Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2001), also known as "Mister Guitar" and "the Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music style which expanded its appeal to adult pop music fans. He was primarily a guitarist, but he also played the mandolin, fiddle, banjo, and ukulele, and occasionally sang. Atkins's signature picking style was inspired by Merle Travis. His other major guitar influences were Django Reinhardt, George Barnes, Les Paul, and, later, Jerry Reed. His distinctive picking style and musicianship brought him admirers inside and outside the country scene, both in the United States and abroad. Atkins spent most of his career at RCA Victor and produced records for the Browns, Hank Snow, Porter Wagoner, Norma Jean, Dolly Parton, Dottie West, Perry Como, Floyd Cramer, Elvis Presley, the Everly Brothers, Eddy Arnold, Don Gibson, Jim Reeves, Jerry Reed, Skeeter Davis, Waylon Jennings, Roger Whittaker, Ann-Margret and many others. Rolling Stone credited Atkins with inventing the "popwise 'Nashville sound' that rescued country music from a commercial slump" and ranked him number 21 on their list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time". In 2023, Atkins was named the 39th best guitarist of all time. Among many other honors, Atkins received 14 Grammy Awards and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. He also received nine Country Music Association awards for Instrumentalist of the Year. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum. |
Birth and Death Data: Born Luttrell (town in Tennessee), Died June 30, 2001 (Nashville (capital and largest city of Tennessee, United States) )
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1947 - 1956
Roles Represented in DAHR: guitar, electric guitar, leader, vocalist, composer, songwriter, violin, electric bass, arranger
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 226-250 of 366 records)
| Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbia | CO49907 | 10-in. | 9/1/1953 | Look what followed me home tonight (Mama, can't I keep it) | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO49908 | 10-in. | 9/1/1953 | No one knows it better than me | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO49909 | 10-in. | 9/1/1953 | Love, love, love | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO49910 | 10-in. | 9/1/1953 | The first time I told you a lie | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50354 | 10-in. | 10/28/1953 | Just call on me | Dusty Owens | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50355 | 10-in. | 10/28/1953 | Somewhere she's waiting | Dusty Owens | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50356 | 10-in. | 10/28/1953 | Hello, operator | Dusty Owens | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50357 | 10-in. | 10/28/1953 | The life you want to live | Dusty Owens | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50362 | 10-in. | 10/30/1953 | There'll be no teardrops tonight | Anita Carter | Female vocal solo, with string band and violin ensemble | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50363 | 10-in. | 10/30/1953 | Heartless romance | Anita Carter | Female vocal solo, with string orchestra | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50364 | 10-in. | 10/30/1953 | Don Juan | Anita Carter ; The Carter Sisters | Female vocal solo, with string band & violin ensemble | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50365 | 10-in. | 10/30/1953 | Faithless Johnny Lee | Anita Carter ; The Carter Sisters | Female vocal solo, with string orchestra | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50719 | 10-in. | 1/7/1954 | It's been nice | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50720 | 10-in. | 1/7/1954 | Walking shoes | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50721 | 10-in. | 1/7/1954 | I think I'm going to cry | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO50722 | 10-in. | 1/7/1954 | Sweetheart | George Morgan | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51169 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | Forever yours | Maddox Brothers & Rose | Female vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51170 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | You won't believe this | Maddox Brothers & Rose | Mixed vocal duet, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51171 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | I could never stop loving you | Maddox Brothers & Rose | Female vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51172 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | Fountain of youth | Maddox Brothers & Rose | Female vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51173 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | Marry me again | Rose Maddox | Female vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51174 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | Poor little heartbroken rose | Rose Maddox | Female vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51175 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | Waltz of the pines | Rose Maddox | Female vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51176 | 10-in. | 3/22/1954 | I wonder if I can lose the blues this way | Rose Maddox | Female vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar | |
| Columbia | CO51201 | 10-in. | 3/28/1954 | The world is a monster | Rocky Porter | Male vocal solo, with string band | instrumentalist, electric guitar |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Atkins, Chet," accessed January 7, 2026, http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103333.
Atkins, Chet. (2026). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved January 7, 2026, from http://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/103333.
"Atkins, Chet." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2026. Web. 7 January 2026.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
External Sources
Wikipedia: Chet Atkins
Discogs: Chet Atkins
Allmusic: Chet Atkins
Apple Music: Chet Atkins
Grove: Chet Atkins
IMDb: Chet Atkins
Britannica: Chet Atkins
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Atkins, Chet - https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n81126809
Wikidata: Chet Atkins - https://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q72096
VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/14957432
MusicBrainz: Chet Atkins - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/5810667a-9db6-4fd0-abac-667cdac5d415
Fast: https://id.worldcat.org/fast/81626 - https://id.worldcat.org/fast/81626
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