"Every Which Way but Loose" is a song recorded by Eddie Rabbitt

Eddie Rabbitt

Edward Thomas "Eddie" Rabbitt was an American singer-songwriter and musician. His career began as a songwriter in the late 1960s, springboarding to a recording career after composing hits such as "Kentucky Rain" for Elvis Presley in 1970 and "Pure Love" for Ronnie Milsap in 1974...

. The title song to the 1978 film of the same name, it spent three weeks atop the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles

Hot Country Songs

Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...

 chart in February 1979.

Highest debut

Released just weeks before Every Which Way But Loose premiered nationwide, the title track immediately broke in popularity. In fact, the song debuted at No. 18 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, the highest debut since the inception of the 100-position chart in July 1973; the previous record was held by Ronnie Milsap, whose "Only One Love in My Life" started at No. 32 in June 1978.

Rabbitt's chart-debut standard stood for more than 25 years, before Garth Brooks

Garth Brooks

Troyal Garth Brooks , best known as Garth Brooks, is an American country music artist who helped make country music a worldwide phenomenon. His eponymous first album was released in 1989 and peaked at number 2 in the US country album chart while climbing to number 13 on the Billboard 200 album chart...

 matched it with his No. 18 debut, "Good Ride Cowboy

Good Ride Cowboy

"Good Ride Cowboy" is a single, released in 2005, by American country music artist Garth Brooks. The song is a tribute to Chris LeDoux, another country musician and friend of Brooks'...

" in October 2005. The record was finally broken in September 2006 by Keith Urban

Keith Urban

Keith Lionel Urban is a New Zealand-born Australian, country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban was born in New Zealand and began his career in Australia at an early age...

's "Once in a Lifetime

Once in a Lifetime (Keith Urban song)

"Once in a Lifetime" is a 2006 song by Australian country music artist Keith Urban. It was the first single from his album Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing....

" (which started at No. 17), and again by Kenny Chesney

Kenny Chesney

Kenneth "Kenny" Arnold Chesney is an American country music singer and songwriter. Chesney has recorded 15 albums, 14 of which have been certified gold or higher by the RIAA. He has also produced more than 30 Top Ten singles on the U.S...

 in September 2007 with "Don't Blink

Don't Blink

"Don't Blink" is a # 1 Billboard country, top 40 hot 100 single by country music artist Kenny Chesney. It is the second single from his 2007 album Just Who I Am: Poets & Pirates, and Chesney's thirteenth Number One single on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs charts.The song debuted at #16 on the...

", which debuted at No. 16. Brooks reclaimed the record in 2008 with "More Than a Memory

More Than a Memory

"More Than a Memory" is a song written by Lee Brice, Billy Montana and Kyle Jacobs. It was recorded by country music singer Garth Brooks and released in 2007 as his 51st single. It is the first single from his 2007 compilation The Ultimate Hits. On the U.S...

", which debuted at #1 on the same chart a week after Chesney's debut.

Chart performance

Chart (1979)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles	1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	30
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks	26
Canadian RPM Country Tracks	1
Canadian RPM Top Singles	47
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks	4
New Zealand Singles Chart	28
U.K. Singles Chart	41