Here’s something to think about: Chris Young and Cassadee Pope’s “Think of You” is the Best Country Single of 2016 as voted by Nash Country Daily readers.
NCD nominated 10 singles, and then we asked you—our readers—to vote for the best country single of 2016. And vote you did. After thousands of ballots were cast, Chris and Cassadee’s “Think of You” reigned supreme with 28 percent of the vote.
“Think of You,” which was co-written by Chris, Corey Crowder and Josh Hoge, was released in January and reached the top spot on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart in May. The tune was the second single released from Chris’ 2015 album, I’m Comin’ Over, and it is nominated for Best Country Duo/Group Performance at the Grammys on Feb. 12, 2017.
Rounding out the Top 5 in our Best Single Vote include Tim McGraw’s “Humble and Kind” (19%), Keith Urban’s “Blue Ain’t Your Color” (17%), Miranda Lambert’s “Vice” (14%) and Maren Morris’ “My Church” (7%).
As 2016 comes to a close and we look back fondly over the year in country music, we noticed that quite a few country stars have taken a spill onstage in 2016. Five falls stood out to us this year and because no one was mortally wounded, we can look back at these falls as the price of doing business.
Here are our Top 5 falls in 2016.
5. Keith Urban falls as he runs between stages.
July, 2016 Keith Urban is known as a free-wheeling mover onstage. At this concert there were two stages the Aussie singer had to maintain. Getting from one stage to another in the dark could be a hazard for anyone. Keith did the best he could as he passed through throngs of fans, but he couldn’t avoid taking a spill. Keep your eye on Keith after the man in the blue shirt passes by. It’s not pretty.
4. Luke Bryan falls onstage in Montreal.
February, 2016 Luke Bryan may be our favorite country music fall-er. The “Move” singer has fallen offstage more times than we can count. Three times in 2014 alone—Charlotte, N.C., Indianapolis, Ind., and Greensboro, N.C. 2016 seemed to be looking up for the superstar until a fateful night in February. Luke didn’t fall off the stage per se, he fell on the stage—slipping as he was trying to catch a beer from a stagehand. Oops. Maybe Luke will fare better in 2017.
3. Granger Smith falls offstage at New Jersey show.
December, 2016 In country’s most recent—and most serious—fall, Granger Smith was standing on a monitor that gave way, sending Granger offstage and into a metal barricade. Granger returned to the stage to finish his set, but later visited a nearby emergency room where he was diagnosed with two broken ribs and a punctured and collapsed lung. Don’t worry, Granger is recovering.
2. Thomas Rhett falls offstage in Charlottesville, Va.
February, 2016 Thomas Rhett likes to keep things moving onstage during his shows with songs like “Get Me Some of That,” “Make Me Wanna,” “It Goes Like This” and “T-Shirt,” but it was during his song “Southside” that he moved a little too much. As he was singing the lines Shake it ’til you just can’t shake it no more / Shake that thing all your way to the flo, TR went down to the flo. But he didn’t miss a beat. The singer kept on singing even while laying in the crowd.
1. Tim McGraw falls off stage at Harvey’s Lake Tahoe.
July, 2016 Tim McGraw was right in the middle of singing “All I Want Is a Life” when he took a misstep and plunged to the ground surrounded by fans. We love this because Tim is mid-song and he doesn’t stop singing after the fall, he just continues with the lyrics. Showing off his wicked sense of humor, Tim then says to the crowd, “Be careful, there’s a hole there.” Way to go, Tim.
Luke was in attendance at the WWE Live Holiday Tour at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, and he got the chance to go backstage and meet a few WWE stars, including John Cena and current WWE Champion AJ Styles.
In addition to posing with AJ Styles and his belt, Luke thanked John Cena for his hospitality: “Good dude here. Thanks @JohnCena for being awesome to my boys.”
Check out a couple of pics from Luke’s Twitter page.
Now that another Christmas has come and gone, we can all start making plans for New Year’s Eve. That’s exactly what Trisha Yearwood is asking about in the song “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve” from her Christmas duets album, Christmas Together, with husband Garth Brooks.
“Maybe it’s much too early in the game / Ah, but I thought I’d ask you just the same / What are you doing New Year’s, New Year’s Eve?” Trisha sings in the first verse.
The husband-and-wife duo was set up in the studio, ready to record the song together. But Garth seemed to have a different idea of how the song should sound after he heard his wife belt out the beginning of The Orioles cover.
“It was supposed to be a duet,” Trisha explains.
“I said ‘Screw that,'” Garth interjects. “After I heard the first verse, I just walked. I walked out that door while these guys are cutting it. [Trisha] sees I’m not at the mic, so she just continues singing. From start to finish, that scratch vocal—the vocal that you put down while the band is cutting the song—I said, ‘Please, do not touch that. Please do not try and make it better.’”
“What’s interesting to me about that is that I wanted to do it again, you know,” Trisha continues about the recording. “I wanted to sing it again. And [Garth] said, ‘No, remember how like Ella Fitzgerald just kinda threw ’em up there?’ He said, ‘Just leave it. Just leave it. Don’t fix it.’ And so it ended up being the record, and I ended up actually falling in love with it.”
As did we. Listen as Trisha belts out “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve” on CMA Country Christmas.
For the seventh time in eight years, Old Crow Medicine Show will close out the calendar with a New Year’s Eve performance at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium on Saturday night (Dec. 31).
The annual performance, which is once again sold out, has become a NYE tradition for fans of the old-timey string band.
In celebration of Old Crow’s return to the Ryman stage, NCD is premiering a video of the band’s performance of “My Bones Gonna Rise Again” from the Grand Ole Opry on Oct. 29. The traditional-sounding tune originally appeared on Old Crow’s 2002 EP, The Webcor Sessions.
Check out the video of “My Bones Gonna Rise Again” below as mandolin player Cory Yount leads the vocals and displays some pretty impressive flatfooted mountain dancing.
After viewers clamored for the return of The Joey + Rory Show, RFD-TV responded by bringing it back to its lineup on Dec. 31. The variety show originally aired for four seasons on RFD-TV from 2012 to 2014.
The Joey + Rory Show followed husband-and-wife duo Joey and Rory Feek as they performed music and lived life on their Tennessee farm with their newborn baby, Indiana. Joey, who was diagnosed with cervical cancer shortly after Indiana’s birth, passed away in March 2016 after a two-year battle with the disease.
As a special tribute, Rory has produced a retrospective episode—filmed in the barn where the show was originally shot—that will complement each season, consisting of interviews with himself, songwriter Wynn Varble, Rory’s sister Marcy Gary, Bradley Walker and Gabe McCauley. Friends and family share never-before-told stories about their favorite moments and reflect on the what the show means to them since the passing of Joey.
The Joey + Rory Show returns to RFD-TV’s program lineup beginning Saturday, Dec. 31, at 9:30 p.m. ET. Rory also released a tribute documentary, To Joey, With Love, in September that is currently available on DVD at retail stores. You can keep up with Rory and his life with daughter, Indiana, through his blog, ThisLifeILive.com.
Check out Season 1, Episodes 1 and 2 from The Joey + Rory Show below.
You can add Austin Webb—singer of “Slip on By” and “All Country on You”—and his wife, Melanie, to the growing list of country couples closing out the year with the announcement that they are expecting a visit from the stork in 2017. Ashley Monroe and husband John Danks and Love and Theft’s Stephen Barker Liles and wife Jenna announced their respective pregnancies this past week.
On Wednesday (Dec. 28), Austin broke the news of the impending arrival via his Instagram account. He posted a picture of his beaming wife with the words “We’re Trading Our Silent Nights For a Bundle of Joy” over the photo with the caption “Drum roll……”
The couple married in November and the new bundle of joy is expected to arrive in June 2017.
NCD sends our congratulations to the happy couple.
After being recorded in Washington D.C. in early December, the 39th Kennedy Center Honors aired on CBS last night (Dec. 27). The annual event honors performing artists for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. This year’s honorees included James Taylor, Al Pacino, gospel and soul singer Mavis Staples, Argentine pianist Martha Argerich and the Eagles.
James Taylor was honored with performances by Darius Rucker (“Sweet Baby James” and “Carolina in My Mind”), Sheryl Crow (“Fire & Rain” and “Your Smiling Face”) and Garth Brooks with the Howard Gospel Choir (“Shower the People”). The troupe joined forces for a group singalong of “How Sweet It Is.”
Watch Garth perform “Shower the People” below.
Watch Darius perform “Sweet Baby James” and “Carolina in My Mind” below.
After being recorded in Washington D.C. in early December, the 39th Kennedy Center Honors aired on CBS last night (Dec. 27). The annual event honors performing artists for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. This year’s honorees included James Taylor, Al Pacino, gospel and soul singer Mavis Staples, Argentine pianist Martha Argerich and the Eagles.
The Eagles were honored with performances by Vince Gill (“Peaceful Easy Feeling”), Kings of Leon (“Take It Easy”), Juanes (“Hotel California” with Steve Vai and Steuart Smith) and Bob Seger (“Heartache Tonight”).
Check out the video below of the all-star cast teaming up for a group singalong of the Eagles’ “Life in the Fast Lane,” including Steve Vai wrapping his arms around host Stephen Colbert during a guitar solo.
There’s no snow in the New York City forecast this week, but that didn’t stop Brett Eldredge from calling for it during his sizzling performance of “Let It Snow!” from Times Square on ABC’s Good Morning America.
Brett recorded the holiday favorite on his 2016 Christmas album, Glow.
