name	Vince Gill
background	solo_singer
birth name	Vincent Grant Gill
birth date	April 12, 1957
origin	Norman, Oklahoma, U.S.
instrument	Vocals, Electric guitar, Mandolin, Dobro, Banjo
genre	CountryBluegrassBlue-eyed soulCountry pop
occupation	Singer-songwriter
years active	1979–present
label	RCAMCAMCA Nashville
associated acts	The Notorious Cherry BombsPure Prairie LeagueRodney CrowellAmy GrantDolly PartonRicky SkaggsEmmylou Harris Carrie UnderwoodSara EvansAlice Cooper
Spouse(s):	Amy Grant (2000-present) 1 child
Website	VinceGill.com }}

Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a vocalist and musician have placed him in high demand as a guest vocalist, and a duet partner. Gill has recorded more than twenty studio albums, charted over forty singles on the U.S. ''Billboard'' charts as Hot Country Songs, and has sold more than 22 million albums. He has been honored by the Country Music Association with 18 CMA Awards, including two Entertainer of the Year awards and five Male Vocalist Awards. Gill has also earned 27 Grammy Awards, more than any other male Country music artist. In 2007, Gill was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Biography[link]

Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill was born in Norman, Oklahoma. His father, J. Stanley Gill, was a lawyer and administrative law judge who played in a country music band part time and encouraged Gill to pursue a music career. At the encouragement of his father, Gill learned to play several instruments, including the banjo and guitar, before he started high school at Oklahoma City's Northwest Classen High School. He first played with a teenage band called Bluegrass Revues in the late 1970s. The other members were: Billy Perry on the banjo, Bobby Clark on the triangle and Mike Perry on the bass.

While in high school, he performed with Mountain Smoke, a bluegrass band that once opened for Pure Prairie League and Kiss. After he graduated, he played in a number of bluegrass bands, including Ricky Skaggs' Boone Creek and Byron Berline and Sundance; later, he became a member of Rodney Crowell's road band, The Cherry Bombs.

Career[link]

Gill debuted on the national scene with the country rock band Pure Prairie League in 1979, appearing on that band's album ''''Can't Hold Back''.'' Gill is the lead singer on their hit song "Let Me Love You Tonight".

Mark Knopfler once invited Gill to join Dire Straits, but Gill declined the offer (although he sang backup on Dire Straits' album ''On Every Street'').

Vince Gill was scheduled to appear at the 44th Annual Country Music Awards on Nov 10, 2010.

Vince Gill was mentioned at length by Lewis Black in Black's "Stark Raving Black" stand-up act. Black goes on to joke about how awful it was to follow Gill at a USO benefit show because of how well Vince and wife, Amy Grant, performed.

Vince Gill is currently collaborating with Joe Bonamassa on his forthcoming album ''Dust Bowl''.

In July 2011, Vince Gill appeared as a guest on NPR's news quiz show ''Wait, Wait...Don't Tell Me''.

On February 23, 2012 Vince announced after 23 years with MCA Nashville that he had parted ways with the label

On April 14 2012, it was confirmed that Gill had been working with Bonnie Tyler on her upcoming album, performing a duet with her entitled "''What You Need From Me''".

Personal life[link]

Gill married country singer Janis Oliver of Sweethearts of the Rodeo fame, in 1980, and they had one daughter, Jennifer Jerene Gill, born May 5, 1982. Gill occasionally mixed sound for his wife's band at concerts. Vince and Janis separated in the mid-1990s and eventually divorced in June 1998. Vince married Christian/pop singer Amy Grant in March 2000. They have one daughter, Corrina Grant Gill, born March 12, 2001.

Gill, along with his wife Amy, are fans of the Nashville Predators. They have been season ticket holders since the opening season and are often shown on the jumbo screen. In the 2007 playoffs, he and Amy sang the national anthem for each game.

Though Gill never attended college, he's a big fan of the University of Oklahoma football team. He also attends nearly every men's basketball game at Belmont University in Nashville.

Discography[link]

Albums

1984: ''Turn Me Loose''

1985: ''The Things That Matter''

1987: ''The Way Back Home''

1989: ''When I Call Your Name''

1991: ''Pocket Full of Gold''

1992: ''I Still Believe in You''

1993: ''Let There Be Peace on Earth''

1994: ''When Love Finds You''

1995: ''The Essential Vince Gill''

1995: ''Souvenirs''

1996: ''High Lonesome Sound''

1998: ''The Key''

1998: ''Breath of Heaven: A Christmas Collection''

2000: ''Let's Make Sure We Kiss Goodbye''

2000: '''Tis The Season''

2003: ''Next Big Thing''

2006: ''These Days''

2011: ''Guitar Slinger

Selected awards[link]

Academy of Country Music

1984 Top New Male Vocalist

1992 Song of the Year with John Barlow Jarvis - "I Still Believe In You"

1992 Top Male Vocalist

1993 Top Male Vocalist

Country Music Association

1990 Single of the Year - "When I Call Your Name"

1991 Male Vocalist of the Year

1992 Male Vocalist of the Year

1992 Song of the Year with Max D. Barnes - "Look At Us"

1993 Album of the Year - "I Still Believe in You"

1993 Male Vocalist of the Year

1993 Song of the Year with John Barlow Jarvis - "I Still Believe in You"

1994 Entertainer of the Year

1994 Male Vocalist of the Year

1995 Male Vocalist of the Year

1999 Vocal Event of the Year with Patty Loveless - "My Kind of Woman, My Kind of Man"

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Inducted in 2007

Grammy Awards

1990 Best Country Vocal Performance, Male - "When I Call Your Name"

1991 Best Country Vocal Collaboration with Ricky Skaggs and Steve Wariner - "Restless"

1992 Best Country Song with John Barlow Jarvis - "I Still Believe in You"

1992 Best Country Vocal Performance, Male - "I Still Believe in You"

1993 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Asleep at the Wheel, Chet Atkins, Eldon Shamblin, Johnny Gimble, Marty Stuart, and Reuben "Lucky Oceans" Gosfield - "Red Wing"

1994 Best Country Vocal Performance, Male - "When Love Finds You"

1995 Best Country Song - "Go Rest High on That Mountain"

1995 Best Male Country Vocal Performance - "Go Rest High on That Mountain"

1996 Best Male Country Vocal Performance - "Worlds Apart"

1997 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Randy Scruggs - "A Soldier's Joy"

1997 Best Male Country Vocal Performance - "Pretty Little Adriana"

1998 Best Male Country Vocal Performance - "If You Ever Have Forever In Mind"

1999 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Tommy Allsup, Asleep at the Wheel, Floyd Domino, Larry Franklin, and Steve Wariner - "Bob's Breakdowns"

2001 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Jerry Douglas, Gen Duncan, Albert Lee, Steve Martin, Leon Russell, Earl Scruggs, Gary Scruggs, Randy Scruggs, Paul Shaffer and Marty Stuart - "Foggy Mountain Breakdown"

2002 Best Male Country Vocal Performance - "The Next Big Thing"

2006 Best Male Country Vocal Performance - "The Reason Why"

2007 Best Country Album - "These Days"

2008 Best Country Instrumental Performance with Brad Paisley, James Burton, John Jorgenson, Albert Lee, Brent Mason, Redd Volkaert and Steve Wariner - "Cluster Pluck"

Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame

Inducted in 2005

See also[link]

Best selling music artists

References[link]

External links[link]

Official Vince Gill UMG Nashville Artist Page

How to Capture Vince Gill’s Guitar Tone

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture - Gill, Vince

Vince Gill - Guitar Slinger Album Tracks Lyrics

Category:1957 births Category:American country guitarists Category:American country singers Category:American country singer-songwriters Category:American male singers Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grand Ole Opry members Category:Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:Living people Category:American mandolinists Category:MCA Records artists Category:Musicians from Oklahoma Category:Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:People from Oklahoma Category:People from Norman, Oklahoma Category:Northwest Classen High School alumni Category:Resonator guitarists Category:The Notorious Cherry Bombs members Category:American session musicians Category:RCA Records Nashville artists

de:Vince Gill es:Vince Gill fr:Vince Gill gl:Vince Gill hu:Vince Gill nl:Vince Gill pt:Vince Gill ru:Гилл, Винсент simple:Vince Gill

Name	Carrie Underwood
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Carrie Marie Underwood
Birth date	March 10, 1983
Birth place	Muskogee, Oklahoma
Origin	Checotah, Oklahoma, United States
Occupation	Singer, songwriter, actress
Instrument	Vocals, guitar, piano
Genre	Country, country pop
Years active	2005–present
Label	19, Arista Nashville, Arista
Associated acts	Brad Paisley, Randy Travis, Tony Bennett
Website	}}

Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American country singer, songwriter and actress who rose to fame as the winner of the fourth season of ''American Idol'', in 2005. Underwood has since become a multi-platinum selling recording artist, a winner of several Grammy Awards, ''Billboard'' Music Awards and American Music Awards, a Golden Globe Award nominee, a three-time Academy of Country Music and Country Music Association Female Vocalist winner, and a two-time ACM ''Entertainer of the Year''. She is the first-ever female artist to win back-to-back Academy of Country Music (ACM) Awards for Entertainer of the Year (2009/10). Underwood was inducted into and became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 2008. She was also inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2009. In 2012, ''Billboard'' named Underwood Country Music's reigning Queen.

Her debut album, ''Some Hearts'', was certified seven times platinum and, since February 2006, is the fastest selling debut country album in Nielsen SoundScan history. It is also the best-selling solo female debut album in country music history, since February 2008, and, since March 2011, the best-selling country album of the last 10 years. ''Some Hearts'' yielded three number one hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs and a number one hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Songs. Her second album, ''Carnival Ride'', was released on October 23, 2007. It has sold over 3 million copies as of January 2010, being certified 3 times Platinum, and produced four consecutive number one hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs. Underwood released her third album, ''Play On'', on November 3, 2009. It has been certified 2 times Platinum by the RIAA and more than 14 million albums worldwide. As of May 16, 2011, Underwood became the "American Idol" US Top Earner, selling so far 12.4 million album copies and 19 million digital tracks, along with amassing $66 million in tour revenues, since winning Season 4. Underwood's fourth album, ''Blown Away'', was released on May 1, 2012.

With eleven number one hits on ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs, Underwood is listed in the 2012 ''Guinness Book Of World Records'' as the Female Country Artist with Most number one Hits on such chart from 1991 to present, tied with Reba McEntire. Underwood is also the only solo Country Artist to have a number one hit on ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Songs in the 2000 decade, as "Inside Your Heaven" reached the top of the chart in July 2005. Her album ''Some Hearts'' was named the ''Best Country Album of the 2000 Decade'' by ''Billboard'', and she's the only Female Artist to appear on the Top 10 of ''Billboard'''s Best Country Artists of the 2000 Decade list, ranked at number ten. She was also ranked number 50 on the Artists of the Decade list by ''Billboard''. In June 2011, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine ranked Underwood as the number eleven Queen of Pop, based on a lot of criteria from 2009 until 2011. In July 2011, Forbes reported that Underwood earned over $20 million between May 2010 and May 2011.

Early life[link]

Underwood was born to Stephen and Carole Underwood on March 10, 1983, in Muskogee, Oklahoma. She was raised on her parents' farm in the rural town of Checotah, Oklahoma. Her father worked in a sawmill, while her mother taught elementary school. She has two older sisters, Shanna and Stephanie. During her childhood, Underwood performed at Robbins Memorial Talent Show, and sang at her local church, First Free Will Baptist Church. She later sang for local events in Checotah, including Old Settler's Day and the Lion's Club.

A local admirer arranged for her to go to Nashville when she was 14 to audition for Capitol Records. While at Checotah High School, she was an Honor Society member, a cheerleader, and played basketball and softball. Underwood graduated from Checotah High School in 2001 as salutatorian. She chose not to pursue singing after graduation. She said, "After high school, I pretty much gave up on the dream of singing. I had reached a point in my life where I had to be practical and prepare for my future in the 'real world'". She spent part of one of her summers as a page for Oklahoma State Representative Bobby Frame. She also waited tables at a pizzeria, worked at a zoo, and at a veterinary clinic. For two years during the summer, she performed in Northeastern State University's Downtown Country show in Tahlequah. She also competed in numerous beauty pageants at the university and was selected as Miss NSU runner-up in 2004.

''American Idol''[link]

In the summer of 2004, Underwood auditioned for ''American Idol'' in St. Louis, Missouri. After she sang "Could've Been" by Tiffany on the top 12 girls night, judge Simon Cowell commented that she would be one of the favorites to win the competition. During the top 11 finalists' performance on the March 22, 2005, ''Idol'' episode, Underwood sang a rendition of the number one 1980s rock hit "Alone", made famous by Heart, and Cowell predicted that Underwood would not only win the competition, but she would also outsell all previous ''Idol'' winners. One of the show's producers later said she dominated the voting, winning each week handily. She gained a fan base known as "Carrie's Care Bears" during the course of the show. During the final, she sang with Rascal Flatts their song "Bless the Broken Road". On May 5, 2005, Underwood became the season four winner. Her winnings included a recording contract worth at least a million dollars, use of a private jet for a year, and a Ford Mustang convertible.

Performances and results[link]

!Week	!Theme	!Song	!Original artist	!Result
Auditions	Contestant's choice	"I Can't Make You Love Me"	Bonnie Raitt	Advanced
Hollywood	Contestant's choice	"Young Hearts Run Free"	Candi Staton	Advanced
Top 75	Contestant's choice		Martina McBride	Advanced
Semi-finals 1	Contestant's Choice	"Could've Been"		Safe
Semi-finals 2	Contestant's choice	"Piece of My Heart"	Erma Franklin	Safe
Semi-finals 3	Contestant's choice	"Because You Love Me"	Jo Dee Messina	Safe
Top 12	Song of the 1960s		The Everly Brothers	Safe
Top 11			i-TEN	Safe
Top 10	1990s	"Independence Day"	Martina McBride	Safe
Top 9			''The King and I'' cast	Safe
Top 8	Year they were born	"Love Is a Battlefield"	Pat Benatar	Safe
Top 7	1970s dance music		Richard Harris	Safe
Top 6	21st Century	"When God-Fearin' Women Get the Blues"	Martina McBride	Safe
Top 5	Lieber & StollerCurrent ''Billboard'' chart		Elvis PresleyNitty Gritty Dirt Band	Safe
Top 4	CountryGamble & Huff	"Sin Wagon""If You Don't Know Me by Now"	Dixie ChicksHarold Melvin & the Blue Notes	Safe
Top 3	Clive Davis' choiceContestant's choiceJudge's choice (Randy Jackson)		Roy OrbisonAir SupplyShania Twain	Safe
Final 2	Idol singleContestant's choiceProducer's choice	"Inside Your Heaven""Independence Day""Angels Brought Me Here"	Carrie Underwood/Bo BiceMartina McBrideGuy Sebastian	Winner

Career[link]

2005–2007: ''Some Hearts''[link]

Underwood's debut album, ''Some Hearts'', was released in November 2005, entering the ''Billboard'' charts with 315,000 copies sold, debuting at number one on the Hot Country Albums and at number two on the Hot 200 Albums. The large first week sales of ''Some Hearts'' made it the biggest debut of any country artist since the advent of the SoundScan system in 1991. The album was the best-selling album in the United States in 2006 and the best-selling country album in the United States of 2006 and 2007. ''Some Hearts'' has since been certified seven-times Platinum by the RIAA, and is the fastest-selling debut country album in the history of the SoundScan era, the best-selling solo female debut album in country music history, as of February 2008, and the best-selling album by an American Idol alumni in the U.S.. "Inside Your Heaven", Underwood's first single, was released in June, debuting at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and the Canadian Singles Chart. It was the longest running single of 2005 in Canada. "Inside Your Heaven" is the only single by a solo country artist in the 2000 decade to reach number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. It sold nearly one million copies and was certified gold by the RIAA and two times platinum by the CRIA. The album's second single, "Jesus, Take the Wheel" was released to radio in October and later peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs, topping it for six consecutive weeks, and at twenty on the Hot 100. The song sold over two million copies and was certified 2-time Platinum by the RIAA. Underwood's third single, "Some Hearts", was also released in October, but just to the pop radios. "Don't Forget to Remember Me", her fourth single, also proved successful, reaching number two on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart. Later that autumn, Underwood's third country single, "Before He Cheats", hit number one on ''Billboard'''s Hot Country Songs, staying there for 5 consecutive weeks. The song peaked at number eight on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, achieving the slowest climb ever to the top 10 of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, breaking the record that was previously held by Creed from July 2000. It sold over three million copies, being certified 3-time Platinum, and is the fourth best-selling country digital song of all time. On April 11, 2007, Underwood continued her streak of top Country singles with the release of "Wasted", which peaked at number one on the Hot Country Songs Chart, sold nearly one million copies and was certified Gold by the RIAA. On August 2008, "Jesus, Take the Wheel" was reported to have been certified Platinum, making Underwood the first country artist ever to have two songs hit Platinum Mastertone status together with "Before He Cheats", which has been certified earlier in 2007. Underwood started her first headlined tour, Carrie Underwood: Live 2006, with dates across North America.

At the 2005 ''Billboard'' Music Awards, her hit song "Inside Your Heaven" won the coveted Top-Selling Hot 100 Song of the Year award and also Top-Selling Country Single of the Year award, and she won Country Single Sales Artist of the Year. At the 2006 Academy of Country Music Awards, she won Top New Female Vocalist and Single of the Year, for "Jesus, Take the Wheel". At the 40th Annual Country Music Association Awards she won both the Horizon Award (now Best New Artist) and Female Vocalist of the Year. At the 2006 CMT Awards, Underwood won both the Breakthrough Video of the Year and Female Video of the Year for "Jesus, Take The Wheel". She later won the Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award at the American Music Awards, and was also nominated for Favorite Female Country Artist. She won 5 awards at the 2006 ''Billboard'' Music Awards, including the coveted Album of the Year, Top 200 Female Artist of the Year, Female Country Artist, New Country Artist, and Country Album of the Year. Also that year, Underwood won a Gospel Music Association (GMA) Dove Award for Country Recorded Song of the Year, for "Jesus, Take The Wheel". At the Academy of Country Music Awards in 2007, Underwood won Album of the Year, Video of the Year, and Female Vocalist of the Year. She was nominated for "World's Best Selling New Artist" at the 2006 World Music Awards. At the 2007 CMT Awards in Nashville, Tennessee, on April 16, Underwood's "Before He Cheats" won three awards, including Video of the Year, Female Video of the Year, and Video Director of the Year. Underwood won two awards at the 2007 CMA Awards: Female Vocalist of the Year, for the second consecutive time, and Single Record of the Year, for "Before He Cheats". In 2007, at the 49th Grammy Awards, ''Some Hearts'' received four Grammy nominations and Underwood won her first two Grammy Awards: Best New Artist and Best Female Country Vocal Performance for "Jesus, Take the Wheel. She sang the Eagles song "Life in the Fast Lane" alongside Grammy nominees Rascal Flatts. She also sang the Eagles' "Desperado" to honour Don Henley of The Eagles. She also paid tribute to Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys by performing "New San Antonio Rose". At the 50th Grammy Awards, in 2008, Underwood was nominated for two more Grammys: Best Female Country Vocal Performance, for "Before He Cheats" and Best Country Collaboration with Vocals, for "Oh, Love" a duet with Brad Paisley. She won one Grammy Award that night, for Best Female Country Vocal Performance, and performed the song at the ceremony.

In December 2005, Underwood was named Oklahoman of the Year by ''Oklahoma Today''. In December 2006, Underwood joined Tony Bennett, Michael Bublé and Josh Groban to sing "For Once In My Life" on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Also that month, she paid tribute to Dolly Parton, by singing "Islands in the Stream" with Kenny Rogers (originally by Parton and Rogers) at the Kennedy Center Honors, which honored Parton that year. Underwood performed with the USO Christmas Tour in Iraq during the 2006 Holiday season. Underwood also performed at the 2007 Idol Gives Back concert singing "I'll Stand By You", a cover of The Pretenders hit. Her version of the song debuted at number six on ''Billboard'''s Hot 100 Songs. Also in 2007, Victoria's Secret named Underwood the Sexiest Female Musician.

2007–2009: ''Carnival Ride''[link]

Underwood's second album, ''Carnival Ride'', was released in October 2007. On ''Carnival Ride'', Underwood was more involved in the songwriting process; she set up a writers' retreat at Nashville's famed Ryman Auditorium to collaborate with such Music Row tunesmiths as Hillary Lindsey, Craig Wiseman, Rivers Rutherford, and Gordie Sampson. ''Carnival Ride'' moved over 527,000 copies in its first week, debuting at number one on both the ''Billboard'' 200 and Hot Country Albums, as well as number one on the Canadian Albums Chart. ''Carnival Ride'' was certified double platinum in just two months after its release, in December. The album is certified 3-time Platinum by the RIAA, for sales of over three million. "So Small", the first single from the album, was released in July 2007 and reached number one on ''Billboard'''s Hot Country Songs, topping it for three consecutive weeks. "All-American Girl", the second single, also reached number 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs. The next single, "Last Name", reached number one on the Hot Country Song chart as well. This made Underwood the first female artist to have two consecutive albums each release three number-ones on this chart since Shania Twain in 1998. "Just a Dream", the album's next single, was released on July 2008 and later peaked at number one on the Hot Country Songs chart, staying there for 2 consecutive weeks. With that, Underwood became the third female artist in country music history to have released four consecutive Number Ones from the same album with Rosanne Cash's ''King's Record Shop'' and Shania Twain's ''The Woman in Me'' being the other two that have done so. The album's fifth single, "I Told You So", a duet with the original singer of the song, Randy Travis, was released in February 2009. It peaked at number two on the ''Billboard'' Country charts and number nine on the Hot 100. ''Carnival Ride'' has produced 4 Platinum-selling singles - "So Small", "All American Girl", "Last Name" and "Just A Dream" - and a Gold-selling single - "I Told You So", which sold nearly one million copies. In January 2008, Underwood embarked on a joint tour with Keith Urban named the ''Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride Tour'', with dates fixed nationwide that continued through April. She then started her headlined tour, the Carnival Ride Tour, in February 2008, with dates across all North America, and ended it on December 14, 2008, playing to 1.2 million fans throughout the tour and being named the top-selling country female touring artist of 2008.

By the end of 2007, Underwood won 5 awards at the ''Billboard'' Music Awards, including the coveted ''Billboard'' 200 Artist of the Year and also Country Artist of the Year. Also in late 2007, she won three American Music Awards: Artist of the Year, Favorite Female Country Artist and Favorite Country Album, for her debut album, Some Hearts. At the 2008 Academy of Country Music Awards, she won Female Vocalist of the Year, for the 2nd consecutive time. She received two nominations for the 2008 Country Music Association Awards. Underwood and Brad Paisley co-hosted the awards show and she walked away with the Female Vocalist of the Year award for the third consecutive time, but lost the Album of the Year award to George Strait. At the 2008 American Music Awards, Carnival Ride won the Favorite Country Album award, thus making that her 2nd consecutive win in such category. In 2008, Underwood also won her first international award, which was "Female Vocalist of the Year" at the European Country Music Association Awards. For the 44th Academy of Country Music Awards, in 2009, Underwood was nominated for four major awards. Underwood won for Female Vocalist of the Year and Entertainer of The Year, thus making her the first woman to win the award in ten years and the 7th female to take it in the award show's four decade run. Underwood was nominated for Video of the Year at the 2009 CMT Awards for "Just A Dream". In 2009, at the 51st Grammy Awards, she won, for the third year in a row, the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance, for "Last Name", and performed the song at the ceremony. At the 52nd Grammy Awards, in 2010, Underwood won her fifth Grammy Award: She won the Grammy Award for Best Country Collaboration with Vocals for "I Told You So" with Randy Travis and was also nominated again for Best Female Country Vocal Performance, for "Just A Dream". At the ceremony, she performed with Celine Dion, Usher, Smokey Robinson and Jennifer Hudson during the 3-D Michael Jackson tribute. Grammy Awards producer Ken Ehrlich stated that Michael Jackson greatly admired Underwood, which is why she was hand-picked to perform during his tribute.

On May 13, 2008, Underwood was invited by Randy Travis to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry, later that month she was officially inducted by Garth Brooks into the Grand Ole Opry. A few months earlier, she sang Julie Andrews' classic, the title song from ''The Sound of Music'', at the 2007 ''Movies Rock: A Celebration Of Music In Film''. On October 22, 2008, Underwood unveiled her wax figure at Madame Tussauds New York. In 2009, ''Forbes'' reported that Underwood was the top earning ''American Idol'' alumni from June 2008 – May 17, 2009. She earned more than twice as much as the second place finisher, with estimated earnings of $14 million during this time period. She appeared on the holiday CD ''Hear Something Country Christmas 2007'' with a rendition of "Do You Hear What I Hear?". The song reached number two on the AC Chart, and remained there for 3 consecutive weeks. She recorded the song "Ever Ever After" for the soundtrack of the 2007 Walt Disney film ''Enchanted''. Underwood co-wrote a song for ''Idol'' alum Kristy Lee Cook's major-label debut album ''Why Wait''. At the 2008 Idol Gives Back, she sang George Michael's classic "Praying For Time" and later recorded it. In November 2008, Underwood recorded a virtual and posthumous duet with Elvis Presley, on his classic "I'll Be Home For Christmas", for his 2008 album ''Christmas Duets''. Elvis' ex-wife, Priscilla Presley, herself asked Underwood to do the duet: "Priscilla wanted me to do 'I'll Be Home For Christmas'", she says. "I couldn't say 'no'." In March 2009, she tracked a cover of Mötley Crüe's ballad "Home Sweet Home" for the ''American Idol'' season 8 farewell theme. Her version debuted at number 21 on the Hot 100 Songs.

2009–2012: ''Play On''[link]

Underwood released her third studio album, ''Play On'', in November 2009. The album debuted atop both the ''Billboard'' 200 and Hot Country Albums, selling nearly 318,000 copies, giving Underwood the second-highest female artist first week sales for 2009. Underwood wrote a song with pop/R&B; singer-songwriter Ne-Yo for the album, the song however did not make the album. The first single from the album, "Cowboy Casanova", co-written by Underwood, Brett James and hip hop producer Mike Elizondo, was released in September, peaked at number one on ''Billboard'''s Hot Country Songs and at eleven on the Hot 100 Songs, sold 1.6 million and was certified Platinum by the RIAA. Second single, "Temporary Home" hit number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs and the RIAA certified it Gold. "Undo It", Underwood's third single from "Play On", was released to radio in May. It was later certified Platinum by the RIAA and hit number one on the Hot Country Songs chart, giving Underwood her tenth number one single on the Hot Country Songs. The 4th single from ''Play On'', "Mama's Song", was released to country radio in September and peaked at two on the Hot Country Songs. The album is certified Double Platinum by the RIAA. The second leg of the tour started on September 25, 2010 in Portland, Oregon, and ended January 1, 2011 in Detroit, Michigan. Underwood sold out the prestigious Hollywood Bowl on October 2, 2010. In December 2010, Pollstar.com ranked the Play On Tour one of the Top 50 tours of 2010, at number 18 on the North American raking, and number 31 worldwide. ''Billboard'' also ranked Underwood's tour at number 24 for all worldwide tours of 2010. On January 4, 2011, official statistics revealed that Underwood played to over 1 million fans throughout the tour, which resulted in she being named again as the top-ranked female country touring artist of the year.

At the 2009 CMA Awards she received two nominations and co-hosted the ceremony with Brad Paisley. Underwood was nominated for 6 Academy of Country Music Awards. At the show, Underwood was named Entertainer of the Year, making her the only country female artist in history to win this award twice. Host Reba McEntire presented Underwood with the "ACM Triple Crown Award" signifying her winning Top New Artist, Top Female Vocalist and Entertainer of the Year during her career. She was only the second Female to win the coveted "Triple Crown Award", the first being Barbara Mandrell. At the CMT Music Awards Underwood walked away with Video of the Year for "Cowboy Casanova". She also won CMT Performance of the Year for "Temporary Home" from CMT: Invitation Only presents Carrie Underwood. Underwood won two international awards at the 8th French Country Music Awards, which were Best Female Vocalist and Video of the Year, for "Cowboy Casanova". At the 2010 American Music Awards, she won "Favorite Country Album", for "Play On", making her the only artist in the American Music Award history to have all albums awarded in such a category. She co-hosted the 2010 CMA Awards with Brad Paisley for the third year in a row. Underwood was the 2010 American Country Awards' top winner with six wins, Artist of the Year, Female Artist of the Year, Album of the Year for (''Play On''), Female Artist Single of the Year for ("Cowboy Casanova"), Female Artist Video of the Year for ("Cowboy Casanova") and Touring Artist of the Year. At the 2011 Grammy Awards, Underwood was nominated for 'Best Female Country Vocal Performance' for "Temporary Home." Underwood was honored by the CMT Artists of the Year special as one of the 5 top Artists of the year in 2010 in country music. The event aired on CMT on December 3, 2010. At the 2011 Academy of Country Music Awards, Underwood sang with Steven Tyler both her song "Undo It" and Aerosmith's "Walk This Way". In May 2011, Underwood was one of the seven women to be honored by the Academy of Country Music at the ''Girls' Night Out: Superstar Women of Country'' special. She was recognized for being the first and only female artist in the Academy's history to ever win Entertainer of the Year twice. At the ceremony, Vince Gill introduced Underwood and presented her with the special award. He sang one of her hits, "Jesus, Take The Wheel", and joined Underwood on a rendition performance of "How Great Thou Art". The video of the performance turned into a viral sensation, reaching 3 million views on YouTube within two days. On December 5, 2011, Underwood won three awards at the 2011 American Country Awards, including Female Artist of the Year for the second consecutive time.

In late 2009, Underwood had her very own ''CMT Invitation Only'' and also hosted a Christmas special, ''Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special'', a two-hour variety show on Fox that featured Dolly Parton, with whom she sang a rendition duet of "I Will Always Love You", seventh-season ''American Idol'' champion David Cook, Kristin Chenoweth, Brad Paisley and others. In May 2010, Underwood was selected on People Magazine's 100 Most Beautiful People List for 2010. This was the 4th year in a row that she was selected for the list. Also in May, Victoria's Secret named her legs the Sexiest Legs in Hollywood. Underwood appeared on the CBS sitcom ''How I Met Your Mother''. Her character, Tiffany, is a pharmaceutical sales representative who becomes the love interest for another main character on the show. A few months earlier, she performed a voice-over as 'Carrie Underworm', a parodied "worm" character, in an episode of the PBS children's television series, ''Sesame Street'', Underwood co-wrote and recorded a song entitled "There's a Place for Us," the lead single from ''The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader''. Underwood and songwriters, David Hodges and Hillary Lindsey, received a nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song. In March 2011, Underwood sang John Lennon's "Instant Karma!" at the NBC's special ''All Together Now – A Celebration of Service'', which honored former President George H. W. Bush. She made her big screen debut in ''Soul Surfer'', in April 2011. At the season ten finale of ''American Idol'' Underwood selected a song for contestant Lauren Alaina to sing.

Underwood is featured on "Remind Me", a duet with Brad Paisley that reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs, giving Underwood her eleventh number one single on such chart and fourteenth overall. She has also a duet with Tony Bennett on his 2011 album ''Duets II'' and another duet with Randy Travis on his 2011 ''Anniversary Celebration'' album. Underwood was one of the headliners of the iHeartRadio Music Festival. The event took place on September 23 and 24, 2011. On September 19, Underwood performed "You Really Got a Hold on Me" in order to honor Smokey Robinson, as he was presented with the Ella Award at the Society of Singers annual dinner. Robinson returned the favor to Underwood by singing "My Girl" to her. At the same event, they sang together with Stevie Wonder, Natalie Cole and other artists a medley of multiple songs.

On February 4, 2012, Underwood joined Steven Tyler to record CMT's ''Crossroads'' at the Pepsi Coliseum during the Pepsi Super Bowl Fan Jam of Super Bowl XLVI. It was the highest-rated episode in seven years. On February 12, 2012, Underwood and Tony Bennett performed their duet "It Had to Be You" at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards show.

2012: ''Blown Away''[link]

''Blown Away'', Underwood's fourth album, was released on May 1, 2012. Underwood has said that this album features songs with a "darker storyline." The first single, "Good Girl", was released to the iTunes store on February 23, 2012. It was officially released to Country radio on February 27, 2012. The music video for "Good Girl" premiered on ''Entertainment Tonight'' and on ''VEVO'' on March 12, 2012. The song has already been certified Gold by the RIAA, for sales of half a million.

On May 1, Underwood announced the North American arena tour leg of her ''The Blown Away Tour''. The tour will include an international run of shows this summer, including her United Kingdom concert at the prestigious Royal Albert Hall in London on June 21, which sold-out in 90 minutes.

Personal interests[link]

Underwood is an animal lover and a vegetarian. She stopped eating meat at the age of thirteen because she could not stand the thought of eating one of her own animals. She was voted "World's Sexiest Vegetarian" by PETA in 2007 for the second time, the first being in 2005 alongside Coldplay frontman Chris Martin. In a 2007 interview with PETA, Underwood stated, "Ever since I was little I loved animals [...] If you told me I could never sing again, I'd say that was horrible, but it's not my life. If you told me I could never be around animals again, I would just die." Underwood is a supporter of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) and has done several public service announcements for the organization. Underwood has also done a "Protect Your Pets" public service announcement for Do Something.

To benefit cancer research, in August 2008 Underwood joined Beyoncé, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige and other female artists to record the song "Just Stand Up!". The proceeds benefited Stand Up to Cancer (SU2C). As a result of their fund raising efforts, the SU2C scientific advisory committee, overseen by the American Association for Cancer Research was able to award $73.6 million towards novel, groundbreaking research. The song peaked at number eleven on ''Billboard'''s Hot 100 Songs. In August 2009, she formed the Checotah Animal Town and School (C.A.T.S.) Foundation to benefit her hometown of Checotah, Oklahoma. On August 28, 2009, Underwood visited Checotah High School with ABC news anchor Robin Roberts, where she gave a presentation on stage, sang with a young girl in front of students and school faculty, and donated over $117,000 worth of musical instruments to three music programs at three of Checotah's schools. Underwood has participated in the annual City of Hope Celebrity Softball tournament for charity for many years. The event takes place in Nashville, Tennessee, and benefits research for life-threatening diseases. During the 2011 holiday season, her C.A.T.S. foudation donated $350,000 to schools in the singer's hometown of Checotah, Oklahoma. On January 10, 2012, it was reported, but had previously been blogged by Underwood herself on her official fan-site, that the singer rescued an abandoned dog along highway. According to Underwood, she spotted two dogs along the road while traveling with her own dogs, Ace and Penny, from her parents' home in her native Oklahoma. "My guess is that the dogs were thrown out of their car by their owners on the highway", said the singer. One of the dogs was already dead, but she put the other – bloody and limping – into her SUV. She named the puppy Stella, took her to the vet and got her groomed. Within a matter of days, she'd found a nearby home for the dog. "I cried when she walked out the door," she wrote.

Underwood has also stated she has a great interest in sports. In 2005, she performed the "Star-Spangled Banner" at Game 4 of the NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and Detroit Pistons, and in 2006 at the NBA All-Star Game. She also performed the "Star-Spangled Banner" at the NFC Championship Game between the Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers in 2006, as well as at the 2006 edition of NASCAR's Coca-Cola 600, the MLB All Star Game in Pittsburgh, P.A., and at Game 3 of the 2007 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and Colorado Rockies. On February 7, 2010, Underwood performed the National Anthem for Super Bowl XLIV.

Personal life[link]

Underwood is a practicing Christian. She follows a vegan diet. She performed at halftime of the 2006 Thanksgiving Day football game at Texas Stadium in Irving, Texas, and was friends with Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. She attended his birthday party in April 2007, and on May 15, 2007, he escorted her to the Academy of Country Music Awards. They were rumored to be dating on and off throughout 2007. Although she denied the rumor when asked, Romo confirmed it by saying "[...] I'm dating Carrie Underwood" on his website. He also told an Illinois newspaper that they were dating. In August 2007, Underwood began dating Chace Crawford of the American television series ''Gossip Girl''. On October 4, 2007, ''People'' magazine reported that the two were seen holding hands in New York City, though according to further reports, they ended their relationship in the spring of 2008.

She became engaged in December 2009 to then Ottawa Senators (now Nashville Predators) hockey player Mike Fisher, whom she began dating after they met at one of her concerts in 2008. Underwood and Fisher appeared together publicly for the first time in January 2010, at the Bell Sens Soiree, an annual fundraiser in Gatineau for the Ottawa Senators' official charity. After appearing together at the CMT Awards in June 2010, Underwood told reporters that Fisher was planning a surprise honeymoon for the two of them after their summer wedding.

On July 10, 2010, Underwood and Fisher wed at The Ritz-Carlton Lodge, Reynolds Plantation in Greensboro, Georgia, with more than 250 people in attendance. The couple gave ''People'' the following statement, which they signed "Mike & Carrie Fisher": "We could not feel more blessed to have found each other and to have shared this day with our friends and family that mean so much to us!" According to ''People'', Monique Lhuillier created a dress of Chantilly lace for Underwood and also designed the bridesmaids' dresses. The ceremony featured classical music and readings of the couple's favorite Bible verses. National Hockey League players, as well as Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Garth Brooks, ''American Idol'' contestants, and judges Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson were in attendance. She surprised her husband by having one of their favorite artists, Brandon Heath, sing his song "Love Never Fails" for their first dance.

On February 11, 2011, an Ottawa radio station, 105.3 CISS-FM, banned the playing of Underwood's music because her husband, Mike Fisher, was traded to the Nashville Predators the day before. Due to Underwood's fans' threats on Facebook to never tune into the radio station, the station later modified their statement. They apologized for their actions, saying that their statements were meant to be taken as a joke, as they do not play Underwood's country songs anyway and it was their tongue-in-cheek way of wishing Fisher the best of luck in Nashville. Fisher later criticized the station saying "obviously Carrie had nothing to do with the move or the trade or anything so to imply something like that was just wrong", and noting that both he and Underwood were disappointed in the negativity that was created by the radio station. Underwood was selected by ''The Hockey News'' on its annual list of the 100 People of Power and Influence in Ice Hockey. For the 2012 list, Underwood ranked at number 85.

Underwood was ranked #60 on Maxim's annual Hot 100 list in 2009.

Discography[link]

2005: ''Some Hearts''

2007: ''Carnival Ride''

2009: ''Play On''

2012: ''Blown Away''

Filmography[link]

!Year	!Appearance	!Role	!Notes
2005	''American Idol''	Contestant	Winner
2007	''Saturday Night Live''	Musical guest
2009	''Carrie Underwood: An All-Star Holiday Special''	Herself
	''How I Met Your Mother''	Tiffany	Episode: "Hooked"
''Sesame Street''	"Carrie Underworm"
''The Buried Life''	Herself
''Extreme Makeover: Home Edition''	Herself
		Sarah Hill	Feature film debut
	Herself
2012	''CMT Crossroads'' – with Steven Tyler	Herself	From the Pepsi Super Bowl Fan Jam

Tours[link]

2005: American Idols LIVE! Tour 2005

2006: Carrie Underwood: Live 2006

2008: Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride Tour (w/ Keith Urban)

2008: Carnival Ride Tour

2010: Play On Tour

2012: Blown Away Tour

Awards[link]

See also[link]

List of artists who reached number one in the United States

List of artists who reached number one on the U.S. country chart

List of best-selling music artists in the United States

List of best-charting music artists in the U.S.

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

Tracey, Kathleen. ''Carrie Underwood: American Idol IV''. September 2005. Blue Banner Biography series (Juvenile) ISBN 1-58415-425-X

Footnotes[link]

External links[link]

Official site of Carrie Underwood from Arista Records

Carrie Underwood at Billboard.com

Category:1983 births Category:Living people Category:American Christians Category:American country singers Category:American country singer-songwriters Category:American female singers Category:American female guitarists Category:American country guitarists Category:American Idol winners Category:American pianists Category:American pop singers Category:American pop singer-songwriters Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American vegans Category:Arista Records artists Category:Baptists from the United States Category:English-language singers Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grand Ole Opry members Category:Northeastern State University alumni Category:Musicians from Oklahoma Category:Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame inductees Category:People from Muskogee, Oklahoma

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Name	Keith Urban
Landscape	Yes
Background	solo_singer
Birth name	Keith Lionel Urban
Birth date	October 26, 1967
Birth place	Whangarei, New Zealand
Origin	Caboolture, Queensland, Australia
Instrument	Vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, Banjo, piano, bass, mandolin, bouzouki, Ebow, drums, sitar
Genre	Country, country rock, southern rock
Occupation	Singer-songwriter
Years active	1990–present
Spouse	Nicole Kidman (2006 - present)
Label	Capitol Records Nashville
Spouse	Nicole Kidman (2006 – present) Children Sunday Rose (7 July 2008) Faith Margret (28 December 2010)
Associated acts	The Ranch, Brooks & Dunn, Brad Paisley, Dann Huff, Radney Foster, John Butler Trio, John Mayer, Trisha Yearwood, Nelly Furtado, John Fogerty, Bon Jovi, Carrie Underwood, Richard Marx
Website	KeithUrban.net }}

Keith Lionel Urban (born 26 October 1967) is a New Zealand country music singer, songwriter and guitarist whose commercial success has been mainly in the United States and Australia. Urban was born in New Zealand and began his career in Australia at an early age. In 1991, he released a self-titled debut album, and charted four singles in Australia before moving to the United States in 1992. Eventually, Urban found work as a session guitarist before starting a band known as The Ranch, which recorded one studio album on Capitol Records and charted two singles on the ''Billboard'' country charts.

Still signed to Capitol, he made his solo American debut in 1999 with the album ''Keith Urban''. Certified platinum in the U.S., it also produced his first American Number One in "But for the Grace of God". His breakthrough hit was the Number One "Somebody Like You", from his second Capitol album ''Golden Road'' (2002). This album also earned Urban his first Grammy Award win for "You'll Think of Me", its fourth single and the fourth ''Billboard'' Number One of his career. 2004's ''Be Here'', his third American album, produced three more Number Ones, and became his highest-selling album, earning 4× Multi-Platinum certification. ''Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing'' was released in 2006, producing the record-setting No.17 country chart debut of "Once in a Lifetime", as well as Urban's second Grammy for the song "Stupid Boy", while a Greatest Hits package entitled ''Greatest Hits: 18 Kids'' followed in late 2007. This album was re-released a year later as ''Greatest Hits: 19 Kids'' with one track added: the number one "You Look Good in My Shirt", which he had previously recorded on ''Golden Road''. Additional albums ''Defying Gravity'' and ''Get Closer'' were released on 31 March 2009 and 16 November 2010, respectively.

Urban has released a total of nine studio albums (one of which was released only in the United Kingdom), as well as one album in The Ranch. He has charted more than fifteen singles on the U.S. country charts, including fourteen Number Ones. Urban plays acoustic and electric guitar, as well as banjo, bass guitar, mandolin, piano, sitar, bouzouki and drums.

Life and career [link]

Background [link]

Keith Lionel Urban was born in Whangarei, New Zealand but later moved and lived with his parents in Caboolture, Queensland, Australia. By age six, Urban was already thinking about getting into the music business. He began learning the techniques at age seven and began winning young singing contests by age eight.

A few years later he began to make inroads into the Australian country music scene with regular appearances on the Reg Lindsay Country Homestead TV Program, Mike McClellands Music Program and various other TV Programs performing in duet with Jenny Wilson, local Brisbane girl with whom he won a golden guitar award at the Tamworth Country Music Festival. He also performed regularly on stage at the Northern Suburbs Country Music Club near Caboolture.

In 1990, Urban signed with EMI in Australia and recorded his first solo album, which charted four No. 1 country hits in Australia, New Zealand, and Germany. Urban toured as a back-up to Slim Dusty in 1993-4. In the mid 1990s, Dusty and Urban recorded a re-worked duet of Dusty's classic "Lights on the Hill" and Urban appeared for the first time at the Grand Ole Opry backing Dusty.

In 1992, he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where he found work as a guitarist for Brooks & Dunn and can be seen backing Alan Jackson in his music video for "Mercury Blues". Later, Urban formed The Ranch, a three-piece group that released one album in 1997. Originally the front man for The Ranch, Urban disbanded the group to pursue a solo career in 1998. In 1999, Urban found "Vocal Coach to the Stars" Brett Manning, and worked with him up until 2001.

In August 2000, Urban was the first male New Zealand performer to reach the top 10 on the U.S. country chart with "Your Everything". At the time he was spelling his name "keith urban".

In Nashville, Urban became a frequent user of cocaine. After reaching a personal nadir in 1998, he became determined to give up the habit and checked into Cumberland Heights, a treatment center in Nashville. After cleaning up, Urban released his self-titled American debut in 1999, which produced three top 5 hits and secured for him the Top New Male Vocalist Award at the 2001 Academy of Country Music Awards and the 2001 Country Music Association's Horizon Award. Widely regarded for his guitar skills, has performed as a session musician on albums such as Garth Brooks' ''Double Live'', Dixie Chicks' ''Fly'', and Paul Brandt's ''This Time Around''.

Urban performed "Lights on the Hill" for Tamworth's 2004 tribute concert following the death of Australia's Slim Dusty, an artist whom Urban had both written for and covered.

Urban was also a judge for the 8th annual Independent Music Awards.

''Golden Road'' & ''Be Here'' [link]

Urban released ''Golden Road'' in 2002, and the success of the single "Somebody Like You" sent his career into high gear. Touring as a supporting act for renowned country acts Brooks & Dunn, Martina McBride and Kenny Chesney honed Urban's skills and stage-craft. Country video channel CMT signed on as the title sponsor of Urban's first headlining arena tour titled ''Keith Urban Be Here '04'' with opening act Katrina Elam. Urban continued his meteoric rise to fame in 2005 with a very successful tour with Elam called ''Alive in '05''. He performed in the Live 8 Philadelphia concert on 2 July 2005 and had been selected by The Gap to appear alongside seven other musical artists in their "Favorites" campaign. He was named the 2005 CMA's Male Vocalist of the Year. He released a DVD in late September 2005 entitled ''Livin' Right Now'', recorded in at the Wiltern Theater in California in December 2004.

In 2005 Urban performed in front of European audiences for the first time. In May Urban supported Bryan Adams on his UK and Ireland tour, which included dates in Earls Court, London, SECC, Glasgow and The Point, Dublin. On 6 June a UK only album, ''Days Go By'' was released, this album contained songs from both ''Be Here'' and ''Golden Road'' .

In October, Urban returned for a headlining tour with Nerina Pallot and Richard Winsland as support acts.

Urban has recently performed "Better Life" on the CMA Awards and "You'll Think of Me" on the American Music Awards. He also performed at the Grammys playing "You'll Think of Me" and "The Lucky One" with Faith Hill. At the 2006 ACM Awards Urban performed "Tonight I Wanna Cry" and played guitar for Brooks & Dunn's song "Believe."

''Love, Pain, & The Whole Crazy Thing'' [link]

On Monday 21 August 2006, Urban made history when his new single "Once in a Lifetime" debuted at #17, setting a new record for the highest-debuting country single in the 62-year history of Billboard's country charts. The record was formerly held by Garth Brooks' "Good Ride Cowboy" and Eddie Rabbitt's "Every Which Way But Loose", both of which debuted at #18. "Good Ride Cowboy" was the highest in the BDS era (1990–present). The song however would soon be beaten by Kenny Chesney's ''Don't Blink'', which debuted at #16, and later Garth Brooks' "More Than A Memory", which debuted at #1.

Urban is also a winner of numerous "Golden Guitars", which are presented annually during the Tamworth Country Music Festival at "The Country Music Association of Australia's Annual Awards" in Tamworth, New South Wales Australia. He is also a former winner of the Toyota Starmaker Contest, which is held each year in conjunction with the CMAA Awards and the Tamworth Country Music Festival.

Keith was named artist of the month for July 2007 on the television network GAC (Great American Country). He answered a question of the day every day that month, and did multiple interviews about love, life, his new album and his stay in rehab.

On 7 July 2007, Keith performed with Alicia Keys at one of Al Gore's Live Earth concerts held around the world. The concerts were held to raise awareness of global warming. Keith performed at the concert held in New York City and said in an interview that global warming is not a political issue, and what he is doing to help the environment is running all bio-diesel buses in his Love, Pain and The Whole Crazy World Tour.

Urban released his first greatest hits collection, ''Greatest Hits: 18 Kids'', on 20 November 2007. The CD contains all of his top 10 hits, along with two new songs, "Romeo's Tune" and "Got It Right This Time (The Celebration)."

In January 2008, Urban embarked on the Love, Pain and the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride Tour with fellow country singer Carrie Underwood. In early May 2008, Urban debuted a new song at the Grand Ole Opry titled "A New Sunshine". And in late May 2008, Urban re-recorded a song from his sophomore CD, "You Look Good in My Shirt". The song was released on the radio at the end of May. "Over the years it ("You Look Good In My Shirt") has always played like a hit song," said Keith. "That, combined with numerous requests from both fans and radio about why it was never a single, inspired us to get back into the studio and re-record the song."(keithurban.net) The single was a pre-cursor to the "Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy World Tour" concert DVD release in the Fall of '08. Urban's newest release "Defying Gravity" was released 31 March 2009.

"You Look Good in My Shirt" was the first single from Keith Urban's re-recorded 2007 album, ''Greatest Hits: 18 Kids''. The album was released under a different title, ''Greatest Hits: 19 Kids'' on 19 August 2008. Keith Urban was also featured on Brad Paisley's instrumental album titled ''Play'', on a song called "Start a Band."

''Defying Gravity'' [link]

Urban recently announced that the lead single for his forthcoming 5th studio album will be titled "Sweet Thing". This song became the first No.1 single off the album. The song was co-written with Monty Powell, who wrote some of Urban's past hits, and co-produced with his longtime producer Dann Huff. The album, ''Defying Gravity'', was released on 31 March 2009, through Capitol Records. Its second single, "Kiss a Girl", debuted in March 2009. Urban performed this song on American Idol, during the season 8 finale, as a duet with eventual winner Kris Allen. Its third single, "Only You Can Love Me This Way", is another chart-topping song, co-written by Steve McEwan and John Reid. Defying Gravity debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200. This was Urban's first No.1 CD. His past two albums debuted at #3.

Keith Urban has received four nominations on the 2009 CMA Awards, including Entertainer Of The Year and Male Vocalist Of The Year for a fourth consecutive year in a row. He also earned a nomination for Album Of The Year for ''Defying Gravity'' and shares a nomination with Brad Paisley for Music Video Of The Year for "Start A Band".

A video for "Hit The Ground Runnin'" premiered on 2 October on CMT and CMT.com.

Urban's 2009 Escape Together tour, supporting the album, ''Defying Gravity'', featured many big name opening acts, including Taylor Swift, Sugarland, and Jason Aldean. On 27 June 2009 Keith filmed a video for the song, "Only You Can Love Me This Way", at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa.

On 5 May 2010, whilst being interviwed by CNN about the flooding in Nashville, Urban stated that he was about to begin recording a new album, but all his guitars were now underwater.

Urban's 2010 Summer Lovin' tour consisted of mostly festival shows.

''Get Closer'' [link]

In May 2010, Urban entered the studio to begin work on a new album. The recording process was documented in a blog on his official website. At the beginning of September, it was announced that the album would be titled ''Get Closer'' and would see release on 16 November. At the same time, "Put You in a Song" was revealed to be the first single and was released digitally and to radio on 13 September.

Keith Urban appeared at the 44th Annual Country Music Awards on 10 November 2010.

To promote the new album, Keith played surprise concerts at New York City's Penn Station as well as a train station in Philadelphia. The impromptu concerts included a 4-song set list mixing in new and old hits.

On 30 November, Keith played a free concert at The Ice Palace of the West Edmonton Mall in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Fans lined up days in advance to hear him play the first single (Put You in a Song) from "Get Closer" and a short collection of past hits. He also played a tribute to Johnny Cash with "Folsom Prison Blues" and Steve Miller's "The Joker"

On 15 December, After appearing on Oprah's Australian special, Keith decided to play an acoustic set in Pitt St Mall in Sydney. There he played in front of 2500+ people. He also called up a young fan to play his single Put You In a Song.

Urban announced the "Get Closer – World Tour 2011", an Australian, American and Canadian tour in support of the album. His American tour features country artist Jake Owen supporting. The Canadian leg features The Band Perry as the opening act.

Urban also recorded a song titled "For You," which was featured as the theme song of the 2012 action film ''Act of Valor''. It also appears on the film's soundtrack.

On 10 April 2012, Urban was asked to be a member of the Grand Ole Opry by Vince Gill at the third annual "All for the Hall" benefit concert which Urban organized. He will be inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on 21 April 2012.

''The Voice''[link]

On 23 November 2011, Urban was confirmed as one of the four vocal coaches in the upcoming Australian version of the reality singing competition The Voice.

Personal life[link]

Starting in 1992, Urban dated veterinary technician Laura Sigler for eight years. Urban proposed to Sigler in 2001, but the pair eventually split in 2002.

Urban met Australian actress Nicole Kidman at ''G'Day LA'', a Hollywood event honoring Australians, in January 2005, but they reportedly didn't begin dating until 6 months later. Kidman and Urban were married on Sunday, 25 June 2006, at the Cardinal Cerretti Memorial Chapel on the grounds of St Patrick's Estate, Manly in Sydney.

On 19 October 2006, Urban checked himself into the Betty Ford Center in California. On 20 October, Urban issued a statement saying: ''"I deeply regret the hurt this has caused Nicole and the ones who love and support me. One can never let one's guard down on recovery, and I'm afraid that I have."'' On 18 January 2007, Urban announced his completion of rehab and his plans to go on tour to promote his new album, ''Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing''.

On 2 February 2007, Urban filed a lawsuit against a New Jersey painter by the same name, who has a web site KeithUrban.com. The singer wanted to acquire the rights to the URL. Keith Urban the singer's URL is KeithUrban.NET. The painter counter sued. The lawsuit was settled in the painter's favor.

On 1 October 2007, while riding, Urban skidded off his motorbike when a paparazzo followed him near his home in Sydney; Urban was not hurt. In a statement released by his publicists, Urban says the incident was "the result of one person's desire to do his job and my desire to maintain my privacy." Urban says he tried to avoid an oncoming car and dropped his bike. He says the photographer came to his assistance without taking photos.

On 7 January 2008, Nicole Kidman confirmed she and Urban were expecting their first child together. Kidman's publicist said "the couple are thrilled and cannot wait." Kidman gave birth to their first child, a daughter, Sunday Rose Kidman Urban, on 7 July 2008 in Nashville, Tennessee. She weighed 2.93 kg (6 lbs, 7.5 oz). On his website, Urban stated,

"Earlier this morning Nic gave birth to our beautiful baby girl, Sunday Rose Kidman Urban. We want to thank everybody that has kept us in their thoughts and prayers. We feel very blessed and grateful that we can share this joy with all of you today."

On 28 December 2010, Urban and Kidman welcomed a second daughter, Faith Margaret Kidman Urban, via surrogate at Nashville's Centennial Women's Hospital. The baby is biologically Urban and Kidman's. On 17 January 2011, Keith posted this statement on his website: "Our family is truly blessed, and just so thankful, to have been given the gift of baby Faith Margaret. No words can adequately convey the incredible gratitude that we feel for everyone who was so supportive throughout this process, in particular our gestational carrier." Faith's middle name is after Kidman's late grandmother.

Discography[link]

Studio albums[link]

''Keith Urban'' (1991)^A

''Keith Urban in The Ranch'' (1997)

''Keith Urban'' (1999)

''Golden Road'' (2002)

''Be Here'' (2004)

''Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing'' (2006)

''Defying Gravity'' (2009)

''Get Closer'' (2010)

Compilation albums[link]

''Days Go By'' (2005)

''Greatest Hits: 18 Kids'' (2007)^B

Number one singles[link]

"But for the Grace of God" (2001)

"Somebody Like You" (2002)

"Who Wouldn't Wanna Be Me" (2003)

"You'll Think of Me" (2004)

"Days Go By" (2004)

"Making Memories of Us" (2005)

"Better Life" (2005)

"You Look Good in My Shirt" (2008)

"Start a Band" (with Brad Paisley) (2009)

"Sweet Thing" (2009)

"Only You Can Love Me This Way" (2009)

"Without You" (2011)

"Long Hot Summer"(2011)

"You Gonna Fly" (2012)

^A Released only in Australia, but later re-released independently in 2005. ^B Re-released in 2008 as ''Greatest Hits: 19 Kids'', with one track added.

Tours [link]

Official Tours [link]

Get Closer 2011 World Tour (2011) – supporting his seventh studio album, ''Get Closer,'' released on 16 November 2010

Summer Lovin' 2010 (2010) – supporting his sixth studio album, ''Defying Gravity,'' released on 31 March 2009

Escape Together World Tour 2009 (2009) – supporting his sixth studio album, ''Defying Gravity,'' released on 31 March 2009

Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride (2008) – supporting his fifth studio album, ''Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing'' touring with Carrie Underwood supporting her album ''Carnival Ride''

Love, Pain & the Whole crazy World Tour (2007) – supporting his fifth studio album, ''Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing''

Still Alive in 06 (2006) – supporting his fourth studio album, ''Be Here''

Alive In 05 (2005) – supporting his fourth studio album, ''Be Here''

Livin' Right Now Tour (2004) – supporting his fourth studio album, ''Be Here''

Supporting Tours [link]

Eagles Summer 2010 Tour (2010) – touring with The Eagles and The Dixie Chicks. It was announced on 16 March 2010 that Keith will be hitting the road with The Eagles and The Dixie Chicks for a North American stadium concert tour. 5 concert dates have been announced so far, which include Boston, and Chicago.

Brooks & Dunn's Neon Circus & Wild West Show 2001

Band[link]

Touring Band[link]

2010–2011[link]

Danny Rader (guitar, ganjo, mandolin, bazouki, piano, organ) has recently been added to Urban's touring band.

2010[link]

After four years with the band, Chris Rodriguez and Brad Rice departed. Coming off the Escape Together World Tour, the two were told Urban would not be mounting big tours for awhile, and that a smaller band was all that was needed. The following band was from 2010 onwards for the CMT Crossroads and the Summerlovin Tour, as well as the tour with The Eagles:

Keith Urban – lead vocals, lead guitar, acoustic guitar, piano, bass guitar, bouzouki, e-bow, drums

Chris McHugh – drums, percussion

Brian Nutter – acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar, keyboards, ganjo, mandolin, bass guitar, background vocals, drums

Jerry Flowers – bass guitar, piano, acoustic guitar, background vocals

2007–2009[link]

The following band was used for Keith's Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Carnival Ride Tour (2008), Love, Pain & the whole crazy World Tour (2007) and the Escape Together World Tour (2009):

Keith Urban – lead vocals, lead guitar, acoustic guitar, piano, bass guitar, bouzouki, e-bow, drums

Chris McHugh – drums, percussion

Chris Rodriguez – acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar, ganjo, mandolin, bass guitar, background vocals

Brian Nutter – acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar, keyboards, ganjo, mandolin, bass guitar, background vocals, drums

Jerry Flowers – bass guitar, piano, acoustic guitar, background vocals

Brad Rice – rhythm guitar, acoustic guitar, ganjo, mandolin, background vocals

2005–2006[link]

Jerry Flowers replaced Mark Hill as the bass player. Jerry was a member of The Ranch in 1997 and 1998.

2004[link]

The following band was used for Keith's Be Here 2004 Tour:

Mark Hill – bass guitar

Steven King – piano, keyboards

Chad Jeffers – acoustic guitar, ganjo, mandolin, dobro

Chris Rodriguez – acoustic guitar, rhythm guitar, ganjo, mandolin, bass guitar, background vocals

Chris McHugh – drums, percussion

Pre-2004[link]

The following band was used before 2004

Peter Clarke – drums

Jason Mowery – fiddle, mandolin

Scotty Huff – acoustic guitar, banjo, rhythm guitar

Tim Horsely – drums

Robbie Harrington – bass guitar

Randall Waller

Jimmy Mattingly

Millard Powers

Awards & honors[link]

! Year	! Awards	! Category
1977		''Best Solo Act'' (junior)
1978	''Special Encouragement Award'' (10 years & under)
1980	''Best Junior Guitarist''
1981	''Best Gospel Singer''
	''Best Duet''
''Best Junior Guitarist''
1983	''Junior Male Vocalist''
1990	''Star Maker Award''
	''Golden Guitar Award''
''Best New Talent''
	''Golden Guitar Award''
''Male Vocalist of the Year''
1997
1998
	Academy of Country Music Awards	Top New Male Vocalist
Country Music Association Awards	Horizon Award
ARIA Music Awards	Outstanding Achievement award
VMA Awards	Male Vocalist award
	ARIA Music Awards
	Song of the Year; "Somebody Like You"
TCMA Awards	Video Clip of the Year; "Somebody Like You"
	Country Music Association Awards	Male Vocalist of the Year
FCMA Awards	Best Foreign Music
		Album of the Year; ''Be Here''
Top Male Vocalist
French Association of Country Music	Artist of the Year
ARIA Music Awards	Country Album of the Year; ''Be Here''
	Male Vocalist of the Year
Entertainer of the Year
International Artist of the Year
	Top-selling Pop Catalog Album of the Year; ''Golden Road''
	Grammy Awards	''Best Male Country Vocal Performance''; "You'll Think of Me"
Academy of Country Music Awards	Top Male Vocalist
French Association of Country Music	Best Live Performance
Country Music Association Awards	Male Vocalist of the Year
2007	ARIA Music Awards	Best Country Album; ''Love, Pain & the Whole Crazy Thing''
2008	Grammy Awards	Best Male Country Vocal Performance; "Stupid Boy"
	Academy of Country Music Awards	Vocal Event of the Year; "Start A Band" (w/ Brad Paisley)
Country Music Association Awards	Musical Event of the Year; "Start A Band" (w/ Brad Paisley)
CMT Music Awards	Collaborative Video of the Year; "Start A Band" (w/ Brad Paisley)
American Music Awards	Country – Favorite Male Artist
	Grammy Awards
People's Choice Awards	Favorite Male Artist
CMT Music Awards	Best Male Video
	Grammy Awards	Best Male Country Vocal Performance; "'Til Summer Comes Around"
Teen Choice Awards	Choice Music: Male Country Artist

Notes[link]

External links[link]

Category:1967 births Category:ARIA Award winners Category:Australian pianists Category:Australian guitarists Category:Australian country guitarists Category:Australian country singers Category:Austrailian country rock singers Category:Austailian rock singers Category:Australian country singer-songwriters Category:Australian expatriates in the United States Category:Australian multi-instrumentalists Category:Lead guitarists Category:Australian people of New Zealand descent Category:Capitol Records artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Living people Category:People from Whangarei Category:People from Queensland Category:Grand Ole Opry members

da:Keith Urban de:Keith Urban es:Keith Urban fa:کیث اربن fr:Keith Urban it:Keith Urban la:Keith Urban hu:Keith Urban nl:Keith Urban ja:キース・アーバン no:Keith Urban pl:Keith Urban pt:Keith Urban ru:Урбан, Кит simple:Keith Urban su:Keith Urban fi:Keith Urban sv:Keith Urban tr:Keith Urban zh:凯斯·艾尔本

name	Brad Paisley| image Paisley, Brad (2007) 2.jpg
landscape	yes
background	solo_singer
birth name	Brad Douglas Paisley
birth date	October 28, 1972
origin	Glen Dale, West Virginia,United States
instrument	Vocals, guitar, mandolin
genre	Country, Country Rock
occupation	Singer-songwriter, musician
years active	1997–present
spouse	Kimberly Williams-Paisley
label	Arista Nashville
associated acts	Alison Krauss, Dolly Parton, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, Martina McBride, Chely Wright, Scotty McCreery
website	BradPaisley.com
notable instruments	Bill Crook TelecastersFender Telecasters }}

Brad Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. His style crosses between traditional country music and Southern rock, and his songs are frequently laced with humor and pop culture references.

Paisley was the 2008 CMA and ACM Male Vocalist of the Year winner. Starting with the release of his 1999 album ''Who Needs Pictures'', Paisley has recorded seven studio albums and a Christmas compilation on the Arista Nashville label, with all of his albums certified gold or higher by the RIAA. In addition, he has charted 25 singles on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart, 16 of which have reached #1 with a record 10 consecutive singles reaching the top spot on the chart. On November 10, 2010, Paisley won the Entertainer of the Year award at the 44th annual CMA Awards.

Biography[link]

Paisley was born on October 28, 1972 in Glen Dale, West Virginia to Douglas Edward "Doug" Paisley, who worked for the West Virginia Department of Transportation, and Sandra Jean "Sandy" (née Jarvis) Paisley, a teacher. He was raised in Glen Dale, West Virginia. He has stated that his love of country music stems from his maternal grandfather, Warren Jarvis, who gave Paisley his first guitar, a Sears Danelectro Silvertone at 8-years-old and taught him how to play. At age 10, he performed for the first time in public by singing in his church. He later recalled that, "Pretty soon, I was performing at every Christmas party and Mother's Day event. The neat thing about a small town is that when you want to be an artist, by golly, they'll make you one".

Paisley graduated from John Marshall High School in Glen Dale, West Virginia in 1991, studied for 2 years at West Liberty College (WV) and later was awarded a full-paid ASCAP scholarship to Belmont University, in Nashville, Tennessee (from 1993 to 1995). He interned at ASCAP, Atlantic Records, and the Fitzgerald-Hartley management firm. While in college, he met Frank Rogers, a fellow student who went on to serve as his producer. Paisley also met Kelley Lovelace, who became his songwriting partner. He also met Chris DuBois in college, and he too would write songs for him.

1999–2001: ''Who Needs Pictures''[link]

His debut as a singer was with the label Arista Nashville, with the song "Who Needs Pictures" (released February 22, 1999). In May of that same year, he made his first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry. Seven months later he had his first #1 hit with "He Didn't Have to Be," which detailed the story of Paisley's frequent co-writer Kelley Lovelace and Lovelace's stepson, McCain Merren. ''We Danced'' also was a hit for Paisley off the debut album, reaching #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart. By February 2001, the album was certified platinum.

In 2000, Paisley's mainstream notoriety received a huge boost when he was exposed to his first national non-country music oriented audience on the TLC special, "Route 66: Main Street America." Producer, Todd Baker, tapped the young musician to appear on this show when he was a relative unknown outside the world of country music. It featured Paisley and band doing rare live and acoustic versions of Route 66. The international and home video versions of this program end with a full, un-cut acoustic rendition of the piece, which was performed live on Rainbow Bridge in Riverton, Kansas. The show accurately predicted that Paisley would become a legendary musician, and also featured blues artist, Buddy Guy.

Later in 2000, Paisley won the Country Music Association's (CMA) Horizon Award and the Academy of Country Music's best new male vocalist trophy. He received his first Grammy Award nomination a year later for Best New Artist. On February 17, 2001, Paisley was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry He was 28 when he accepted the invitation, and was the youngest member ever to join. PBS did a 75th anniversary concert special, which saw Paisley pair up with Chely Wright and sing a song called ''Hard to Be a Husband, Hard to Be a Wife'', and would be included on the album ''Backstage at the Opry'', It would get a CMA nomination for Vocal Event of the Year.

2001–2003: ''Part II''[link]

In 2002, he won the CMA Music Video of the Year for "I'm Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin' Song)." Several celebrities made notable guest appearances in the video, including Little Jimmy Dickens, Kimberly Williams, Dan Patrick, and Jerry Springer. His three other singles off the ''Part II'' album, "I Wish You'd Stay", "Wrapped Around", and "Two People Fell in Love", all charted in the top 10. The album stayed in the charts for more than 70 weeks and was certified platinum in August 2002. To support his album, he toured the country as the opening act for Lonestar.

2003–2005: ''Mud on the Tires''[link]

Paisley released his third album, ''Mud on the Tires'' (2003), following ''Who Needs Pictures'' and ''Part II.'' The album features the hit song "Celebrity", the video of which parodies reality shows such as ''Fear Factor'', ''American Idol'', ''The Bachelorette'' and ''According to Jim'', and included such celebrities as Jason Alexander, James Belushi, Little Jimmy Dickens, Trista Rehn and William Shatner. (Paisley later contributed to Shatner's album ''Has Been''.) The album's title track, "Mud on the Tires", reached Billboard #1 in 2004.

In addition, the ninth track from ''Mud on the Tires'', "Whiskey Lullaby", a duet with Alison Krauss reached #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts, and #41 on the Billboard Hot 100. The music video for ''Whiskey Lullaby'' also won several awards and was rated #2 on the 100 Greatest Music Videos by CMT in 2008. The album would be certified double platinum. "Online" featured the Brentwood High School marching band playing toward the end of the song, a cameo by Jason Alexander, and again featured a cameo by William Shatner. ''Throttleneck'' would also reach number one, which would get Paisley his first Grammy.

The fifth single from ''5th Gear'' actually came from a reissued version of the album – a new recording of "Waitin' on a Woman", a track cut from ''Time Well Wasted.'' The reissued version received unsolicited airplay in late 2006, and features less prominent string guitar and violin parts and a more "muted" musical tone. For the chart week of September 20, 2008, the song became Paisley's twelfth number-one single and his eighth straight number-one hit, making him the artist with the most consecutive Number One country hits since the inception of Nielsen SoundScan in 1990.

In July 2006, producer Todd Baker tapped Brad for a television appearance as an animated character in The Wonder Pets, Daddy Armadillo. The yet-to-be-broadcast episode features Brad's wife, Kimberly Williams, as Mama Armadillo.

Paisley toured April 26, 2007 through February 24, 2008 in support of ''5th Gear'' on the Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour. The tour visited 94 cities over a 10 month period and played for over 1,000,000 fans. The tour was so successful that it was extended past its original end date to February 2008. Some of the opening acts who appeared during the tour were Taylor Swift, Kellie Pickler, Jack Ingram, Rodney Atkins and Chuck Wicks.

Paisley was nominated for three 2008 Grammy Awards related to ''5th Gear'': Best Country Album (for ''5th Gear''), Best Country Collaboration (for "Oh Love" with Carrie Underwood), and Best Country Instrumental (for "Throttleneck"). On February 10, 2008, he won his first Grammy award for Best Country Instrumental for "Throttleneck".

In March 2008, Brad Paisley announced his next tour, "The Paisley Party," a 42-date tour sponsored by Hershey's. The tour kicked off on June 11, 2008, in Albuquerque, New Mexico with Chuck Wicks, Julianne Hough and Jewel as the opening acts. Brad Paisley and Keith Urban released to country radio their first duet together on September 8, 2008, "Start a Band." It was the first and only single from ''Play,'' and it went on to become Paisley's thirteenth number one hit and his ninth in a row. The album also features collaborations with James Burton, Little Jimmy Dickens, Vince Gill, John Jorgenson, B.B. King, Albert Lee, Brent Mason, Buck Owens, Redd Volkaert and Steve Wariner. Paisley and Urban both received Entertainer of the Year nominations from the CMA on September 10, 2008. On November 12, 2008 Brad Paisley won Male Vocalist of the Year and Music Video of the Year for "Waitin' on a Woman" during the CMA's.

2009–2010: ''American Saturday Night''[link]

Brad Paisley announced on January 26, 2009 his new tour named "American Saturday Night." Dierks Bentley and Jimmy Wayne will be opening in the majority of the shows. Brad Paisley's newest album, ''American Saturday Night'' was released on June 30, 2009. The album's lead off single, "Then" was released in March 2009 and performed for the first time on ''American Idol'' on March 18. It went on to become Paisley's 14th number one single and his tenth in a row.

On May 6, 2009, Paisley gave an exclusive performance to a small group of members from his fan club in Studio A of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN as he and his band taped an episode of CMT Invitation Only. The show gives fans a chance to see their favorite artists in a more intimate setting up close and personal. There was a Q & A session and interaction between Paisley and his fans. The show aired on Monday, August 3 at 9:00 p.m. on CMT.

On July 21, 2009, Paisley performed at the White House in celebration of country music. "Country Music at the White House " was streamed live on the White House web-site as well as a special on Great American Country.

On November 11, 2009, Paisley co-hosted the CMA Awards for the second straight year. He also performed "Welcome to the Future", and won both Male Vocalist of the Year and Musical Event of the Year for Start a Band with Keith Urban.

On March 1, 2010, Paisley was the first musical performance with "American Saturday Night" for the second tenure of the Tonight Show with Jay Leno.

On Friday March 5, 2010, Paisley slipped and fell performing his last song of the set, "Alcohol," at a concert at the North Charleston Coliseum in Charleston, South Carolina, on the final date of the American Saturday Night Tour. Fearing a broken rib, he was held overnight at an area hospital, but was released when a CT scan was negative.

On July 31, 2010 Brad performed alongside Carrie Underwood at the inaugural Greenbrier Classic PGA Tour Event in Lewisburg, W.Va. An estimated 60,000 people attended the outdoor event to watch Carrie and Brad perform in the pouring rain.

On August 4, 2010, it was announced on his official website that Paisley would release his first official greatest hits package, entitled ''Hits Alive''. Released on November 2, 2010, ''Hits Alive'' is a double-disc collection, with one disc containing studio versions of Paisley's hit singles, while the companion disc features previously unreleased live versions of his songs.

Brad Paisley cohosted the 44th Annual CMA Awards on November 10, 2010, where he was also awarded the CMA's top award, Entertainer of the Year. During his acceptance speech, Paisley emotionally honored his grandfather, who inspired him to play the guitar.

In 2012, MSN.com listed ''American Saturday Night'' as one of the 21 Essential 21st-Century Albums.

2011-present: ''This Is Country Music''[link]

In December 2010, Paisley released "This Is Country Music" as the title track to his eighth studio album, released May 23, 2011. The album's second single, "Old Alabama" (with Alabama), released to country radio on March 14, 2011 and became Paisley's nineteenth number one hit. "Remind Me," with Carrie Underwood, was released May 23, 2011 to radio.

On March 22, 2011, Paisley's website announced a new beta game titled "Brad Paisley World." The game is modeled after other Facebook games such as Farmville or Mafia Wars and features original animation. The game provides a new way for fans to interact with each other and view exclusive material that would otherwise be unavailable.

On May 12, 2011, Paisley's website announced that he would release two songs on the soundtrack for the film ''Cars 2''. One of them would be a collaboration with British pop singer Robbie Williams.

On October 19, 2011, Paisley made a voice cameo as various background characters in the ''South Park'' episode "Bass to Mouth".

On January 14, 2012, Paisley was a guest on Garrison Keillor's ''Prairie Home Companion'', during which he did a rendition of "Life's Railway to Heaven" by Charles Davis Tillman.

Brad also tweeted that he has started recording his upcoming album.

On April 25, 2012, Paisley was featured on the ''South Park'' episode "Cartman Finds Love", in which he voiced himself, sang "The National Anthem", and helped Cartman sing the 90's hit song "I Swear", which was popularized in 1994 by the country musician John Michael Montgomery and the pop group All-4-One.

Paisley extended his "Virtual Realty" tour throughout the summer of 2012. He will be touring the country and making pit stops at local country music festivals. The goal of these outdoor concerts is to give the audience the full experience of Brad Paisley's music, as many of his songs contain outdoor elements.

Tours[link]

''Brooks & Dunn's Neon Circus & Wild West Show 2003

''Mud & Suds Tour 2004'' (w/ Sara Evans, Andy Griggs)

''Two Hats & A Redhead Tour 2005'' (w/ Reba McEntire, Terri Clark)

''Time Well Wasted Tour 2006'' (w/ Sara Evans, Sugarland, Carrie Underwood, Jake Owen, Josh Turner, Billy Currington)

''Bonfires & Amplifiers Tour 2007–2008'' (w/ Taylor Swift, Jack Ingram, Kellie Pickler, Rodney Atkins, Chuck Wicks)

''The Paisley Party Tour 2008'' (w/ Chuck Wicks, Julianne Hough, Jewel)

''The Paisley Party Tour 2009'' (w/ Dierks Bentley, Darius Rucker, Crystal Shawanda)

''American Saturday Night Tour 2009'' (w/ Dierks Bentley, Jimmy Wayne)

''American Saturday Night Tour 2010'' (w/ Miranda Lambert, Justin Moore)

''The H2O Tour 2010'' (w/ Darius Rucker, Justin Moore, Easton Corbin, Steel Magnolia, Josh Thompson)

''The H2O Frozen Over Tour 2011'' (w/ Darius Rucker, Jerrod Niemann)

''H2O II: Wetter and Wilder World Tour'' (w/ Darius Rucker, Blake Shelton, Jerrod Niemann, Sunny Sweeney, The JaneDear Girls, Brent Anderson, Edens Edge)

''Virtual Reality Tour 2012'' (w/ The Band Perry, Scotty McCreery), Easton Corbin

Band[link]

Paisley records his studio albums, in most part, with the backing of his live band, The Drama Kings. Their first gig together was May 7, 1999. The only changes have been Randel Currie's addition on the steel guitar in 2000 and Jimmy Heffernan's departure in 2001. Also, Jody Harris worked as Paisley's guitar tech until officially becoming a bandmember for the American Saturday Night Tour. As of 2010, the lineup is:

Brad Paisley – lead vocals, lead guitar

Gary Hooker – rhythm guitar

Randle Currie – steel guitar

Kendal Marcy – keyboards, banjo, mandolin

Justin Williamson – fiddle, mandolin

Kenny Lewis – bass guitar

Ben Sesar – drums

Personal life[link]

In the last months of 2000, Paisley had a relationship with fellow country music singer Chely Wright, even though Wright and her female lover had moved together into a new home earlier in the year. Wright was touring together with Paisley, with whom she had co-written one song the previous year, and he had been enamored of her ever since. Although she felt no sexual attraction to Paisley, as to all men, she recounts why Paisley was the man she decided to have a relationship with, "he’s wickedly smart, which is one of the reasons why I made the decision to spend time with him. I loved Brad. I never had the capacity to fall in love with him, but I figured if I’m gonna live a less than satisfied life, this is the guy I could live my life with. If I’m gonna be with a boy, this is the boy." Her actions were further fueled by the fact that she held him in high esteem and great affection in every way other than sexual attraction. In her autobiography she expresses remorse for how she treated him.

Paisley and Kimberly Williams began dating in 2001. Paisley had first seen Kimberly Williams in ''Father of the Bride'' with a former girlfriend. Brad and his former girlfriend broke up prior to the release of ''Father of the Bride Part II'', which Brad went to see alone. Brad has stated that he watched Kimberly Williams' performance and thought "She seems like a great girl — smart and funny and all those things that are so hard to find." In 2002, Williams appeared in a video for the song "I'm Gonna Miss Her (The Fishin' Song)," the last release from his ''Part II'' album. The two married on March 15, 2003, at Stauffer Chapel on the campus of Pepperdine University after a nine month engagement. They live in Franklin, Tennessee, and have another home in Malibu.

Paisley and Williams first son, William Huckleberry, or "Huck", was born on February 22, 2007, in Nashville, Tennessee. Their second son, Jasper Warren (named after his grandfather who bought Brad his first guitar), was born on April 17, 2009.

Paisley is a member of the Southern Jurisdiction of the Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, and a Noble of the AAONMS, also known as Shriners. He was accompanied by his father, Doug Paisley (32º), for the ceremony on October 28, 2006.

He is also a lifelong fan of the Cleveland Browns. Paisley sang the national anthem before a game during the 1999 season, and stated in an interview, with ESPN his dream job would be to play football for them. He also invited former Browns Quarterback Brady Quinn to a concert at the Blossom Music Center, in 2008.

Paisley is also a fan of West Virginia University athletics and the Boston Red Sox.

In late 2009, it was announced in ''Variety'' that Paisley would enter the world of scripted television as an executive producer of a new hour-long drama series for The CW network called, appropriately, ''Nashville''. The plot was written and created by Neal Dodson and actor Matt Bomer. The creator of the series ''One Tree Hill'', Mark Schwahn will direct the pilot and oversee the series. Actor Zachary Quinto is also an executive producer on the series, along with Dodson, Bomer, and Corey Moosa. The pilot was not picked up for a series when The CW's fall schedule was announced in May 2010.

Instruments[link]

Paisley's first guitar, a gift from his grandfather, was a Silvertone Danelectro 1451, which came with a "amp-in-case". His next guitar, which he got at the age of 10 or 11, also from his grandfather, was a Sekova copy of a Gibson ES-335, with a Fender Deluxe Reverb. The instrument most often associated with him is a 1968 Pink Paisley Fender Telecaster.

Like many Nashville-based musicians, he lost a number of instruments and other gear in the 2010 flood in Nashville, including a 1970s Gibson Les Paul and the prototype for a Z Wreck, one of the signature Paisley Dr. Z amplifiers. The insurance money, however, allowed him to buy (from George Gruhn's store) an exclusive 1937 herringbone Martin D-28.

In 2010, Brad Paisley and Wampler Pedals released the Brad Paisley signature Paisley Drive, a guitar overdrive pedal designed to the specifications of Brad Paisley.

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

;Studio Albums

1999: ''Who Needs Pictures''

2001: ''Part II''

2003: ''Mud on the Tires''

2005: ''Time Well Wasted''

2006: ''Brad Paisley Christmas''

2007: ''5th Gear''

2008: ''Play''

2009: ''American Saturday Night''

2011: ''This Is Country Music''

;Compilations

2010: ''Hits Alive''

Awards[link]

Brad Paisley has won the following awards:

Academy of Country Music

* 1999 – Top New Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2004 – Vocal Event of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")

* 2004 – Video of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")

* 2005 – Album of the Year ("Time Well Wasted")

* 2005 – Vocal Event of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")

* 2005 – Video of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")

* 2007 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2008 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2008 – Video of the Year ("Online")

* 2009 – Video of the Year ("Waitin' on a Woman")

* 2009 – Vocal Event of the Year ("Start a Band")

* 2009 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2010 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2011 – Top Male Vocalist of the Year

Country Music Association Awards

* 2000 – Horizon Award

* 2001 – Vocal Event of the Year ("Too Country")

* 2002 – Music Video of the Year ("I'm Gonna Miss Her")

* 2004 – Musical Event of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")

* 2004 – Music Video of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")

* 2006 – Album of the Year (''Time Well Wasted'')

* 2006 – Musical Event of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")

* 2007 – Music Video of the Year ("Online" – director Jason Alexander)

* 2007 – Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2008 – Music Video of the Year ("Waitin' on a Woman")

* 2008 – Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2009 – Male Vocalist of the Year

* 2009 – Musical Event of the Year ("Start A Band" with Keith Urban)

* 2010 – Entertainer of the Year

Grammy Awards

* 2008 – Best Country Instrumental Performance ("Throttleneck")

* 2009 – Best Country Instrumental Performance ("Cluster Pluck")

* 2009 – Best Male Country Vocal Performance ("Letter to Me")

Country Weekly Presents the TNN Music Awards

* 2000 – The Discovery Award

* 2000 – Song of the Year ("He Didn't Have to Be")

* 2000 – CMT Music Video of the Year ("He Didn't Have to Be")

Flameworthy Awards/CMT Music Awards

* 2002 – Concept Video of the Year ("I'm Gonna Miss Her")

* 2005 – Collaborative Video of the Year ("Whiskey Lullaby")

* 2006 – Most Inspiring Video of the Year ("When I Get Where I'm Going")

* 2008 – Comedy Video of the Year ("Online")

* 2009 – CMT Performance of the Year ("Country Boy")

* 2009 – Collaborative Video of the Year ("Start a Band")

* 2009 – Male Video of the Year ("Waitin' On a Woman")

* 2012 - Collaborative Video of the Year ("Remind Me")

American Music Awards

* 2008 – Favorite Country Male Artist

* 2010 – Favorite Country Male Artist

American Country Awards

* 2010 – Artist of the Year - Male

* 2011 – Artist of the Year - Male

''Orville H. Gibson Guitar Award''

* 2002 – Best Country Guitarist (Male)

''Nashville Songwriters Association International Award''

* 2002 – Songwriter/Artist of the Year

* 2005 – Songwriter/Artist of the Year

''ASCAP Country Music Award''

* 2004 – Songwriter/Artist of the Year

References[link]

External links[link]

Official Website

Profile at Forbes

Category:1972 births Category:American guitarists Category:Songwriters from West Virginia Category:American country guitarists Category:American country singers Category:American singer-songwriters Category:American country songwriters Category:American male singer-songwriters Category:American country singer-songwriters Category:American male singers Category:American people of Scottish descent Category:Arista Records artists Category:Belmont University alumni Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grand Ole Opry members Category:Living people Category:Lead guitarists Category:People from Marshall County, West Virginia Category:Musicians from West Virginia

de:Brad Paisley es:Brad Paisley fr:Brad Paisley it:Brad Paisley nl:Brad Paisley ja:ブラッド・ペイズリー pl:Brad Paisley pt:Brad Paisley ru:Пейсли, Брэд simple:Brad Paisley sv:Brad Paisley tr:Brad Paisley vi:Brad Paisley zh:布拉德·帕斯利

name	Earl Scruggs
background	solo_singer
birth name	Earl Eugene Scruggs
birth date	January 06, 1924
death date	March 28, 2012
death place	Nashville, Tennessee
origin	Shelby, North Carolina, U.S.
instrument	5-string banjo, guitar
genre	Bluegrass, country, gospel
occupation	Bluegrass artist
years active	1945–2012
label	MCA Nashville Records
associated acts	Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys, Flatt and Scruggs, Earl Scruggs Revue
website	earlscruggs.com
notable instruments	A 1934 Gibson Granada previously owned by Don Reno and Snuffy Jenkins, and "Nellie", a 1935 Gibson RB-3 flathead }}

Earl Eugene Scruggs (January 6, 1924 – March 28, 2012) was an American musician noted for perfecting and popularizing a three-finger banjo-picking style (now called "Scruggs style") that is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music. Although other musicians had played in three-finger style before him, Scruggs shot to prominence when he was hired by Bill Monroe to fill the banjo slot in his group, the Blue Grass Boys.

Early life[link]

Scruggs was born near Shelby, Cleveland County, North Carolina, to Georgia Lula Ruppe and George Elam Scruggs, a farmer and bookkeeper, who played banjo and died when Earl Scruggs was only 4. His older brothers Junie and Horace, plus his two older sisters Eula Mae and Ruby Scruggs all played banjo and guitar. Earl Scruggs mother played the organ. He grew up in Cleveland County, North Carolina.

Career[link]

Scruggs joined Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys in late 1945, and quickly popularized his syncopated, three-finger picking style. In 1948 Scruggs and guitarist Lester Flatt left Monroe's band and formed the Foggy Mountain Boys, also later known simply as Flatt and Scruggs. In 1969, they broke up, and he started a new band, the Earl Scruggs Revue, featuring several of his sons.

On September 24, 1962, singer Jerry Scoggins, Lester Flatt and Scruggs recorded "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" for the TV show ''The Beverly Hillbillies'', which was released October 12, 1962. The theme song became an immediate country music hit and was played at the beginning and end of each episode. Flatt and Scruggs appeared in several episodes as family friends of the Clampetts in the following years. In their first appearance (season 1 episode 20), they portray themselves in the show and perform both the theme song and "Pearl Pearl Pearl".

On November 15, 1969, Scruggs played his Grammy-winning "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" on an open-air stage in Washington, D.C., at the Moratorium to End the War in Vietnam, becoming one of the very few bluegrass or country-western artists to give support to the anti-war movement. In an interview after his performance, Scruggs said:

I think the people in the South is just as concerned as the people that's walkin' the streets here today ... I'm sincere about bringing our boys back home. I'm disgusted and in sorrow about the boys we've lost over there. And if I could see a good reason to continue, I wouldn't be here today.

In January 1973, a tribute concert was held for Scruggs in Manhattan, Kansas. Among the artists playing were Joan Baez, David Bromberg, The Byrds, Ramblin' Jack Elliott, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and Doc and Merle Watson. The concert was filmed and turned into the 1975 documentary film ''Banjoman''.

Awards and honors[link]

Flatt and Scruggs won a Grammy Award in 1969 for Scruggs' instrumental "Foggy Mountain Breakdown". They were inducted together into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1985. In 1989, Scruggs was awarded a National Heritage Fellowship. He was an inaugural inductee into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor in 1991. In 1992, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts. In 1994, Scruggs teamed up with Randy Scruggs and Doc Watson to contribute the song "Keep on the Sunny Side" to the AIDS benefit album ''Red Hot + Country'' produced by the Red Hot Organization. In 2002 Scruggs won a second Grammy award for the 2001 recording of "Foggy Mountain Breakdown", which featured artists such as Steve Martin on 2nd banjo solo (Martin played the banjo tune on his 1970s stand-up comic acts), Vince Gill and Albert Lee on electric guitar solos, Paul Shaffer on piano, Leon Russell on organ, and Marty Stuart on mandolin. The album, ''Earl Scruggs and Friends'', also featured artists such as John Fogerty, Elton John, Sting, Johnny Cash, Don Henley, Travis Tritt, and Billy Bob Thornton.

On February 13, 2003, Scruggs received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. That same year, he and Flatt were ranked No. 24 on ''CMT's 40 Greatest Men of Country Music''.

On September 13, 2006, Scruggs was honored at Turner Field in Atlanta as part of the pre-game show for an Atlanta Braves home game. Organizers set a world record for the most banjo players (239) playing one tune together (Scruggs' "Foggy Mountain Breakdown"). On February 10, 2008, Scruggs was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 50th Annual Grammy Awards.

Personal life[link]

Scruggs' wife and manager, Louise, died on February 2, 2006, aged 78, at Nashville's Baptist Hospital following a lengthy illness.

Death and Funeral[link]

Scruggs died from natural causes on the morning of March 28, 2012, in a Nashville hospital. His funeral was held on Sunday, April 1, 2012 at the Ryman Auditorium, former home of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee at 2pm and was open to the public. He was buried at Spring Hill Cemetery in a private service.

Around 2,300 of Scruggs’ loved ones, friends, and fans were present at his funeral, in the same building where he recorded his final album. The two-hour funeral service celebrated Scruggs with speeches and performances by some of bluegrass’s biggest stars. Scruggs’ five-string Gibson Mastertone banjo rested in its stand on the stage during the funeral.

Grand Ole Opry announcer Eddie Stubbs gave the eulogy at Scrugg’s funeral, which was followed by a performance of Scruggs and Flatt song Who Will Sing For Me, a song that fittingly was about death. The longest ovation of the night went to Scruggs, who was carried from the auditorium in a silver-colored casket. He was buried at Spring Hill Cemetery which is the final resting place of many legendary country music performers.

Legacy[link]

At an 80th birthday party for Mr. Scruggs in 2004, country singer Porter Wagoner said, “Earl was to the five-string banjo what Babe Ruth was to baseball.”

“He is the best there ever was,” Mr. Wagoner said, “and the best there ever will be.”

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

Year	Single	Chart Positions
		! style="width:60px;"	! style="width:60px;"	! style="width:60px;"	! style="width:60px;"
1967	''Strictly Instrumental'' (with Lester Flatt and Doc Watson)
1967	''5 String Banjo Instruction Album''
1968	''The Story of Bonnie and Clyde'' (with Lester Flatt and the Foggy Mountain Boys)
1969	''Changin' Times''
1970	''Nashville Airplane''
	''I Saw the Light with Some Help from My Friends''
''Earl Scruggs: His Family and Friends''
''Live at Kansas State''
	''Rockin' 'Cross the Country''
''Dueling Banjos''
''The Earl Scruggs Revue''
1975	''Anniversary Special''
	''The Earl Scruggs Revue 2''
''Family Portrait''
	''Live from Austin City Limits''
''Strike Anywhere''
1978	''Bold & New''
1979	''Today & Forever''
	''Storyteller and the Banjo Man'' (with Tom T. Hall)
''Flatt & Scruggs''
1983	''Top of the World''
1984	''Superjammin'''
1998	''Artist's Choice: The Best Tracks (1970–1980)''
2001	''Earl Scruggs and Friends''
2002	''Classic Bluegrass Live: 1959-1966''
2003	''Three Pickers'' (with Doc Watson and Ricky Skaggs)
2004	''The Essential Earl Scruggs''
2005	''Live with Donnie Allen and Friends''
2007	''Lifetimes: Lewis, Scruggs, and Long''

Singles[link]

Year	Single	Chart Positions		Album
		! style="width:50px;"	CAN Country
1970	"Nashville Skyline Rag"			''Earl Scruggs: His Family and Friends''
	"I Sure Could Use the Feeling"			Single only
"Play Me No Sad Songs"
1980	"Blue Moon of Kentucky"
	"There Ain't No Country Music on This Jukebox"(with Tom T. Hall)

Guest singles[link]

Year	Single	Artist	Chart Positions	Album
			US Country
1998	"Same Old Train"	Various Artists

Music videos[link]

! Year	! Video	! Director
1992	"The Dirt Road" (with Sawyer Brown)	Michael Salomon
2001	"Foggy Mountain Breakdown" (Earl Scruggs and Friends)	Gerry Wenner

DVDs[link]

Earl ScruggsHis Family and Friends (2005)

:(Recorded 1969. Bob Dylan, The Byrds, Bill Monroe, Joan Baez et al.)

Private Sessions (2005)

The Bluegrass Legend (2006)

Earl Scruggs, Doc Watson and Ricky Skaggs

The Three Pickers (2003)

Flatt and Scruggs

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 1 (2007)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 2 (2007)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 3 (2007)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 4 (2007)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 5 (2008)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 6 (2008)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 7 (2009)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 8 (2009)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 9 (2010)

The Best of Flatt and Scruggs TV Show Vol 10 (2010)

Footnotes[link]

References[link]

Rosenberg, Neil V. (1998). "Flatt & Scruggs and the Foggy Mountain Boys". In ''The Encyclopedia of Country Music''. Paul Kingsbury, Editor. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 173–4.

Willis, Barry R. "Biography of Earl Scruggs". Retrieved October 5, 2008.

Lifetime Honors – National Medal of Arts

External links[link]

Official Website

Interview with www.CountryMusicPride.com Interview with www.CountryMusicPride.com

at the Country Music Hall of Fame

on MCA Nashville

on Rounder Records

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Los Angeles Times obituary

Category:1924 births Category:2012 deaths Category:American bluegrass musicians Category:International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor inductees Category:National Heritage Fellowship winners Category:United States National Medal of Arts recipients Category:Musicians from North Carolina Category:Grammy Award winners Category:Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners Category:American anti–Vietnam War activists Category:American country banjoists Category:People from Shelby, North Carolina

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