Alan Jackson Biography

Alan Jackson Biography

Alan Eugene Jackson is an American country singer-songwriter who has sold over 40 million records. He was influenced by the new traditional country of the 1980s, and he was one of the most popular country singers of the 1990s, blending both honky tonk and mainstream country sounds and penning many of his own hits. His success continued into the 2000s and his music became increasingly counterposed with that of more mainstream country acts that were moving toward a more pop music sound. He is the recipient and nominee of multiple awards. He was inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 2001. Jackson was born to Eugene Jackson and Ruth Musick in Newnan, Georgia and has four older sisters. As a youth, Jackson primarily listened to gospel music, and otherwise was not a major music fan. However, a friend of his introduced him to the music of Gene Watson, John Anderson and Hank Williams Jr. Jackson started a band after high school. After a time, he and his wife of six years, Denise, moved from Newnan to Nashville hoping to pursue music full-time. In Tennessee, Jackson got a job in The Nashville Network's mailroom. Denise got him connected to Glen Campbell, who helped him jumpstart his career. Jackson eventually signed with Arista. His first album, 1989's Here in the Real World, was a major hit, as was his second (1991) album, Don't Rock the Jukebox. His 1992 album, A Lot About Livin' (And a Little 'bout Love) was a success, spawning five major singles. Also in 1992, Randy Travis charted three singles co-written by Jackson: "Forever Together", "Better Class of Losers", and "I'd Surrender All". Conversely, Travis co-wrote Jackson's single "She's Got the Rhythm (And I Got the Blues)". In 1994 Jackson left his management company, Ten Ten Management, which had overseen his career up to that point, and switched to Gary Overton. It was around this time that Jackson began also gaining fame for his song-writing skills. Other country music artists who have charted with songs co-written by Jackson, including Clay Walker ("If I Could Make a Living"), Chely Wright ("Till I Was Loved By You") and Faith Hill ("I Can't Do That Anymore").

"Alan Jackson: The Greatest Hits Collection" was released on October 24, 1995. The disc contained 17 hits, two newly-recorded songs ("I'll Try" and "Tall, Tall Trees"), and the song "Home" from his first album that had never been released as a single. With Jackson's release of Under the Influence in 1999, he took the double risk on an album of covers of country classics while retaining a traditional sound when a rock- and pop-tinged sound dominated country radio. When the Country Music Association (CMA) asked George Jones to trim his act to 90 seconds for the 1999 CMA awards, he decided to boycott the event. In solidarity, Jackson interrupted his own song and launched into Jones's song "Choices". After country music changed toward pop music in the 2000s, he and George Strait criticized the state of country music on the song "Murder on Music Row". The song sparked debate in the country music community about whether or not "traditional" country music was actually dead or not. Despite the fact that the song was not officially released as a single, it became the highest-charting nonseasonal album cut (not available in any retail single configuration or released as a promotional single to radio during a chart run) to appear on Hot Country Singles & Tracks in the Broadcast Data Systems era, beating the record previously held by Garth Brooks' "Belleau Wood." The duo were invited to open the 2000 Academy of Country Music Awards (ACMAs) with a performance of the tune.[10] Rolling Stone commented on Jackson's style remarking, "If Garth and Shania have raised the bar for country concerts with Kiss-style production and endless costume changes, then Alan Jackson is doing his best to return the bar to a more human level". After the September 11, 2001 attacks, Jackson released "Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)" as a tribute. The song became a hit single and briefly propelled him into the mainstream spotlight. Alan Jackson's newest studio album, Good Time, was released on March 4, 2008. The album's first single, "Small Town Southern Man," was released to radio on November 19.