Alan Jackson photo courtesy Schmidt Relations.

Alan Jackson’s “Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)” set the thoughts and feelings of millions following the terrorist attacks of 9/11 to music. The chorus and melody came to Alan in the middle of the night several weeks after 9/11. He awoke, sang the lyrics into a recorder and wrote down parts of the chorus, then completed the lyrics and verses later that same day. Ten years later, the song is just as relevant as it was when Alan debuted it during the CMA Awards later that year.

“At the time, it was very meaningful to people and I felt really good about contributing something,” Alan said. “And then I thought it would just fade away and then we’d ease it out of the show, but now I see people out there that I feel like are waiting for that song, you know? I think it’s more than just the 9-11 connection. I mean, the real hook in it is quotes right out of the Bible anyway. And still, at night, it’s one of my biggest songs in the show. It’s hard to follow it, but I see so many that are holding up them lighters and are glad to hear it, and I think are moved by it and glad I did it.”

The song paints images of moments Americans shared following the attacks. Dusting off Bibles, noticing sunsets and weeping for those who were lost are just some of the lines in Alan’s song that people identify as their own reaction to 9/11. Continue Reading

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Brad Paisley performs “This is Country Music” at “The 44th Annual CMA Awards,” live from the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2010, on the ABC Television Network. Photographer: John Russell / CMA

From the day Brad Paisley signed his first recording contract more than 10 years ago, he had a plan. He knew how he wanted his first album to introduce him, the kinds of talents and lyrical themes he wanted to unveil on the second and even a bit of how the third project should go.

Plans change, of course, and Brad’s planned and adjusted repeatedly through the years, finally finding himself at the top of the country music heap in 2010. He won the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year award after being nominated six straight years.

But it wasn’t the only highlight of the last 12 months for Brad. He put out his first greatest-hits album, he was the first musical guest when Jay Leno resumed his place as the host of “The Tonight Show,” and he got a personal phone call from President Barack Obama with words of encouragement for the city of Nashville in the wake of the floods in May. If that weren’t enough, Brad played for an estimated 65,000 people in boats during an AquaPalooza concert at Lake Travis in Texas. And he headlined a sold-out stadium for the first time, playing Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., with Jason Aldean, Darius Rucker, Sara Evans and Easton Corbin.

All of that planning he did in the beginning? Well, Brad’s way beyond any of his expectations.

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Emmylou Harris photo by Rocky Schenck, courtesy of Nonesuch Records.

Country Music Hall of Fame member Emmylou Harris and superstar Faith Hill both paid a visit to the White House on Wednesday, performing in front of President Barack Obama as Paul McCartney was honored with the Library of Congress’ third annual Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.

Faith sang “The Long And Winding Road,” according to the Associated Press, while Emmylou turned in a version of “For No One,” a song that originally appeared on the Beatles’ Revolver album in 1966. Emmy recorded it for her 1975 release Pieces Of The Sky, her first album to appear on the country chart.

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Faith Hill photo by Andrew Southam, courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

Intentionally or not, a number of country’s bedrock performers — including Faith Hill, Diamond Rio, Trace Adkins and Tracy Lawrence — have all found themselves linked to politics or politicians this week.

For two artists, those connections involve actual campaigning for gubernatorial candidates. The others are tied to honoring people’s lives or accomplishments: Faith and Emmylou Harris will be performing at the White House; Trace and Diamond Rio paid their respects to 11 workers whose deaths are part of the tragic oil spill that has become a political nightmare.

The stories:

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President Barack Obama talks with Garth Brooks, who was presented with the "Grammy on the Hill Award" for his leadership in advancing the rights of music makers, in the Oval Office, April 14, 2010. The President was also presented with the 2007 Grammy Award for best spoken word album for his book "The Audacity of Hope." (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Garth Brooks has been involved with the Obama administration since the very beginning, you could say. He sang “We Shall Be Free” on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the inaugural activities at the beginning of 2009, and he returned to Washington, D.C., this week for a series of events — not the least of which included a visit to the White House to exchange trophies with the president.

Garth picked up a Grammys On The Hill Award from Obama for his leadership in protecting the rights of music creators. In turn, Garth — who has won a pair of Grammy Awards — officially presented the president with his Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album, a companion to his book The Audacity Of Hope. It marks the second time Obama has won a spoken-word Grammy, which means he’s got as many of the annual trophies as Garth.

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Brad Paisley photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Sometimes it’s intended, sometimes it’s not. But Brad Paisley’s career seems to be in sync with the world around him.

Monday was a particularly good example. He announced details of his upcoming H2O World Tour on what was officially recognized as World Water Day. He also held a No. 1 party in Franklin, Tenn., at Nucci’s Italian Ice, cleverly dovetailing the event with the “Italian ice” reference in the chorus of “American Saturday Night,” one of two songs being honored at the party.

The other No. 1 song demonstrated even greater synchronicity, though Brad had little control over the latest advance in the storyline. “Welcome To The Future” was inspired in November 2008 by the election of Barack Obama, when Brad just happened to be in Times Square, where he witnessed a huge celebration. The first time he performed the song live was last July at the White House with President Obama just a few feet in front of him. On the morning of Monday’s No. 1 party, the front page of The Tennessean trumpeted the news about Obama’s signature policy: “Congress passes health-care bill.”

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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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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.

Tuesday is Election Day in many parts of the U.S., and the week is a monumental anniversary as well: Barack Obama was voted the nation’s first African-American president on Nov. 4, 2008.

That same date marked the release of Brad Paisley’s Play album, and he couldn’t have created better timing if he’d planned it. He was in New York to promote the CD the day the nation went to the polls, and he witnessed hysterical celebration in Times Square. That helped inspire his song “Welcome To The Future,” which hit No. 1 this anniversary week in Country Aircheck.

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Toby Keith photo courtesy of Show Dog Nashville.

Toby Keith’s quirky “American Ride” video is one of the most-talked-about music pieces on TV, and Toby drops in this weekend to talk about the piece with host Nan Kelley on GAC’s Top 20 Country Countdown.

Paced by the title track, which peaked at No. 1 on the singles chart, his American Ride album debuted at the top of the Billboard Country Albums chart this week.

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