CMT Blog: Rascal Flatts

Even being nominated, they say, is an honor. But after years of watching country awards shows, I have to say it that it felt so strange to NOT have Kenny Chesney accepting anything at last night's CMA Awards with a heartfelt speech about being from East Tennessee. Or Rascal Flatts NOT joking around on stage, awards in hand, while they thanked God and their wives. And there was a big fat void without Keith Urban doing some charming Australian-accented thing (although he did win musical event of the year prior to the telecast) or Carrie Underwood trying to stop the tears welling up in her eyes while she thanked fans, country radio and her mom. I'm not saying I disagree with the decisions of the voters this year. I love that country seems to be ushering in a new era of artists. But it feels like that journey from yesterday's winners to today's went by way too fast.

It was mostly the usual suspects who got nominated for the awards that were presented Wednesday (Nov. 11) in Nashville, but the winners in some of the categories make you wonder what's going on among the voters who are card-carrying members of the Country Music Association. (I should mention that I am a CMA member, but I'm not sure I could locate my card if I had to.) Lady Antebellum had a great year, but what does it mean when they win over the longtime favorite, Rascal Flatts? And while there was much discussion about whether Taylor Swift would win the entertainer of the year award, I really thought CMA voters would make her wait at least another year before presenting her with the organization's highest honor. And when people accuse country music of sounding like pop music, the song of the year prize somehow goes to Jamey Johnson's "In Color." At the risk of stirring things up, what are your thoughts about the winners at the CMA Awards show?

I met Chris Young last week and he couldn't have been sweeter. Until he started singing. Then his smoky, dirty, sexy, I-want-you-naked side came out when he sang "Gettin' You Home." It's the one about her black dress hitting the floor and loving him all night long. In a way, songs like this are aspirational more than they are relatable. I think I speak for a lot of married couples when I say that it's been a while since the lyrics of this song have rung true. So I put together a playlist of country songs to kind of bring the sexy back.

"Gettin' You Home," Chris Young
"Need You Now," Lady Antebellum
"What I'd Give," Sugarland
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There is something about a Rascal Flatts song, and I can't quite put my finger on it, that makes it a hit from the first verse. Their latest, "Why," has been the most-added song on country radio stations for the past couple weeks. Why? It could be the distinctive Flatts sound you get with the sparse combination of piano and Gary LeVox' vocals, especially in the intro. Or the way the lyrics vaguely describe a troubled soul who walks away in the middle of a song. I get that this is a song about a suicide. But like so many other Rascal Flatts songs do, this one takes an ugly topic and turns it into something beautifully bittersweet.

The last time she rolled through Chicago on a radio tour, I interviewed Holly Williams about her new album and asked her what kind of a country songwriter she was. She said, "I am not a depressed, earth-is-falling-all-around-me songwriter." And now that she's just tied the knot, I'd say that's still very much the truth. She wed Chris Coleman in Nashville last weekend. Wearing a Vera Wang gown, she joined her husband and danced their first dance to Emmylou Harris' "I Dug Up a Diamond." Her father, Hank Williams Jr., walked her down the aisle. And Rascal Flatts' Jay DeMarcus sang "Bless the Broken Road" for the newlyweds. All this wedded bliss will surely inspire even more of her trademark poetic musings, so stay tuned.

I am so blessed. With my family, my health, this job. But I'm also feeling blessed with really good friendships today. I celebrated my birthday this weekend (I turned 29. Again.) and just feel so lucky to have a group of good pals to make the party such a blast. These are friends who make me laugh, but are there when you need a good cry. Friends who know all your dirty secrets but would never tell a soul. And friends who will buy you one too many Jack & Cokes, but then make sure you get home OK. So this morning I'm celebrating every song that has anything to do with friendships.

"Find Out Who Your Friends Are," Tracy Lawrence
"My Old Friend," Tim McGraw
"Friends in Low Places," Garth Brooks
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I don't blame this writer. Golf must be pretty boring to talk about, so when you're interviewing Darius Rucker, even if it's for PGATOUR.com, the conversation should always start with the music. So he asks Rucker about people calling him Hootie, to which Rucker replies, "With the country thing, I'm starting to break away from the Hootie references, but the thing to me is, I don't care. I'm just happy people still know who I am." And they talk about Rucker's tour with Rascal Flatts and the golfing they managed to fit in this summer. "It's just been awesome. One of the reasons I took on the tour was because I knew I could have a good time with [guitarist] Joe Don [Rooney]. We play a lot of golf," Rucker says. "My life on the road is being in the bus, and then from there I walk inside the amphitheater. When you play golf, you get to be outside. It doesn't matter where I'm playing, I always say I've never seen an ugly golf course because it gives me that chance to be outside." Then Rucker, who has a six handicap, says his dream foursome for golf would be him, Tiger Woods, Dr. Martin Luther King and Jesus. Sounds like a country song to me.

I had a feeling the guys in Rascal Flatts didn't put together their own stage outfits. And now I have proof, thanks to this little Q&A in the Denver Post with Flatts' stylist John Murphy. What a job that must be. He says he likes to shop by palette and does a lot of reds, blues, black and silver. But don't think the trio is about to go "boy band" anytime soon. "If I were to put Rascal Flatts in scarves and the shirts with V-neck sweaters and jackets, it would be a bit much for them," he points out. "There's definitely a Jonas Brothers line you can't cross." Then he talks about who likes their jeans skinny and boot-cut or otherwise. Boots of choice? Old Gringo. And underwear? He doesn't specify a brand but does admit he's had to go buy some when they guys forget theirs. That must be when you know you're a rock star. When you have someone who will make an underwear run for you.

Fifty minutes. That's how long I had to watch Oprah Winfrey's big kick-off show before I got what I wanted: Rascal Flatts.

There was so much hype about this show. Oprah's 24th season kick-off party was all anyone was talking about this week, at least in Chicago. But all I cared about was Rascal Flatts. (No offense, Oprah.) I wasn't able to go when they taped it on Tuesday (Sept. 8), because the crush of humanity made it impossible to get within a three-mile radius of the part of the city where it was being taped. So today, I watched what I missed.

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Here are some musical tidbits that came out of the nominations for the 43rd CMA Music Awards:

• The Raconteurs got their first nomination -- for musical event for "Old Enough" and also garnered guest vocalist Ashley Monroe her first nomination. Another guest vocalist, Ricky Skaggs, earned his 24th CMA nomination. His last nomination came 10 years ago in the same category. He has won eight CMA awards.

• Randy Travis, up for song of the year and for musical event with Carrie Underwood for "I Told You So," was last nominated in 2003. He last won in 1988, for male vocalist. The song for which he and Underwood are nominated, his composition "I Told You So," was a No. 1 hit for Travis in 1988. He has a total of five wins and 24 nominations.

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