows open to new views and opportunities. Different paths appear ahead which in turn lead to new destinations. Some travels occur cross country while others across seas. As a result of many journeys, legends are born.

Glen Campbell: country music singer and crossover actor named Entertainer of the Year in 1968; Rhinestone Cowboy became his signature song

Glenn Campbell was born the seventh son in a family of 12 children in the small town of Delight, Arkansas. His family made their living as sharecroppers but they instilled in Campbell an interest in music when he was a young boy. By the time he was 16, he had pawned his guitar and moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico to join his uncle's band. This launched a career that later highlighted Glen Campbell as a successful Country and Pop recording star, and host of his own variety television show. He racked up numerous accolades including a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance ('By the Time I Get to Phoenix'), Grammy Award for Best Country and Western Recording ('Gentle') and recipient of a Golden Globe nomination. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2005.

1968 Glen Campbell started a five-week run at No.1 on the US album chart with 'Wichita Lineman'. Jimmy Webb's inspiration for the lyrics came while driving through Washita County in northern Oklahoma. Webb was driving through an endless litany of telephone poles, each looking exactly the same as the last. Then, in the distance, he noticed the silouette of a solitary lineman atop a pole. Webb then "put himself atop that pole and put that phone in his hand" as he considered what the lineman was saying into the receiver.

In 2011, Glen Campbell came forward with a powerful, completely candid announcement that rippled throughout the entertainment world. With wife Kim by his side, Glen revealed that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, which eventually robs one of memory. Continued HERE...

  More on this day...

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  1971 Sly And The Family Stone were at No.1 on the US singles chart with 'Family Affair', their fourth and final No.1. Rolling Stone magazine later ranked the song #138 on their list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

• 1985 Wham! Were at No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'I'm Your Man', the duo's third UK No.1, a No.3 hit in the US.

• 1991 Michael Jackson scored his fourth UK No.1 album with his eighth studio album Dangerous. The album has sold over 32 million copies worldwide making it one of the best selling albums of all time.

• 1997 Metallica were at No.1 on the US album chart with ‘Reload’, the bands third US No.1 album.

• 2008 Take That went to No.1 on the UK singles chart with 'Greatest Day', their 11th UK No.1 which was taken from their 2008 album The Circus. Also on this day, The Killers went to No.1 on the UK album chart with Day & Age the bands third album.

And the music goes on beating to the rhythm of the changing times...