• August 20, john r hiatt born on 54^th, Indianapolis, indiana. mother "Ruth", father "Robert" and 6 brothers and sisters.

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• brother Michael committed suicide at twenty-one.

• father Robert died.
• started playing guitar.
• wrote his first song "Beth-Ann".

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• his first bands: Four Fifths, Joe Lynch and the Hangmen. He played in a variety of local clubs, most notably the Hummingbird.

• quit school and moved to nashville.

• rented a room at music row and started working for tree publishing music international as a songwriter for $25 a week. recorded all 250 songs he wrote for the company.

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• joined the band "white duck", and they released the album "in season".

• Hiatt met Don Ellis of Epic Records in 1973, and received a record deal, releasing his first single, "We Make Spirit," later that year with Ellis on drums and Michael Bell on 2nd lead guitar. That same year Hiatt wrote the song "Sure As I'm Sitting Here"

• first album on the epic label "hangin' around the observatory".
• first success as a songwriter.... three dog night covered his song "sure as i'm sittin' here" and went to number 16 on the Billboard chart.

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• epic released his second album "overcoats".
• both albums received critical acclaim, neither generated the desired sales levels, and he was dropped by epic.
• Tree Publishing had let him go as well.

• went to San Francisco for a year.

• 2 months after he met Barbara Mordes they married on june 4, Baltimore Maryland and moved to L.A. Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills.

• signed to MCA records and released "slug line".

• release of "two bit monsters". again to critical acclaim but slow sales.  Dropped by MCA. He received a few good reviews for these albums by critics in the Netherlands. He performed at the Paradiso in Amsterdam for the first time in 1979 (opening for Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes) and came back often and built a solid fan base. He thanked a 2007 Holland audience for giving him a break back then.
• spent most of 1980 as a member of Ry Cooder's backing band, playing rhythm guitar on the Borderline album and touring with the guitarist. Hiatt stayed with Cooder throughout 1981.
• formally divorced from Barbara Mordes.
• married to isabella cecilia wood (born october 7, 1954 georgia).
• moved to Topanga Canyon, southern California.

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• signed contract to Geffen Records.

• his first geffen album "all of a sudden". produced by Tony Visconti and featured heavy use of keyboards and synthesisers; the next two albums combined country and soul influences. During this period, Rosanne Cash covered several Hiatt compositions, taking "It Hasn't Happened Yet" to the top 20 on the country charts. In 1987, Cash would take his "The Way We Make A Broken Heart" all the way to #1 on the US country charts.

• release of "riding with the king".

• daughter lily born in april. By then, Hiatt had developed a dependance on vodka and cocaine.

• january, release of "warming up to the ice age".
• sabella committed suicide on april 23 in L.A.
• entered a rehab program.

• signed to A&M.
• married Nancy Stanley (son: Rob, 1978).

• may, release of "bring the family". peaked at 107 on the Billboard 200 charts, it was his first charting album. the single "thank you girl" peaking at number 27 on the mainstream rock tracks.
• Hiatt attempted to record a follow-up with Cooder, Lowe and Keltner, but the musicians failed to agree on the financial terms for the sessions. Undaunted, he recorded an album with John Doe, David Lindley and Dave Mattacks, but he scrapped the completed project, deciding that the result was too forced.

• daughter georgia rae born on may 30.
• release of "slow turning". received nearly unanimous positive reviews and it was fairly well-received commercially, spending 31 weeks on the Billboard 200 charts and peaking at 98. the single "paper thin" peaked at number 18 on the mainstream rock tracks. the single "slow turning" peaked at number 8 on the mainstream rock tracks and number 22 on the modern rock tracks.
• bonnie raitt covered "thing called love".

• september, release of "ya'll caught?".
• successfully toured throughout America and Europe, strengthening his fan base along the way.

• june, release of "stolen moments" which included the song "Bring Back Your Love to Me." The song won BMI’s 1991 Country Music Award and on the Billboard 200 charts peaked at 61. the single "child of the wild blue yonder" peaking at number 17 on the mainstream rock tracks and number 24 on the modern rock tracks.

• ry cooder, jim keltner, nick lowe, john hiatt re-formed as a band called Little Village.

• bought a 96-acre farm in franklin, TN.
• Little Village released the self-titled album. expectations were quite high, yet the record and its supporting tour were considered a major disappointment. Later, the individual members would agree that the band was a failure, mainly due to conflicting egos.

• september 7, release of "perfectly good guitar". Recorded in just two weeks with a backing band comprised of members of alternative rock bands School of Fish and Wire Train, the album was looser than any record since Bring the Family, but it didn't quite have the staying power of its two predecessors, spending only 11 weeks on the Billboard 200 charts and peaked at number 47. the single "perfectly good guitar" peaked at number 16 on the mainstream rock tracks.
• Rhino Records released Love Gets Strange: The Songs of John Hiatt, which collected many of the cover versions that were recorded during the '80s and '90s.

• the single "something wild" peaked at number 31 on the mainstream rock tracks.
• november 22, release of the live album "Hiatt comes alive at Budokan". recorded on USA tour may, 1994. his first live album and his last album with A&M Records.

• hiatt stepped in to the racing world.
• october 24, release of "walk on" on his sixth record label "capitol records". "walk on" was recorded during his supporting tour for perfectly good guitar and featured guest appearances by the Jayhawks and Bonnie Raitt. walk on entered the Billboard 200 charts at 48, but slipped off the charts in nine weeks, indicating that his audience had settled into a dedicated cult following. received his first Grammy nomination in for his album "Walk On".

• his first "best of" album on A&M/ploygram label.
• june 4, release of compilation "living a little, laughing a little" on raven label.

• july 1, release of "little head". on the Billboard 200 charts peaking at number 111.

• again a "best of" album on the A&M label.
• august 25, another "best of" album on the capitol label.

• october 27, a greatest hits release from the A&M years 1987 - 1994.

• daughter lily is at the Battle Ground Academy.
• daughter georgia rae is at the Harding Academy, Nashville.
• september 26, release of "Crossing Muddy Waters" recorded at a friend’s home studio near his farm in Nashville.  He has leased the recording to Vanguard but retains ownership.  The album was nominated for a Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album. on the Billboard 200 charts peaked at number 110. on the top blues albums peaked at number 2. Top Independent Albums peaked at number 18, and on Top Internet Albums peaked number 5.

• august 7, release of the compiliation "anthology" album by hip-o records.
• september 11, release of "the tiki bar is open" (also on vanguard label). on the Billboard 200 charts peaked at number 89. on the Top Independent Albums peaked at number 4 and on Top Internet Albums also peaked number 4.

• daughter georgia rae went to Fencing Academy.
• release of the soundtrack "the country bears".

• may 6, beneath this gruff exterior released on the new west records label peaked at number 73 on the Billboard 200 charts. Top Independent Albums peaked at number 3.

• september 16, "the millenium collection" released by A&M records.
• Re-release of "bring the family" as DVD with two videoclips included.

• june 21, release of "master of disaster" on the new west records label. on the Billboard 200 charts peaked at number 126. on the Top Independent Albums peaked at number 10 and on Top Internet Albums peaked number 126. the album did receive recognition by winning High Fidelity Review Listener’s Choice Award in the 2005 Surround Music Awards held in Beverly HIlls, CA.
• september 23, Full house DVD released. A live registration form a concert  Germany 1987.
• September 27, A 3 cd box out on A&M label. Chronicles is a 3 cd box with bring the family - slow turning - stolen moments
• November 1, Live cD/DVD from concert in 1993 Live from austin texas

• Hiatt's daughter Lilly formed a band "Shake Go Home".
• august 7, A 2 cd box out with a re-release of hangin around the observatory/overcoats
• Again a live DVD out on the All stars label: Thing called love.
• November 3, Re-release of the promo cd Live at the Hiatt.

• april 22, Hiatt get's his own star at the walk of fame.

• may 27, release of Hiatt's 18th studio album, "Same old man" on the new west records label. on the Billboard 200 charts peaked at number 84. on the Top Independent Albums peaked at number 5 and on Top Internet Albums peaked number 84.
• september 18, Hiatt received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting at the Americana Music Association Honors and Awards program at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN.