Countdown Part VII: Songs #436-445

Welcome!!! I know some of you readers out there have been waiting all day for this post, so I apologize if its a bit later than usual! After celebrating Amy's birthday and our first year together, I seem to be coming down with a bit of a head cold. The Coricidin is kicking in strong, so I'm gonna jump right into the countdown!

Don't forget to visit our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and share with your friends! Next weekend, we will be hosting a live chat on our FB page during the ACM Awards show, Sunday night!!! Don't miss out!

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

445. Martina McBride - Independence Day
Album: The Way That I Am
Year: 1994

I may catch a little flack for this song being so low on the list. I've always considered McBride to be one of the biggest names in 90's country music, but despite being one of her most successful songs, "Independence Day" never really grabbed me like it did so many others. Don't get me wrong, as I do think it is one of her best, and I do believe it belongs on this list, just not as high as some of her other songs will be.



444. Ricochet - What Do I Know
Album: Ricochet
Year: 1995

I don't have any trivia to share with this song, so I will try to make another point here. What happened to "bands" in country music? Throughout the 90's we had Ricochet, Little Texas, Diamond Rio, Sawyer Brown, Alabama, Shenandoah, etc. These were acts where the entire band was the main focus. Today, we have mostly solo artists getting credit with a band behind them who most go uncredited. Sure, there are the Love & Thefts, Band Perrys and Thompson Squares, but only the lead 2 or 3 members get the credit. Just a little something that I think about.



443. Joe Diffie - A Night To Remember
Album: A Night To Remember
Year: 1999

"Night" was not only the lead single from his finally album of the 90's, but marked his first and only appearance on Billboard's overall Top 40 chart, peaking at #38. "A Night To Remember" was ranked at #18 for the most played country song of 1999.



442. Diamond Rio - Walkin' Away
Album: IV
Year: 1995

Speaking of great country bands throughout the 90's, Diamond Rio are hands down one of the best! "Walking' Away" was the lead single from the group's 4th studio album. The track reached #2 on the Hot Country Charts.



441. Hal Ketchum - Sure Love
Album: Sure Love
Year: 1992

Hal nearly hit the top the Hot Country Charts a handful of times throughout the 90's In 1998, Ketchum lost function of the left side of his body due to a neurological disorder. After re-teacing himself to walk and play guitar, Ketchum continues his music career, with his most current album having been released in 2008.



440. Andy Griggs - I'll Go Crazy
Album: You Won't Ever Be Lonely
Year: 1999

Griggs took "Crazy" to #10 on the charts in 1999. He would continue to chart 4 more top 10s in the early 2000's. This would be the 2nd and final single released by Griggs in the 90's.



439. Marty Stuart - Burn Me Down
Album: Tempted
Year: 1992

This Stuart hit has always made a link between his own and the music of Elvis Presley in my opinion. Marty has that rockabilly edge that early Elvis showed, and I've always envisioned "The King" performing this track if the writers were around in the beginnings of rock n' roll.



438. John Berry - Standing On The Edge of Goodbye
Album: Standing On The Edge
Year: 1995

"Goodbye" was Berry's 2nd highest ranking songs of not only the 90's, but his career so far. While Berry hasn't charted any singles after 1999, hopefully the nearing (fingers crossed!) revival of more tradition in country music will help him to head towards the top again.



437. Reba McEntire - Till You Love Me
Album: Read My Mind
Year: 1994

If anyone were asked if George Strait had a female equal in country music throughout the 90's, Reba is without a doubt the "Queen" to his "King". Both artists started in the 70's, broke through in the 80's and absolutely exploded through the 90's. Like George, Reba has easily continued with hits into the 2000's and today. Reba is another artist who I didn't ever find a real connection with while growing up on country music, but today, can absolutely respect everything she has done. Heck, even her sitcom "Reba" gets a chuckle out of me here and there when I'm skimming the channels! Ha!



436. Toby Keith - Big Ol' Truck
Album: Boomtown
Year: 1995

Ok, this entry in our countdown has been pretty heavy on the slow stuff, so let's crank it up a bit, shall we? Country music, especially in its modern form is LOADED with songs about trucks and how much guys love them. What we rarely see, are songs about women loving and driving their own "Big Ol' Trucks".  Toby delivers a fun song with an entertaining video for the final single on his album, "Boomtown".  "Truck" would peak at #15. Far from typical Toby success, but a good single, regardless.




Another 10 songs in the can! Again, my apologies for the late post as I deal with this head cold. I haven't decided yet, but next weeks blog MAY be posted on Saturday, due to the ACM Awards show taking place Sunday night. Perhaps you guys can crank up the Facebook page sharing and get us up to 300 by the end of the week! If so, my offer of posting a huge 20 song update is still on the table!

Don't forget to join us, this Sunday, April the 19th on our Facebook page for a live chat/commentary during the ACM Awards! The more the merrier! Invite friends, share and enjoy! Thanks for reading, as always!

-Arthur Born
Facebook.com/BORNCountryBlog
Twitter: @BORNCountryBlog
E-Mail: borncountryblog@gmail.com
Spotify: BORN Country To Go!

Countdown Part VI: Songs #446-455

Happy Easter to all of my readers out there!!! After 2 big meals, a load of candy and 1 nap, I am ready to get this entry of our countdown rolling right along! What did everyone think of last weeks songs? We are starting to get a little deeper into the more popular stuff the further we go along!

Before the first song on this weekend's list, I want to let everyone know that I intend to host a running comment/chat on our Facebook page during the Academy of Country Music Awards show coming up on the 19th of April! I'm hoping that everyone will join in and open up our FB comments to a wider range of readers! Let us know what you think about the blog, the Facebook page, our songs of the day, and country music in general! We love hearing from everyone here at BORN Country!

Links to our Facebook page, Twitter and email with be posted below. Don't be afraid to use them!

BORN Country's 505 Favorite Country Singles Of The 90's!

455. Sammy Kershaw - Don't Go Near The Water
Album: Don't Go Near The Water
Year: 1992

I have to admit, that as I grew up on country music of the 90's there are a handful of artists that didn't really "catch" me at the time. I knew a couple Sammy Kershaw songs, but there is a large portion of his back catalog that I hadn't really known all of that well until recently. THIS however, is not one of those songs that passed me by!



454. Wynonna - Tell Me Why
Album: Tell Me Why
Year: 1993

Wynonna is easily one of the most iconic women in country music, whether it be in duet form with Naomi or on here own throughout the 90's. How many other artists can go by their first name only and still be known to all in country music, other than Reba? None that I can think of! Wynonna took "Why Not Me" to #3 on the Hot Country Songs Chart.



453. Brooks & Dunn - How Long Gone
Album: If You See Her
Year: 1998

So, I don't believe I even have to ask, but who is excited for the Brooks & Dunn reunion at the ACM Awards show on April 19th?! I was lucky enough to see their last Cleveland area performance after rushing through a college final a few years back. Whatever grade I ended up with, was worth speeding through in order to make sure that I made it to the last show before they would disband. Now, it's only a matter of time before they tour again, but just incase, I wouldn't dare miss the performance in a few weeks! Don't forget to follow our Facebook page for the live comment/chat feed during the show!



452. George Strait - We Really Shouldn't Be Doing This
Album: One Step At A Time
Year: 1998

Unlike Brooks & Dunn above, I never had the chance to see "King George" live before he took to retirement from touring this past year. I waited out his tour schedule thinking he couldn't possibly pass up the Cleveland area, but the show was never added and I was too late to grab tickets to anything else. Fingers crossed that one day he decides that the cowboy has one more last rodeo in him!



451. Keith Urban - It's A Love Thing
Album: Keith Urban
Year: 1999

Keith Urban on a 90's list?!!! That's right! Keith barely sneaks into eligibility for our list, releasing his first U.S. single in the summer of 1999. Urban would certainly move on to much better material, including his current single with Eric Church "Raise Em Up" that's climbing the charts, but this catchy single will forever be a one of his most memorable.



450. Clay Walker - Watch This
Album: Rumor Has It
Year: 1997

Clay Walker's 14th single is one song that I remember truly thinking I was able to sing well while driving around in my 1992 Ford Explorer when I was 16. Walker's "Greatest Hits" album was one of the staple CDs in my vehicle from the day I started driving (Legally, ha!). To this day, every song on the "Hits" release is forever ingrained on my memory. Clay is a prime example of an artist who deserves far more recognition than he has ever received.



449. Deana Carter - How Do I Get There
Album: Did I Shave My Legs For This?
Year: 1997

Did you know Deana Carter was discovered by Willie Nelson in 1994? How cool is that?! "How Do I Get There" was Carter's 3rd and final #1 single in her career (so far. Fingers crossed!) Deana later scored CMA and Grammy nominations as a song writer when country mega star Kenny Chesney covered her song "You & Tequila" as a duet with Grace Potter.



448. Alan Jackson - Who's Cheatin' Who
Album: Everything I Love
Year: 1997

Alan Jackson truly loves the history of country music. By no means is this a definite fact, but when it comes to covering classic country songs, Jackson has to have done in most in any recent generation. Not only does he keep said classics alive, his versions get released to radio! Often! "Cheatin'" was originally recorded and released in 1980 by Charly McClain. While not quite taking it to #1 on the country charts as McCalin did, Alan hit the #2 spot in 1997.



447. Lonestar - Everything's Changed
Album: Crazy Nights
Year: 1998

This was the final single released by Lonestar before then bass guitar player, John Rich, was fired from the band, leading to his partnership with Big Kenny in Big & Rich. The version I am most familiar with was released on the album "Lonely Grill" as a piano/acoustic recording, but this is the version that was released to radio and climbed to #2 on the Hot Country Songs chart.



446. Billy Ray Cyrus - In The Heart Of A Woman
Album: It Won't Be The Last
Year: 1993

Another strong hit from Billy Ray, "Heart" was the first single from his second album. I had never seen the video to this track before I started tonight's blog, and I've gotta say, this may be the most majestic display of possibly the most famous mullet of all time. Amy also pointed out to me, that this may also be the only rare appearance of a pair of British Knights in a country music video. I've been a big fan of Cyrus since his first release and this song has stuck with me strongly for the last 22 years. Good stuff!




There we have it! Another week of 90's classics in the books! I hope you've enjoyed all, or at least most of the songs as much as I have so far. Below I will include a link to our playlist on Spotify so you can take the countdown with you, on-the-go!

Don't forget to check us out on Twitter, PLEASE "Like" us on Facebook in order to keep up to date with BORN Country on a daily basis and we will look forward to everyone joining in on the ACM chat this coming April 19th! Thanks for reading!

-Arthur Born
Facebook.com/BORNCountryBlog
Twitter: @BORNCountryBlog
Spotify: BORN Country on Spotify