It’s been another great year in country music…and as we get ready for 2010, we’re looking back at some of the highlights of 2009.
IN SEPTEMBER…
• Chris Young released his sophomore CD, The Man I Want to Be, featuring the number-one hit “Gettin’ You Home” and his current single, which also happens to be the title track. (AUDIO INFO BELOW)
• Carrie Underwood is inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, joining fellow country stars Vince Gill, Toby Keith, and Merle Haggard.
• Brooks & Dunn released their hits collection, #1s … and Then Some, featuring two CDs full of 28 of their previous hits and the two new songs, “Indian Summer” and “Honky Tonk Stomp.” (AUDIO INFO BELOW)
• American Idol finalist Danny Gokey announced that he’s signed a record deal with 19 Recordings/RCA Nashville and will be making his debut country album, due to release next year.
• Miranda Lambert released her sophomore CD, Revolution, which features “Dead Flowers” and her current single, “White Liar.” (AUDIO INFO BELOW)
009 HIGHLIGHTS: September" width="16" height="14" /> Chris Young offers a sincere thanks to all the fans who made it possible for him to have a second album. (:36)
“I just want to tell everybody thank you, because I know that everyone who hears this is gonna go out and buy at least four copies of this CD, and that’s just (laughs)…no, man, you know, I just want to tell everybody, you know, please go pick up a copy, obviously, but even more than that a big thank you to everybody for allowin’ me to make this record. You know, I don’t get to make this album if people didn’t go out and buy the first one and show up at shows and, you know, call into radio for the new single. So this is, you know, a culmination of all that stuff, and it’s almost like this album is, you know, gratifying to me, but it’s a big thank you to them that it’s even in the stores.”
009 HIGHLIGHTS: September" width="16" height="14" /> Brooks & Dunn talk about finding a song that “fits.” (:23)
Ronnie: “I think it’s like the clothes you pick to wear…”
Kix: (laughs)
Ronnie: “…you know? You kinda set yourself apart and individualize yourself the way you wear ‘em. Songs are, a lot of ways, the same way. You pick songs that you like, things that you feel like fit you. There’s no really set criteria. Go in, take one off the rack, and if it feels good to you, feel like you look good…”
Kix: (laughs)
Ronnie: “…there you go.”
009 HIGHLIGHTS: September" width="16" height="14" /> Miranda Lambert talks about recording her new album, and she feels that it truly is an “album” in the purest sense. (:39)
“We made it like a record. I mean, we went in for a week and cut an album. We didn’t go in for a day and cut a single or an album track or just a random song to stick somewhere at number seven. Every song matters. Every song is…it’s part of a picture, and if one’s missing, the picture’s not complete. And, you know, this is really a piece of art, and I’m really proud of it. And I feel like if people just buy one song off this album, they’re not gonna understand what it’s about and who I am because I really found myself creatively and just opened up artistically. And I feel like it’s not fair to the record to buy one song because they all need to be heard.”