Tracy Lawrence 'Then and Now: The Hits Collection' album

Tracy Lawrence is one of the premiere voices of his generation, a sensitive and intelligent singer who continues to stretch both as an artist and as a person. Lawrence's dedication to honesty and respect for tradition have enabled him to build one of the most respected careers in recent country history.

Tracy has posted more No. 1 Billboard country singles than greats like Glen Campbell, Keith Whitley, Ernest Tubb, Wynonna or Barbara Mandrell, to name just a few; more Top 5's than Shania Twain, Faith Hill or The Judds; and more Top 10's than Ricky Skaggs, Charlie Rich, John Michael Montgomery or Dwight Yoakam.

Tracy hit the national spotlight in 1991. He was just 23, the product of a rough-and-tumble childhood in Foreman, Ark. A self-described "hellion" as a youngster, Lawrence found release in performing. He was playing at music jamborees at 15 and in honky-tonks at 17, learning, he says, "what it takes to keep them on the dance floor through four or five sets."

He moved to Nashville in 1990 in a 10-year-old Toyota Corolla that had, he says, "about 250,000 miles on it, expired tags, no insurance, only three cylinders and a fan with a piece of wire around it to cool the car." He was a huge fan of Keith Whitley, Waylon Jennings and Merle Haggard, and he idolized George Strait, complementing those influences with an appreciation for Southern rock, which he knew held a special place in the hearts of his honky-tonk audiences. He was also taken by a country tradition that was then finding its chief manifestation in Randy Travis.

Lawrence adopted elements from all of these sources, and his striking vocal instrument - distinctively country with a cutting edge - earned him attention from the beginning. While working a series of side jobs, he entered singing contests around town, regularly winning first prize. A live appearance on a Kentucky radio station and a showcase at Nashville's famed Bluebird Café led to his 1991 signing to Atlantic Records.

Lawrence's debut album, Sticks And Stones (1991) boasted four Top 10 country hits and launched him into the forefront of the decade's young talent. Journalists praised his style and fans pushed sales of the album to platinum certification. He proved he had the goods on the road as well, being named SRO's Best New Touring Artist in 1993.

As if that weren't enough, his second album, the double-platinum Alibis (1993), spawned four straight #1 smashes - the title cut, "Can't Break It To My Heart," "My Second Home" and "If The Good Die Young" - and earned raves everywhere from GQ to Newsweek. "That got us past the sophomore jinx," Lawrence says with a grin. During the mid-'90s, he was among the most-played artists in all genres.

Yet another quartet of major hits rose from the platinum I See It Now (1994), including "If The World Had A Front Porch" and "Texas Tornado." Then, Lawrence hit a creative and sales peak with "Time Marches On," a Bobby Braddock-penned blockbuster that led the 1996 album of the same name to double-platinum [double-checking fact] status and earned Lawrence nominations at all the major awards ceremonies.

Lawrence's next album, 1997's The Coast Is Clear, produced the trademark hit "Better Man, Better Off." It preceded Lessons Learned (2000), which found the singer re-energized by his country roots. Both discs earned critical praise and kept Lawrence's radio presence and catalog sales chugging along.

It's no surprise that over the years Lawrence has received widespread recognition: He was named Billboard's Top New Male Vocalist in 1992, garnering the Academy Of Country Music's Top New Male Vocalist trophy a year later; he earned the Country Weekly Golden Pick Awards' Video Artist Of The Year prize in 1995 and its Editor's Choice Platinum Pick crown in 1996, among other honors.

Lawrence has produced his own and others' work and co-wrote a number of the songs he's recorded, including "If The World Had A Front Porch" and "Can't Break It To My Heart." Moreover, he has had considerable impact beyond the record industry. Lawrence contributed the song "Renegades, Rebels And Rogues" to the Maverick soundtrack and has starred in two CMT specials, one of which included footage from a USO tour that saw him entertain troops in Kosovo. He also co-produced nine of the 13 songs on The Civil War: The Nashville Sessions, a collection of songs written for the Broadway theater production "The Civil War: An American Musical Event." It features Travis Tritt, Deana Carter, Trace Adkins, Kevin Sharp, Michael English, Trisha Yearwood and John Berry.

Lawrence has always been active in charitable causes, and he is annually at the helm of two events that are especially meaningful to him: a homecoming concert in his hometown that funds the Tracy Lawrence Foundation and a golf tournament in Texarkana, Texas, benefiting both the Tracy Lawrence Foundation and the local chapter of the Alzheimer's Assn. Lawrence's foundation has endowed scholarships and, most recently, provided funds to equip a high school computer science lab, a room that has been named after him. Lawrence helped raise more than a million dollars for the fight against Cystic Fibrosis; he's participated in numerous fundraisers for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital; generated awareness and funds for CASA, a non-profit organization providing trained volunteer advocates to abused and neglected children caught up in the legal systems; and supported a lengthy list of the charitable causes of fellow celebrities and media outlets through live concert appearances, autograph signings, auction item donations, and interviews. "People have a duty to help each other out," he says. "I'm happy I can give something back to society through my efforts to raise funds and awareness for these important causes."

Cut by Cut

TRACY TALKS ABOUT THE HITS COLLECTION: THEN & NOW

There are 17 songs in this hits collection. I re-recorded 14 of my past hits, included the original version of "Paint Me A Birmingham," and recorded two brand new songs. It's important for my fans to understand why we re-recorded the hits. The short answer is simply that I now record for Mercury Records Nashville under the Universal Music Group Nashville (UMGN) umbrella. The rights to all of my previous master recordings are owned by the record label where I spent the bulk of my recording career. The UMGN team and I felt that timing was appropriate for us to re-record and issue my hits.

In making this record, I got the chance to study myself as a vocalist and as a person. I listened to what I did with “Sticks And Stones” all the way through what I did with “Paint Me A Birmingham.” It was pretty educational to go back through 14 years of my life and pick myself apart. I learned a lot about myself.

We were intent on recapturing the magic for this CD. I wanted the cuts to be as close sonically to the original recordings as we could make them. We matched tempos, snare sounds and guitar licks--everything. I even sang along with the originals to try to get my phrasing as close as possible. We did all that we could, short of stepping back in time, to get as close to reliving the moments those records were recorded.

We worked with a lot of the same players that played on my original recordings. We talked about the studios we played in. We cut up and reminisced about all of the good times on the road during those years. We talked about the path my music had traveled with different producers. I could hear my growth and I could hear the strain in my voice during the times when there was pain in my life. It brought it all back to life for me. In a lot of ways I found the whole process healthy and therapeutic.

TRACY TALKS ABOUT THE NEW SONGS

“Used To The Pain” written by Mark Nesler and Tony Martin

I've been a big fan of Mark Nesler's songs and Tony Martin’s songs for years. This happened to be one that they wrote together. Allison Jones, Vice-President of A&R for UMGN, played this for us in a song meeting and I said, "You know what? That would be a great song for me." James Stroud, my Producer and Co-Chairman of UMGN, flipped out over it too, and we went in the studio and just hooked the fire out of this thing. It wasn't even like work. The musicians—everybody--were on their game and the integrity of the track just fell into place. I think it's one of the strongest things I've delivered in a long time.

“If I Don't Make It Back” written by Bobby Pinson and Brett Jones

When I got my hands on this gem, the demo was real rough and everyone, including James, had reservations about it. But when we got in the studio, the A-team (Nashville's premiere studio musicians) really came through for me. Every one of them came in and said, "This is one of the best records I've ever heard." That's when you know you've got something. I think this song has the potential to be one of my biggest hits ever. The combination of the lyric, the hook, and the fiddle is just overwhelmingly powerful. There's magic in it.

TRACY TALKS ABOUT HIS MUSIC

I've always been drawn to songs about family and day-to-day life. It's like searching for a good book or a great movie. I tend to search for songs with strong messages, songs that present an interesting perspective or put a different twist on a story, the ones that paint a picture and come to life in the mind of the listener. That's the material I like to sink my teeth into and that's what my fans have come to expect from me.

TRACY TALKS ABOUT LIFE AS ART

My music is a direct reflection of each corner I've turned in life. Each album I've recorded has been directly influenced by where I was in my personal life and what was going on around me. Now that I've stepped into a new chapter of life, people say to me, "So now your music's going to change because you've got a family and all these things." I respond by explaining that my music has always changed and evolved. There are always going to be new elements to add to it. I don't think you lose all the things that made you who you were before--you just build on them. Each chapter you open in life makes you deeper, wiser, and a much more well-rounded human being and artist.

TRACY LAWRENCE ON CREATIVITY

The move to DreamWorks in 2003 and my recent shift to the Mercury Records roster has had a terrific impact on my creativity. Change, in the form of a new label home, newfound loyalty, support, and genuine excitement about my music, has been refreshing. With the success of “Paint Me A Birmingham,” I just got rejuvenated. Where creativity had seemed to elude me for a while, I was inspired to write again. I'm trying to grow as a person and as a writer, working with people I haven't written with before. I'm looking at life through different perspectives and it's all very motivating.

TRACY ON JAMES STROUD, PRODUCER AND CO-CHAIRMAN, UMG NASHVILLE

James and I have such a deep relationship. It goes back many years and runs the gamut from friend to confidant to producer to mentor to counselor. If you look at the beginning of my career, James Stroud was the first person that believed in me in this town. I sat down in front of him and played some of my original material, just me and my guitar. James agreed to produce my first record--and finance it!--long before I ever had my deal with Atlantic. I recorded my first three albums with James, and then we parted ways, with a lot of respect for each other intact. He was going through such a rise in his career and I was in a place where I wanted to grow and do more things on my own. I recorded with producer Don Cook, and I went through my years of self-production, working with Flip Anderson. As my time at Atlantic was coming to an end, I realized it was time to hand the reins to somebody else again. I met with everybody in town, but when I sat down with James, I think we both realized that we had unfinished business to do. We've made some great music together and we felt like we needed to pick up where we left off and recapture the magic of our professional relationship. As we got back into the studio, it felt good to have that kind of trust and respect for somebody, and to know that it was mutual. James holds the bar high. He challenges me to broaden my musical thinking, to stretch and experiment with my music, and to deliver the best possible vocal performance on every song. When he loosens the reins, he knows I'm going to make sure that everything's up to his standard because the last thing I want to do is let him down. Our relationship is different than that of most artists and label head/producers. I think it's really something special.

TRACY: UP, DOWN, AND FORWARD

After all of the meteoric ups and downs of the last ten years of my life, it's nice to experience the feeling of being embraced again. I really didn't get to savor these moments the first time around. There are a lot of people who are really rooting me on. I feel and I appreciate their support and I don't take any of this for granted. Just that vote of confidence, that pat on the back from folks out there has really been good for me. I've got my life together and all of the support has really put a fire back under me.

TRACY ON STAGE

I approach the concert stage differently than I used to. It used to be that I was aggressive from top to bottom, every show. I went out there with one goal in mind--just work the band and the fans into a frenzy. These days, I let the crowds dictate the way it goes. Crowds have personalities as a whole. Some want to kick back and just kind of roll with the flow of the show. They want to be entertained. They don't want to do any of the work. I'm happy to entertain them with a good solid show of hits. Other crowds are a little more fired up and rowdy. They're ready for a party and we can sure give it to them.

TRACY AND HIS BUS: THEN & NOW

Now that I have a wife and children I want to spend a lot of time with, my bus has been relegated to “just a necessary part of what we do.” There was a time when I lived for getting on that bus and pulling out of town. I used to love that bus. It was like my little safe chamber, my escape. I could lock myself up on it and hibernate. I could stay on it 24/7, and just get off to do a show and then go right back to it. I've learned to enjoy the world around me a little bit more as I've matured. These days, the bus is simply a mode of transportation to get me from Point A to Point B. I like to get off the bus and play golf as much as I can. I like to get up and go to the gym and work out in the morning. Sometimes we even put up a little tent outside the bus, pull out the grill, cook up some burgers and play some horseshoes.

TRACY’S FANS

The most loyal, most diehard, most dependable fans are country music fans. They stand head and shoulders above the fans in any other format. Just reflecting back on the last CMA Music Fest, the one thing I heard most often from them was, "Thank you so much for continuing to do the things you do for your fans." They don't get that anywhere else and they genuinely appreciate it more than I think they ever have. They know we do it by choice. It's a mutual loyalty, and it's something I will continue to do as long as I'm healthy. I love my fans. Their love and loyalty allows me to do something I have a passion for--my music--and for that I'm extremely grateful.

TRACY LAWRENCE: THE VISION

My long-term goal has always been to get to that Haggard and Jones level, to be one of the elder statesmen who continues to influence people and leave his mark etched on this world even when radio no longer plays his current releases. I'm a long way from that point, but I see some of those things happening now in the way some of the younger artists approach me and share that I've been an influence on their music and their careers. You can't fully achieve that respect from peers and the industry until you're truly seasoned, but in the meantime, I'm very proud to be part of the country music business. I love what I do. I hope I can perform until they wheel me away.

TRACY’S HOME AND FAMILY

Having children gave me much-needed responsibility. It forced me to stop thinking about myself. I can't sleep 'til 11 anymore. There's too much life to be lived that I would otherwise miss. Sometimes I get up at 6:30 in the morning, have a cup of coffee, get the babies--Skylar JoAnn and Mary Keagan--up and let my wife Becca sleep in a little bit. I'm in such a different place now and I attribute every bit of it to my stability at home, my relationship with my wife, and the responsibility of having children. There is a great deal of peace and happiness in my personal life, and my wife and children contribute so much to who I am as a person. I believe in putting family first, not neglecting the people who love you and stand behind you. That's the biggest priority in my life. You don't really understand what love is until you have children. To me, it has been the greatest milestone of my life. I never really understood what I was here for until I had children. They are, without a doubt, the most important thing I have ever done in my life.

TRACY CARRYING IT FORWARD

There's so much I want to do beyond being an artist. I do a lot of things on the business and management side of music. I have served and will continue to serve on the governing boards for organizations like the Academy of Country Music (ACM) and the Country Music Association (CMA). I want to be an ambassador for the industry as a whole. I want to help people avoid some of the mistakes I've made during my career. James [Stroud] and I have often discussed what an influence I could have on other artists in this business. I try to reach out to a lot of the new ones coming in, to give them a personal call, just literally to be a friend and offer them honesty and experience when sometimes nobody else will.

TRACY ADDRESSES CHARITY

Something important that my former manager Wayne Edwards instilled in me as my career was taking off, and something that sticks with me to this day, is the importance of giving back. It's just ingrained in my soul. He'd say, “If we're going to be successful and enjoy all the perks and accolades of success in this business, we can never forget the people that are people who need our help." I have carried that with me and will instill it in my children. As long as I have a breath in me it will be a part of my life to contribute something back to this world.”

TRACY LAWRENCE: KEEPING IT ALL IN CHECK

There was a time when every decision I made, every contact I made, and every move I made had a direct affect on my career. I am in such a different and better place now that I have come to understand that there are so many more important things in life than just working yourself and everyone around you into the ground. I am passionate and driven when it comes to my career, in many ways more passionate and more driven than ever, but friends and family and relationships are truly the real and powerful things in life. When I get old and gray, the bank account won't keep me warm. The plaques on the wall won't snuggle up with me at night. The friends and the love that I have for the people around me mean so much more than all the rest of it put together. That simple four-letter word [love] keeps everything in perspective.

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Tracy Lawrence - Then and Now: The Hits Collection