Country Music History Statistics
By the Numbers
Estimated U.S. record sales in 1927: 104 million units.1
Estimated U.S. album sales in 1997: 652 million units.2
Estimated U.S. albums sold in 2007: 500.5 million units (CD, record, and cassette).
Estimated U.S. digital tracks downloaded in 2007: 844.2 million.3
Amount paid to Jimmie Rodgers for his first two song recordings in 1927: $100.
Amount paid to Jimmie Rodgers per week for a vaudeville theater tour of the Southwest in 1928: $1000.4
Estimated total earnings for Garth Brooks between 1991 and 1992: $44 million.5
Number of country and western bands hired by the U.S. Army Special Services Division to entertain troops in Europe in 1943: About 25.6
Number of country music radio shows on the air in 1944: Over 600.7
Number of country & western stations on the air in 1964: Over 2,000.8
Number of songwriters registered with the Nashville Songwriters Association International in 1994: 4,500.9