CMA Announces Newest Members Of Country Music Hall Of Fame

Harold Bradley photo courtesy of Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

Sonny James photo courtesy of Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

George Strait photo by Tony Baker, courtesy of Country Music Hall Of Fame and Museum.

August 31, 2006--The Country Music Association has announced that influential musician/producer Harold Bradley, legendary singer Sonny James and multi-award-winning entertainer George Strait will become the newest members of the coveted Country Music Hall of Fame. Formal induction for the artists will take place during The 40th Annual CMA Awards, which will be broadcast live on ABC Monday, November 6 at 8 p.m. Eastern from the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, Tenn.

Bradley will be inducted in the "Recording and/or Touring Musician Active Prior to 1980" category, which is awarded every third year in a rotation with the "Career Achieved National Prominence Prior to World War II" and "Non-Performer" categories. Sonny will be inducted in the "Career Achieved National Prominence Between World War II and 1975" category. George will be the second artist inducted in the "Career Achieved National Prominence Between 1975 and the Present" category, which was created last year.

All inductees are chosen by CMA's Hall of Fame Panel of Electors, consisting of more than 300 anonymous voters appointed by the CMA Board of Directors. Bradley, Sonny and George will increase membership in the coveted Country Music Hall of Fame from 95 to 98 inductees.

"The highest musical honor achievable for a Country Music artist and musician is to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and these are all outstanding and highly deserving individuals," said Tammy Genovese, CMA Chief Operating Officer. "Harold Bradley has been instrumental in creating 'The Nashville Sound' since 1946, becoming the most recorded guitar player in history. Sonny James recorded an incredible streak of hit records for more than 25 years. And George Strait, whom nearly every country artist on the charts today cites as a major influence, continues to create great music, having placed at least one single in the Top 10 every year since 1981.

"It is with great pride that CMA will induct these three exceptional artists and musicians into the Country Music Hall of Fame, where they will join an intimate yet influential group of performers and industry veterans who have made lasting contributions to country music over the last century."