187 Tennessee Ernie Ford (1919-1991) “Sixteen Tons” 1955

Ford joined the Air force and served as a bomber instructor during World War II. He returned to a singing career and “carved a niche in American popular culture in 1955 with his song ‘The Ballad of Davy Crockett,’ which became the theme song of an immensely popular Walt Disney television program. But Ford had an even bigger recording hit that same year. ‘Sixteen Tons’ was a single that sold more than 1 million copies within three weeks of its release” (American National Biography). Listed on the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress.  

Tennessee Ernie Ford “Sixteen Tons”