Dec
31
Taylor Swift performs “Forever & Always” at “The 43rd Annual CMA Awards,” on Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009, live from the Sommet Center in Nashville on the ABC Television Network. Photographer: John Russell / CMA. Provided by Country Music Association.
#1 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
The top news story in country music is unavoidable. Taylor Swift was everywhere, doing everything and reaching everybody in 2009. She appeared in movies with the Jonas Brothers and Miley Cyrus; headlined her first concert tour; showed up on two different episodes of “Saturday Night Live”; won Entertainer of the Year from the Country Music Association; sold more records than anyone else in the year; crossed into the pop charts; contributed to albums by John Mayer and Boys Like Girls; and finally turned 20 in December.
Oh, and she earned lots of unintended sympathy by simply being on an awards-show stage at the same time as some perpetually angry guy named Kanye West.
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Dec
30
Brooks & Dunn photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.
#2 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
“After 20 years of making music and riding this trail together, we have agreed as a duo that it’s time to call it a day. This ride has been everything and more than we could ever have dreamed. We owe it all to you, the fans. If you hear rumors, don’t believe them, it’s just time.”
With that simple message, Brooks & Dunn announced in August that they were riding off into the sunset. They did it in style, recounting their successes with a two-CD, 30-track compilation, #1’s…And Then Some. It included a pair of new hits, “Indian Summer” and “Honky Tonk Stomp,” in addition to such signature cuts as “Brand New Man,” “Boot Scootin’ Boogie,” “Play Something Country” and “Only In America.”
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Dec
29
Garth Brooks is all smiles as he announces his new one-man show at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Nev. during a press conference on October 15, 2009. Photo courtesy of garthbrooks.com.
#3 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
As early as 1992, just three years into his skyrocketing career, Garth Brooks began publicly mulling retirement from the music business. The subject continued to come up frequently, though few believed anyone that successful could walk away from it all.
Garth did, in fact, go into hibernation following the release of an album in 2001, but many observers figured he would find a way to return to the spotlight. Periodically, he would emerge to promote a new compilation project or to do a charity gig, but he finally went back to performing regularly in December when he kicked off a scaled-down concert format in a surprisingly loose deal with Wynn Las Vegas. Garth essentially delivers a one-man show for 15 weekends annually over a five-year period, at which time he’s likely to begin touring once again. If either Garth or casino owner Steve Wynn is disenchanted with the arrangement, either is able to back out.
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Dec
28
On Tuesday, July 21, 2009 Brad Paisley performed for the President, First Lady and family, members of Congress and White House staff in the historic East Room of the White House. Photo credit Ben Enos.
#4 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
The inauguration of Barack Obama put an emotional start on 2009 as America installed its first African-American president, and country had a role in that event. But it was just the start of a relationship between country and the new commander in chief: Martina McBride, Brad Paisley, Charley Pride and Alison Krauss + Union Station would also sing for the world’s most powerful man as the year unfolded.
Garth Brooks and Jennifer Nettles had high-profile moments in January when they performed on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in “We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration.” Garth delivered several of his hits, including “We Shall Be Free,” a song that was inspired by the 1992 Los Angeles riots in the wake of the racially divisive Rodney King verdict. Jennifer teamed with James Taylor and John Legend for a version of “Shower The People,” performed in front of a row of American flags.
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Dec
27
#5 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
Country fans who listen only to the mainstream commercial outlets in their neck of the woods are missing out on some really great music, and that message was driven home in a big way in 2009. Robert Plant & Alison Krauss’ Raising Sand album, produced by T Bone Burnett, took home five trophies during the Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record of the Year for “Please Read The Letter.”
The first single, “Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On),” was a favorite GAC video in 2008 with its underplayed vocals and throbbing pulse. It was a unique release, but it called attention to the hip, left-of-country’s-center genre known as Americana music. Once referred to as alt-country, it’s become a sort of catch-all for roots-driven music that’s not easily categorized, blending folk-rock, country-rock, traditional country, western swing and blues music forms into a loose genre that values authenticity — warts and all — over slick perfection.
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Dec
26
Randy Houser photo courtesy of Universal Records South.
#6 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
When Randy Houser played a show in Nashville last January, he introduced his Top 20 release “Anything Goes” with a sarcastic tone that’s familiar to just about every new act in country music: “Seems like 87 weeks [it’s been on the singles chart], and I have to say, I’m happy to be movin’ on to another one.”
Most new artists can assume that if they get a hit — and that “if” is a very key word — it’s going to take 30 weeks or more for the song to reach its full peak. As an illustration, consider these six acts, all of whom earned their first Top 10 hits in 2009: David Nail, Chris Young, Gloriana, Love And Theft, Justin Moore and the sarcastic Randy Houser. Every one of their first-time Top 10 singles was released in January or February of 2009, and every one of them had to wait until about September for the single to finally reach its peak. That’s eight months of waiting and working and losing sleep just to call attention to one song that may, or may not, motivate fans to go out and buy a whole album or a concert ticket.
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Dec
25
Joe Nichols recently visited troops on US military bases in Kuwait and Iraq. His trip was filmed for the GAC special, Joe Nichols: My Military Diary, premiering Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009 at 10 p.m. Eastern.
#7 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
Seven years into post-9/11 wars that continue to stretch America’s psyche and its public coffers, President Obama’s agonizing decision over how to proceed was one of the most analyzed topics in the national news during 2009.
Whether they approved of the wars or not, country’s stars continued to support the troops whose jobs demand they wage them. Joe Nichols, Toby Keith, Craig Morgan and the Charlie Daniels Band were among the numerous acts who made it a point to go overseas and play for the men and women in uniform. They went to the Middle East, to European bases and to Korea — and plenty more artists found time to give shows for the troops at U.S. bases.
In a couple of instances, GAC brought the experience to you with the specials Stars For Stripes: Wounded Warriors Return and Joe Nichols: My Military Diary.
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Dec
24
Kenny Chesney photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.
#8 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
In the midst of a depressin’ recession, it’s a huge gamble to put on a stadium concert, and very few acts are willing to roll the dice on the up-front expenses for that kind of a gig. Of those that do, it seems nearly all of them were country acts in 2009 — and usually that act was Kenny Chesney.
Kenny played a dozen stadiums during his Sun City Carnival Tour, joined for most of the schedule by Sugarland, Montgomery Gentry, Miranda Lambert and Lady Antebellum. Kenny created a party atmosphere, often bringing up hometown athletes — including members of the Chicago Bears and the New England Patriots, for example — to connect with the city. By the time Sun City ground to a halt in Indianapolis in September, the Zac Brown Band had replaced Lady A and Kenny had topped every other act in any genre as the top touring artist, according to USA Today.
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Dec
23
Billy Currington photo by Danny Clinch, courtesy of UMG Nashville.
#9 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
People, Billy Currington noted in his award-nominated story song, are crazy. Sometimes Mother Nature is, too, and she left Billy black and blue in the most shocking of a bunch of country-music health stories that made headlines in 2009.
Billy’s weather disaster — which occurred in Camrose, Alberta, on Aug. 1 — was a doozy. A major storm toppled the outdoor stage. One fan died when a speaker fell on her, Billy was hospitalized with a concussion, and bass player Alex Stevens needed surgery for a severed artery after he was pinned for 30 minutes beneath the stage.
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Dec
22
Tim McGraw photo by Danny Clinch, courtesy of Curb Records.
#10 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 | View all »
You can count on seeing country music in certain places on television. It’s a 24/7 proposition on GAC. And the daily talk shows — including “The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien” and “The Late Show With David Letterman” — obviously need a good smattering of country acts to fill out the music slots on their programs.
But country artists did an excellent job in 2009 in grabbing a larger share of acting roles and musical moments on TV and in the movies. Led by Tim McGraw’s part as Sandra Bullock’s husband in The Blind Side, by Taylor Swift’s TV acting debut on “CSI” and by the bevy of country stars who appeared on the platinum soundtrack to Hannah Montana: The Movie, the genre was well represented in the visual media in the last 12 months.
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