GEORGE STRAIT'S TROUBADOUR
HITS STORES IN 5 DAYS
The King of Country Music's 37th Album
Featuring the Hit Single "I Saw God Today"
is Released April 1st
Nashville,
Tenn. (March 27, 2008) - George Strait, widely known as the "King of Country
Music," continues to raise the standard and follows up his CMA Album of the
Year, It Just Comes Natural, with Troubadour,
Strait's 37th album to be released April 1st. From a numerical view, the album's first
single, "I Saw God Today," already set a personal mark when it debuted at No.
19 on the country radio charts--higher than any other song he's released in his
career. Currently it sits at #4 on R&R/Billboard.
"It's a great record to start it out
with," says Strait. "Anyone who has had a kid can relate to seeing them for the
first time and know that it is really and truly a gift from God."
From a
creative vantage point, the album as a whole is remarkable. Strait explores new
musical turf with the calypso R&B in "River Of Love"; opens up to
meaningful--and rare--guest appearances by Patty Loveless, Vince Gill and
songwriter pal Dean Dillon; and delivers the 12-song set with a voice that
continues an extremely graceful evolution.
"He's always
good," co-producer Tony Brown says, "but he sang really good on this album."
"His vocal
tone has progressed very, very nicely in the last five or six years," observes
Dillon, who should know: He's written 13 of Strait's hits, dating back to the
first, 1981's "Unwound."
Strait recorded for the second
time, at Jimmy Buffett's Shrimpboat Sound in Key West - a beat-up shack on the waterfront
that used to be a shrimp storage cooler.
"We were all havin' fun, which I
think shows in the tracks," Brown says of the sessions. "In the beginning, we
went to Shrimpboat on a whim. This time we went back because the last album
turned out so awesome. I have a funny feelin' we'll be goin' back again."
As always, Troubadour is
a mix of the playful and the profound. The breezy energies get tapped in the
restless, workin'-man tribute "Brothers Of The Highway"; the romantic vacation
piece "When You're In Love"; the slightly funky "River Of Love";
and the snappy honky-tonker "Make Her Fall In Love With Me Song."
Strait also unleashes his deeper
nature in the career-reflective title track, featuring backing vocals by
label-mate Vince Gill; "House With No Doors," a clever-but-wise reminder to the
control freak in everyone; a pair of spiritually themed tracks, the eye-opening
"I Saw God Today" and the subdued "Give Me More Time"; and "If Heartaches Were
Horses," a cinematic conclusion to the album.
"That West Texas Town" has a surprising twist by making
the song a duet with Dillon, a nod to a songwriter who's had a steady role in
Strait's career.
"I've always liked Dean as a singer," says
Strait. "And so I got to thinking 'man you know it would be great to have him
sing a song with me.'"
"House Of Cash," featuring Patty
Loveless' powerful harmonic blend, puts a mountain-bred stamp on the passing of
Johnny Cash and June Carter, and pays tribute to the Man In Black's historic
impact.
"When I heard it I immediately thought of
Patty," says Strait. "I've always thought she was one of the greatest female
country singers that we have out there. It sounded just exactly like I thought
it would - she nailed it."
"George is real," Loveless says,
"and anything that's real, it stays around. His music: It just comes out there
effortlessly."
Remarkable
describes the continuing development of George Strait,
who's written a personal history so unique he's creating new, record-breaking
plateaus that have simply never been reached before. He is currently nominated
for ACM Entertainer of the Year for
the 10th time and has the distinct honor of XM Radio dedicating an entire
channel to his music during the next two months. "Strait
Country" will be available from April 1
through May 31 on XM channel 17 and also available on online (http://xmro.xmradio.com).
His last
album, It Just Comes Natural, was so solid that it brought him the CMA honor
for Album of the Year, an award he's won four different times and in three
different decades.
He already
owns the all-time record for the most No. 1 singles in any genre. He has more
career nominations than any other artist in both the Nashville-based Country
Music Association awards and the California-bred
Academy of Country Music
honors. He has more gold and platinum albums than any other country artist.
And the "King of
Country Music" joined the
Country Music Hall of Fame in 2006, making him the only performer who's earned
a plaque in the hallowed halls while still consistently racking up hits.
With an enviable consistency,
Strait continues to sell out arenas and to stretch himself creatively with an
album, Troubadour, which stands among the best in a career already
filled with highlights. And he does so while all the while holding a permanent
place on the country radio dial.
"Troubadour...you know it does tell a
pretty good story that fits my whole career from start to finish," admits
Strait. "cause that's really what I'll be when I grow to an age I can't do this
anymore. I've always wanted to be around as long as I could
for sure. I'm still after longevity. I
want to make records as long as I can cause I still enjoy it just as much as I
always did."
# # #
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