The breadth and depth of his catalog points to the diversity and complexity of his musical approach and of his personality. He is the man who gave us one of modern-day country’s rowdiest classics, Honky Tonk Badonkadonk, and one of its most touching, You’re Gonna Miss This, which earned two of his four Grammy nominations, became his third chart-topping hit, and was named the ACM’s Single of the Year. He is equally convincing across a musical spectrum that stretches from Hot Mama to Songs About Me, from (This Ain’t No) Thinkin’ Thing to Then They Do.
With the release of his latest, Cowboy’s Back In Town, Trace launches a new chapter in one of the genre’s most storied careers. Musically, he shows himself to be at the top of his game. This is an album that has a smile on it, says Trace’s friend, touring partner, and now label mate and label owner, Toby Keith. Their partnership took root during last year’s America’s Toughest Tour, which saw the pair barnstorm through 29 cities, renewing their friendship and gaining fresh appreciation for each other’s musical approaches. When Toby’s Show Dog label merged with Universal Music, Trace expressed interest and Toby eagerly asked him to come aboard.
A native of Sarepta, Louisiana, he worked as a pipe fitter on an offshore drilling rig and spent time in a gospel quartet before making a name for himself in the honky-tonks of Texas and Louisiana. He moved to Nashville in 1992when then-Capitol Records president Scott Hendricks spotted him playing in a workingman’s bar and signed him. Trace’s one-of-a-kind voice and his knack for bringing believability to every song did the rest.
His first album, the platinum Dreamin’ Out Loud, produced three Top 3 hits, including his first #1, Thinkin’ Thing. More than twenty of his singles would hit the Top 20 and give him the platform from which everything else would flow.His videos have been fan-voted Top Video of the Year three times on GAC, and Honky-Tonk Badonkadonk was voted #2 Video of the Decade by CMT. Trace became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 2003. He teamed with his friend Blake Shelton on the latter’s recent single, Hillbilly Bone, which went to the top of the charts and was named ACM Vocal Event of the Year, and, to top it all off, he was voted Country’s Sexiest Man by the readers of Country Weekly.
As his visibility increased, Trace was able to expand any number of heartfelt charitable and patriotic efforts. He is a spokesman for the Wounded Warrior Project, an organization helping severely wounded veterans, and was given the group’s Community Service award recently. He has performed frequently for military personnel, including two tours through the Middle East with the USO, which has given him its Merit Award. That dedication to worthwhile causes, led Country Radio Broadcasters to give Trace their Artist Humanitarian Award in 2010.
At his core, Trace remains first and foremost a musician dedicated to making the best music he can as enjoyably as possible. You can’t have any more fun than going into the studio and making records with your friends, he says, and that’s what I did with Cowboy’s Back In Town. I think that shows in the way it sounds.
