Garth Brooks, Connie Smith, Hargus “Pig” Robbins Are 2012 Country Music Hall Of Fame Inductees

Garth Brooks (Peter Kramer/Getty Images)

The Country Music Association has announced that three iconic artists are the 2012 inductees into the prestigious Country Music Hall of Fame: singer Connie Smith, who was one of the most popular country artists of the 1960s; legendary pianist and sideman Hargus “Pig” Robbins, who’s played on countless legendary sessions for the likes of George Jones, Roger Miller, Charlie Rich, and Bob Dylan; and a guy most of you probably know a thing or two about already, one of the best-selling artists of all time, Garth Brooks.

The Country Hall of Fame (Rusty Russell/Getty Images)

Election into the Hall of Fame is country music’s highest honor, putting these three artists into a league that includes such legends as Roy Acuff, Patsy Cline, Ernest Tubb, Buck Owens, Johnny Cash, the Carter Family, Tammy Wynette, George Jones, and of course both Hank Williams and Jimmie Rodgers (who, along with Fred Rose, were the initial inductees when the Hall of Fame was established back in 1961).

Congrats to all three of this year’s inductees!

Connie Smith singing her debut single, “Once a Day”:

Lyrics

When you found somebody new
I thought I never would
Forget you
For I thought then I never could
But time has taken all the pains away

Get the rest on MetroLyrics »

 

 

Though he was mostly a behind-the-scenes player, you can see “Pig” Robbins on piano in this recent video, playing “Hey Good Lookin’”:

Garth Brooks on Sesame Street:

More information on the Country Music Hall of Fame.

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– Kurt Wolff, CBS Local