61 number one hits, 100 million records sold, and a three-time CMA Entertainer of the Year. Need we say any more to explain why George Strait is unquestionably considered as “The King of Country”?
Although Strait retired from full-scale touring following the conclusion of his Cowboy Rides Away Tour in 2014, he’s not ready to hang up his hat any time soon. He still continues to perform, just on a smaller scale than before.
After performing a recent series of shows in Las Vegas, Strait thrilled his fans when he announced more dates for 2017. The new shows, called “2 Nights of Number 1’s” will feature Strait singing 30 of his number one hits during each performance.
Even though he doesn’t perform as much as he used to, Strait still has a lot on his plate. He just released the second box set of his career, which features some new songs alongside his big hits from the past. As Strait learned from the release of his first box set in 1995, it’s always important to get new music out there. Case in point…Strait released a new single called “Check Yes or No” off of his first box set, and that single went on to become one of his many number one hits.
Speaking to Rolling Stone, Strait said that the success of “Check Yes or No” showed him why he should include new music on his second box set. That new music comes in the form of a song written with son Bubba and frequent collaborator Dean Dillion called “You’ve Gotta Go Through Hell” and a tune co-written with Jamey Johnson titled “Kicked Out of Country.”
“I think it’s important to get something new out there,” he said. “A lot of the songs that I chose to put on here I felt like I had looked over as singles back in the day only got leftover because you can only do so many of them.”
Now that his box set is out there and his Vegas show days are set, Strait is looking forward to sharing more new music with his fans. As he spoke to Rolling Stone, he confirmed the one thing country fans are always dying to hear from him…he’s in the process of working on a new album!
It sounds like Strait is in the beginning stages of putting the album together, and hopes to collaborate with his son and Dillion to write more material. He shared that he’d like to write or co-write every song on this upcoming project, saying it’s something he’s never done before.
“I am starting to write some for it. The other day when I went in the studio, I did a little rough cut of one that’s going to go on there, that actually Bubba and Dean and I wrote the same time we wrote ‘You’ve Gotta Go Through Hell.’ So that’ll be on there and then Dean and Bubba and I are planning on getting together. I want to write the whole thing. I’ve never done it. I think the most I’ve ever had is six or eight songs on a record.”
We can hardly contain our excitement! How about you?
While you wait on Strait to get his new album ready to go, enjoy listening to his new song “Kicked Outta Country” below.