Countdown Part XI: Songs 376-385!!!

Welcome to the eleventh entry in our countdown! It's "Mother's Day", so I intend to get right to the point in order to celebrate! As always, a few things to touch on first!

- A step has been taken to help broaden the BORN Country audience, and once a new computer is obtained to do so, you'll start seeing big and excited updates for the blog! Stay tuned!

- Over the past week, we have passed up the 700 "Like" milestone on Facebook! Continue to pass word onto your friends and help us hit that 800 mark! At that time, we will have another extended countdown blog for all of our readers!

- Next weekend, BORN Country will be attending an acoustic charity concert featuring Kip Moore. Hopefully, we'll be able to get a chance to meet with him. If so, keep your eyes peeled for pictures and updates!

BORN Country's 505 Favorite Country Singles of the 90's!!!

385. Alan Jackson - Song For The Life
Album: Who I Am
Year: 1995

While many others, such as John Denver, Jerry Jeff Walker and Kathy Mattea have recorded Rodney Crowell's "Song For The Life" only Alan Jackson released the song to radio as a single. In 1995, it became a Top 10 hit, peaking at #6.



384. The Judds - Love Can Build A Bridge
Album: Love Can Build A Bridge
Year: 1990

Mother and daughter duo, The Judds, comprised of Naomi and Wynonna, released what was to be their final studio album together in 1990. Due to illness, Naomi Judd had announced her retirement in the belief that she only had 3 years to live. The Judds performed their "farewell" concert live on Pay-Per-View and it became the highest grossing cable televised music event of ever, at the time.



383. Aaron Tippin - You've Got To Stand For Something
Album: You've Got To Stand For Something
Year: 1990

"Stand For Something" was Aaron Tippin's debut radio single. This song lead to Bob Hope inviting Tippin on his U.S.O. tour, in which the country star to this day, continues to entertain the U.S. Troops. On top of that, Aaron may have the best mustache in country music.



382. Mary Chapin Carpenter - Passionate Kisses
Album: Come On, Come On
Year: 1993

The second cover in this week's countdown, Mary Chapin Carpenter released this song, which was written by Lucinda Williams, in 1993. Not only did Carpenter take "Kisses" to #4 on the Hot Country Chart, but also landed at #57 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, covering all genres.



381. Shania Twain - Honey, I'm Home
Album: Come On Over
Year: 1998

Shania's final #1 single on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Chart, came in 1998. Twain would go on to chart numerous singles on the country chart after "Honey", but would soon take a hiatus from the music industry. The "Rock This Country Tour" launches in June, being her first in 11 years, which will serve as her "Farewell" to her fans.



380. Billy Dean - Only Here For A Little While
Album: Young Man
Year: 1990

Another debut song on this week's countdown list, Billy Dean took his first single to #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Chart. We had the chance to see Billy perform earlier this year, and he sounded great! Although brief, we got to meet Billy and he came off as a pretty good guy!



379. The Mavericks - Here Comes The Rain
Album: Music For All Occasions
Year: 1995

So I continuously write about how Ronnie Dunn has the best voice in country music. That being the case, the lead vocalist of The Mavericks, Raul Malo is right up there with him. While only reaching #22 on the Hot Country Chart here in the U.S., "Here Comes The Rain" earned The Mavericks a Grammy award for "Best Performance by a Group or Duo". The Mavericks just recently released a new studio album titled "Mono". Do not miss out on this one!



378. Garth Brooks & Trisha Yearwood - In Another's Eyes
Album: Sevens (Brooks) / Songbook: A Collection Of Hits (Yearwood)
Year: 1997

What a fantastic duet! Garth and Trisha took their first song together to #2 on the Hot Country Billboard chart. While the couple have released other songs together since, this is easily the best. I have yet to see either perform live, but I have to imagine that this is a staple in their live show.



377. Rick Trevino - Learning As You Go
Album: Learning As You Go
Year: 1996

Trevino was the first mainstream country artist to release a single to radio in both English and Spanish. He had a few successful Top 10 hits before releasing "Learning As You Go" which peaked at #6. He would reach his first and #1 single very shortly after, but we'll get to that one and more, later!



376.  Tracy Lawrence - As Any Fool Can See
Album: I See It Now
Year: 1994

Man, did this guy load up country radio with hits in the 90's or what? As entertaining Lawrence is on the radio, he made a string of music videos in which he would magically "leap" from the setting of each video to the next. From the pirate ship in tis video, he "leaps" into the video for one of songs you'll see near the very top of this countdown!



That wraps it up for this week's edition of the countdown! Don't forget to check out the Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and share with your friends! We are nearing 800 likes on FB! We'll have another extended countdown blog at that milestone! Have a great Mother's Day to all you moms out there!

-Arthur Born
Facebook.com/borncountryblog
Twitter: @BORNCountryBlog
E-Mail: BORNCountryBlog@gmail.com

Chris LeDoux, The Dixie Chicks, Billy Dean

It's a little later than I planned, but as I promised yesterday on social media, I'm back with a mid(ish) week blog entry!!! I'm just looking to cover a few topics relevant to the week and country music, this evening. Don't forget, this Sunday with feature another 10 songs on my list of the top 505 songs in country music from the 90's!!!

* This past Monday, March 9th, marked 10 years since the unfortunate passing of rodeo and country music legend, Chris LeDoux. Some of you reading this may not be familiar with this man's work, but you should absolutely look into changing that. After winning many prizes in rodeo, LeDoux retired from the sport in 1980 to focus on his music career. Between 1971 and 1990, he wrote, recorded and sold his own music, completely independent from any label or marketing! He sold his records out of the back of his truck at rodeos and concerts! Incredible!

After mention in Garth Brooks' first single "Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)" LeDoux finally decided to take advantage and sign to a major label. While seeing very little radio support throughout the 90s, Chris continued producing music with 9 more studio albums before his passing in 2005 with Cholangiocarcinoma at the age of 56.

In 2005, Garth Brooks briefly came out of retirement to release a tribute song to his long time friend, "Good Ride Cowboy". As I said before, if you are unfamiliar with LeDoux's music, check it out. You will not regret it. A few songs will be popping up in the 90's countdown!!!

* 2 years and a day short of LeDoux's passing marks another memorable date in country music history. On the first date of their Top Of The World Tour, The Dixie Chicks were set to perform their hit, "Travelin' Soldier" in London, England. Lead vocalist, Natalie Maines stepped up to the microphone, and as most know, notoriously stated the following:

"Just so you know, we're on the good side with y'all. We do not want this war, this violence, and we're ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas."

This statement lead to many fans turning away from the Chicks and the majority of the nation's radio stations followed suit. I've always been a fan of the Dixie Chicks and still enjoy their music today. I'm certainly not here to make political posts, but I hadn't realized that it had been 12 years since the now famous incident. I do wish the Chicks were able to make a comeback, as I believe country music NEEDS strong female acts, but it seems to be a case in which we will not see in a long time, if ever.

* On a lighter note, last weekend, Amy and I had the chance to see 90's country star Billy Dean perform at Keystone Elementary School in Lagrange, OH. The concert was held in charity to raise money for the local fire department. Billy played the majority of his hits throughout his acoustic set, including "We Just Disagree","If There Hadn't Been You", my favorite, "Billy The Kid" and many more. we lucked out with a last minute meet & greet with Billy before he went on. Despite being a bit rushed due to his needing to take stage, he came off as a very polite and kind guy. I would definitely see him perform again! This event takes place every year, and somehow I've been sleeping on it big time. Previous performers included Shenandoah, "Little" Jimmy Dickens, Collin Raye, Doug Stone and many others! 

 

That about wraps it up for me tonight! I'm still working on the 10 songs for Sunday's 505 post, so stay tuned for that! Please comment below! Who remembers Chris LeDoux? Thoughts on the Dixie Chicks? Share, follow, Tweet, reblog, etc. and please help get BORN COUNTRY out to those who will enjoy it!!! I'm working on more features for the future along with the countdown of my 505 Favorite Country Singles of the 90s! 

Thanks for reading!

-Arthur Born

Twitter: @arthurborn

Instagram: @arthur214

#iwasBORNcountry

Countdown Part II: Songs 486-495

It's been a long week of battling a little ear-ache, work and other things, so I didn't get to make a mid-week blog entry, unfortunately. However, we are back with the another 10 songs on Born Country's list of 505 Favorite Singles of the 1990's!

But first, I must say a special "Thank you" to Diane Schumann for setting Amy and I up with a chance to see 90's country star, Billy Dean, last night! He put on a great set, and still has an awesome voice. He played just about everything I could've wanted to hear, but left out one minor hit. Diane was also able to get us a last minute chance to meet Billy! I'll share some pictures later this week!

Now, the list continues!

BORN Country's Top 505 Country Singles Of the 1990's!!!

495. John Michael Montgomery - Cover You In Kisses
Album: Leave A Mark
Year: 1998

Starting this week's countdown with one of my favorite artist's of the 90's! While Montgomery easily had much stronger singles and success prior to this single, "Kisses" made it up to #3 on the country Billboard charts.



494. Collin Raye - I Think About You
Album: I Think About You
Year: 1996

Although I am not a father, I always loved singing along to this song whenever it came on the radio. I unfortunately missed out on a chance to see Collin perform last year, but hopefully he comes around again someday. "I Think About You" clocked in at #15 on Billboard's year end country chart in 1996.



493. Mila Mason - That's Enough Of That
Album: That's Enough Of That
Year: 1996

This was Mila's only real splash in the country music scene during the 90's. She reached #18 on the Country Billboard charts with this single, but had very little luck with anything that followed.



492. Travis Tritt - Tell Me I Was Dreaming
Album: Ten Feet Tall And Bulletproof
Year: 1995

Amy and I had the chance to see Travis Tritt perform an acoustic show late in 2014 from the 2nd row. He was incredible! Trott still has one of the best and most recognizable voices in country music. This is truly a case in which an artist has lost the spotlight, despite 100% still being deserving of it. I had never seen the video for this song until the writing of this post, and it turns out that there is a trilogy of videos based on this character played by Tritt. Imagine my confusion!



491. Vince Gill - Pretty Little Adriana
Album: High Lonesome Sound
Year: 1996

While I certainly understand the love for Vince Gill, the majority of his work in the 90's never really appealed to me when I was young. The killer guitar player and fantastic vocals didn't sync in until later on for me, but I still recall the few songs that really stuck out to me back then. I would love to see the guy perform live!



490. Clint Black - No Time To Kill
Album: No Time To Kill
Year: 1993

In 1989, there were 5 artists who released their first radio singles and exploded into country music. The "Class of '89" included Garth Brooks, Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt, Mary Chapin Carpenter and this man, Clint Black. Black was the first of the group to find immediate success, which followed him throughout the entire decade of the 90's



489. Alan Jackson - Little Man
Album: High Mileage
Year: 1999

Speaking of the "Class of '89", next up is Alan Jackson. Being my all-time favorite artist, I suppose it's only fitting that he be the first artist with 2 songs on the list! While I admit that I'm guilty of taking advantage of the convenience offered by Walmart and other major chain businesses, I always try to remind myself to also help out small businesses when I am able. This song will always be a true reminder that we need to support local businesses in order to not allow EVERYTHING to be taken over by the big guys.



488. Lee Roy Parnell - Heart's Desire
Album: We All Get Lucky Sometimes
Year: 1996

If any of these 10 songs this week receive a big "WHO?!" from readers, its probably going to be this one. Lee Roy had a number of radio songs throughout the 90's with a few nearly taking the #1 spot, including "Heart's Desire" which peaked at #3. Parnell's last released album came out in 2006, but he has not held a strong radio presence since the mid-90's.



487. Michael Peterson - Too Good To Be True
Album: Michael Peterson
Year: 1998

Ok, so if Lee Roy Parnell wasn't the one to not ring a bell, here comes Michael Peterson. Peterson is another artist who dropped a few successful hits to country radio, but as the years went by, sales slowed down leading to his final album in 2002. Peterson still performs at military benefits. This will NOT be the only time you see him on this list though!



486. Garth Brooks - It's Midnight Cinderella
Album: Fresh Horses
Year: 1996

Undoubtably, Garth is the KING of 90's country music. With that being said, referring to "Cinderella" as possibly one of Garth's weakest radio singles of the decade, is by no means degrading. It's catchy, easy to sing along to and just plain fun. Just like Alan and George, you can certainly expect to see a LOT more of Garth on our journey through these 505 songs!!!




There you have it! Another 10 songs down on my list of 505 Country Singles of the 90's! Hopefully this list is bringing back some memories for those of you who listened to country music in the 90s. For those that didn't, perhaps my list will help you dive into what in my opinion, was the best decade in country music history!

Stay tuned for my next post sometime mid week! I plan on writing a bit more on the Billy Dean concert, including pictures, and perhaps I'll finally get everything uploaded from the trip I took down to Nashville a couple months ago with Amy!

Please comment below! I'd love to hear your thoughts on the songs, and the blog in general! Who do you hope to see more of on the list? Is there anyone that you think shouldn't make the list from the 90's? I'm curious!!!

Follow, comment, share, Tweet, Facebook, Instagram(?) the blog to your friends and family who listen to country music! Share on message boards! Do whatever you can to help get BORN Country to those who would enjoy it! Thanks!

-Arthur Born
Twitter: @arthurborn
Instagram: @arthur214
#iwasBORNcountry