The date was May 25, 2005. My family was glued to the TV while dramatic music played and lights shone around a well-known stage. We watched intently with the rest of America and awaited the results of season 4 of American Idol. Carrie Underwood was our long-time favorite to win, although Bo Bice posed a threat. On that night, we held our breath as Ryan Seacrest finally announced, “The winner of Season 4 of American Idol is… Carrie Underwood!”
Carrie Underwood wins American Idol!
I’m proud to say that I picked Carrie to win from the moment she first auditioned for the show. For some reason, it was obvious that she just had something that no one else had, and apparently America saw that too! Since she won, Carrie has flown to superstardom and is now one of the biggest and most influential stars in the country music business. She has released four albums with 11 #1 singles and many singles hitting in the top 5 of the country music charts, and has toured six times in the US and around the world.
It is hard to believe that the moment that is so engrained in my mind took place almost 10 years ago! But believe it or not, the time has come to celebrate the success of Carrie Underwood during the past 10 years, and what better way to do that than with a Greatest Hits album? That’s right, Carrie is releasing a new album titled Greatest Hits: Decade #1, comprised of her most popular and well-known songs from the last decade. It is fun to go back and listen to the songs that really staged her career and shot her to fame, because the album truly shows how much she has grown. Some of my personal favorites are “Before He Cheats,” “Cowboy Casanova,” “Undo It,” “Good Girl,” and “All-American Girl.” I’d definitely advise you to listen to her duet with Vince Gill, called “How Great Thou Art”; it is guaranteed to give you chills! Honestly though, it would be hard to go wrong with any of the songs on this album; it truly encompasses all of her greatest achievements.
Carrie Underwood Greatest Hits: Decade #1
Although the album does not actually hit stores until December 9, 2014, you can pre-order it here on Amazon!
Disc 1:
- “Something in the Water”
- “Little Toy Guns”
- “Inside Your Heaven”
- “Jesus, Take the Wheel”
- “Don’t Forget to Remember Me”
- “Before He Cheats”
- “Wasted”
- “So Small”
- “All-American Girl”
- “Last Name”
- “Just a Dream”
- “I Told You So” (feat. Randy Travis)
Disc 2:
- “Cowboy Casanova”
- “Temporary Home”
- “Undo It”
- “Mama’s Song”
- “Remind Me” (with Brad Paisley)
- “Good Girl”
- “Blown Away”
- “Two Black Cadillacs”
- “See You Again”
- “How Great Thou Art” (with Vince Gill)
- “So Small”
- “Last Name”
- “Mama’s Song”
When I first came to Texas many people asked me if I have ever been to Coachella, a music festival similar to ACL held in Palm Desert, which is about 2 hours from my house. I never have been to Coachella but every year in high school I went to Stagecoach, which was basically the same thing except all country music. When I say basically the same thing I mean its put on by the same company, held at the same venue, and its always one weekend after Coachella. I’m really surprised more people don’t know about Stagecoach here, I guess Coachella just gets more advertising.
The last year I went to Stagecoach was my senior year and it was by far the best year. I got to see Darius Rucker, Lady Antebellum, Toby Keith, Zac Brown Band, and Dierks Bentley. My favorites were Darius and Dierks by far though; they were having so much fun on stage it was contagious for anyone else watching. Darius kept encouraging the crowd to line dance with him, which in hindsight was not the best idea because I was standing in a mosh pit of people trying to dance so everyone was getting pushed around. Despite the blistering heat throughout the day, my friends and I went right as the gates opened at noon, and stayed until they closed after the last performer that night.
