Number One Country Songs of 1990
Written By: Amanda Tempel
Published: February 18, 2026 Last Updated: September 6, 2026
The Billboard country chart featured 24 different No. 1 songs across 52 weekly issues in 1990. George Strait spent the most total weeks at No. 1 during the year with nine, while Alabama, Clint Black, Dan Seals, Garth Brooks, and George Strait each had two chart-topping songs.
1990 was also an important year in the history of Billboard's country chart. Beginning with the January 20 chart, Billboard switched to electronically monitored radio airplay data from Broadcast Data Systems. The chart was published as Hot Country Singles early in the year before being renamed Hot Country Singles & Tracks in February.
Below is the complete list of Billboard No. 1 country songs of 1990, including the artist, songwriter or songwriters, and number of weeks each song spent at the top. Additional breakdowns show the songwriters and artists who accumulated the most weeks at No. 1 during the year.
Note: This list covers Billboard's U.S. country chart. Canada's RPM country singles chart was a separate ranking and may have different No. 1 songs.
1990 Country Chart Quick Facts
24 different songs held the No. 1 position during 1990.
George Strait spent the most total weeks at No. 1 with nine.
“Love Without End, Amen” by George Strait had the longest run at No. 1 with five weeks.
Alabama, Clint Black, Dan Seals, Garth Brooks, and George Strait each had two No. 1 songs during the year.
K.T. Oslin led female artists with two total weeks at No. 1.
Alabama led country groups with five total weeks at No. 1.
Billboard began using electronically monitored country radio airplay for the chart in January 1990.
Billboard Number One Country Songs of 1990
“Who's Lonely Now” — Highway 101
Songwriters: Kix Brooks and Don Cook
Weeks at No. 1 in 1990: 1
“It Ain't Nothin'” — Keith Whitley
Songwriter: Tony Haselden
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Nobody's Home” — Clint Black
Songwriter: Clint Black
Weeks at No. 1: 3
“Southern Star” — Alabama
Songwriters: Rich Alves, Steve Dean, and Roger Murrah
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“On Second Thought” — Eddie Rabbitt
Songwriter: Eddie Rabbitt
Weeks at No. 1: 2
“No Matter How High” — The Oak Ridge Boys
Songwriters: Even Stevens and Joey Scarbury
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Chains” — Patty Loveless
Songwriters: Hal Bynum and Bud Reneau
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart” — Randy Travis
Songwriter: Hugh Prestwood
Weeks at No. 1: 4
“Five Minutes” — Lorrie Morgan
Songwriter: Beth Nielsen Chapman
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Love on Arrival” — Dan Seals
Songwriter: Dan Seals
Weeks at No. 1: 3
“Help Me Hold On” — Travis Tritt
Songwriters: Travis Tritt and Pat Terry
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Walkin' Away” — Clint Black
Songwriters: Clint Black and Hayden Nicholas
Weeks at No. 1: 2
“I've Cried My Last Tear for You” — Ricky Van Shelton
Songwriters: Chris Waters and Tony King
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Love Without End, Amen” — George Strait
Songwriter: Aaron Barker
Weeks at No. 1: 5
“The Dance” — Garth Brooks
Songwriter: Tony Arata
Weeks at No. 1: 3
“Good Times” — Dan Seals
Songwriter: Sam Cooke
Weeks at No. 1: 2
“Next to You, Next to Me” — Shenandoah
Songwriters: Robert Ellis Orrall and Curtis Wright
Weeks at No. 1: 3
“Jukebox in My Mind” — Alabama
Songwriters: Dave Gibson and Ronnie Rogers
Weeks at No. 1: 4
“Friends in Low Places” — Garth Brooks
Songwriters: Dewayne Blackwell and Earl Bud Lee
Weeks at No. 1: 4
“You Lie” — Reba McEntire
Songwriters: Bobby Fischer, Charlie Black, and Austin Roberts
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Home” — Joe Diffie
Songwriters: Fred Lehner and Andy Spooner
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“You Really Had Me Going” — Holly Dunn
Songwriters: Holly Dunn, Chris Waters, and Tom Shapiro
Weeks at No. 1: 1
“Come Next Monday” — K.T. Oslin
Songwriters: K.T. Oslin, Charlie Black, and Rory Bourke
Weeks at No. 1: 2
“I've Come to Expect It from You” — George Strait
Songwriters: Buddy Cannon and Dean Dillon
Weeks at No. 1: 4
Songwriters with the Most Weeks at No. 1 in 1990
5 Weeks
Aaron Barker
Clint Black
4 Weeks
Buddy Cannon
Dave Gibson
Dean Dillon
Dewayne Blackwell
Earl Bud Lee
Hugh Prestwood
Ronnie Rogers
3 Weeks
Charlie Black
Curtis Wright
Dan Seals
Robert Ellis Orrall
Tony Arata
2 Weeks
Chris Waters
Eddie Rabbitt
Hayden Nicholas
K.T. Oslin
Rory Bourke
Sam Cooke
1 Week
Andy Spooner
Austin Roberts
Beth Nielsen Chapman
Bobby Fischer
Bud Reneau
Don Cook
Even Stevens
Fred Lehner
Hal Bynum
Holly Dunn
Joey Scarbury
Kix Brooks
Pat Terry
Rich Alves
Roger Murrah
Steve Dean
Tom Shapiro
Tony Haselden
Tony King
Travis Tritt
Country Artists with the Most Weeks at No. 1 in 1990
9 Weeks
George Strait
7 Weeks
Garth Brooks
5 Weeks
Alabama
Clint Black
Dan Seals
4 Weeks
Randy Travis
3 Weeks
Shenandoah
2 Weeks
Eddie Rabbitt
K.T. Oslin
1 Week
Highway 101
Holly Dunn
Joe Diffie
Keith Whitley
Lorrie Morgan
The Oak Ridge Boys
Patty Loveless
Reba McEntire
Ricky Van Shelton
Travis Tritt
Country Artists with the Most Weeks at Number One in 1990
Male Country Artists with the Most Weeks at No. 1 in 1990
George Strait — 9 weeks
Garth Brooks — 7 weeks
Clint Black — 5 weeks
Dan Seals — 5 weeks
Randy Travis — 4 weeks
Eddie Rabbitt — 2 weeks
Joe Diffie — 1 week
Keith Whitley — 1 week
Ricky Van Shelton — 1 week
Travis Tritt — 1 week
Female Country Artists with the Most Weeks at No. 1 in 1990
K.T. Oslin — 2 weeks
Holly Dunn — 1 week
Lorrie Morgan — 1 week
Patty Loveless — 1 week
Reba McEntire — 1 week
Country Groups with the Most Weeks at No. 1 in 1990
Alabama — 5 weeks
Shenandoah — 3 weeks
Highway 101 — 1 week
The Oak Ridge Boys — 1 week
Artists with the Most No. 1 Country Songs in 1990
Five artists had two different songs spend time at No. 1 on the Billboard country chart during 1990:
Alabama — 2 No. 1 songs
Clint Black — 2 No. 1 songs
Dan Seals — 2 No. 1 songs
Garth Brooks — 2 No. 1 songs
George Strait — 2 No. 1 songs
The following artists had one song spend time at No. 1 during the year:
Eddie Rabbitt
Highway 101
Holly Dunn
Joe Diffie
Keith Whitley
K.T. Oslin
Lorrie Morgan
The Oak Ridge Boys
Patty Loveless
Randy Travis
Reba McEntire
Ricky Van Shelton
Shenandoah
Travis Tritt
Male Artists with the Most No. 1 Country Songs in 1990
Clint Black — 2
Dan Seals — 2
Garth Brooks — 2
George Strait — 2
Eddie Rabbitt — 1
Joe Diffie — 1
Keith Whitley — 1
Randy Travis — 1
Ricky Van Shelton — 1
Travis Tritt — 1
Female Artists with the Most No. 1 Country Songs in 1990
Holly Dunn — 1
K.T. Oslin — 1
Lorrie Morgan — 1
Patty Loveless — 1
Reba McEntire — 1
Country Groups with the Most No. 1 Songs in 1990
Alabama — 2
Highway 101 — 1
The Oak Ridge Boys — 1
Shenandoah — 1
Breakdown of Number One Songs
1990 Country Music Chart FAQs
What was the No. 1 country song of 1990?
“Love Without End, Amen” by George Strait had the longest No. 1 run on Billboard's country chart during 1990, spending five weeks at the top.
How many No. 1 country songs were there in 1990?
Twenty-four different songs held the No. 1 position on Billboard's country chart across the 52 weekly issues published in 1990. One of those, Highway 101's “Who's Lonely Now,” had first reached No. 1 at the end of 1989 and remained there for the first chart week of 1990.
Who had the most No. 1 country hits in 1990?
Alabama, Clint Black, Dan Seals, Garth Brooks, and George Strait each had two songs spend time at No. 1 during 1990.
Who spent the most weeks at No. 1 on the country chart in 1990?
George Strait led all artists with nine total weeks at No. 1. “Love Without End, Amen” spent five weeks at the top, while “I've Come to Expect It from You” spent four.
What No. 1 songs did George Strait have in 1990?
George Strait had two No. 1 country songs in 1990: “Love Without End, Amen” and “I've Come to Expect It from You.” Together, the songs gave Strait nine weeks at the top of the Billboard country chart.
What No. 1 songs did Garth Brooks have in 1990?
Garth Brooks had two No. 1 songs in 1990: “The Dance,” which spent three weeks at No. 1, and “Friends in Low Places,” which spent four weeks at the top.
Which female country artists reached No. 1 in 1990?
Holly Dunn, K.T. Oslin, Lorrie Morgan, Patty Loveless, and Reba McEntire each had a song spend time at No. 1 during 1990. K.T. Oslin led the group in total time at the top with two weeks.
What was the Billboard country chart called in 1990?
The chart was called Hot Country Singles at the beginning of 1990. Billboard renamed it Hot Country Singles & Tracks in February 1990. Earlier that year, Billboard also began compiling the chart using electronically monitored radio airplay data.
Is this the same as the RPM country chart from 1990?
No. This list tracks Billboard's U.S. country chart. RPM published a separate Canadian country singles chart, so its weekly No. 1 songs may differ from Billboard's rankings.
From George Strait's nine weeks at No. 1 to early career chart-toppers from Garth Brooks, Travis Tritt, and Joe Diffie, the Billboard country charts of 1990 document an important year in country music. This page preserves the complete list along with songwriter credits and detailed artist breakdowns for reference.
Sources: Billboard's Hot Country Singles and Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts and Billboard's 1990 chart methodology coverage.