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George Strait
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George Harvey Strait (born May 18, 1952) is a Grammy Award-winning American country music singer. Strait is referred to as the "King of Country," and critics call Strait a living legend. He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional country western music.
Strait won CMA Entertainer of the year in 1989 and 1990 and ACM Entertainer of the year in 1990.
A member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Strait has been nominated for more CMA and ACM awards and has more wins in both category's than any other artist.
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Encyclopedia
George Harvey Strait (born May 18, 1952) is a Grammy Award-winning American country music singer. Strait is referred to as the "King of Country," and critics call Strait a living legend. He is known for his unique style of western swing music, bar-room ballads, honky-tonk style, and fresh yet traditional country western music.
Strait won CMA Entertainer of the year in 1989 and 1990 and ACM Entertainer of the year in 1990.
A member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Strait has been nominated for more CMA and ACM awards and has more wins in both category's than any other artist. As of 2008, he holds the record for the most Number One hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts with 43 number one singles on that chart. Counting all other music charts, Strait has amassed a total of 56 number one hits overall, breaking a record previously set by Conway Twitty.
Strait's 38 hit albums (12 multi platinum, 22 platinum and four gold) rank him only behind Elvis Presley and The Beatles. The RIAA has certified his albums at 68× platinum, denoting shipments of 58.5 million in the United States. His best-selling album there is Pure Country (1992), which sold 6 million (6× Multi-platinum). His highest certified album is Strait Out of the Box (1995), which sold 2 million copies (8× Multi-Platinum due to being a box set with four CDs). According to the RIAA, Strait is the tenth best-selling recording artist in the United States overall.
Early years
Early life
Strait was born in Poteet, Texas, and grew up in Pearsall, Texas. His father, John Byron Strait, was a junior high school mathematics teacher. The Straits would often leave Pearsall on the weekends and in the summers to work at the family's 2,000 acre (8 km˛) cattle ranch outside of Big Wells, Texas. Strait's parents divorced when he was in third grade, after his mother left, taking her daughter with her. Strait and his brother remained behind with their father.
Strait began playing with a rock band in Pearsall High School but his preference turned to country music. He counts country singers Merle Haggard, George Jones, Bob Wills and Hank Williams as his primary country music influences. After graduating from high school, Strait enrolled at Southwest Texas State University (now known as Texas State University) but dropped out and eloped with his high school sweetheart, Norma. They initially married in Mexico but repeated their vows in a church in Texas a few weeks later. In 1971, Strait enlisted in the US Army. While stationed at Schofield Barracks in Hawaii as a part of the 25th Infantry division (light), he began performing with an Army-sponsored band, Rambling Country, which played off-base under the name Santee. On October 6, 1972, while still in Hawaii, George and Norma welcomed their first child, Jenifer.
Strait was honorably discharged from the army in 1975. He chose to return to Southwest Texas State University, in San Marcos, Texas. He graduated in 1979 with a degree in agriculture.
Career discovery
While attending SWT, Strait joined the Ace in the Hole Band, who had been advertising for a new lead singer. Beginning October 14, 1975, the band started playing at Cheatham Street Warehouse in San Marcos, a local honky-tonk. The band then began playing other honky-tonks and bars around south and central Texas and as far east as Huntsville and Houston. They gained a regional following and opened for national acts such as The Texas Playboys.
In the late 1970s, while Strait continued to manage a cattle ranch during the day, the band recorded several singles in a Houston studio that were released under the Houston, Texas based "D" record label, but they never achieved wide recognition.
Strait became friends with Erv Woolsey, who operated one of the bars in which the band played, and who had previously worked for MCA Records. Woolsey convinced some of his Music Row connections to come to Texas and listen to Strait and Ace in the Hole play. Impressed with his performance, MCA quickly signed Strait. The Ace in the Hole Band continued to play with Strait, but now as his backup/touring band.
Music career
1980 – 2000: Breakthrough
"Unwound," Strait's first single, was released in the spring of 1981 and climbed into the Top Ten. The follow-up, "Down and Out," stalled at 16, but "If You're Thinking You Want a Stranger (There's One Coming Home)" reached number three in early 1982. The song sparked a string of Top Ten hits that ran well into the '90s. During that time he had an astonishing 31 number one singles, beginning with 1982's "Fool Hearted Memory".
Strait was one of the best-selling country singers of the 1980s, and one of the few from that decade who survived the influx of rock-country singers such as Garth Brooks in the early 1990s.
In 1985, he won CMA awards for album of the year (Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind) and male vocalist. In 1986, he repeated his win as male vocalist, but his year was marked by tragedy when his 13-year-old daughter, Jenifer, was killed in an automobile accident. (His other child, George Jr., was born in 1981.) Strait capped the decade by winning the CMA entertainer of the year award in 1989. A year later, he won the award again.
Throughout the '80s, he dominated the country singles charts, and his albums consistently went platinum or gold. Strait rarely abandoned hardcore honky-tonk and Western swing — towards the beginning of the '90s, his sound became a little slicker, but it was only a relative change. Strait was also one of the few '80s superstars to survive the generational shift of the early '90s, which began with the phenomenal success of Garth Brooks.
His long-time producer Tony Brown, who has collaborated with Strait on more than 15 albums, attributes Strait's success to his understanding of what types of music work best for his voice and his fans, and his insistence on remaining true to his own style of music without trying to constantly reinvent himself. His signature style consists primarily of hardcore honky-tonk and Western swing.
Strait released a four-disc box set career retrospective, Strait Out of the Box, in 1995 which became the 2nd best selling box set ever with shipments of 8 million in the United States.. Blue Clear Sky, his 1996 album, debuted on the country charts at number one and the pop charts at number seven. In 1997, he released Carrying Your Love with Me, following it with One Step at a Time in 1998. Always Never the Same appeared a year later, as did the seasonal effort Merry Christmas Wherever You Are.
Strait repeated as male vocalist in 1997 and 1998. All in all, Strait scored 17 No. 1 hits on the Billboard country airplay charts in the 1990s, including "One Night at a Time," "I Just Want to Dance with You" and "Write This Down."
2000 – present: Career today
May 2001 saw the release of The Road Less Traveled, which qualified as an experimental album of sorts for the veteran performer. While it didn't stray very far from his new traditionalist country sound, "Road" did include a foray into vocal processing. But the experimentation was welcome, for it revealed that Strait was still hungry, even after millions of records sold. Strait issued two projects in 2003. For the Last Time: Live from the Astrodome chronicled his headlining set at the last Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo ever held in the Astrodome, while Honkytonkville was a fiery set of hard country, lauded by critics for its mixture of the old Strait with his modern, superstar self. Somewhere Down in Texas arrived in 2005, followed by It Just Comes Natural in 2006.
On October 3, 2006, Strait marked his 30th year in the music industry with the release of a new album titled It Just Comes Natural. It contains 15 songs from Strait's long-time friend and songwriter, Dean Dillon. The album received positive reviews from critics. People Magazine, in their four-star review, remarked that "If ever there was a natural in country music, it's Strait," while USAToday raved that "He continues to make such consistent quality look easy." The first single off the album, "Give It Away" reached #1 and the title track, "It Just Comes Natural" became his 42nd Billboard #1. In 2007, "Wrapped" reached No. 1 on the Mediabase 24/7 country music charts, giving Strait his 55th overall number-one single.
Strait released a new album titled Troubadour on April 1, 2008. The CD contains 12 tracks, including a duet with Patty Loveless and another with long-time songwriter Dean Dillon, who wrote many of the songs on It Just Comes Natural. The lead single off the album, "I Saw God Today", debuted at #19 on the Radio and Records and Billboard charts. It is the highest debut ever for a single from Strait. Troubadour debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 album charts, selling over 160,000 copies in its first week of release.
"I Saw God Today" has become Strait's 43rd Billboard Hot Country Songs number-one single and his 56th number-one single overall.
Touring
One of the top touring country acts of the 1990s, Strait's concerts have set attendance records at more than twenty venues around the United States. His 2006 tour, which included only 18 performances, grossed over $15 million. Strait attributes his success as a performer to the fact that he and his band, who are "musically very tight," have a large pool of songs to draw from, and perform those songs very similar to how they sound on the albums.
From 1997 through 2001 Strait headlined the George Strait Country Music Festival which included artists such has Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson and many more. In an effort to introduce these acts to as many fans as possible, the festival promised not to visit any market more than twice. The festival played only a small number of dates, usually no more than 20, but still managed to be the ninth biggest-grossing tour of 1998.
Since 1983, Strait has often appeared at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, recording his album For the Last Time: Live From the Astrodome during the final show at the Astrodome in 2002. The event set the record for paid attendance at the Astrodome with 68,266 people, breaking Latin superstar Selena's previous record of approximately 67,000 in 1995. The following year the Rodeo moved to Reliant Stadium. Strait's 2004 performance at Reliant Stadium set a new Rodeo attendance record, with 68,679 people attending his performance. In his more than twenty appearances at the Houston Rodeo, Strait has played to a total of more than 1 million fans.
From January through April 2007 Strait headlined a twenty-three date arena tour with Ronnie Milsap and newcomer Taylor Swift. The tour, originally scheduled to end in early March with back-to-back shows at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT, was postponed until the end of April after Strait came down with laryngitis.
Acting career
Strait has acted in multiple feature films. He had a bit part in The Soldier (1982) and Mystery, Alaska (1999) and starred in Pure Country (1992). He also appeared as himself in Grand Champion (2002).
The film Pure Country featured George Strait in the lead role as Dusty Chandler, a famous country singer who strays too far from his country roots and traditional sound. It provided the opportunity for Strait to branch out from his own traditional country sound for a more rock-and-roll approach. The soundtrack to the album, also called Pure Country, produced several hit singles for Strait.
Records held
In Strait's more than 25 years of recording, all of which have been spent with MCA Records, he has garnered 56 No. 1 songs on all country charts (including Mediabase 24/7, the old Radio & Records charts, and the now-defunct Gavin Report charts), and has more #1 hits than anyone in any genre. His 43 Billboard magazine country No. 1's have set a record, three more than previous record-holder Conway Twitty.
Strait has sold more than 73 million recordings and his certifications from the RIAA include 13 multi-platinum, 32 platinum and 35 gold albums. His overall certification numbers are third of all musicians, behind Elvis Presley and The Beatles.
Strait has won 22 CMA Awards, including consecutive entertainer of the year honors in 1989 and 1990, and holds the career record for CMA nominations with 73 and as of 2008 holds the record for the most CMA awards, Strait also holds those same records for wins and nominations for the ACM awards as well. Strait was elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2006. Strait performed his No. 1 hit "Give it Away" right before accepting his replica Hall of Fame plaque at the 40th CMA Awards. He was only the second artist (after Eddy Arnold in 1966) to be inducted into the Hall of Fame while still actively recording and producing chart-topping hits and albums.
In October 2008, the Academy of Country Music Awards announced that Strait has been named their Artist of the Decade for the 2000s and will receive this award in the spring of 2009. Past winners of the award are Marty Robbins (1960s), Loretta Lynn (1970s), Alabama (1980s) and Garth Brooks (1990s).
Personal life
On May 14, 1981, Strait and Norma welcomed their second child, son George Strait, Jr., known as "Bubba." Their daughter Jenifer was killed in an automobile accident in San Marcos, Texas, in 1986, at the age of 13. The family set up a foundation, The Jenifer Lynn Strait Foundation, which donates money to children's charities in the San Antonio, Texas area.
Bubba, who is a graduate of Texas A&M University, is pursuing a career as a PRCA team roping competitor. Strait was able to watch his son compete at the Houston Rodeo in 2006 shortly before taking the stage for his own performance.
As pastimes, Strait enjoys fishing, playing golf, and riding motorcycles. Along with his son Bubba, he is a member of the PRCA and partners in team roping competitions. George and his elder brother Buddy host the annual George Strait Team Roping Classic, in which they compete against some of the best team ropers in the world. Strait has also said that he very seldom picks up a guitar when not in the studio or touring. He and his wife live in far north-west San Antonio in the wealthy gated community The Dominion as well as on a ranch near Cotulla, Texas some 50 miles (80 kilometres) southwest of San Antonio. He is also a big fan of the NBA's San Antonio Spurs and can be seen court-side at many of the Spurs' home basketball games.
Strait also is known for driving Chevrolets, as he is the spokesman for a local Texas Chevrolet dealership, and often refers to Chevys in his songs.
Discography
Filmography
Awards
| Year | Awards | Award |
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| 2009 | Grammy Awards | Best Country Album - Troubadour | | 2008 | Country Music Association | Album of the Year - Troubadour | | 2008 | Country Music Association | Single of the Year - "I Saw God Today" | | 2007 | Country Music Association | Album of the Year - It Just Comes Natural (Two Trophies: Artist, and Producer) | | 2007 | Country Music Association | Song of the Year - "Give It Away" (Awarded to Songwriters) | | 2007 | Academy of Country Music | Single of the Year - "Give It Away" (Two Trophies: Artist, and Producer) | | 2007 | Academy of Country Music | Song of the Year - "Give It Away" | | 2006 | Country Music Hall of Fame | Inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame | | 2006 | Honorary Doctoral Degree | Doctor of Humane Letters presented by Texas State University – San Marcos | | 2005 | Country Music Association | Musical Event of the Year - "Good News, Bad News" (with Lee Ann Womack) | | 2003 | Special Award | National Medal of Arts | | 2003 | Academy of Country Music | Special Achievement Award (in recognition of 50 #1 Songs) | | 2003 | CMT 40 Greatest Men of Country Music | Ranked #9 | | 2002 | Country Weekly | Favorite Collaborative Song - "Designated Drinker" (with Alan Jackson) | | 2001 | Country Music Association | Song of the Year - "Murder On Music Row" (Awarded to Songwriters) | | 2000 | Country Music Association | Vocal Event of the Year - "Murder On Music Row" (with Alan Jackson) | | 2000 | Country Weekly / TNN/CMT Music Awards | Album of the Year - Always Never The Same | | 2000 | Country Weekly / TNN/CMT Music Awards | Entertainer of the Year | | 2000 | Country Weekly / TNN/CMT Music Awards | Male Artist of the Year | | 2000 | Country Weekly / TNN/CMT Music Awards | Single of the Year - "Write This Down" | | 2000 | Country Weekly / TNN/CMT Music Awards | Impact Artist of the Year | | 1999 | Country Weekly / TNN/CMT Music Awards | Album of the Year - One Step At A Time | | 1999 | Country Weekly Golden Pick Awards | Favorite Enteratiner | | 1999 | Country Weekly Golden Pick Awards | Favorite Male Artist | | 1999 | Country Weekly Golden Pick Awards | Favorite Video Enteratiner | | 1999 | Country Weekly Golden Pick Awards | Favorite Line Dance Song - "I Just Want To Dance With You" | | 1999 | Country Weekly Golden Pick Awards | Favorite Song - "I Just Want To Dance With You" | | 1998 | Radio & Records | Best Male Vocalist | | 1998 | American Music Awards | Favorite Country Album - Carrying Your Love With Me | | 1998 | American Music Awards | Favorite Country Male Artist | | 1998 | Country Music Association | Male Vocalist of the Year | | 1996 | Billboard | Most Played Artist (All Genres of Music) | | 1997 | Radio & Records | Best Male Vocalist | | 1997 | Radio & Records | Best Album - Blue Clear Sky | | 1997 | Academy of Country Music | Album of the Year - Carrying Your Love With Me | | 1997 | Academy of Country Music | Top Male Vocalist | | 1997 | American Music Awards | Favorite Country Album - Blue Clear Sky | | 1997 | Country Music Association | Album of the Year - Carrying Your Love With Me | | 1997 | Country Music Association | Male Vocalist of the Year | | 1997 | TNN/Music City News | Album of the Year - Blue Clear Sky | | 1996 | Billboard | Top Country Artist | | 1996 | Radio & Records | Most Valuable Performer | | 1996 | Radio & Records | Best Male Vocalist | | 1996 | Radio & Records | Best Single - "Check Yes Or No" | | 1996 | Academy of Country Music | Album of the Year - Blue Clear Sky | | 1996 | Academy of Country Music | Top Male Vocalist | | 1996 | Country Music Association | Male Vocalist of the Year | | 1996 | Country Music Association | Album of the Year - Blue Clear Sky | | 1996 | Country Music Association | Single of the Year - "Check Yes Or No" | | 1996 | Music City News Country | Single of the Year - "Check Yes Or No" | | 1996 | TNN/Music City News | Album of the Year - Lead On | | 1996 | TNN/Music City News | Single of the Year - "Check Yes Or No" | | 1996 | TNN/Music City News | Video of the Year - "Check Yes Or No" | | 1995 | ASCAP | Voice Of Music Award | | 1995 | Academy of Country Music | Single of the Year - "Check Yes Or No" | | 1993 | ACM | Tex Ritter Movie Of The Year - Pure Country | | 1991 | American Music Awards | Favorite Country Male Artist | | 1990 | Radio & Records | Country Performer Of The Year | | 1990 | Country Music Association | Entertainer of the Year | | 1989 | Special | Presidential American Success Award | | 1989 | Academy of Country Music | Entertainer of the Year | | 1989 | Special | Connie B. Gay Award | | 1989 | Country Music Association | Entertainer of the Year | | 1988 | Academy of Country Music | Top Male Vocalist | | 1987 | Billboard | Top Country Artist | | 1986 | Billboard | Top Country Artist | | 1986 | Country Music Association | Male Vocalist of the Year | | 1986 | Music City News Country | Male Artist of the Year | | 1985 | Academy of Country Music | Album of the Year - Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind | | 1985 | Academy of Country Music | Top Male Vocalist | | 1985 | Country Music Association | Album of the Year - Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind | | 1985 | Country Music Association | Male Vocalist of the Year | | 1984 | Academy of Country Music | Top Male Vocalist |
XM Radio dedicated a channel to George Strait called Strait Country for the months of April and May 2008.
See also
Further reading
External links
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