This is a list of notable events in country music that took place in the year 1980.
See also: List of number-one country singles of 1980 (U.S.) and List of number-one country hits of 1980 (Canada).
| US | CAN | Single | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | 59 | After Hours | Joe Stampley |
| 18 | 21 | Always | Patsy Cline |
| 1 | 20 | Are You on the Road to Lovin' Me Again | Debby Boone |
| 7 | 7 | Baby, You're Something | John Conlee |
| 6 | — | Back to Back | Jeanne Pruett |
| 1 | 1 | Bar Room Buddies | Merle Haggard and Clint Eastwood |
| 18 | 43 | Bedroom Ballad | Gene Watson |
| 1 | 2 | Beneath Still Waters | Emmylou Harris |
| 6 | 9 | The Best of Strangers | Barbara Mandrell |
| 7 | 49 | Blue Heartache | Gail Davies |
| 8 | 4 | The Blue Side | Crystal Gayle |
| 21 | 8 | Bombed, Boozed and Busted | Joe Sun |
| 13 | 8 | The Boxer | Emmylou Harris |
| 20 | — | Bring It on Home | Big Al Downing |
| 9 | 14 | Broken Trust | Brenda Lee with The Oak Ridge Boys |
| 22 | 14 | The Champ | Moe Bandy |
| 5 | 27 | Charlotte's Web | The Statler Brothers |
| 20 | 21 | Cheatin' on a Cheater | Loretta Lynn |
| 7 | 1 | Clyde | Waylon Jennings |
| 24 | 7 | Coal Miner's Daughter | Sissy Spacek |
| 16 | 35 | Come to My Love | Cristy Lane |
| 15 | 26 | Couldn't Do Nothin' Right | Rosanne Cash |
| 1 | 1 | Coward of the County | Kenny Rogers |
| 1 | 10 | Cowboys and Clowns | Ronnie Milsap |
| 10 | 8 | The Cowgirl and the Dandy | Brenda Lee |
| 3 | 6 | Crackers | Barbara Mandrell |
| 14 | 53 | Crying | Stephanie Winslow |
| 32 | 8 | Dallas | Floyd Cramer |
| 1 | 4 | Dancin' Cowboys | The Bellamy Brothers |
| 1 | 15 | Do You Wanna Go to Heaven | T. G. Sheppard |
| 3 | 1 | Don't Fall in Love with a Dreamer | Kenny Rogers with Kim Carnes |
| 17 | — | Drinkin' and Drivin' | Johnny Paycheck |
| 1 | 2 | Drivin' My Life Away | Eddie Rabbitt |
| 3 | 3 | Faded Love | Willie Nelson and Ray Price |
| 14 | — | Free to Be Lonely Again | Debby Boone |
| 2 | 3 | Friday Night Blues | John Conlee |
| 1 | 7 | Gone Too Far | Eddie Rabbitt |
| 2 | 3 | Good Ole Boys Like Me | Don Williams |
| 7 | 16 | Hard Times | Lacy J. Dalton |
| 1 | 2 | He Stopped Loving Her Today | George Jones |
| 17 | 28 | He Was There (When I Needed You) | Tammy Wynette |
| 17 | 20 | He's Out of My Life | Johnny Duncan with Janie Fricke |
| 3 | 3 | Heart of Mine | The Oak Ridge Boys |
| 4 | 1 | Help Me Make It Through the Night | Willie Nelson |
| 7 | 7 | Holding the Bag | Moe Bandy and Joe Stampley |
| 1 | 1 | Honky Tonk Blues | Charley Pride |
| 1 | 1 | I Ain't Living Long Like This | Waylon Jennings |
| 1 | 1 | I Believe in You | Don Williams |
| 18 | 33 | I Can See Forever in Your Eyes | Reba McEntire |
| 5 | — | I Can't Get Enough of You | Razzy Bailey |
| 20 | — | I Don't Want to Lose You | Con Hunley |
| 15 | 8 | I Wish I Was Eighteen Again | George Burns |
| 1 | 1 | I'd Love to Lay You Down | Conway Twitty |
| 1 | 23 | I'll Be Coming Back for More | T. G. Sheppard |
| 8 | 8 | I'll Even Love You (Better Than I Did Then) | The Statler Brothers |
| 5 | 25 | I'm Already Blue | The Kendalls |
| 17 | 48 | I'm Gonna Love You Tonight (In My Dreams) | Johnny Duncan |
| 2 | 4 | I'm Not Ready Yet | George Jones |
| 6 | 7 | I've Never Seen the Likes of You | Conway Twitty |
| 1 | 3 | If You Ever Change Your Mind | Crystal Gayle |
| 13 | 62 | In America | Charlie Daniels |
| 10 | 4 | It's Hard to Be Humble | Mac Davis |
| 1 | 1 | It's Like We Never Said Goodbye | Crystal Gayle |
| 14 | 35 | It's Over | Rex Allen, Jr. |
| 9 | — | It's Too Late | Jeanne Pruett |
| 5 | 2 | It's True Love | Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty |
| 12 | 8 | Kaw-Liga | Hank Williams Jr. |
| 1 | 2 | Lady | Kenny Rogers |
| 12 | 39 | The Last Cowboy Song | Ed Bruce |
| 13 | — | Lay Back in the Arms of Someone | Randy Barlow |
| 13 | — | Leavin's for Unbelievers | Dottie West |
| 1 | 1 | Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight | The Oak Ridge Boys |
| 1 | 23 | A Lesson in Leavin' | Dottie West |
| 6 | 17 | Let's Get It While the Getting's Good | Eddy Arnold |
| 10 | 15 | Let's Keep it That Way | Mac Davis |
| 17 | — | A Little Getting Used To | Mickey Gilley |
| 27 | 16 | Long Haired Country Boy | Charlie Daniels |
| 1 | 18 | Lookin' for Love | Johnny Lee |
| 14 | 57 | Losing Kind of Love | Lacy J. Datlon |
| 1 | 1 | Love Me Over Again | Don Williams |
| 4 | 1 | Love the World Away | Kenny Rogers |
| 3 | 30 | Lovers Live Longer | The Bellamy Brothers |
| 1 | 10 | Loving Up a Storm | Razzy Bailey |
| 6 | 12 | Lying Time Again | Mel Tillis |
| 2 | 38 | Making Plans | Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton |
| 12 | — | Man Just Doesn't Know What a Woman Goes Through | Charlie Rich |
| 7 | 12 | Men | Charly McClain |
| 6 | 1 | Midnight Rider | Willie Nelson |
| 3 | 4 | Misery and Gin | Merle Haggard |
| 2 | 2 | Missin' You | Charley Pride |
| 5 | 46 | Morning Comes Too Early | Jim Ed Brown and Helen Cornelius |
| 1 | 13 | My Heart | Ronnie Milsap |
| 1 | 1 | My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys | Willie Nelson |
| 17 | — | My Home's in Alabama | Alabama |
| 30 | 11 | Naked in the Rain | Loretta Lynn |
| 18 | 10 | New York Wine and Tennessee Shine | Dave & Sugar |
| 20 | 11 | Night Games | Ray Stevens |
| 20 | 9 | Night Life | Willie Nelson with Danny Davis and the Nashville Brass |
| 13 | 22 | No One Will Ever Know | Gene Watson |
| 17 | 16 | North of the Border | Johnny Rodriguez |
| 4 | 3 | Nothing Sure Looked Good on You | Gene Watson |
| 11 | 26 | Numbers | Bobby Bare |
| 6 | 40 | Oh, How I Miss You Tonight | Jim Reeves and Deborah Allen |
| 1 | 2 | Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You | Dolly Parton |
| 6 | 58 | Old Habits | Hank Williams Jr. |
| 9 | 9 | The Old Side of Town | Tom T. Hall |
| 1 | 2 | On the Road Again | Willie Nelson |
| 1 | 10 | One Day at a Time | Cristy Lane |
| 1 | 8 | One in a Million | Johnny Lee |
| 13 | — | One of a Kind | Moe Bandy |
| 10 | — | Over | Leon Everette |
| 10 | 18 | Over the Rainbow | Jerry Lee Lewis |
| 19 | 59 | A Pair of Old Sneakers | George Jones and Tammy Wynette |
| 22 | 12 | Pass Me By (If You're Only Passing Through) | Janie Fricke |
| 10 | 7 | Pecos Promenade | Tanya Tucker |
| 17 | 31 | Play Another Slow Song | Johnny Duncan |
| 5 | 3 | Pour Me Another Tequila | Eddie Rabbitt |
| 35 | 13 | Pregnant Again | Loretta Lynn |
| 9 | 5 | Put It Off Until Tomorrow | The Kendalls |
| 21 | 18 | Rainy Days and Stormy Nights | Billie Jo Spears |
| 15 | — | Raisin' Cane in Texas | Gene Watson |
| 38 | 20 | The Real Buddy Holly Story | Sonny Curtis |
| 20 | 17 | Real Cowboy (You Say You're) | Billy Crash Craddock |
| 8 | — | Save Your Heart for Me | Jacky Ward |
| 2 | 11 | She Can't Say That Anymore | John Conlee |
| 13 | 60 | She Just Started Liking Cheatin' Songs | John Anderson |
| 23 | 13 | Shotgun Rider | Joe Sun |
| 7 | 2 | Shriner's Convention | Ray Stevens |
| 13 | 21 | The Shuffle Song | Margo Smith |
| 1 | 8 | Smoky Mountain Rain | Ronnie Milsap |
| 6 | 7 | Smooth Sailin' | T. G. Sheppard |
| 1 | 3 | Stand by Me | Mickey Gilley |
| 15 | 9 | Standing Tall | Billie Jo Spears |
| 17 | 41 | Starting Over | Tammy Wynette |
| 1 | 2 | Starting Over Again | Dolly Parton |
| 9 | — | Steppin' Out | Mel Tillis |
| 1 | 2 | Sugar Daddy | The Bellamy Brothers |
| 12 | 13 | Sugarfoot Rag | Jerry Reed |
| 15 | — | Sure Thing | Freddie Hart |
| 8 | 16 | Sweet Sexy Eyes | Cristy Lane |
| 10 | — | Take Me in Your Arms and Hold Me | Jim Reeves and Deborah Allen |
| 5 | 12 | Take Me to Your Lovin' Place | Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Brothers Band |
| 12 | 15 | Taking Somebody with Me When I Fall | Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Brothers Band |
| 11 | 15 | Tell Ole I Ain't Here, He Better Get on Home | Moe Bandy and Joe Stampley |
| 5 | 25 | Temporarily Yours | Jeanne Pruett |
| 1 | 1 | Tennessee River | Alabama |
| 18 | 43 | The Tennessee Waltz | Lacy J. Dalton |
| 9 | 40 | Texas in My Rear View Mirror | Mac Davis |
| 6 | 3 | That Lovin' You Feelin' Again | Roy Orbison and Emmylou Harris |
| 1 | 9 | That's All That Matters | Mickey Gilley |
| 7 | — | That's the Way a Cowboy Rocks and Rolls | Jacky Ward |
| 10 | 50 | That's What I Get for Loving You | Eddy Arnold |
| 1 | 2 | Theme from The Dukes of Hazzard (Good Ol' Boys) | Waylon Jennings |
| 18 | 36 | There's Another Woman | Joe Stampley |
| 19 | — | They Never Lost You | Con Hunley |
| 13 | — | Too Old to Play Cowboy | Razzy Bailey |
| 1 | 1 | True Love Ways | Mickey Gilley |
| 1 | 1 | Trying to Love Two Women | The Oak Ridge Boys |
| 10 | — | Tumbleweed | Sylvia |
| 2 | 1 | Two Story House | George Jones & Tammy Wynette |
| 2 | 1 | The Way I Am | Merle Haggard |
| 7 | 1 | Wayfaring Stranger | Emmylou Harris |
| 18 | 15 | We're Number One | Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers |
| 19 | 33 | What'll I Tell Virginia | Johnny Rodriguez |
| 15 | 17 | When | Slim Whitman |
| 11 | 15 | When Two Worlds Collide | Jerry Lee Lewis |
| 1 | 2 | Why Don't You Spend the Night | Ronnie Milsap |
| 1 | 3 | Why Lady Why | Alabama |
| 18 | 23 | Women Get Lonely | Charly McClain |
| 5 | 9 | Women I've Never Had | Hank Williams Jr. |
| 1 | 1 | Years | Barbara Mandrell |
| 10 | 6 | Yesterday Once More | Moe Bandy |
| 4 | 5 | You Almost Slipped My Mind | Charley Pride |
| 9 | 5 | You Know Just What I'd Do | Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty |
| 19 | 19 | You Lay a Whole Lot of Love on Me | Con Hunley |
| 8 | 22 | (You Lift Me) Up to Heaven | Reba McEntire |
| 1 | 2 | You Win Again | Charley Pride |
| 5 | 17 | You'd Make an Angel Wanna Cheat | The Kendalls |
| 22 | 8 | You're Gonna Love Yourself | Charlie Rich |
| 60 | 12 | You're Only Lonely | JD Souther |
| 3 | 32 | Your Body Is an Outlaw | Mel Tillis |
| 15 | 39 | Your Lying Blue Eyes | John Anderson |
| 5 | 5 | Your Old Cold Shoulder | Crystal Gayle |
| US | CAN | Single | Artist | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | 10 | All Her Letters | Terry Carisse | |
| — | 10 | The Ballad of Lucy Jordan | Marie Bottrell | |
| — | 14 | The Ballad of T.J.'s | Dick Damron | |
| — | 15 | Brown Eyed Girl | The Good Brothers | |
| — | 1 | But It's Cheating | Family Brown | |
| — | 13 | Casey's Last Ride | Bytown Bluegrass | |
| — | 16 | Caught in the Middle | Jack Hennig | |
| 1 | 1 | Could I Have This Dance | Anne Murray | |
| 3 | 1 | Daydream Believer | Anne Murray | |
| — | 20 | Dollars | Dick Damron | |
| — | 4 | Don't Ask the Question | Canadian Zephyr | |
| 80 | 8 | Dream Street Rose | Gordon Lightfoot | |
| — | 8 | Evangeline | C-Weed Band | |
| — | 6 | Flames of Evil Desire | Marie Bottrell | |
| — | 1 | Guess I Went Crazy | Canadian Zephyr | |
| — | 10 | Hard Times (Comin' Down Again) | Carlton Showband | |
| — | 1 | Hollywood Love | Carroll Baker | |
| — | 4 | I Think I'll Say Goodbye | Eddie Eastman | |
| — | 15 | I Wish You Could Have Turned My Head | Mercey Brothers | |
| — | 10 | I'd Rather Be in L.A. | Gurney Anderson | |
| 23 | 10 | I'm Happy Just to Dance with You | Anne Murray | |
| — | 9 | In My Eyes | Glory-Anne Carriere | |
| — | 14 | Liftin' Me Up, Lettin' Me Down | Eddie Eastman | |
| — | 1 | Love Was on Our Side | Family Brown | |
| 9 | 4 | Lucky Me | Anne Murray | |
| — | 7 | Meant to Be | R. Harlan Smith and Chris Nielsen | |
| — | 10 | My Broken Old Heart | David Thompson | |
| — | 3 | Phantom of the Opry | Ronnie Prophet | |
| — | 20 | Rideau Street Queen | Wayne Rostad | |
| — | 18 | Somebody's Woman | Ralph Carlson | |
| — | 20 | Sorry Doesn't Always Make It Right | Iris Larratt | |
| — | 1 | Sparkle in Her Eyes | Terry Carisse | |
| — | 3 | The Star | Marie Bottrell | |
| — | 1 | Still Falling in Love | Carroll Baker | |
| — | 9 | Sweet Mountain Music | Laura Vinson | |
| — | 6 | Thanks for the Dance | Ralph Carlson | |
| — | 10 | We Could Make Beautiful Music Together | Terry Carisse | |
| — | 4 | We've Got the Magic | R. Harlan Smith | |
| — | 16 | What's Forever For | Cliff Edwards | |
| — | 7 | Your Used to Be | Eddie Eastman |
See also: List of number-one country albums of 1980 (U.S.).
| US | CAN | Album | Artist | Record Label | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | After Hours | Joe Stampley | Epic | ||
| 27 | Always | Patsy Cline | MCA | ||
| 28 | Autograph | John Denver | RCA | ||
| 43 | The Best of Chet on the Road — Live | Chet Atkins | RCA | ||
| 34 | The Best of the Kendalls | The Kendalls | Ovation | ||
| 64 | But What Will the Neighbors Think | Rodney Crowell | Warner Bros. | ||
| 49 | Cactus and a Rose | Gary Stewart | RCA | ||
| 71 | Changes | Billy "Crash" Craddock | Capitol | ||
| 47 | Christmas with Slim Whitman | Slim Whitman | Cleveland Int'l. | ||
| 29 | Dallas | Floyd Cramer | RCA Victor | ||
| 51 | Don't It Break Your Heart | Con Hunley | Warner Bros. | ||
| 45 | Double Trouble | George Jones & Johnny Paycheck | Epic | ||
| 41 | Dreamlovers | Tanya Tucker | MCA | ||
| 37 | Even Cowgirls Get the Blues | Lynn Anderson | Columbia | ||
| 55 | Eyes | Eddy Raven | Dimension | ||
| 26 | Family Bible | Willie Nelson | MCA | ||
| 37 | Favorites | Crystal Gayle | United Artists | ||
| 44 | Following the Feeling | Moe Bandy | Columbia | ||
| 40 | The Game | Gail Davies | Warner Bros. | ||
| 59 | Greatest Country Hits of the 70's | Various Artists | Columbia | ||
| 61 | I Don't Want to Lose | Leon Everette | Orlando | ||
| 29 | I Don't Want to Lose You | Con Hunley | Warner Bros. | ||
| 27 | I'll Be There | Gail Davies | Warner Bros. | ||
| 28 | I'll Need Someone to Hold Me When I Cry | Janie Fricke | Columbia | ||
| 66 | I've Got Something to Say | David Allan Coe | Columbia | ||
| 61 | In My Dreams | Johnny Duncan | Columbia | ||
| 56 | Jerry Reed Sings Jim Croce | Jerry Reed | RCA | ||
| 61 | John Anderson | John Anderson | Warner Bros. | ||
| 35 | Killer Country | Jerry Lee Lewis | Elektra | ||
| 26 | A Legend and His Lady | Eddy Arnold | RCA | ||
| 59 | Love So Many Ways | Ronnie McDowell | Epic | ||
| 61 | Many Moods of Mel | Mel Street | Sunbird | ||
| 48 | New York Town | Johnny Paycheck | Epic | ||
| 47 | New York Wine Tennessee Shine | Dave Rowland & Sugar | RCA | ||
| 45 | No One Will Ever Know | Gene Watson | Capitol | ||
| 69 | Oklahoma Rose | Rex Allen, Jr. | Warner Bros. | ||
| 52 | Once a Drifter | Charlie Rich | Elektra | ||
| 35 | One Man, One Woman | Jim Ed Brown & Helen Cornelius | RCA | ||
| 37 | Only Lonely Sometimes | Tammy Wynette | Epic | ||
| 70 | Standing Tall | Billie Jo Spears | United Artists | ||
| 52 | A Sure Thing | Freddie Hart | Sunbird | ||
| 30 | Take Me Back | Brenda Lee | MCA | ||
| 43 | Texas Bound and Flyin | Jerry Reed | RCA | ||
| 56 | There's Always Me | Jim Reeves | RCA | ||
| 26 | Together Again | George Jones & Tammy Wynette | Epic | ||
| 32 | When Two Worlds Collide | Jerry Lee Lewis | Elektra | ||
| 31 | Where Did the Money Go? | Hoyt Axton | Jeremiah | ||
| 28 | Who's Cheatin' Who | Charly McClain | Epic | ||
| 73 | Women Get Lonely | Charly McClain | Epic |