In addition to the slate of categories being recognized at the 2026 Arkansas Country Music Awards, the evening will also see the induction of four legendary figures in country music inducted into the Arkansas Country Music Hall of Fame. Singing ensemble The Whites, producer and songwriter Allen Reynolds, and performers and venue entrepreneurs Jimmy Doyle and Patsy Gayle will take their places beside other luminaries of Arkansas country music.
“For an Arkansan in the country field, this is the pinnacle for there is no greater honor in the Natural State,” said country music journalist and historian Charles Haymes. “The class of 2026 is a fine mix of deserving Arkansans. From a much-loved hit-making trio to a most incredible songwriter turned music producer to a husband and wife that have worn many hats in the Arkansas entertainment business, this is another wonderful hall of fame mix of very deserving recipients.”
“The honorees for 2026 have certainly carved their own special place in Arkansas music history,” said Nathan Hunnicutt, Arkansas Country Music Awards president. “Once again, this list solidifies the magnitude and importance of the Arkansas Country Music Hall of Fame by way of the Lifetime Achievement Award and the ones that have received it, both past and present.”
The 2026 Arkansas Country Music Hall of Fame inductees will be honored June 1 at the Reynolds Performance Hall on the campus of the University of Central Arkansas in Conway in conjunction with the Arkansas Country Music Awards red carpet event.
ALLEN REYNOLDS
One of the most influential producers and successful songwriters of his era, Allen Reynolds’ impact on country music is nearly immeasurable. Born in North Little Rock, he began writing songs while attending Southwestern College, now Rhodes College in Memphis. While there, he befriended Dickey Lee and “Cowboy” Jack Clement, which launched his songwriting career.
In 1963, he and Lee co-wrote “I Saw Linda Yesterday,” and two years later, Reynolds scored again with “Five O’Clock World,” a pop hit for The Vogues. In 1970, he moved to Nashville, where he quickly established himself among the elite songwriters community there. He churned out a string of hits, a mere sample of which includes “Catfish John” by Johnny Russell; “I Recall a Gypsy Woman” and “We Should Be Together” by Don Williams; “Wrong Road Again” and “Ready for the Times to Get Better” by Crystal Gayle; and “Dreaming My Dreams With You,” which has been recorded by Waylon Jennings, Alison Krauss and Patty Loveless, among many other artists. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2000.
Reynolds’ accomplishments as a producer are equally phenomenal. In the early 1970s, he produced several hits by Williams. In 1975, he purchased Clement’s Jack’s Tracks recording studio and began producing countless hits for Gayle, including the standout “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue.” He also produced successful albums for Kathy Mattea, Emmylou Harris and Hal Ketchum, as well as the lion’s share of Garth Brooks’ catalog, including monster successes “No Fences” and “Ropin’ the Wind.”
Photo by Dwain Hebda
JIMMY DOYLE & PATSY GAYLE
A true Arkansas original, Jimmy Doyle was born near Stuttgart in 1936. Growing up, he knew farm work and moonshining from his father, as well as playing fiddle from an early age. In 1954, he joined the U.S. Navy, and during his hitch, he formed a country band called The Hayseeds. Following his discharge, he landed in San Jose, California, and was soon a fixture in the growing country music scene on the West Coast, opening for and backing artists such as Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, Freddie Hart, Wynn Stewart and others. Later, he relocated to Nevada and had a regular engagement in Las Vegas and a television show in Reno.
By 1974, he was back in Arkansas, where he met Patsy Gayle, a young vocalist who grew up in Humnoke. Performing together led to marriage and opening Jimmy Doyle’s Country Club in North Little Rock. Through the club and a stint on local television, the duo became staples in Arkansas and known coast to coast. Over 47 years in the honky-tonk business, Doyle and Gayle entertained thousands, backed by their group The Arkansas River Bottom Band.
Jimmy Doyle’s Country Club, which occupied two different locations over the years, was also a favored spot to perform for a roster of legendary musicians, including such members of the Country Music Hall of Fame as Little Jimmy Dickens, Tom T. Hall, Jean Shepard, Jim Ed Brown, Alan Jackson, Marty Stuart, Toby Keith and John Anderson. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members Carl Perkins, The Platters and Percy Sledge also graced the club stage, leading Jimmy Doyle’s Country Club to twice be awarded Venue of the Year by the Arkansas Country Music Awards. Doyle and Gayle retired in 2021.
THE WHITES
Family harmony has always been a staple in country music, as evidenced by The Whites, comprised of the late Buck White and his daughters, Sharon and Cheryl White. Buck honed his performance chops over years playing in Texas dance halls and radio shows. In 1962, he and his wife, Pat, moved the family to Mansfield in Sebastian County, where Sharon and Cheryl learned to sing harmony and the popular trio The Down Home Folks, to be changed later to The Whites, was born. The family relocated to Nashville in 1971, and in 1984, they became members of the Grand Ole Opry.
The list of accomplishments is long, including hits and favored recordings “You Put the Blue In Me,” “Hanging Around,” “Pins and Needles,” “If It Ain’t Love (Leave It Alone),” and “Doing It by the Book.” The Whites won awards from the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music, including Sharon and her husband, Ricky Skaggs, being named Vocal Duo of the Year by the Country Music Association in the mid 1980s.
The Whites also gained CMA, ACM and Grammy acclaim for their involvement in the soundtrack to the motion picture O Brother, Where Art Thou, in which they also had a cameo appearance.
Arkansas Country Music Hall of Fame Inductees and Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients
Elton Britt
The Browns
Ed Bruce
Albert E. Brumley
Shawn Camp
Glen Campbell
Bill Carter
Johnny Cash
Floyd Cramer
Jimmy Doyle & Patsy Gayle
Jimmy Driftwood
Barbara Fairchild
Kye Fleming
Lefty Frizzell
Randy Goodrum
Levon Helm
Wayland Holyfield
John Hughey
Irby Mandrell
Patsy Montana
Wood Newton
The Original Rhodes Show
K.T. Oslin
Wayne Raney
Collin Raye
Allen Reynolds
Charlie Rich
Bob Robbins
Conway Twitty
The Whites
The Wilburn Brothers
Mark Wright
Reggie Young
SEE THE ARTICLE BELOW AND IN OUR MAY 2026 ISSUE OF AY MAGAZINE
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