A Drunk Charlie Rich Lit John Denver’s Entertainer of the Year Award on Fire in Protest at the 1975 CMA Awards
John Denver was one of the biggest country singers of the ’70s, selling millions of albums and starring in TV specials and his own variety show. Not everyone was a fan of the “Rocky Mountain High” singer, though. Why did fellow country star Charlie Rich set fire to Denver’s CMA Entertainer of the Year award?
John Denver’s rise to fame
Denver became a star in 1971, releasing the hit single “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” From there, the New Mexico native became a household name, producing hits like “Annie’s Song,” “Rocky Mountain High,” “Leaving on a Jet Plane,” and “Thank God I’m A Country Boy.”
The singer-songwriter also hosted a series of TV specials and even won an Emmy in 1975 for An Evening With John Denver. That same year, Denver was nominated for Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association.
Charlie Rich lit John Denver’s CMA Award on fire during the 1975 show
Past winners of the award include Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, and Loretta Lynn. The 1974 winner, Charlie Rich, was asked to present the award the following year. The singer, who was known to have a drinking problem, seemed visibly intoxicated to some viewers while announcing the nominees.
Then, Rich opened the envelope, pulled a lighter out of his pocket, and set fire to the piece of paper with the winner’s name. “The Most Beautiful Girl” singer announced the winner as “My friend, Mr. John Denver.”
Was Rich protesting Denver’s win?
Rich’s behavior shocked viewers, reports History.com. Rumors quickly started swirling about why he burned up the award winner announcement. Some thought it was a protest against the “Nashville sound,” which many thought unfairly dominated the country charts.
Others thought it was a pointed insult toward Denver, who some considered too “pop” to be thought of as a country artist. The fallout from Rich’s behavior impacted his popularity, and many turned against the singer.
There is no official story about why Rich set fire to the envelope. But the singer’s son has shared his thoughts on why his dad acted so strangely.
Charlie Rich’s son gives his thoughts on the incident: ‘He thought it would be funny’
In a blog post, Charlie Rich Jr. wrote:
“For those of you that assume Charlie thought John wasn’t country enough, I’m sorry but I disagree. If you feel that way, fine, but that wasn’t my father’s general point of view. Anybody that knows much about the history of my father will know that it wasn’t in his mindset to judge someone for not being ‘country enough,’’”blues enough,’ or ‘anything enough.’. It went against his philosophy.”
“He also didn’t burn it because he disliked John Denver,” Rich Jr. maintained. “I never heard him utter one bad word against any musician or singer. In John Denver’s case, Dad told me that he liked him. I think the saddest thing that came out of the whole affair was that people thought it was an anti-John Denver thing when it wasn’t.”
Rich Jr. continued, “I’ll tell you why I thought he did it. #1 He thought it would be funny. He set it up by talking about how the potential winners were probably nervous, as he had been the previous year. #2 Bad judgment. He had recently broken his foot in a freak accident at his home in Memphis. It sounds funny, but he got his foot caught in an awkward position while getting out of a reclining chair. He cracked several bones in his foot. So… Due to the pain, he took pain medication the night of the show: Bad idea!”
“Secondly, he and another country star got to drinking Gin and Tonics while waiting in the dressing room,” he explained. “The show was long, so by the time Dad was supposed to go on, the drinks on top of the medication got him buzzed. So, there ya’ go. That’s why I think he did it. Primarily he thought it would be funny.”
Rich Jr. even said his dad tried to connect with Denver while in Aspen, Colorado, to apologize for the misunderstanding but could not get ahold of the singer. This, plus Rich calling Denver his friend while announcing the award winner, makes it seem likely that there were no hard feelings between the two.
