Country Music in the 90’s: The Year is 1993

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3:05Welcome to another episode of the 90s podcast. On this episode, I'll be diving deep into one of the most important ears in country music history I'm talking about 1993. This year was the year when legends cemented their legacy, newcomers burst onto the scene, and country music wasn't just popular, it was mainstream. So let's rewind the tape and relive the top 10 events that made 1993 unforgettable. Number 10, let's kick it off where we left off in 1992 with Billy Ray Cyrus. Now we got to start with a reminder of just how massive Billy Ray was leading into 1993. His debut single, Aiki Break Your Heart dropped in 1992, it exploded, it was everywhere, it wasn't just a country hit, it was also a pop hit. And I remember going down to Parthenus, which was a little gas station at the bottom mountain pine where we could use food stamps, and I would go down and we'd get hamburgers made by Parthenus, and they had Aiki Break Your Heart T-shirts.

4:11It was the only T-shirt I had ever seen sold at Parthenus gas station, and there was some pigments, and there was some blue ones, and they had a heart on it, with like a crack down the middle, and it said Aiki Break Your Heart. That's right, it was everywhere. Aiki Break Your Heart topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart, across over onto the pop charts, it sold like crazy, the Songs Music video, went into heavy rotation on CMT and even on MTV, and most importantly, it ignited line dancing. Think about this. Before Billy Ray, line dancing was a thing, sure. But it was an issue. After Billy Ray, and after Aiki Break, it was like baseball, a national pastime. By 1993, you couldn't go to a wedding, a high school dance, or a hockey talk without somebody trying to rope you into a line dance. Local news stations were running how-to tutorials. Fitness instructors were teaching line dancing as cardio, even people who had never worn cowboy boots a day in their life were suddenly stomping in you to send to Billy Ray. This was not just a hit song, this was a cultural takeover. And unlike anything, mainstream had seen since, John Travolta in the Urban Cowboy Days.

5:21This was basically a huge TikTok trend, way before TikTok was ever even a thing. So when the calendar flips to 93, Billy Ray was faced with a big challenge. Could he keep it going? Or would he be remembered as one hit wonder, with a great haircut and some big old arms? Soft more album, it won't be the last, comes out in July of 1993. The title itself felt like a message to the critics. I'm not done yet, and it was true. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard Top Country album chart. Proven the fans were still in with Billy Ray, it went platinum selling over a million copies. And remember, this was a time when people had to physically go to the store, like start the car, put it in D, drive it, and then pay an indoor and an amount of money for a CD or a tape that had a bunch of songs, where only like four of them were good. Yeah, that's right. People were pulling it out for Billy Ray, and about pulling it out, I mean the cash. The lead single in the heart of woman was the centerpiece of it all, it climbed all the way to number three on the Billboard Country chart.

6:25Now, it didn't have the cultural earthquake effect of Aiki Breakie Heart, but nothing ever does. But it did show that Billy Ray had more than one trick up his denim sleeve. He could deliver heartfelt ballads and boots-goon-born burners and other songs like Somebody New and Words by Heart also made it on the charts. Again, they weren't monsters, but they were enough to keep them in the mix and keep them on the radio all through 1993. His live shows, massive. In 1993, Billy Ray was still touring like a man on fire. Thousands of his concerts, obviously it was electric. This wasn't some flash in the pan, playing small bars. Billy Ray was selling out arenas. And if you looked at the concert, it was a mix of country concert, a little bit of pop spectacle, a little bit of beaver fever, except way before beaver fever, where people were just screaming the whole time. He had a mallet, people were cutting their hair, in mallets, they were wearing his clothes, they were wearing like denim shirts with their arms all cut out.

7:25I love a sleeveless shirt, so that had been perfect for me. And there was the media circus. Because Billy Ray was on everything. He was on magazine covers, left and right, people rolling stone, even fashion spreads. He was on talk shows, variety shows, late night shows. He did the episode of the nanny. Remember that? Or she was in line trying to get an autograph? I mean, Billy Ray was a household name. But, just like anything, the catch is on, and gets really famous. Criticism follows. Country traditionalists weren't happy about it. Some argued that Billy Ray was too flashy, too pot friendly, too gimmicky. They saw him as a departure from the George straight school of just seeing the song. But here's what the critics missed. Billy Ray was expanding the audience. He was pulling in fans who had never even thought to give country music a chance before. He made it accessible, he made it fun, sometimes a little goofy. But he brought people in. And once they were in, they checked out other artists as well. They loved the mallet, right? That was a thing. Business in the front, party in the back, and people still talk about it today.

8:27Billy Ray, number one mallet and country music ever. We're gonna wall them probably second, but Billy Ray, number one. Now here's something that a lot of people forget. Billy Ray was also a family man during all of this. In 1992, just before Aiki breaky blew up, his daughter, Destiny hopes Cyrus was born. Miley. So in 1993, while Billy Ray was selling out stadiums, he was also a new dad. The balance between Megafame and fatherhood gave him a bit of an every man appeal that the fans connected with. Legacy wise, Billy Ray's momentum in 1993 did something really important for country music. He kept a genre in mainstream conversations. He blurred the line between country and pop culture in a way that paved the road for Chenaya, Faith, McGraw, all the crossover stars who came later. Without Billy knocking down that door, the 90s country boom may not have been so explosive. So it was Billy Ray in 1993 still riding the Aiki breaky heart wave. Yeah, of course he was.

9:28But he was also proving he had a little more to offer. He wasn't just a novelty act. He was a bona fide star. And he had the sales, he had the tour, he had the hits to back it up. And love them. Or roll your eyes at him. Can't ignore him. In 1993, Billy Ray Cyrus said, I'm not going anywhere. I was talking with Billy Ray once. And I asked him when he knew he wanted to move to Nashville and pursue music full time. My first trip came about 1981. A couple demos and picture to and thinking, man, it's it. I'm ready. My goal was to be a singer, songwriter. And God would give me the wisdom and vision to use my music. Represent his lot in his love in this world. All I need to record do 81 became 82. 2, 2, 3, 3, 4. And during 84, the bar I was playing in Ironson, Ohio burnt to the ground. And I saw it on the news and I went over there and everything had melted. And I'm going through with a flashlight and the water's dripping off the ceiling and places melted the drum. Everything's gone.

10:29But this little Bible that I had found in the floor had parted into the middle from the heat and I shy my flashlight on it. And I said, with every adversity lost the seed to something better. And I stood there in the darkness and say, man, this is God telling you every time you go to Nashville, they say, you're rock and roll. You're not country enough. You're rock and roll. So I said, God telling you, you need to move to LA. You love rock and roll. And so I'm next couple weeks I left out of Ohio and I moved to LA got out there and found everybody tell me I was to country. And certainly with my name didn't help at all. Billy Ray and Billy Ray, you got a mullet. You were a cowboy hat and you're you looking sound country. Surely your country said, no, I love rock and roll. But unfortunately I didn't get any jobs or record deal and a point being out of desperation. I got a job at baby toy town. I did sell Pat Benatar, a baby stroll, learned some stuff. And that was as close to the making it as I came. But as Thomas Edison said, every time you fell, you eliminate that one way that won't work. Therefore being one way closer to the one way that will. And I failed way more times than I ever succeeded. Like by far I have way more times of failure. And in some ways, California,

11:48I think too was just an extension of all my failures in Nashville. But I took what I learned from LA in a couple of years later in LA in my darkest moments that OK, now go back, go back to Nashville with what you've learned here and use everything you've learned and just persistence is to the quality of the character of man what carbon is to steal just keep be a jackhammer. It's not the force of the jackhammer that breaks the concrete. It's the repetition. Just keep going persistence 1989 and one week I wrote three of the songs off the album. Some gave all including some gave all admit a Vietnam veteran in Huntington West Virginia to little bar. I played that night and that song happened to be the song that I played for Harold Shed when after 10 years of being told no for the first time somebody said yes. Number nine. OK, let's take a step over to the calm cool collected cowboy of the early 90s. Clint Black. Now if Billy Ray was the spark that set the world dancing. Clint Black was the anchor that kept country music steady and grounded in its roots during the 1993 boom. He was part of that legendary class of 89 that golden crop of artists, Garth, Alan Jackson, Travis Tritt, Clint, who together, reshaped the genre for the 90s.

13:06The guys brought something different to the table. Garth was the showman Alan Jackson, the laid back poet, Travis the outlaw with a soft side and Clint, the craftsman, the songwriter, the man in the black hat who never seemed to lose his cool. By the time 1993 rolled around, Clint had already released three successful albums. His debut, Killin' Time, Monster, put yourself in my shoes in 1990, kept him a minimum of life. The hard way in 1992 proved he could deliver hits consistently. But when he dropped his fourth album, no time to kill July 1993. Fans and critics were eager to see if he could keep a streak alive. Spoiler he did. And he kept it very alive. He like brought it to life. It's a bad evidence in suppression. Alright, let's break down the album. No time to kill. It wasn't just good. It was awesome. It was stacked. The title track, No Time to Kill, hit number three on the Billboard Hot Country song chart. It is classic, Clint Black. Sharp lyrics, mood delivery, catchy as heck, not cheesy. Then came state of mind. Which shot up to number two.

14:25Breezy. Almost jazzy. Showing Clint could step just slightly outside the traditional sound while still keeping it country. But the crown jewel, a good run of bad luck. Released in early 94, but recorded as part of the 93 album, the song not only went to number one, but also ended up on the soundtrack for the Mill Gibson and Jody Foster movie Maverick. Clint was even in the movie. Imagine this. You're in the movie theater, 1994. Watchin' a big Hollywood western. And there he is. Clint Black. Lookin' as natural as ever in Hollywood. Other singles from his album kept the radio going. Half the man hit number four. We tell ourselves, was a top 10 song. And all, no time to kill produced five top 10 hits. That's the kind to run you usually only see from the greatest hits packages. But this was brand new material. Hot off the presses in 1993. Let's talk sales for a second. The album went double platinum, moving over two million copies. And I said earlier, people had to get in their cars, right? We did all that already. That's huge by any standard.

15:31But in the 90s, when Garth Brooks was outselling everyone on the planet, keeping pace with Garth was no small feat. Clint Black, boom, he was in the mix. Now while Clint's records were climbing charts, his tours were doing the same. In 1993, he was headlining across the country, off on alongside fellow alumni from that class of 1989. His shows weren't flashy like Garth flashy. He wasn't swinging from robes. He wasn't smashing guitars. Clint would walk out, signature black cowboy hat, guitar and hand and just deliver. He didn't need pyro. He had his voice, his songs, his guitar. Fans knew they were watching a real craftsman at work. Clint also had another card up a sleeve in 1993, his personal life. In 1991, he had married actress Lisa Hartman and the media aided up. Think of it as Taylor and Travis, but like way back then. They were Nashville's Golden Pier. Clint, the stoic cowboy songwriter, Lisa, the glamorous Hollywood actress. They were on red carpets everywhere. They were to award shows together. They were smiling for the cameras.

16:42They were showing that country music and have its own star couple every bit is captivating as anything Los Angeles was producing. And speaking of award shows, 1993, another strong year for Clint. He scored nominations across the board. CMAs, ACMs, American Music Awards. Now he didn't sweep like Vince Gill did that year, but his presence was steady. A reminder that he was one of the pillars holding up that entire 90s boom. One thing that often gets overlooked is Clint's guitar playing. Holy crap can he play. Because he wasn't just a singer, songwriter. He brought songs who you couldn't play along if you were just a middle of the road guitar player. He was playing leads on this stuff. On stage, he'd break into solos that showed he could handle the lead boys. I got this one. Some people have unique ways of learning the guitar and remembering guitar solos. I was talking to Clint Black about this one time and asked him, how do you remember solos when you're on stage? And then we got into the first song he ever learned on guitar. So here is a bit of that conversation.

17:43I didn't learn the best way. I learned with chord shapes. And then I learned the scales and the foundational stuff so well. So it took me a long time to adapt to being able to see things to play on the guitar. So when I'm soloing, I'm just working around some of it's just familiar stuff that I've... You know that I've played a bunch and some of it is just seeing the chord and seeing the shape of the chord and knowing how the notes are connected. It's not the best way to go about it. Do you remember the first song you ever learned on guitar? Yeah, it would have been Redneck Mother by Ray Wiley Hubbard. And while Clint was never the flashiest guy in the room, he had a Slice and Sihuma. I can tell you. When I hang out with him, I got to go in with armor because he's going to come and he's going to come cutting and hilarious.

18:47In interviews back then he'd poke at his own man in black image, saying he wore black because it was slimming or made the laundry easier. And he was always funny. People loved it. It made him feel approachable, his self-deprecating style. And that was pretty cool because he was selling millions of records. He didn't have to be approachable. The legacy of Clint Black in 1993. I think it's balance. At a time when country music was exploding into the mainstream with big personalities and crossover hits, Clint kept a genre grounded. He delivered traditional country songwriting with just enough modern polish to keep it grounded and to sound fresh. He showed you that you could be hugely successful without a bunch of gimmicks, without a bunch of explosions, without chasing the pop trends. Just write great songs and then sing the heck out of them. And don't forget, his influence lasted well beyond 93. Artists like Brad Paisley and then later generations of country music singers and songwriters often cite Clint as a model.

19:50As someone who blended musicianship, songwriting, consistency, all into a long respected career. In short, or in long, Clint Black in 1993 was the steady heartbeat of the country boom. While the world danced to Billy Ray and went wild at Garth Concerts, Clint was there, went in the black hat, reminding everyone that he was the foundation of country music. Great stories, clever lyrics, guitar parts, out the eardrums, and with the album no time to kill, he did it again. He killed it again. The Bobby Cast will be right back. When I was 14 years old, I was kidnapped and health captive for nine months. I survived and I've spent my life exploring how other people survive what should have destroyed them. I'm Elizabeth Smart and these are the survivor files. I just remember this low taunting voice next to my ear saying, shut up, don't say anything.

20:52Every week, I'm with survivors who lived through the unthinkable. I knew if he woke up, without a doubt he was going to hurt me. I started feeling that there was someone at the end of my bed and I just started screaming. They are abducted, stalked, controlled, and nearly silenced. But these aren't stories about what's taken from them. Their story is about what it takes to make it out alive. Listen to the survivor files with Elizabeth Smart on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. If you are bookshelf and you are for you page are equally important to your personality, welcome home. This is Pro's Society, the weekly podcast that's part book club, part group chat for thought daughters, pop culture obsessives, and anyone who thinks pride and prejudice and love island deserve the same level of discourse. I'm Eli Rallo and every week we're connecting the dots between books, the internet, and the conversations everyone can't stop having.

21:52I'm going to have to look up this story. I'm obsessed. From bestselling authors and your favorite book talk creators to the latest pop culture moments, nothing is off the table. So like if you can hide some real messages inside compelling characters and that is the Trojan horse. Whether you're looking for literary deep dives, smart pop culture conversations, or a community of readers who love to think a little too much, you're in the right place. Listen to Pro's Society on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. See you between the pages. On the new podcast Solita, we share the messy reality of traveling alone as a woman. I can wait four hours for the next bus or this random dude is offering me a ride on his motorcycle. I choose option B. I'm Julie Pinierro and I travel by myself because it's a rare space where I can say yes without asking anyone else first. I'm on a mission to reclaim the word Solita, trading the pity for possibility.

22:54Every time I tried to be alone, I kept meeting people and they were like, you smiled at us, not a lot of people smile around here. It's when you're alone that you're most receptive to the world as it is and not the lies you're sold about it. It can be a time where you push your limits, change your mind, or wake up to a new version of yourself. So whether you're a solo travel veteran or you're too nervous to book your first trip, I hope you listen to Solita on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is A's Davenport and Sean Clements. We host the podcast Hollywood handbook on the big money players network. Our show is extremely accessible to first time listeners. Each week we talk to someone in show business, aka the biz, and try to help them with their careers and see what they have to offer us. Everyone has a good time and no one gets mad at their publicists for letting them do our show. We've had a lot of great guests like Sarah Sherman, not that great. Can you help me shape this? How about we flip it on his head? How about we flip this around?

23:59What is the surprise one, man? Actually, you think is the straight man is actually the one who's acting weird. Adam Scott, this entire time you've been expecting Adam Sandler to come to visit the show. I would never let go of that. I have never set expectations for something like that. If the universe allows for something like that to happen, I am open to it. I'm always going to accept. You know, Danny McBride, fine. Yeah, it's all this fragile masculinity exuding. I could smell it walking on the hallway to be honest with you. I was like, is that what you need? No, it's fragile masculinity. Ben stiller, no. I think there's a lot of times out of context, people don't get it or even know what a circle is. You know what I mean? Like, girl, go work just so stupid. Everyone's so dumb. And fake. Right, fake and also not interested or just like, oh, I've got my life. I don't care about your life.

25:00And a lot of other big shots that wouldn't be where they are without us. Oh, and by the way, Will Ferrell told us personally he loves the show and he wants to be a guest on every episode. He's just so busy. Listen to Hollywood Handbook on the I Heart Radio app Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Mungus, you together and I'm back with a new season of the podcast Skyline Drive. This time I'm diving into a rabbit hole of peptides, organoids, blood boys, blue zones, and brain replacement to try to understand what this longevity obsession is all about. And what it really means to live forever for all of us. I learned about some rad science. I can make a brain for you. And then we can test what draw is the best for your brain, as opposed to his brain. Here's some hard truths. I would expect Indians to age faster, but I did not expect it to be almost a four to five year acceleration. And get myself into a world of trouble.

26:00I'd say probably start bone smashing. That doesn't work. Make you look more defined. They say it works. I don't know. Listen to Skyline Drive, how to live forever on the I Heart Radio app Apple Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts. Number eight. Okay, let's head south, waste south. For a little band that made a big impact in 1993. And by little I mean the band Little Texas. Now, Little Texas had been building momentum since the early 90s. But in 1993, they hit their stride. And boy did they with that song. God bless Texas with his own hands. What a jam. The song was everywhere. It was upbeat. It was fun. It was celebratory of the Lone Star State. And even a guy like me from Arkansas. I sing it. I didn't always love it. I love the song. I don't always love singing about Texas. But it was a jam. You could not sing it. You didn't have to be from Texas to love it.

27:03But if you were from Texas, it was like your own anthem. The song climbed to top five on the Billboard Country Chart. And it was played at football games like Crazy at Barbecue's at rodeos. If there were Texans there, dang it, they played this song. The music video, which you may remember. I remember it because I was 12 year old boy. He has full sunshine and cowboy hats and swagger. Well, a lot of women and bikinis. That's right. That is right. Thank you, Little Texas. But in 1993, it wasn't just about one song for Little Texas. The album, Big Time, released that year, produced multiple hits including what might have been great song. Ballad. It's kind of the softer side of Little Texas. They had a bunch of rowdy anthems. Did I mention they had a video with a lot of people in bikinis? Yeah. Yeah, they had that. 12 year old boy. Thanks you. But what might have been was an excellent song.

28:04On tour, Little Texas drew a crowd of younger fans at their shows. Because they were a part of the new wave of country music. The country music that had like put a little rock in there. Still had a lot of country heart. I mean, they weren't traditional. It's like George Strait. But they definitely weren't pop country either. They found a sweet spot right in the middle. And in 1993, magic. The legacy of 1993 for Little Texas is clear. It was the year they went from rising stars to headliners. And even today, yeah, I still sing it when it comes on. God bless Texas. One of those songs that lives on. Games, barbecues. You should pause this and go watch the video. Okay, I'll move on. Number seven. Let's talk about one of the purest voices to ever come out of the speakers. I'm talking about the voice from Trisha Yearwood. Now, if you rewind just a couple of years, or episodes in the series, Trisha burst onto the scene in 1991 with a season love with the boy.

29:05That was her debut single. The song went to number one. Made her a household name. Sweet story. You know, love. Small town love. And fans loved it because they were in small towns. And it felt authentic to their stories. It was something you'd overhear, you know, your uncle talking about it. People on a porch talking about, you know, things that happened in a small town. But here's the thing. Every breakout artist faces the same challenge. After the debut success, can you keep it going? In 1993, Trisha had her answer. And it came in the form of one of the most unforgettable heartbreak songs of the decade. That song, Walk Away Joe. And the song wasn't just a hit. It was a statement written by Vince Melamaud and Greg Barnhill. Walk Away Joe tells the story of a young woman who falls hard for a charming drifter only to be left behind when he inevitably moves on. It's about bad choices and broken promises and that all too familiar of dang, that stings when the person you trusted the most was never really yours to keep. It's kind of a song that makes you nod your head and say, yep, been there.

30:07Even if your Joe didn't actually wear cowboy boots. But here's what made Walk Away Joe a little different than those other breakup songs. It was Trisha, duh. Trisha's delivery. She sang it with a voice that was equal parts of strength and vulnerability. It wasn't whiny. It wasn't over the top. Just honest. And that honesty cut right to the bone. Critics at the time said she had one of the most pure, unforced voices in country music. And listening to Walk Away Joe, you understood exactly what they meant. Hey, take a second. Pause this. Go listen to it now. You'll hear it. But you've probably heard it for 20, 30 years at this point. And if that wasn't enough, that song had a secret weapon, Don Henley. Yeah, from the Eagles, the drummer, the singer. He came into sing Harmony Vocals. And you can listen and hear like that ghostly echo. That's Don Henley. That's the shadow of Joe himself haunting the song. Having Henley on the track in 1993 was huge. It was Nashville saying, hey, yeah, we're country.

31:08But we're also big league in this thing in American music. It was a bridge between classic rock royalty and Nashville tradition. That song Walk Away Joe climbed number two on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, stopping just short of number one. But in the long run, it became one of Trisha's most defining songs. It earned her a Grammy nomination. It cemented her status as one of the leading ladies in 90s country. Now, the music video was excellent. It featured this unknown actor by the name of Matthew McConaughey. He played the role of Joe. Yeah, before he was one of the Oscars and doing all right, all right, all right. Matthew McConaughey was the smooth talking heartbreaker in a Trisha Yearwood video. Go to YouTube, watch the video, heck, pause it again. That's two pauses this episode. Go watch the video. Looking back, it feels like destiny. Here was a future movie star cutting his teeth in the world of 90s country music videos. The video itself told the story vividly. Matthew McConaughey was Joe drifting one scene to the other. You know, good looking guy. God, all the moves.

32:08Leaving broken hearts in his wake. It added a cinematic flair that fit perfectly with Trisha's dramatic emotional performance. CMT ran the video all the time in 1993 and every time it came on, they got calls or letters. People were glued to the screen. The song was great and it was freaking Matthew McConaughey. But Trisha wasn't just about one single. No. Her second album, Hearts and Armor, which Walk Away Joe came from, was excellent. Released in late 92, it carried into 93 with a lot of critical acclaim. Wrong side of Memphis. You say you will. Excellent ballad. The album was praised for a lot of reasons. It was mature. It was soulful. It was authentic. Qualities that became and still are Trisha's trademarks. In 1993, Trisha was also hit in the road. She toured all the time, often opening for Garth Brooks, yes, who would later become her husband. But at the time, they were friends, tourmates and occasional collaborators. Her live shows were electric and not because she jumped around her.

33:10Was much of a spectacle, but because her voice was electric. People walked away saying, dang, she sounds even better live. And in an era before auto-tune and vocal tricks, that mattered and was a bit rare. A word season also gave her plenty of recognition. Trisha was nominated at the CMAs and ACMs. She did not win Entertainer of the Year that year, like Vince Kill or Garth. But she was carving out a spot in a very male dominated industry where only the best female voices, you know, Riba, Winona, Patty Lovelace, could hold their ground. And Trisha wasn't just holding her ground, she was thriving. Here's something else from 1993 that made it special for Trisha. She wasn't chasing trends. Now, Billy Ray was pushing country into pop culture. And Brooks and Dunn were filling stadiums with boot stomping anthems. Trisha leaned into classic, timeless storytelling. She built her career not on Flash, but on substance and fans appreciated that. Let's not forget the cultural ripple effect as well.

34:11By having Don Henley on her record and Matthew McConaughey in her video, Trisha positioned herself at the crossroads of country and mainstream entertainment. Now, she wasn't trying to cross over in the pop sense, but she was proving the country artist could collaborate with rock icons and showcase Rising Hollywood talent. It gave her this broader relevance without watering down the country roots. So what's the legacy of Trisha Yearwood in 1993? Well, walk away Joe became one of those songs that still played today on classic country radio. That's still covered by contestants on singing shows. That's still referenced when people talk about the golden era of 90s country. More importantly, it cemented Trisha as more than just a promising newcomer. It showed she had staying power, she had artistry, she had a voice that would carry her through decades of music. And as it turned out, into a Hall of Fame level career. In 1993, Trisha Yearwood wasn't just chasing hits. She was building a legacy. And walk away Joe was the proof.

35:12Number six, number six, number six. If you turned on a country radio in early 1993, there's a good chance you heard a new voice out of Oklahoma singing about wishing he'd been a cowboy. That was Toby Keith, and the song was very obviously should have been a cowboy. It was his very first single released on February 12, 1993. And it ended up doing what every artist dreams of. It not only hit number one on the country charts, but it eventually became the most played country song of the entire 1990s. That is not a bad debut. But it wasn't like Toby with some overnight Nashville discovery. He had spent years working in the Oklahoma bar circuit after long days with the real job in the oil fields. He was hauling gear, music gear, town to town. His writing songs. He's playing for very small crowds and hoping one day someone in Nashville would actually pick up the phone. When Mercury Records finally did, Toby knew exactly what he wanted to lead with. The song about Cowboys and Day Dreams.

36:13The idea came from a night out with friends. When a friend in the group missed the chance to ask a woman to dance. Someone joke, should have been a cowboy, Toby laughed and scribbled that line down, and turned it into something universal. A little nostalgic, a little funny, and completely singable. You know, that's what made should have been a cowboy. Work. It wasn't trying too hard. It was simple. It was confident. It was full of small details that made people smile. You know, with D. Jean Autry and Roy Rogers nods with the Lone Ranger reference. It wasn't just about wanting to be a cowboy. It's just about wanting to live life on your own terms. When the song hit radio, D.J.'s jumped on. It sounded fresh, but familiar. Like something you'd heard your whole life, but also you haven't. By summer, it was everywhere. Country fans were singing it at Tel Gates and bars and rodeos. Even people who didn't normally listen to country music knew the hook. The success actually surprised Toby. He'd gone from working class musicians,

37:15scraping by, to having the number one song in the country, and also a debut album that's flying off the shelves. The track also introduced what would become Toby's signature style. A mix of humor, a little bit of straight talk, and some storytelling that was all grounded in real life. You know, over the years, should have been a cowboy never really went away. According to BMI, who monitors this, it's been playing more than 3 million times on US Radio, which is wild when you think about how it still gets played all the time. And 3 million? I mean, 3 million spends? That's the kind of airplay artists spend a lifetime pursuing and chasing. The song aged well too. Some songs don't. You know, it didn't get buried in 90s nostalgia. It didn't have a, this is only for the 90s sound to it. Didn't have a gimmick. I mean, you can still play it now. It still holds up. Yeah, some simple chords, clear melody, but the unmistakable Toby Keith Baratone. It's a song that's always comfortable. It's always been there.

38:16You know, looking back, should have been a cowboy was more than a hit. It was basically a door opener because it introduced a new kind of country artist. One who wasn't polished for television, who didn't try to sound like anyone else, and who wrote songs that regular people relate it to. So when you hear it today, whether it's on a classic country station or playing it some small fair or just out of somebody's truck at a stoplight, it probably brings you back that early 90s moment when country was booming. And a guy from Oklahoma proved that one good song could change everything. Let's take a quick pause from the countdown to talk. Movies. 1993 was a year packed with massive films that are still pretty popular today. So the top three movies based on box office sales are, well, let's start with the obvious giant of Jurassic Park. When this movie came out, it was more than another blogbuster. This is the first movie I can remember anyone actually buying. Once it came out from the theater to video, because videos were very expensive.

39:16And I remember my youth director at church buying this movie and I was like, DING! You bought the dinosaur movie. That's what Jurassic Park was. Spielberg took dinosaurs. Something we'd really only seen in clay models or low budget. And they still look big low budget, but you could kind of tell they were crappy and made them terrifyingly real. That T-Rex scene in the rain. The Raptor in the kitchen. Those moments still hold up because of how he blended CGI with animatronics. And they still use a lot of that today, even though technology has progressed far from that. And the story itself, simple enough, Rich Guy builds a dinosaur park. Nature doesn't cooperate. Chaos follows. But what kept people glued to their seats was the sense they were actually seeing. The sense they were actually seeing dinosaurs from 65 million years ago. It became the highest grossing film of all time at that point. Almost a billion dollars worldwide, which early in the 90s, totally unheard of. This is way before Titanic or the Little Blue Men. That both made a billion dollars. But it also made kids want to be paleontologists. School started handing out dinosaur books.

40:16Every toy store had plastic raptors and T-Rex's stack to the ceiling. More than 30 years later, you can still hear those two notes from the John Williams theme. And instantly, picture that island. Mrs. Doubtfire. Well, it's a good one. That's still funny when it comes on, like TBS. Not that I really have the TV on TBS anymore, but man, when I would, there were two movies I would stop for. King of Queens, not from 93. And Mrs. Doubtfire, from 93. Robin Williams, he played Mrs. Doubtfire to set up his familiar. A dad going through a divorce. Once to spend more time with his kids. And to do that, he dresses up as an elderly nanny so he can be in the house every single day. Probably jail now. Like if you actually did this, probably jail. But it was really funny. And I get still funny. Robin Williams was hilarious, and the idea here was super wholesome. And it worked. And it'd be in the second highest grossing film of the year behind Jurassic Park, and it gave us lines like, hello! You know what the cake? And more importantly, it reminded everyone that Robin Williams could break your heart in a scene

41:16and then make you laugh in the same scene. I number three is the fugitive. Harrison Ford plays Dr. Robert Kimball. A man wrongly confused of killing his wife. He escapes custody and spends the whole film trying to prove his innocence while being chased by US Marshall's Samuel Gerard, played by Tommy Lee Jones. This is a whole, it wasn't me, it was the one-hour man. This was actually a black and white series back in the day. And it was good. The movie was good. What sets it apart from a lot of action movies? Especially in 1993 was the tension. We get a lot of that now. But then, not really the case. Because it wasn't just car chases and explosions. It's pretty smart. Ford plays Kimball. You kind of root for Kimball a little bit too, because he played a very desperate character. Tommy Lee Jones was excellent in the movie. Very deadpan. It wanted an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. And of course, it's not a spoiler right? It was 1993. The waterfall jump. Harrison Ford diving off that dam became one of the most replayed action shots of the decade. The fugitive made huge money, and it was good.

42:16It was really good for 1993. And in all, 1993 wasn't just a great year-end country music. The film industry was also killing it. OK? Back to the countdown. Number five. If George Strait was the King of Country, then Brooks and Dunn, in 1993, were the fun uncles of the genre. Kicks, Brooks, and Ronnie Dunn had only been paired together for a couple of years at this point. But in 1993, Holy crap. They were the hottest duo in the business. Their debut album, Brand New Man, made a huge splash back in 1991. Back two episodes ago. Putz Gutenberg crushed. It was awesome. Hardworking Man released February 1993. And yeah, it was a barn burner. Did people still say that? Barn burner? Well, it was a barn burner. The title track set the tone. It was a blue color anthem about, I don't know, pride and sweat. And getting the job done. It was relatable. It was singable. Kind of. You probably didn't sing it good, but you sang it loud. And it was pure Brooks and Dunn.

43:16Ronnie's powerhouse vocals, soaring over the rockin, honky-tonk groove. Kicks, add in the harmonies and the swagger. The song climbed to number four on the Billboard Country chart, and became an instant crowd favorite. Isn't it crazy that song only hit number four and it's one of the greatest country songs of all time? The charts, man. The charts. Brooks and Dunn didn't stop there. The album gave us four additional singles on top of the title track. She used to be mine, hit number one. Jam. Rock my world, little country girl. Jam, hit number two. That ain't no way to go. Jam, hit number one. And we'll burn that bridge. Just one. And Bob. After another. Kind of say Bob, one Bob after another. Basically, if you turned on Country Radio in 1993, I don't know. There's about a 40% chance you were gonna hear at Brooks and Dunn song. They were everywhere. On stage, they were also redefining what a country duo could be. Ronnie Dunn was the voice, one of the greatest pure singers of the decade.

44:17Kicks Brooks was the showman, bounding around the stage, hyping up the crowd, tons of energy, tons of charm, would often do a lot of the talking. Together, they were dynamite. In 1993, their live shows were starting to move from hockey talks and even bigger hockey talks to arenas. The fan-based grew, hard work and man. It was such a freaking awesome album. And it proved that they weren't just appearing that got lucky. They were the real deal. It was like the perfect chemical combination. That album won them the 1993 CMA Award for Vocal Duo of the Year. A title they would go on to win for 14 out of the next 16 years. That's crazy. I went to the Country Music Hall of Fame a few years ago and had all of their awards there. And it took up a whole wall. It was crazy to see all of their Duo of the Year awards. Yeah, pretty cool. And the cultural piece as well. Brooks and Dunn embodied what we think of as the 90s vibe.

45:17Big belt buckles, flashy shirts. A mix of traditional country themes for sure with a bit of rock edge. They were accessible to younger fans, but they also made traditionalists happy as well because of songs like Hardworking Man. You know, people out working like they felt it. And then at the bars when people were dancing, they put on rock my world little country girl. The legacy of 1993 for Brooks and Dunn is very simple. It was the year they went from, hey, that Duo. Pretty good. Lot of hope, lot of promise to, yeah, they're an institution. They weren't just another act on the radio. They were a headlining force that would dominate the rest of the decade. And heck, they're still dominating now. Before we get to the next spot on the countdown, I wanted to remind everyone that long before Brooks and Dunn were dominating the charts as a Duo, Kix and Ronnie had their own solo career songwriters and artists trying to make it in the industry. So first is me talking with Kix Brooks a few years ago. I wanted to know what were his goals as an artist and a songwriter when he first got to Nashville?

46:18For me, it was, I just wanted to be a songwriter in this town. That's really, I mean, all most all songwriters have some dreams and, you know, they play their songs. We've gotten some recognition. There's exceptions to that. But most songwriters like to think of themselves as artists. I mean, I did and I had a couple of record deals before running and I got together. But not because I was that great. I don't know, but I started singing a lot of demos, you know, for stuff like that. But the town, the ability to, my first publisher is a guy named Don Gantt. And man, he would hold court every day. We'd write songs all day, but he had been at tree publishing and was responsible for some of the great careers from Roger Miller and Mickey Newberry. Got sunny, Throck Morton. People you may not be familiar with. But people that Harlan Howard, of course, they were all at tree. I mean, they owned independent publishing. But they were still great publishing company companies like Combine, where Kristoffer's son and, you know,

47:18Whalen, all those guys were two little smaller company. But when we were done at the end of the day, people would start pounding that door and Don would always send out for a few cases of beer. We just pack in his office and start passing the guitar around. We'd really make you want to write something special. Because if that guitar came your way, or Don said, do you write anything today? But at the same time, even if I've written something that wasn't that good, you would find that one line in a song and go, man, wait a second. Second verse. Well, was it you said? You go, you'll hear that. It's like, and all of a sudden, he would make you feel like, you might not tell you it was a great song because it wasn't. But he would also make sure you knew, that's what you need to be. That's, that's a great line. Give me a whole song full of that kind of stuff, you know. It's a great teacher, but also by the end of, by the end of the night, are all well-loiled. Then, then, you know, making new barrier, Ray Fanhoi, or some of those guys that

48:18Throck Morton, who were just writing this brilliance, they get the guitar, and then you got the opportunity. Man, it was, it was all up and down the street. And where is it happening kind of thing? And I just, I don't, you know, there's so, so much, you know, I don't, it sound like an old guy, but there's so much concrete where there were little houses all the way down music row, and you just wander up and down. You could hear it a lot of times up and down. People just doing the thing. Yeah, you know, it's gone, or somebody come running down to, to your publishing company and go, man, come on down to combine. You know, it's like, waylands down there, and they're singing, you know, and that, that, that, that kind of stuff is going on. Now, this is me with Ronnie Dunn, talking about his early days of living in Oklahoma, playing local shows, and his first gig as a lead singer. So I'm in Tulsa, and the Urban Cowboy movement thing happens, and they start building this massive club, called Duke's Country. I mean, huge. It was a converted furniture factory.

49:18There's nothing for 3,000, 3,500 people on night to be there, on weekends, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, sometimes Thursdays. A guy from a steel player ball thing, from a gate, mouth, browns band, who was a blues player, came to my door one, one day, and he said, I'm putting together a band, he said, would you be the lead singer for our house band, it do, so I'm like, no, yes. I guess, yes. So we put together a band, and kept a job for, you know, two or three years, several years, but there's a good run for club stuff. What was that your first spot at being just, I mean, you're the lead singer. Yeah. Yeah. Did you find, you liked it more than you thought? Yeah, I loved it. Did you make a think of your dad? Always. Always. Always do. Anytime. I mean, he's always, you know, that's always the, the, the, the, the invention of the motor back there that I, I think, you know, I just think that's like, what am I, how do I end up cosmonically living my father's dream? Do you think he would be proud, looking at you now? Yeah.

50:18I think it's super cool. Yeah, too cool. I have to lock him away. The Bobby cast will be right back. On the new podcast, Solita, we share the messy reality of traveling alone as a woman. I can wait four hours for the next bus or this random dude is offering me a ride on his motorcycle. I choose option B. I'm Julie Bignero and I travel by myself because it's a rare space where I can say yes without asking anyone else first. I'm on a mission to reclaim the word Solita, trading the pity for possibility. Every time I try to be alone, I kept meeting people and they were like, you smiled at us, not a lot of people smile around here. It's when you're alone that you're most receptive to the world as it is and not the lies you're sold about it. It can be a time where you push your limits, change your mind, or wake up to a new version of yourself. So whether you're a soul, travel veteran, or you're too nervous to book your first trip, I hope you listen to Solita

51:19on the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're a bookshelf and you're a for you page are equally important to your personality, welcome home. This is Pro's Society, the weekly podcast that's part book club, part group chat for thought daughters, pop culture obsessives, and anyone who thinks pride and prejudice is a great thing to do with your podcast. I'm Eli Rallo, and every week we're connecting the dots between books, the internet, and the conversations everyone can't stop having. I'm gonna have to look up this story. I'm obsessed. I'm obsessed. From bestselling authors and your favorite book talk creators to the latest pop culture moments, nothing is off the table. It's like if you can hide some real messages inside compelling characters and that is the Trojan horse, whether you're in the same place or not, or you're in the same place or you're in the same place or you're in the same place or you're in the same horse, whether you're looking for literary deep dives, smart pop culture conversations, or a community of readers who love to think a little too much,

52:19you're in the right place. Listen to Pro Society on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. See you between the pages. When I was 14 years old, I was kidnapped and health captive for nine months. I survived, and I've spent my life exploring how other people survive what should have destroyed them. I'm Elizabeth Smart, and these are the survivor files. You just remember this low-taunting voice next to my ear, saying, shut up, don't say anything. Every week, I'm with survivors who lived through the unthinkable. I knew if he woke up, without a doubt, he was going to hurt me. I started feeling that there was someone at the end of my bed and I just started screaming. They were up to me. I was like, shh, screaming. They are abducted, stalked, controlled, and nearly silenced. But these aren't stories about what's taken from them. Their stories about what it takes to make it out alive.

53:20Listen to the survivor files with Elizabeth Smart on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is A's Davenport. And Sean Clements. We host the podcast, Hollywood Handbook on the Big Money Players Network. Our show is extremely accessible to the first time listeners. Each week, we talk to someone in show business, aka The Biz, and try to help them with their careers and see what they have to offer us. Everyone has a good time and no one gets mad at their publicists for letting them do our show. We've had a lot of great guests like Sarah Sherman. Not that great. You can help me shape this. How about we flip it on his head? How about we flip this around? What is the surprise one, then? Actually, you think as the straight man is actually the one who's acting weird. Adam Scott, this entire time, you've been expecting Adam Sandler to come to visit the show. I would never accept expectations for something like that. If the universe allows for something like that to happen, I am open to it. I'm always going to accept.

54:20You know, Danny McBride, fine. Yeah, it's all this fragile masculinity and it's really amazing. I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say to that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I'm going to say that I've even where they are without us. Oh, and by the way, Will Ferrell told us personally he loves the show and he wants to be a guest on every episode, but he's just so busy! Listen to Hollywood Handbook on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Mungus, I'm back with a new season of the podcast Skyline Drive.

55:21This time I'm diving into a rabbit hole of peptides, organoids, blood boys, blue zones, and brain replacement to try to understand what this longevity obsession is all about. And what it really means to live forever for all of us. I learned about some rad science. I can make a brain for you and then we can test what draw is the best for your brain, a suppose to his brain. Here are some hard truths. I would expect Indians to age faster, but I did not expect it to be almost a 4-5 year acceleration. And get myself into a world of trouble. I'd say probably start bone smashing. That doesn't work. Make you look more defined. They say it works. I don't know. Listen to Skyline Drive, how to live forever on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Now let's talk about Queen because in 1993, Reba McIntyre reminded everyone why

56:32she still wore the crown. That year, Reba released greatest hits of all you two. And if you're thinking, wait, a greatest hits album, that's just recycling old songs. Well, not when it's Reba, see, Reba had a trick up her sleeve. She used her greatest hits collections to debut new songs. And in 1993, one of those new songs was the epic duet, Does he love you? Does he love you? The song paired Reba with Linda Davis, and the song was paired drama to women, both in love with the same man, singing back and forth about betrayal and jealousy. It was fiery. It was theatrical, and it was a massive hit. The song went to number one on the Billboard Country Chart and won the Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Collaboration. But it wasn't just the song, it was the video. And if you haven't seen the Does he love you video, pause the episode. And go watch it. It's basically a mini soap opera, also with this rate it's taking two hours to get through this episode. But it's worth it. Reba and Linda Davis, face off, looks like a movie.

57:36There's tension, there's passion. Reba wasn't just singing songs in the 90s. She was making movies in music form in the 90s. Oh, by the way, Linda Davis went on to have a very famous daughter, Hillary, the lead singer of Lady A. I had heard a long time ago that the original idea of Does he love you was supposed to be Reba and Winona. So I had Reba over once. We were talking about it. And I wanted her to set the record straight. Linda was on the road with me. She and Hillary's dad, Lang Scott, they were on the road with me and I thought, Linda, we could do this every night on stage because she's back up singers. I was featuring her on some songs because she had a record deal. And so Tony said, well, let's, well, the record label, of course, wanted either Trisha or Winona. And I said, but it's right here. It's so handy. And they said, well, let's keep working on it. And I said, well, in the meantime, while I'm recording it, can Linda just step in and do the other parts? So I had somebody to sing against. They said, okay. And when she got through, Tony said she got the part.

58:37Did you tell her then, Hey, you're just going to sing this as kind of a demo version? Yeah. Do you think in her mind, she was like, I'm going to sing this so good that hopefully they can't refuse it? You know, Linda is so honest and so innocent. She was just probably glad to be there. And just I don't know what was in her mind, but I knew she would yield a song. Love it. And all Linda has to do is sing and she, she sells herself. It's wonderful. I don't think you're wrong with either one of those, but pretty cool how it all manifested the way it did. Greatest tits volume too, also gave us other gems that reminded fans of how deep, brief, it's catalog already was. And she had become more than just a singer. She was an actor. She was a business woman. I mean, she was an icon. Concerts were spectacular productions with many costume changes, elaborate sets, and powerful storytelling is basically a Broadway show. And let's not forget this was just a few years after the plane crash that tragically killed most of Reba's band. By 1993, she had rebuilt not only her career, but also her spirit, come back stronger and

59:37more determined than ever. Fans admired her resilience as much as her talent. The legacy of Reba in 1993 is huge. With her song, Does He Love You, she cemented herself as not just a hitmaker, but the drama queen of country music. And also it raised the bar for everyone else. Number three, if there was one man who absolutely owned the CMA Awards in 1993, it was Vince Kill. And it wasn't that he won a trophy or two, he swept the whole thing, which I had mentioned earlier. Let's set the stage. By 1993, Vince had already built a reputation as one of the nicest guys in Nashville. He was humble. He was soft-spoken. He never seemed to let fame go to his head. But behind that, easygoing personality was a powerhouse of talent. He could sing, he could write, he could play guitar with the best of them, not just with the best artists, with the best guitar players. In 1992, he had the album I Still Believe In You. It had set him up for the monster year of 1993. I mean, that title track, I still believe in you.

1:00:41Still a signature Vince Kill song. Other singles like, don't let a love start slipping, love start slipping away. He sings so high and I can't sing anyway. That was a jam or one more last chance. What a song. What a video. And give me just a one more last chance before you say it through. Oh my goodness, that was a jam. Kept him top the charts, all those songs. By the time the CMA Awards rolled around in October of 93, Vince had all these songs, had all this momentum, had all this love, and then came the sweep. Vince walked away that night with five CMA Awards, entertainer of the year, male vocalist of the year, vocal of the year for his contribution to George Jones. I don't need you, Joe Rock and Chair, that song was a jam. Album of the year, and Song of the Year for I Still Believe In You. Now that's not just winning, that is domination. Now let's pause on this song of the year because I still believe in you. Beat out, boo scootin' boogie from Brooks and Dunn, Chadah Hootche from Alan Jackson.

1:01:45I mean, I still believe in you. What an amazing song. He co-wrote that song with John Barlow Jarvis. It's a heartfelt ballad, basically a confession and a promise all rolled into one really emotional song. The narrator admits he stumbled, but he's still all in for love. That song pushed Vince into superstardom and anchored an album that went 1, 2, 3, 4 quadruple platinum. It sold over four million records. Pretty rare for the early part of the 90s. Now let's do 1993 as far as my 1993. Well I loved home improvement. That everybody did that. It was almost like Borat or Austin Powers or named the big celebrity impression. That's what this was in 1993. It was even in the theme song, Home Improvement.

1:02:45Now, home improvement did not start in 1993. It actually started in 1991, but the reason I bring up 1993 is because that's the year that it peaked. It took shape. So during the 1993 TV season, home improvement finished number one for the first time. It was the biggest show in America. It had an average audience of about 38 million people per week. It beat... Well, all the shows because I was number one. Seinfeld, Roseanne, the sports, I was a monster. To compare, a massive number one network hit today might average 8 to 10 million viewers. 35 million. That's like every network show under biggest show at once, getting their highest rating right now. And it's still not adding up to that. Like it's crazy. And I pulled the numbers from 1993. As far as the audience numbers go, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, the number five show was NYPD Blue

1:03:50averaging 22 million a week. I have a still more than double what shows get now, but okay, you with me, right? Frazier, 24 million a week. Roseanne, 26 million a week. Seinfeld, 30 million a week. Home improvement, 35 to 38 million viewers a week. That's the scale. It wasn't one of the hits. It was the hit and by a lot. I mean, when you just look at those shows to home improvement, Seinfeld, Roseanne, Frazier, those are heyday shows. So whenever I talk about 1990s, or at least when I thought about it, I thought, man, I watched a lot of home improvement. I think home improvement was also up against Frazier and it felt like it was like the normal person show versus the intellectual show, which was what Frazier was to me. That's why I liked home improvement. It was one of my favorite shows ever.

1:04:52As far as what I love the most at certain times of my life, I don't consider it now as one of my favorite shows ever. But at the time, it was number one to me. It was on Thursday nights, I believe. So 1993, I'm putting home improvement in there. And also, if you hear something snoring in the background, that is Stanley Mabeldok. He is right beside the microphone. Anyway, that's my look at my 1993. And now let's get back to the countdown. Number two. Let's talk about a river, not just any river, but the Chattahoochi. Because in 1993, Alan Jackson turned it into a national landmark. Alan was already a superstar by this point. He had a string of hits, a shelf full of awards, the reputation as the tall, quiet Georgian, with a knack for writing songs that felt both modern and traditional. But when Chattahoochi hit the airwaves and may have 1993, it was like someone dropped a Chattahoochi bomb on the charts. The song was fun, it was fast, it was full of small town nostalgia. Really wasn't about heartbreak or cheating or honky-tonk neon.

1:05:54It's about growing up. It's about goofing off. It's about falling in love. It's about living life along the river. Attabbed into something universal, that feeling of freedom and innocence that we all remember from when we were younger. And then there was a video, duh. And music videos back then, almost as important as the song. They were very important because we actually watched them. You know why? Because they actually showed them. And in this video, I think we can all picture it, right? Alan Jackson, cowboy hat, jeans, boots, water skiing. If you want a snapshot of 90s country at its peak, that's kind of it. It was goofy, it was charming. And it made Alan seem like the most down-to-earth superstar that you could imagine. Fans loved it because it felt like Alan wasn't this super rich mega star that had all the hits. Just a regular guy who happened to really go to writing songs and skiing in blue jeans. Chadahoochi went straight to number one on the Billboard Hot Country songs chart. It stayed there for weeks. It won the CMA single of the year.

1:06:56Radio couldn't get enough of it and fans couldn't stop singing along. Even today, decades later, it's one of those songs that instantly gets a crowd going and it doesn't matter the age of the people in the crowd. But Alan didn't stop at just one song. His album, a lot about living and a little about love. Which featured Chadahoochi, it was one of the best selling country albums of the decade. Other singles like, she's got the rhythm and I got the blues. That song crushed. Tonight I climbed the wall, crushed all through 93. On stage, Alan shows were a mix of energy but also laid back charm. He wasn't a showman in the sense of dancing around. He sang the songs, he did tell some stories. They let the music do the work. Fans loved his authenticity. He was the guy next door. Except he was taller and better looking and could sing and ski. He was the every man superstar. Culturally, Chadahoochi became more than just a song. It was a catchphrase. It was a meme before memes even existed.

1:07:58People who had never been to Georgia knew about the Chadahoochi. They gave Alan Jackson a permanent place in the pop culture conversation, not just the country charts. The legacy of 1993 for Alan Jackson was simple. It was the year that he became an icon. He wasn't just a hit maker anymore. He was a cultural touch down. Yeah. When you have something like Chadahoochi, you're now a part of culture. Chadahoochi defined a moment of time and Subinidad Allen is one of the all time greats. Number one, one, one, one, one, one, one. That's not an effect. That's my voice. Number one. Just dominate 1993, he dominated the entire decade. Garth Brooks. By 93, Garth was already the biggest thing in country music, maybe in all of music. His first four albums had sold tens of millions of copies. He was Philan Stadiums. He was breaking records. He was turning country concerts into rock and roll spectacles. He was the face of the country boom. And then he dropped his fifth album in pieces. At least in August 1993, in pieces was a juggernaut.

1:09:01I mean, we can walk through this, hold my hand, because it's going to get bumpy. The album had songs like, hang going down till the sun comes up. Obviously, a jam. Standing outside the fire, what a video. I mean, I didn't even realize I'd get emotional as a kid when I watched videos. You should pause this episode and go listen to that song and watch that video. Holy crap. Walking outside the fire, A plus song A plus video. Operator, won't you put me on through? I'm going to send my love down to Baton Rouge. Yeah, call in Baton Rouge. Jam. That song originally recorded by a new grass revival. Then was recorded by Garth, got the Garth treatment and said, every day, every dooboo dooboo dooboo dooboo dooboo dooboo dooboo dooboo. Crazy. One night a day, American Hockey Talk Bar Association. They were heartfelt ballads. They were routing anthems in pieces sold over 10 million copies in the US alone.

1:10:05And that was just back then. That's crazy. Making it one of the best selling albums of the decade. And then there were the concerts, obviously. Garth's 1993 tour was legendary. He wasn't just singing the songs. He was putting on a full rock show. Swinging ropes. Smashin' through walls of smoke, run across stage like a man possessed. As I can tell you, haven't seen Garth. Now I didn't go in 93. But I've been a couple or a few times since. It's a big show. I've been lucky enough to have Garth play six feet from me in a room of like ten people. I recommend it by the way. But I've also been to the big shows. I've never seen someone put their armor on every single person in the crowd like Garth does. Cause he ain't really touchin' you. Cause I'd be weird if you walked around and just touched everybody. But it feels like that. I watched him sing if tomorrow never comes. And I said that wrong. The entire audience sang it. He sang one word.

1:11:08Sometimes and stopped and he just pounded his chest to keep rhythm. And he would play a chord on guitar occasionally. And everybody sang the whole song. And it was amazing. I thought he was doing that. He had us all. He was touching us all. About sort of. Garth is a cultural phenomenon. Legacy-wise, in pieces was the album that to a lot of people proved that Garth's success wasn't a fluke or even a fad. It showed that he could keep innovating. He had been innovating but could he keep doing it? The answer is yes. Could he keep making great songs? Yes. Could he keep selling out arenas year after year? Yes. That album, that tour, that year of 1993 cemented his status as not just the biggest star in country music. But one of the biggest stars in the world. So there you have it, friends. The top 10 country music events of 1993. 1993 was the year the genre became larger than life.

1:12:11I put a pin in it in 1993 to go. This is when it freaking blew up. The lyrics were filling stadiums. They were crossing over into pop culture. They were dominating award shows. And they were producing songs that still today are as dominant as ever. Thank you for listening to another episode in this series. You're not going to believe this. But the next episode? 1994. Yep. I know you wouldn't believe it. 1994 is next after 93. All right, thanks again and we'll talk to you soon. Love this episode of The Bobby Cast. Subscribe on iHeard Radio, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

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