Coordinates	26°08′9″N80°08′31″N
name	Tracy Byrd
background	solo_singer
birth name	Tracy Lynn Byrd
birth date	December 17, 1966
origin	Vidor, Texas, United States
instrument	Vocals, rhythm guitar
genre	Country
occupation	Singer-songwriter
years active	1992–present
label	MCA (MCA Nashville), RCA Nashville, BNA, Blind Mule
associated acts	Mark Chesnutt, Johnny Paycheck
website	http://tbyrd.com }}

Tracy Lynn Byrd (born December 17, 1966 in Vidor, Texas) is an American country music artist. Signed to MCA Nashville Records in 1993, Byrd broke through on the country music scene that year with his single "Holdin' Heaven", which reached Number One on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts. Although he did not land a second Number One until 2002's "Ten Rounds with Jose Cuervo", Byrd has charted more than thirty hit singles in his career, including eleven additional Top Ten hits. He has also released nine studio albums and two greatest-hits albums, with four gold certifications and one double-platinum certification from the RIAA.

Biography

Tracy Lynn Byrd is the eldest child of Jerry Lynn and Brenda Vaughn Byrd. Tracy Byrd graduated from Vidor High School in May 1985. His first college experience was at Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas. He began studying business at Texas State University (then called Southwest Texas State). While studying he sang with a local band in Beaumont, TX called Rimfire led by Jeffrey Adams and Dave Adams a band that also featured acts such as Mark Chesnutt.

One of his friends coaxed him into singing a cover of Hank Williams' "Your Cheatin' Heart" at a local mall recording studio. The owner of the studio was so impressed with his version that he entered Byrd into a local talent contest. Byrd signed with MCA Records in 1992.

1992–1999: MCA Records

''Tracy Byrd''

Byrd released his first single, "That's the Thing About a Memory", in 1992. Although it and follow-up "Someone to Give My Love To" (previously a single in 1971 for Johnny Paycheck) both missed Top 40, he broke through in 1993 with the Number One hit "Holdin' Heaven". This song was the third release from his self-titled debut album, released by MCA on April 27, 1993. Although the album earned RIAA gold certification, its final single ("Why Don't That Telephone Ring") peaked at #39. Keith Stegall and Tony Brown shared production duties on the album.

''No Ordinary Man''

''No Ordinary Man'' was the title of Byrd's second album, which was produced by Jerry Crutchfield. It was also his highest selling, earning a double-platinum certification for U.S. sales of two million copies. All four singles from the album reached Top Five: "Lifestyles of the Not So Rich and Famous", "Watermelon Crawl" (also his first entry on the Billboard Hot 100, at #81), "The First Step" and "The Keeper of the Stars". This last song, a love ballad, became a popular choice for fans to use at their weddings. It also won Song of the Year at the Country Music Association in 1995. MCA had not originally planned to issue this song as a single, until Byrd commented that it had been receiving favorable reactions when he sang it in concert.

''Love Lessons''

His third album, 1995's ''Love Lessons'', showed a decline in both chart performance and physical sales, despite still earning a gold certification. It was led off by the #15 "Walkin' to Jerusalem", followed by two ballads: the #9-peaking title track and #14 "Heaven in My Woman's Eyes", and finally the #21-peaking "4 to 1 in Atlanta." This album also reunited him with Tony Brown, who would also produce all of his subsequent material for MCA.

''Big Love''

''Big Love'' was the title of Byrd's fourth album and its first single. "Big Love" returned him to the Top Five with a #3 peak. After it came another Johnny Paycheck cover, this time of his 1971 single "She's All I Got." Re-titled "Don't Take Her She's All I Got", Byrd's cover peaked at #4. The album's other singles ("Don't Love Make a Diamond Shine" and "Good Ol' Fashioned Love") reached #17 and #47 respectively, with the latter being his first single since 1993 to miss Top 40. ''Big Love'' also became his third gold-selling album.

''I'm from the Country'' and ''Keepers: Greatest Hits''

Byrd released his final studio album for MCA, ''I'm from the Country'', in late 1997. Its title track, co-written by Richard Young of The Kentucky Headhunters and former MCA Records artist Marty Brown, was also the first single. This song was added to the album, which was originally to be titled ''Walkin' the Line'', after the rest of the album had already been completed. "I'm from the Country" became his ninth Top Ten hit, reaching #3 in early 1998 and becoming his first #1 on the ''RPM'' Country Tracks charts in Canada. Only one other single, the #9 "I Wanna Feel That Way Again", was released from the album.

Byrd then released a greatest-hits package, the gold-certified ''Keepers: Greatest Hits'', in 1999. This album was led off by the #31 "When Mama Ain't Happy" before he left the label.

1999–2004: RCA Records

''It's About Time''

In 1999, Byrd signed to RCA Records Nashville. Working with producer Billy Joe Walker, Jr., he released his sixth studio album, ''It's About Time'', that year. This album featured a more country pop sound than its predecessors, and was led off by the #11 "Put Your Hand in Mine". This song was co-written by Skip Ewing and Jimmy Wayne. The album's other two singles — "Love, You Ain't Seen the Last of Me" and "Take Me With You When You Go" — both landed outside the Top 40.

''Ten Rounds''

''Ten Rounds'', his second album for RCA, was released in 2002. This album returned him to a more traditionally country sound. It was led off by "A Good Way to Get on My Bad Side", a duet with Mark Chesnutt. This song was a #21 country hit, and Chesnutt's first Top 40 chart hit since "This Heartache Never Sleeps" three years previous. After it came the #9 "Just Let Me Be in Love", and finishing off the album's single releases was its title track, "Ten Rounds with José Cuervo". In October 2002, this song became Byrd's second Number One country hit, and his first since "Holdin' Heaven" in 1993. It was also his only Top 40 pop hit, with a #26 peak on the Billboard Hot 100.

''The Truth About Men''

Byrd charted at #38 in early 2003 with "Lately (Been Dreamin' 'Bout Babies)", which was never included on an album. This song was followed by "The Truth About Men", a song whose second verse featured guest vocals from Blake Shelton, Andy Griggs and Montgomery Gentry. This song was the title track to his final RCA album, ''The Truth About Men'', which also produced his final Top Ten hit in the #7 "Drinkin' Bone", as well as the #53 "How'd I Wind Up in Jamaica." Also included on this album was the Rodney Crowell composition "Making Memories of Us", which would later be a Number One country hit in 2005 for Keith Urban.

2005: BNA Records

''Greatest Hits''

Byrd's second greatest hits album was released in 2004 via BNA Records, a sister label to RCA. This album reprised most of his RCA single releases, and included new recordings of "I'm from the Country" and "The Keeper of the Stars." Also included on it were the new tracks "Revenge of a Middle-Aged Woman", "Tiny Town" and "Johnny Cash". The first two were released as singles, with the former reaching #34 and the latter failing to chart. "Johnny Cash" was later covered by Jason Aldean on his 2007 album ''Relentless'', and was a #6 country hit for him that year.

2006–2007: Blind Mule Records

''Different Things''

Byrd released his next album, ''Different Things'', in 2007 via his own Blind Mule label. It was led off by the #55 "Cheapest Motel", co-written by Cole Deggs of Cole Deggs & the Lonesome. After this song came "Better Places Than This," which failed to chart as well. He has not recorded since.

Charitable efforts

Byrd is the National Spokesperson for Special Olympics International for the Country Music Association. He developed a crank bait fishing lure marketed by Norman Lures called ''The Lifestyles Of The Not So Rich & Famous''', named after his hit recording of the song written by Byron Hill and Wayne Tester. For every one of the lures sold Byrd donates ten cents to the Special Olympics.

Byrd also hosts an annual golfing/fishing/music event, "The Tracy Byrd Homecoming Weekend," in Southeast Texas to raise money for local charities, including the March of Dimes, the Children's Miracle Network, and culminating in the donation of money to fund the Tracy Byrd Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Care Center at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Beaumont. Byrd also raised money by soliciting pledges for his attempt to complete the 2002 Houston Marathon. He finished the marathon, and donated all of his pledges to the Children's Miracle Network.

In 1994, he made a cameo appearance in the film ''Radioland Murders''. He has also published ''Eat Like a Byrd: The Tracy Byrd Cookbook'' which "uses rubs and marinades to create memorable meals.". He has also launched a line of spices, rubs, and marinades to go along with it, called "Tracy Byrd's Tiny Town Products." These are available at Wal-Mart and Kroger stores, Byrd donates five cents from each sale to the Children's Miracle Network.

Family

Byrd and his wife, Michelle, have two sons and a daughter. The family lives in Beaumont, Texas.

Discography

References

Category:1966 births Category:American country singers Category:Living people Category:People from Beaumont, Texas Category:Musicians from Texas Category:MCA Records artists Category:RCA Records artists

de:Tracy Byrd fi:Tracy Byrd

Coordinates	26°08′9″N80°08′31″N
name	Mark Chesnutt
background	solo_singer
birth name	Mark Nelson Chesnutt
birth date	September 06, 1963
origin	Beaumont, Texas, USA
instrument	Vocals, rhythm guitar
genre	Country
occupation	Singer-songwriter
years active	1988-present
label	AxbarMCADeccaMCA NashvilleColumbiaVivaton!CBuJ Ent. Lofton CreekSaguaro Road
associated acts	AerosmithTracy ByrdGarth Brooks
website	MarkChesnutt.com }}

Mark Nelson Chesnutt (born September 6, 1963 in Beaumont, Texas) is an American country music singer known for his neotraditionalist country style. Chesnutt recorded his first album, ''Doing My Country Thing'' in the late 1980s on an independent record label; his national debut came in 1990 with the single "Too Cold at Home", the first single from his second album, which was also titled ''Too Cold at Home''.

Chesnutt has charted more than thirty singles on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts, including eight Number One singles. He has also released eleven studio albums and a Greatest Hits package. His first three albums — ''Too Cold at Home'' (1990), ''Longnecks & Short Stories'' (1992), and ''Almost Goodbye'' (1993) — and his 1996 ''Greatest Hits'' album have all achieved RIAA platinum certification in the United States, while 1994's ''What a Way to Live'' was certified gold. His most recent album, ''Rollin' with the Flow'', was released on June 24, 2008. Its title track and lead-off single was a cover of Charlie Rich's hit single from 1977.

Biography

Chesnutt is the second son of Bob Chesnutt and Norma Jean Nicholas. He learned to love music from his father, who was a singer and record collector. Chesnutt dropped out of school after his sophomore year of high school to begin playing with his father in clubs around Southeast Texas. When he turned 17, his father began to take him to Nashville, Tennessee to begin recording. For the next ten years, Chesnutt began to record on small regional labels while he was the house band for local Beaumont nightclub Cutters. He slowly gathered a large fanbase who loved to hear his traditional style. By the late 1980s, he had released 8 singles, which would later be released together on, ''Doing My Country Thing''. Chesnutt has been married to his wife, Tracie, since 1992. Together they have three sons.

Musical career

''Too Cold at Home''

Chesnutt signed to MCA Records in 1990, releasing his major-label debut ''Too Cold at Home'' that year. The album produced five straight Top Ten country hits: first the title track at #3, followed by his first Number One, "Brother Jukebox". After it came "Blame It on Texas", "Your Love Is a Miracle" and "Broken Promise Land". These singles helped the album earn RIAA platinum certification in the United States.

''Longnecks & Short Stories''

Chesnutt's second album, 1992's ''Longnecks & Short Stories'', also sold platinum and continued the chart momentum of ''Too Cold at Home''. In order of release, its singles were "Old Flames Have New Names", "I'll Think of Something" (previously a Top Ten hit in 1974 for Hank Williams, Jr.), "Bubba Shot the Jukebox" and "Ol' Country".

''Almost Goodbye''

His third album for MCA was titled ''Almost Goodbye''. Led off by three straight chart-toppers ("It Sure Is Monday", the title track and "I Just Wanted You to Know"), it was also his third consecutive platinum album. The album's fourth single, a cover of Don Gibson's 1972 Number One hit "Woman (Sensuous Woman)", became his first single to land outside the Top Ten when it peaked at #21.

''What a Way to Live''

Chesnutt saw his sales declining by 1994's ''What a Way to Live'', which was nonetheless certified gold. The album included four more singles for him. First was the #6 "She Dreams", previously a #74 single in 1993 for its co-writer, Tim Mensy. After it came the #2 "Goin' Through the Big D" and then his sixth Number One, "Gonna Get a Life." Finishing off the album was the #23 "Down in Tennessee."

Also in 1994, Chesnutt contributed the song "Goodbye Comes Hard for Me" to the AIDS benefit album Red Hot + Country produced by the Red Hot Organization.

''Wings'' and ''Greatest Hits''

For his next album, ''Wings'', Chesnutt was transferred to Decca Records' newly re-established Nashville branch, of which he served as flagship artist. This album, however, sold even more poorly than its predecessors, with its lead-off single "Trouble" stopping at #18. The album's second single, "It Wouldn't Hurt to Have Wings", peaked at #7, followed by the #37 "Wrong Place, Wrong Time."

Decca issued a greatest hits package in 1996. This album reprised eight of his biggest hits and included two new songs in "It's a Little Too Late" and "Let It Rain," both released as singles. The former became his seventh chart-topper in 1997, and the latter peaked at #8.

''Thank God for Believers''

In 1997, Chesnutt released ''Thank God for Believers'', his second Decca studio album. This album produced a #2 in its title track late that year. Following this song was "It's Not Over", a re-recording of a song from ''Longnecks & Short Stories'', with guest vocals from Alison Krauss and Vince Gill on the new recording. After it came the #18 "I Might Even Quit Lovin' You" and #45 "Wherever You Are", his first chart single to miss the Top 40. (Its chart progress was halted due to Chesnutt not wanting to wait to release the lead single from his next album, "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing.")

''I Don't Want to Miss a Thing''

His third and final studio album for Decca was entitled ''I Don't Want to Miss a Thing''. Its title track, a cover of the Aerosmith hit, returned him to the top of the country charts, and brought him to #17 on the Billboard Hot 100. Despite the success of this single, the album's only other release was the #17 country hit "This Heartache Never Sleeps", issued before Decca once again closed its country division.

''Lost in the Feeling''

Chesnutt returned to MCA for his 2000 album ''Lost in the Feeling''. This album was largely unsuccessful, producing only the #52 "Fallin' Never Felt So Good" (previously a #39 single in 1993 for Shawn Camp, its co-writer) and #59 title track before he exited MCA. In 2001, Chesnutt returned to the Top 40 with the #21 "A Good Way to Get on My Bad Side", a duet with Tracy Byrd which was also the first single from Byrd's ''Ten Rounds'' album.

''Mark Chesnutt''

Chesnutt signed to Columbia Records in 2002 for the release of his self-titled studio album. It was led off by the #11 "She Was", his first Top 20 hit in two years. However, the album's other singles — "I Want My Baby Back" and "I'm in Love with a Married Woman" — both missed Top 40, and after the latter, he exited Columbia also.

''Savin' the Honky Tonk'' and ''Heard It in a Love Song''

Chesnutt's eleventh album, ''Savin' the Honky Tonk'', was released in 2004 via the independent Vivaton! label. This album, which returned him to a more traditionally country sound, included the singles "The Lord Loves the Drinkin' Man" (written by Kevin Fowler) and "I'm a Saint", both of which peaked in the thirties. After the #59 "A Hard Secret to Keep", Vivaton! closed.

''Heard It in a Love Song'', followed in 2005 on CBuJ. Ent. Its title track, previously a #14 pop hit for The Marshall Tucker Band, and "That Good That Bad", both failed to chart, and Chesnutt exited the label after its release.

''Rollin' with the Flow''

''Rollin' with the Flow'' was the title of Chesnutt's thirteenth studio album, released in 2008 via Lofton Creek Records. It was led off by a cover of Charlie Rich's Number One hit "Rollin' with the Flow", with Chesnutt's #25-peaking cover becoming his first chart entry in four years. The next three singles were "When You Love Her Like Crazy", "(Come on In) The Whiskey's Fine" and "Things to Do in Wichita," all of which failed to chart, although the fifth single ("She Never Got Me Over You") debuted at #60 on the country charts in early 2009, and peaked at #49.

''Outlaw''

It was announced in March 2010 that Mark Chesnutt was at work on his fourteenth studio album, which consists of covers of outlaw classics such as Hank Williams, Jr.'s "Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound" and Kris Kristofferson's "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down." The album, titled ''Outlaw'', was released in June 2010 via Saguaro Road Records.

Discography

References

External links

Official site

Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:People from Beaumont, Texas Category:American country singers Category:American male singers Category:Lofton Creek Records artists Category:MCA Records artists Category:Decca Records artists

de:Mark Chesnutt