Country music has always been a singles genre, a fact that is clearly reflected on my iPod. Only three of my most thirty played country songs were never sent to radio. That doesn’t necessarily mean radio played them, of course.
My most played country song is Alan Jackson’s “So You Don’t Have to Love Me Anymore”, which didn’t crack the top twenty, and not far behind is Trisha Yearwood’s “Where are You Now”, which didn’t crack the top forty.
But looking at our most played album cuts is a great way to discover great music we might have missed, so it seems like a good choice for an iPod Check. Here are my country album cuts that I’ve played more than 10 times, separated by artist. Plays to date follow the song title. Sort your list however you like. I’m getting my Amazon MP3 page loaded now so I can buy the great songs I’ve missed which surface in the comments.
Kevin’s Most Played:
Dixie Chicks
- Truth No. 2 (53)
- Lil Jack Slade (22)
- Am I the Only One (Who’s Ever Felt This Way) (21)
- White Trash Wedding (17)
- A Home (14)
- Lubbock or Leave It (11)
Sara Evans
- Rocking Horse (54)
- I Thought I’d See Your Face Again (27)
Carrie Underwood
- Play On (53)
- Change (53)
- See You Again (45)
- Do You Think About Me (41)
- I Know You Won’t (31)
- Good in Goodbye (16)
- Cupid’s Got a Shotgun (15)
- Nobody Ever Told You (13)
Matraca Berg
- If I Had Wings (40)
- Racing the Angels (11)
Trisha Yearwood
- Drown Me (40)
- Standing Out in a Crowd (39)
- Try Me (36)
- Dreaming Fields (33)
- Try Me Again (28)
- Little Hercules (24)
- Heart’s in Armor (24)
- Harmless Heart (23)
- For Reasons I’ve Forgotten (21)
- A Lover is Forever (15)
- Two Days From Knowing (15)
- Come Back When it Ain’t Rainin’ (12)
- New Kid in Town (11)
Dolly Parton
- Shattered Image (36)
- Down From Dover (16)
- Let Her Fly (with Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette) (13)
Pam Tillis
- Melancholy Child (28)
- Homeward Looking Angel (21)
- Sunset Red and
Pale Moonlight (20)
- Rough and Tumble Heart (19)
- Mandolin Rain (17)
- Better off Blue (16)
- How Gone is Goodbye (11)
Kim Richey
- Not a Love Like This (32)
Shania Twain
- Nah! (28)
- What a Way to Wanna Be! (13)
Alison Krauss & Union Station
- I Can Let Go Now (26)
- Doesn’t Have to Be This Way (13)
Patty Loveless
- On the Verge of Tears (26)
- Someday I Will Lead the Parade (17)
- Nobody Here by That Name (12)
Sugarland
- Circle (26)
- Very Last Country Song (23)
- Keep You (12)
Toby Keith
- In a Couple of Days (24)
Dwight Yoakam
- Wichita Lineman (23)
- Train in Vain (12)
Nickel Creek
- Helena (21)
- Somebody More Like You (13)
Reba McEntire
- If I Had Only Known (21)
Lee Ann Womack
- One’s a Couple (21)
- Time For Me to Go (20)
- The Last Time (16)
- Lonely Too (15)
- Blame it On Me (11)
Kathy Mattea
- Loving You, Letting You Go (18)
Keith Urban
- You’re Not My God (17)
- The Luxury of Knowing (16)
- Nobody Drinks Alone (14)
Well I won’t list out everyone that matches your criteria cause I just made a smart playlist on iTunes and I have 2513 songs that match them. Instead I’ll just list a few artists you didn’t mention. I also raised my criteria to 40 min. plays as there was still too many to list with 10 being the min.
Joe Nichols
Man, Woman – 57
Who Are You When I’m Not Looking – 51
Freedom Feels Like Lonely – 48
Real Things – 42
It’s Me I’m Worried About – 40
Terri Clark
Tough With Me – 101
I Just Called To Say Goodbye – 65
Not Enough Tequila – 60
Everybody’s Gotta Go Sometime – 49
Sometimes Goodbye – 48
When We Had It Bad – 47
Not Getting Over You – 45
Cure For The Common Heartache – 45
I Wish He’d Been Drinkin’ Whiskey – 45
Not A Bad Thing – 45
Easy From Now On – 43
The First To Fall – 43
Catch 22 – 43
The Real Thing – 42
I’m Alright – 41
That’s How I Feel – 41
Any Woman – 40
Alan Jackson
A Little Bluer Than That – 69
If Love Was A River (W/ The Wrights) – 61
She Just Started Liking Cheatin’ Songs – 59
Designated Drinker (W/ George Strait) – 56
Never Loved Before (W/ Martina McBride) – 47
I Don’t Need The Booze (To Get A Buzz On) – 45
Chely Wright
He Don’t Do Bars Anymore – 63
I Got Him Ready For You – 60
What If I Can’t Say No Again – 57
Unknown – 50
Notes To THe Coroner – 44
What If We Fly – 40
Little Big Town
Looking For A Reason – 68
Mean Streak – 67
Evangeline – 61
A Place To Land – 59
Vapor – 57
Wounded – 44
Fury – 43
Pontiac – 41
Bones – 41
Deana Carter
Michelangelo Sky – 47
The Girl You Left Me For – 43
To The Other Side – 41
Brand New Key – 41
Most of my listening is on Spotify these days (and Spotify only makes such information available on a week-by-week basis), so this doesn’t necessarily reflect my most current listening habits, but here it goes. Like Kevin, I found that the vast majority of my most-played country songs were singles.
Reba McEntire
“One Last Good Hand” (35)
“Bobby” (12)
Sara Evans
“If You Ever Want My Lovin'” (32)
“New Hometown” (29)
“Unopened” (24)
“Bible Song” (13)
“What That Drink Cost Me” (12)
LeAnn Rimes
“Honestly” (22)
Shania Twain
“Nah!” (20)
“Ain’t No Particular Way” (11)
“If It Don’t Take Two” (11)
Gene Watson & Rhonda Vincent
“Your Money and My Good Looks” (19)
Ricky Skaggs and The Whites
“Big Wheel” (19)
Mary Chapin Carpenter
“A Keeper for Every Flame” (17)
“The Last Word” (13)
“Stones In the Road” (12)
“Outside Looking In” (11)
Pam Tillis
“Sweetheart’s Dance” (17)
“Mandolin Rain” (15)
Connie Smith
“Long Line of Heartaches” (16)
“Pain of a Broken Heart” (12)
“I Don’t Believe That’s How You Feel” (12)
“I’m Not Blue” (11)
“Ain’t You Even Gonna Cry” (11)
“That Makes Two of Us” (11)
Dixie Chicks
“Tortured, Tangled Hearts” (16)
“Truth No. 2” (15)
“Li’l Jack Slade” (12)
The McClymonts
“My Life Again” (14)
Patty Loveless
“A Handful of Dust” (13)
“Feelin’ Good About Feelin’ Bad” (13)
“Old Weakness (Comin’ On Strong)” (12)
Patsy Cline
“Come On In” (12)
Jason Aldean
Keep The Girl
Wide Open
This Nothin’ Town
Talk
Just Passin’ Through
Black Tears
Keith Urban
Shut Out The Lights
The Luxury Of Knowing
ZBB
Jump Right In
Let It Go
Where The Boat Leaves From
I Play The Road
Carrie Underwood
Do You Think About Me
See You Again
Blake Shelton
Suffocating
Red River Blue
I limited my comments to 1 or 2 songs per artist. I’ve seen some great choices by Kevin and others already.
John Denver
– Matthew (69)
Hal Ketchum
– Daddy’s Oldsmobile (65)
– I Miss My Mary (59)
Lisa Brokop
– Not Here in My Arms (65)
– Paper, Rocks, Scissors (59)
The Band Perry
– Double Heart (58)
– Independence (28)
Delbert McClinton
– People Just Love to Talk (54)
Gary Burr
= Station on the Line (54)
Suzy Bogguss
– It’s Not Gonna Happen Today (45)
– Do Nothing Til You Hear From Me (44)
Martina McBride
– All the Things We’ve Never Done (19)
Eli Young Band
– War on a Desperate Man (34)
Cleve Francis
– It Ain’t Gonna Worry My Mind (18)
David Nail
– Mississippi (20)
– Songs for Sale (13)
Derailers
– Uncool (13)
– The Wheel (12)
Don Schlitz
– About the Money (13)
– Allergic to Crazy (12)
Emily West
– Supergirl (18)
– Boys In the Morning (18)
Georgia Middleman
– Now That You’ve Met Molly (32)
Jill King
– The Part I Don’t Understand (15)
Mark McGuinn
– Silver Platter (15)
Pam Tillis
– Something Burning Out (14)
Randy Travis
– Everything That I Own Has Got a Dent (20)
Ronnie Dunn
– I Don’t Dance (17)
– Last Love I’m Tryin’ (16)
Striking Matches
– When the Right One Comes Along (17)
– Hanging on a Lie (14)
Sugarland
– Very Last Country Song (20)
– Wishing (14)
Sunny Sweeney
– Slow Swinging Western Tune (36)
– Mama’s Opry (35)
Tammy Cochran
– Life Happened (12)
Tim McGraw
– Blank Sheet of Paper (14)
Victoria Shaw
– There’s a Song in There Somewhere (34)
– Don’t Move (21)
Wade Hayes
– Steady As She Goes (32)
Most played song: Need You Now (Lady A)
The rest I listed top 3 most played by artist:
Carrie Underwood
Last Name 68
Crazy Dreams 67
So Small 63
Faith Hill
There Will Come A Day 60
Josh Turner
Your Man 48
Tears Of God 47
Would You Go With Me 40
Lady Antebellum
We Owned The Night 61
Hello World 48
I Run To You 44
George Strait
It Just Comes Natural 45
I Saw God Today 45
Give It Away 40
Eric Church
How ‘Bout You 43
His Kind Of Money (My Kind Of Love)42
Sinners Like Me 40
Craig Morgan
Love Remembers 40
My Kind Of Woman 35
That’s Why 33
Martina McBride
Life #9 38
Happy Girl 33
I Love You 30
Rascal Flatts
Me And My Gang 47
What Hurts The Most 40
Mayberry 42
Taylor Swift
Speak Now 48
Haunted 47
Mine 45
Lonestar
Come Cryin’ To Me 35
Everything’s Changed 35
Runnin’ Away With My Heart 31
Alabama
Tennessee River 33
Old Flame 31
Song Of The South 30
Hmmmm… not too many of my top played songs weren’t released as singles (even if their chart fortunes were unfortunate), but I noticed a few… Dolly Parton’s “How Great Thou Art”, Sara Evans’ “Bible Song”, Trisha Yearwood’s “Victim of the Game” and “The Whisper of Your Heart”, Carlene Carter’s “Something Already Gone” and Lorrie Morgan’s “Don’t Worry Baby”. Those last two are from a soundtrack and a tribute album, respectively, but they may have still been released as singles. I’m not sure.
What the heck? How about a few more?
Bobbie Cryner – The Girl of Your Dreams
Dolly – House of the Rising Sun, In the Ghetto, Appalachian Memories
Tanya Tucker – Call on Me
The Judds – River of Time
McBride & the Ride – No More Cryin’ (I think this was probably a single though.)
Rosanne Cash – Never Alone
Patty Loveless – Ships
Trisha Yearwood – Lying to the Moon, When Goodbye Was a Word, Lonesome Dove, Fools Like Me
(for frame of reference, Eli Young Band’s Guinevere is my overall most played with 69)
Alan Jackson –
Buicks To The Moon – 45
The Sounds – 32
After 17 – 31
Blaine Larsen –
That’s Just Me – 50
Rockin’ You Tonight – 40
Teaching Me How To Love You – 40
Blake Shelton –
Every Time I Look At You – 41
100 Miles – 40
I Don’t Care – 40
Draggin’ The River – 39
Brad Paisley –
Cloud Of Dust – 48
All You Really Need Is Love – 39
Time Well Wasted – 37
Chris Young –
The Dashboard – 41
The Shoebox – 31
Collin Raye –
A Bible And A Bus Ticket Home – 49
Darius Rucker –
Learn To Live – 39
Dierks Bentley –
Wish It Would Break – 39
Down On Easy Street – 36
Eli Young Band –
Mystery In The Making – 45
Enough Is Enough – 40
Get In The Car And Drive – 38
Garth Brooks –
Pushing Up Daisies – 48
The Storm – 39
Gary Allan –
Bourbon Borderline – 50
George Strait –
As Far As It Goes – 51
Jason Aldean –
Back In This Cigarette – 45
I’m Just A Man – 44
My Memory Ain’t What It Used To Be – 41
Jason Michael Carroll –
Happened On A Saturday Night – 46
Growing Up Is Getting Old – 45
Let Me Go – 43
Josh Gracin –
Found – 40
Invisible – 39
Josh Turner –
As Fast As I Could – 46
Lord Have Mercy On A Country Boy – 38
Jacksonville – 31
Keith Anderson –
Adaliene – 53
Kenny Chesney –
Everywhere We Go – 54
California – 45
Lady Antebellum –
Things People Say – 50
Home Is Where The Heart Is – 50
Love’s Lookin’ Good On You – 46
Miranda Lambert –
Airstream Song – 42
Me And Your Cigarettes – 39
Pat Green –
Poetry – 56
Lucky – 54
In The Middle Of The Night – 50
Phil Vassar –
Baby, You’re Right – 53
Amazing Grace – 49
Forgettin’s So Long – 49
Randy Travis –
That’s Where I Draw The Line – 46
That Was Us – 41
Oscar The Angel – 38
Rascal Flatts –
Close – 53
Long Slow Beautiful Dance – 44
Like I Am – 44
Rushlow –
Right Now – 57
Still – 53
Tim McGraw –
Ain’t That Just Like A Dream – 54
Mama It Doesn’t Get Any Countrier Than This – 53
Ain’t That The Way It Always Ends – 45
Toby Keith –
Huckleberry – 50
Losing My Touch – 42
You Already Love Me – 40
These are the top two for each of my 15 most played mainstream country artists (in other words, skipping over Jamey Johnson and The Beach Boys) according to Last.fm.
George Strait
-The King of Broken Hearts (26)
-Last in Love (24)
Johnny Cash
-I Still Miss Someone (31)
-Solitary Man (21)
Garth Brooks
-Victim of The Game (30)
-The Fever (30)
Toby Keith
-Jacky Don Tucker (31)
-Blue Bedroom (21)
Gary Allan
-Like It’s A Bad Thing (32)
-Yesterday’s Rain (30)
Chris LeDoux
-The Passenger (31)
-Take Me To The Rodeo (25)
Mark Chesnutt
-Apartment #9 (26)
-A Day In The Life of A Fool (22)
Brad Paisley
-Everybody’s Here (20)
-Holding On To You (17)
Tim McGraw
-Senorita Margarita (22)
-A Place In The Sun (18)
Kenny Chesney
-Old Blue Chair (18)
-Spirit of A Storm (17)
Alan Jackson
-Never Loved Before (with Martina McBride) (17)
-She Just Started Liking Cheatin’ Songs (16)
Brooks & Dunn
-Feels Good Don’t It (15)
-Again (15)
Diamond Rio
-A Better Idea (14)
-Kentucky Mine (12)
Clint Black
-A Big One (23)
-I Don’t Wanna Tell You (15)
Terri Clark
-Sleeping Single in a Double Bed (26)
-Sometimes Goodbye (10)
Based out of 250 total plays of album cuts from my Zune…
Alabama
Cheap Seats (2)
Alan Jackson
She Don’t Get High (4)
The Band Perry
Independence (9)
Quittin’ You (5)
Brooks & Dunn
Whiskey Under the Bridge (3)
Tequila Town (3)
Brad Paisley
You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive (6)
Love is Never Ending (6)
Oh Love w/Carrie Underwood (5)
Rainin’ You (3)
All You Really Need is Love (2)
Flowers (1)
Bruce Robison
Wrapped (4)
Photograph (2)
Clint Black
I Can Get By (3)
Conway Twitty
You’re the Reason Our Kids Are Ugly w/Loretta Lynn (2)
Diamond Rio
Long Way Back (3)
Dierks Bentley
Up On the Ridge (3)
Dixie Chicks
You Were Mine (8)
Sin Wagon (4)
Dwight Yoakam
Travler’s Lantern (4)
Smoke Along the Track (3)
Long White Cadillac (1)
Easton Corbin
I’m Not a Highway (4)
EmmyLou Harris
The Boxer (12)
Wild Montana Skies w/John Denver (6)
Hobo’s Lullaby (3)
Eric Church
The Hard Way (7)
Faith Hill
Part of Your World (3)
Garth Brooks
Why Ain’t I Running (2)
Gary Allen
Living in the House of Love (5)
George Strait
Where the Sidewalk Ends (4)
Gram Parsons
Streets of Baltimore (2)
Hal Ketchum
In Front of the Alamo w/LeAnn Rimes (8)
Highway 101
Do You Love Me (Just Say Yes) (4)
The Highwaymen
Against the Wind (4)
Jana Kramer
King of Apology (4)
Joe Diffie
New Way (To Light Up An Old Flame) (3)
Josh Turner
You Don’t Mess Around With Jim (1)
Jacksonville (1)
Keith Whitley
Kentucky Bluebird (4)
Kellie Pickler
Stop Cheating On Me (8)
Kenny Chesney
Honey Would You Stand By Me (4)
Turn Out the Light and Love Me Tonight (2)
Another Friday Night (1)
LeAnn Rimes
What I Cannot Change (9)
Rose Colored Glasses (3)
Linda Ronstadt
Long, Long Time (4)
Loretta Lynn
Coal Miner’s Daughter w/Miranda Lambert & Sheryl Crow (2)
Martraca Berg
Oh Cumberland (6)
Silver & Glass (4)
You & Tequila (4)
Miranda Lambert
Airstream Song (2)
Marty Stuart
Satisfied Mind (5)
Crying, Waiting, Hoping w/Steve Earle (1)
Rick Trevino
Overnight Success (5)
Sara Evans
Low (5)
Rocking Horse (2)
Sunny Sweeney
Please Be San Antone (11)
Tracey Lawrence
Somewhere Between the Moon and You (3)
Saving Savvanah (2)
The Singer (1)
Wade Hayes
Is It Already Time (6)
Whitey Morgan & the 78’s
Meanest Jukebox In Town (2)
Cheatin’ Again (1)
I don’t do all my listening on iTunes (not everything is even uploaded yet, and I tend to listen to whole albums at a time), but from that, some of my most-played non-singles (one per artist) are:
Lee Ann Womack, Liars Lie
Trace Adkins, Sometimes A Man Takes A Drink
Sammy Kershaw, Real Old Fashioned Broken Heart
Jerry Salley, Paper and Pen
Martina McBride, Today I Started Loving You Again
Louvin Brothers, Satan’s Jeweled Crown
Nanci Griffith, Never Mind
Blake Shelton, Georgia In A Jug
Bobbie Cryner, I Think It’s Over Now
Amber Digby, The One You Slip Around With
Blake & Brian, The Wish
Benny Berry, In My Next Life
Bobby Pinson, Man Like Me
Bradley Walker, Revelation
Casey Kessel, Jackson
Catherine Britt, I’m Nobody’s Fool
George Strait, House With No Doors
Jason Boland & The Stragglers, Bottle By My Bed
Jason Eady, AM Country Heaven
Randy Travis & Shelby Lynne, Promises
Sunny Sweeney, Amy
I am at work and don’t have access to my iTunes at the moment, but I just wanted to commend you on an interesting and informative article. Thanks!
Jason Aldean
No
Keith Urban
Shine
Dixie Chicks
Truth No 2
White Trash Wedding
Miranda Lambert
Dear Diamond
Dry Town
I Wanna Die
Mamma, I’m Alright
LeAnn Rimes
I Want to With You
Blake Shelton
Draggin the River (w/ Miranda Lambert)
That Thing We Do
…no ipod – no exact data. but i have one or the other song playing on youtube, when i’m writing.
probably some of the most often revisited album cuts are:
garth – cowboy bill
dwight yoakam – johnson’s love
patty loveless – the difference between god and me
julie roberts – wake up older
tracy byrd – a cowboy and a dancer
alan jackson – dancin’ all around it
tracy lawrence – i threw the rest away
bobbie cryner – the girl of your dreams
ken mellons – the pleasure is all mine
jarrod birmingham – think about you
travis tritt – if hell had a juke box
alan jackson – if you want to make me happy
easton corbin – a lot to learn about living
dixie chicks – godspeed
the trishas – give it away
james house – little by little
toby keith – heart to heart
tanya tucker – it hurts like love
joe diffie – i’m willing to try
hal ketchum – i miss my mary
mark chesnut – broken promise land
john-michael montgomery – cover you in kisses
tim mcgraw – senorita margarita
brad paisley – too country
steve earle – little rock ‘n roller
george strait – you know me better that
wade hayes – what i meant to say
merle haggard – i wonder if they think of me
miranda lambert – famous in a small town
martina mcbride & bob seeger – chances are
lorrie morgan – exit 99
dale watson – country my ass
lee ann womack – happiness
shelby lynne – things are tough all over
jarrod birmingham – that’s what dancers do
linda davies – la to the moon
mark wills – emily harper
jimmy buffet – changes in latitudes
Here are some, with at least 30 plays.
Gary Allan – Bourbon Borderline (43)
I Just Got Back From Hell (42)
What I’d Say (40)
A Showman’s Life (38)
Drinkin’ Dark Whiskey (36)
No Damn Good (36)
Promise Broken (34)
Yesterday’s Rain (32)
That Ain’t Gonna Fly (30)
Garth Brooks – In Lonesome Dove (31)
Tracy Byrd – Different Things (42)
Kenny Chesney – I Might Get Over You (36)
One Step Up (33)
Somebody Take Me Home (30)
Pat Green – Whiskey (45)
My Little Heaven (40)
I’m Trying to Find It (36)
Way Back Texas (32)
Tim McGraw – Blank Sheet of Paper (42)
Ain’t That Just Like a Dream (37)
Don’t Mention Memphis (32)
I Know How to Love You Well (30)
Brad Paisley – Out in the Parkin’ Lot (44)
Ain’t Nothin’ Like (38)
Some Mistakes (36)
Rainin’ You (33)
The Best Thing I Had Goin (32)
Joe Nichols – The Shade (38)
Don’t Ruin It For the Rest of Us (34)
Man With a Memory (31)
Josh Turner – Jacksonville (35)
She’ll Go on You (31)
Phil Vassar – Amazing Grace (42)
Dancin’ With Dreams (33)
Somewhere in Between (30)
Wow, you guys all seem so… balanced in how often you’ve played your songs. The top country album cut on my iPod is Carrie Underwood’s “I Know You Won’t” and it’s gotten 556 plays since my last reset. That’s in stark contrast to the 30 plays Miranda Lambert’s “White Liar” got, heh.
@bob Tammy Cochran’s “Life Happened” and Victoria Shaw’s “Don’t Move” were both singles. But it’s nice to see Cleve Francis and Lisa Brokop get some love from someone :)
@jordan – Thanks. I realized my mistake on Tammy but not on Victoria. I guess she’s the only one to record “Don’t Move”. I’ve seen her 3 or 4 times. She’s an outstanding singer as well as songwriter. Re Brokop, I’ve also seen her a few times and have all her cd’s. Can’t figure out why Lisa, Victoria and Cleve (the singing cardiologist) didn’t have more chart success.
@bob I have all of Lisa’s albums too, I’m going to be ordering her duo album with her husband Paul soon. I’m particularly fond of her “When You Get To Be You” album. “Hey, Do You Know Me” is really good too.
I Love Victoria but I’m still missing one of her albums. Her first two with Warner Bros. were really great, I’ve never understood how someone who Garth was championing couldn’t get even a minor hit.
Cleve is another mystery to me, he had a lot of talent. I guess Country Radio wasn’t ready for another black artist yet which is a shame. At least he got 3 albums out on a major label.
@Jordan – too be honest, although Paul Jefferson is a good singer, I thought the material on the debut Jeffersons album was weak. (PJ sang at 3 of the 5 Brokop shows I saw at the Bluebird.) The 2 Brokop albums you mentioned are her best I agree.
You mentioned that Garth championed Victoria. He provided the following background information on the song “The River” written with Victoria in the CD booklet liner notes from The Hits:
“Of all songs, most of the letters I receive concern “The River.” It is a song of inspiration… a song that I will be proud of a hundred years from now. Victoria Shaw is a wonderful writer and a wonderful friend. And this is what happens when two dreamers get together and write from the heart.”