Carrie Underwood, Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney among American Country Music Award winners.
The country stars shone on Las Vegas on Tuesday night as the 42nd Annual ACM Awards were handed out. Here are the much-anticipated results and some personal reactions:
Vocal Collaboration of the Year
Winner – Building Bridges – Brooks & Dunn, Sheryl Crow, and Vince Gill
Reaction – This song was the best of a pretty weak field of nominees this year. Its chart success and star power made this song the odds-on favorite to win before the night began. No problem with this result.
Video of the Year
Winner - Before He Cheats – Carrie Underwood
Reaction - We knew Carrie was going to win multiple awards tonight. This one was debatable, but not non-deserving. The video brings out the crazy ex-girlfriend emotion the song displays and shows us that Carrie Underwood continues to grow in stardom. I could see her becoming a star in motion pictures as well as music.
Song of the Year
Winner – Give It Away – written by Bill Anderson, Buddy Cannon, Jamey Johnson – song by George Strait.
Reaction: Bill Anderson is so widely respected that any nomination with his name on it has a high possibility of winning. It’s amazing that Nashville songwriters can keep coming up with ways of describing a woman walking out on a guy, but I guess that’s what they get paid for. No one is going to gripe at the winner, but “Before he Cheats” seemed to stick out from the bunch more than any other song this year.
Album of the Year
Winner – Some Hearts – Carrie Underwood
Reaction: This was probably the toughest category to choose a loser. Rascall Flatts, George Strait, and Carrie Underwood all put out amazing albums, but in the end the artist with the hottest hand got the nod.
Top New Male Vocalist
Winner – Rodney Atkins
Reaction – If anybody was surprised, they should get out of Las Vegas as fast as possible. This was the surest bet of the night. Rodney has had 2 monster hits, and with his credentials from this year, would have won this competition any year against anybody. Anybody know why Jake Owens wasn’t nominated, Craig Morgan is about as new as iPODs.
Top New Duo or Vocal Group
Winner – Little Big Town
Reaction – No way! You can’t convince me that Little Big Town had a better year than The Wreckers. On the charts, The Wreckers has a #1 song and their record sold more than Little Big Town’s release. I can’t see any logical answers for what was the upset of the night.
Top New Female Vocalist
Winner – Miranda Lambert
Reaction – I thought Taylor Swift deserved the award, but I don’t think she was robbed the same way The Wreckers were. Miranda benefited from having a lot of fans in the Nashville circuit. Still, she hasn’t had a Top 10 song (which Taylor Swift did), so maybe this award will jumpstart her career. Doesn’t it seem weird to give the award to an artist who needs a jumpstart?
Single Record of the Year
Winner – Give It Away, George Strait
Reaction – Pleasantly surprised. I didn’t have enough faith in the academy to recognize a pure country classic like “Give It Away.”
Top Male Vocalist
Winner – Brad Paisley
Reaction – It’s about time. This guy has shown he can sing about any subject matter, as he said, from bugs to suicide. Ballads, shuffles, you name the style, Brad will make it sound enjoyable.
Top Vocal Group
Winner – Brooks & Dunn
Reaction – Are they still the best? I guess until Sugarland becomes a national headlining act, you can’t argue with this choice. But it would have been nice to see a change.
Top Female Vocalist
Winner – Carrie Underwood
Reaction – Despite an impressive list of nominees, Carrie was a shoe-in.
Entertainer of the Year
Winner – Kenny Chesney
Reaction – This guy is the hardest worker in country music. His stadium shows have produced the biggest country music parties for 2 straight summers, and his singles and albums are always at the top of the charts. Kenny deserves the recognition.
