Tracy Lawrence reminded some lucky fans and the media what real country music was all about at his new album showcase in downtown Nashville Monday night. The traditional country music singer with the distinctively soul-felt and twangy voice ran through a set list filled of his past hits with a couple of newbies tossed in from his upcoming album “Good Ole Days”. I must admit, although I do enjoy a lot of the catchy tunes that run radio today, I’d forgotten how much I miss songs that really hit you in the feels, and Lawrence has always been great at that.
Slated for release on November 10th, the album features 11 duets with some of the music industry’s biggest stars and also profiles a few of the most promising up-and-comers. It includes 9 of Lawrence’s biggest hits plus 2 new songs; “Good Ole Days” and “Finally Home”. The title track, “Good Ole Days” features rock group 3 Doors Down’s lead vocalist Brad Arnold along with country music duo Big & Rich. “Finally Home” is a song that honors military service members, of which a portion of sales will help provide housing for veterans and spouses via the non-profit Operation FINALLY HOME; Craig Morgan joins Lawrence for this emotional ballad.
Also on the album, 6 of his #1s- “Time Marches On”, “Alibis”, “Can’t Break It To My Heart”, “Texas Tornado” and “If The Good Die Young” along with Top 5 hits “If The World Had A Front Porch”, “Stars Over Texas” and “Paint Me A Birmingham” joined by Jason Aldean, Tim McGraw, Luke Combs, Luke Bryan, Dustin Lynch, Easton Corbin, Kellie Pickler, Justin Moore and Chris Young. “There’s such a hunger out there for the music from my era – I hear that from so many people, so I felt like this was a good time to kind of blend the old and the new” Lawrence stated in a press release regarding his diverse choice in artists.
At the event Lawrence ran through every song on his upcoming album, singing them almost exactly how we remember them with the same beautiful voice. He explained what each song meant to him, which celebrity joined him on each track and why he chose that particular artist. He stated Luke Bryan was excited to sing some “real country music” and when he asked progressive artist Jason Aldean if he wanted to make their song a bit more edgy he replied “I don’t want to mess it up, I want to keep it exactly the way that it was”. When explaining why he chose Kellie Pickler he said he fell in love with her voice when he heard her version of “Santa Baby” and he told of how humbled he was while recording with Chris Young, when Young passed back the lyric sheet stating “I don’t need that”.
Lawrence also performed “Find Out Who Your Friends Are”, explaining it didn’t make the album as he had already released a collaborative version with Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney back in 2007. He ended with an encore of “I See It Now “by request, which he stated was a great song that should have but just didn’t make the album.
“Good Ole Days” Complete Track List:
1. “Time Marches On” feat. Tim McGraw
2. “Sticks and Stones” feat. Luke Bryan
3. “Alibis” feat. Justin Moore
4. “Can’t Break It to My Heart” feat. Jason Aldean
5. “Good Ole Days” feat. Brad Arnold and Big & Rich
6. “If the World Had a Front Porch” feat. Luke Combs
7. “Texas Tornado” feat. Dustin Lynch
8. “Stars Over Texas” feat. Kellie Pickler
9. ”If the Good Die Young” feat. Chris Young
10. ”Paint Me a Birmingham” feat. Easton Corbin
11. “Finally Home” feat. Craig Morgan
Keep up with Tracy Lawrence via social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Head to tracylawrence.com to pre-order your copy of “Good Ole Days” and get an instant download of “Can’t Break It To My Heart”.
Written by Josie Bisto
