Howard was born on September 8, 1927, in
Detroit, Michigan, and grew up on a farm in
Michigan. As a child, he listened to the
Grand Ole Opry radio show. In later years, Howard recalled the personal formative influence of country music: I was captured by the songs as much as the singer. They grabbed my heart. The reality of country music moved me. Even when I was a kid, I liked the sad songs… songs that talked about true life. I recognized this music as a simple plea. It beckoned me. Howard completed only nine years of formal education, though he was an avid reader. When he was 12 years of age, he began writing songs, "an enthusiasm fueled by an appetite for books and an ear for a telling phrase." went to No. 2 on the country music chart in late 1958. A year later
Ray Price had a major country hit with "
Heartaches By The Number". Howard was inducted into the
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1973, the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1997, and the
Songwriters Hall of Fame also in 1997. He died in Nashville in 2002, at the age of 74, and was buried in
Nashville City Cemetery. On March 3, 2023,
Willie Nelson released his 73rd studio album ''
I Don't Know A Thing About Love: The Songs of Harlan Howard''. Produced by Buddy Cannon, the album is a tribute to Harlan Howard. ==Discography==