In 1959, George Hamilton IV, a 19-year-old student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, recorded “A Rose and a Baby Ruth.” The song climbed to No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and attained gold record status in 1960. On February 8, 1960, Hamilton officially became a member of the Grand Ole Opry.

His mainstream breakthrough hit was the 1961 song “Before this Day Ends.” His hit “Abilene” spent four weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s country singles chart and reached the Top 20 of the Hot 100. His song, “Break My Mind,” was another hit for Hamilton in 1967. His 1970 single “She’s a Little Bit Country” found Top 5 success.

In the early 1970s, Hamilton began touring the Soviet Union, Australia, the Middle East and East Asia. These widely-acclaimed international performances earned him the nickname “The International Ambassador of Country Music.”

George Hamilton IV recorded “Music Man’s Dreams” for First Generation Records in 1984.

He was a regular at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville and performed shows throughout the U.S. and the UK until his passing on September 17, 2014.