Carrie Underwood photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Thanksgiving is officially a holiday, but that won’t stop many of country music’s top stars from working while the rest of us eat.

Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and James Otto are a few of the artists who have Turkey Day activities planned. Some of those appearances — including Taylor’s first-ever network special — were already shot. But others, such as Gloriana’s appearance in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, indeed occur in real time.

Here’s a roundup of country-related Thanksgiving stuff:

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Jamey Johnson photo courtesy of UMG Nashville.

Jamey Johnson picked up the first No. 1 album of his career this week as The Guitar Song debuted at the top slot on the Billboard Country Albums chart.

In fact, it finished at No. 4 on the all-genre Billboard 200, too — particularly satisfying because it’s a project that was extremely risky. In an era when album sales are sliding, Jamey crammed 25 songs into two CDs. Since it addresses themes of darkness and redemption, he released it as a black album and a white one.

While his record company is ecstatic about the first-week sales, Jamey plays down the accomplishment.

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James Otto's 2010 CD, Shake What God Gave Ya. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

This morning, James Otto posted on his Twitter page, ”Today I have to go buy my own record. It’s kinda a ritual. I need to see it on the shelf to know it’s really there & know it’s done.”

James’ Shake What God Gave Ya is definitely “there.” James also tweeted that he was No. 4 on the iTunes country album chart. That must have been good news, considering last week this time, he was in a considerable amount of pain and was hospitalized on Septemer 8 for an abdominal illness. Thankfully, he was out by last weekend!

A few weeks ago, James stopped by our studio to talk with On The Streets host Suzanne Alexander about his new daughter Ava (born August 24)  and his new single, “Soldiers And Jesus.”

“I come from a military family,” says James. “My dad was a drill sergeant, my grandfather was in Korea. I was in the Navy myself and went around the world by the time I turned 21. The song itself is definitely an ode to my heroes. I don’t think there IS anybody that’s ever laid down our lives for you, other than soldiers and Jesus. Those are the people that live and die for you, and go out and do those things that nobody else wants to do. So yeah, it is personal to me. But it’s a powerful song and I think it hits home for a lot of people. And I think a lot of the [people in the] country market are the people that bear the brunt of the cost of freedom in America.”

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James Otto's 2010 CD, Shake What God Gave Ya. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

This afternoon, James Otto‘s record label, Warner Bros. Nashville, released a statement from James:

Dear Friends~
I want to share with you that I was admitted to the hospital yesterday for an abdominal illness and will be cancelling my shows this weekend– 9/10 in Clarksville, Tennessee and 9/11 in Berea, Ohio.

I have been feeling badly on and off for a while now but didn’t think it was serious. Plus, I may have been a bit distracted by all the excitement of baby Ava’s arrival! I’ll be down for a few days but hope to be back in action and on the road again soon. Continue Reading

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Top 20 Country Countdown host Nan Kelley visits with Toby Keith backstage on his American Ride Tour.

They spent much of the summer together on the American Ride Tour, and this weekend, James Otto and Toby Keith will both check in with host Nan Kelley on GAC’s Top 20 Country Countdown.

Their joint concert run is not the only thing James and Toby have in common — they’ve both shown a strong support for the military, too. Toby makes an annual trip overseas to perform for troops on the frontlines, and he put his feelings down in song with “American Soldier.”

James is likewise demonstrating his appreciation for the folks in uniform with his newest single, “Soldiers & Jesus.” It’s from his latest album, Shake What God Gave Ya, set for release Sept. 14.

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James Otto's 2010 CD, Shake What God Gave Ya. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

James Otto is sounding very happy-go-lucky of late, what with “Groovy Little Summer Song” putting a sunny disposition and a bit of blue-eyed soul into the beach-weather playlist.

The song is just one of a dozen tracks set for James’ next album, which is slated for release at the tail end of summer, Sept. 14. The project is titled Shake What God Gave Ya!, and it’s apparently loaded up with the same sort of R&B influences that shade “Groovy Little Summer Song” and his signature hit, “Just Got Started Lovin’ You.”

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