Age Ain’t Nothin’ But a Number

While Taylor Swift mania continues to grow, there’s another impressive accomplishment being achieved by two veterans of country music on the opposite end of the age spectrum.

Contrary to what is commonly believed, there has always been a ceiling on how old you could be and still get country airplay. This year, both George Strait and Reba McEntire have been working steadily to shatter that ceiling.

Take a look at the age of country legends when they earned their most recent top ten solo hit:

1. Eddy Arnold, 62
2. Kenny Rogers, 61*
3. Conway Twitty, 58
4. George Strait, 57
5. George Jones, 57**
6. Marty Robbins, 57
7. Willie Nelson, 56**
8. Ray Price, 56
9. Reba McEntire, 54
10. Waylon Jennings, 53
11. Merle Haggard, 52
12. Alan Jackson, 50
13. Charley Pride, 50
14. Johnny Cash, 49
15. Ernest Tubb, 49
16. Ronnie Milsap, 48
17. Loretta Lynn, 47
18. Webb Pierce, 46
19. Garth Brooks, 45
20. Dolly Parton, 43**
21. Hank Williams Jr., 41
22. Tammy Wynette, 40

* Kenny Rogers was the lead singer for his final top ten hit “Buy Me a Rose”, with harmony vocalists Billy Dean and Alison Krauss credited on the single

** George Jones, Willie Nelson, and Dolly Parton returned to the top ten in later years through duets with younger artists

It’s also worth noting that Alan Jackson, at 50, isn’t too far away from passing several legends on the list.

So George Strait remains in heavy rotation at the age of 57, outpacing all but three stars in country music history. Among the ladies, McEntire is a full seven years older than her nearest competitor Loretta Lynn was when she enjoyed her last top ten hit.

Thoughts?