- Top 25 Songs Chart is Full of Hat Acts - Mary R. Vogt
Falling in and out of love, yearning for home and the good old days, and celebrating life's sweet and bitter moments were popular themes in the top country songs of 2008.
The top 25 hot country songs list is also full of familiar names, from George Strait (#2) to Alan Jackson (#3 and #12) and Kenny Chesney (#15 with the reggae group The Wailers and #23 on his own).
Billboard’s Top 25 Hot Country Songs for 2008
James Otto topped out Billboard’s 2008 country song chart with his first #1 hit, “Just Got Started Lovin’ You,” and Darius Rucker, formerly of the pop group Hootie and the Blowfish, surprised everyone by weighing in at #4 with his wistful ballad of lost love, “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It.” Here's the entire Top 25:
- James Otto, Just Got Started Lovin’ You
- George Strait, I Saw God Today
- Alan Jackson, Small Town Southern Man
- Darius Rucker, Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It
- Blake Shelton, Home
- Phil Vassar, Love is a Beautiful Thing
- Trace Adkins, You’re Gonna Miss This
- Keith Anderson, I Still Miss You
- Rodney Atkins, Cleaning This Gun (Come on In Boy)
- Brad Paisley, I’m Still a Guy
- Toby Keith, She Never Cried in Front of Me
- Alan Jackson, Good Time
- Jimmy Wayne, Do You Believe Me Now
- Chris Cagle, What Kinda Gone
- Kenny Chesney with the Wailers, Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven
- Carrie Underwood, Just a Dream
- Keith Urban, You Look Good in My Shirt
- Lady Antebellum, Love Don’t Live Here
- Brad Paisley, Waitin’ on a Woman
- Rascal Flatts, Every Day
- Montgomery Gentry, Back When I Knew it All
- Lyric Street, Winner at a Losing Game
- Kenny Chesney, Better as a Memory
- Carrie Underwood, All American Girl
- Brad Paisley, Letter to Me
Brad Paisley, who occupied the #25 slot with Letter to Me, had a very good year, winning two other spots on the list: #19, with Waitin' on a Woman, and #10, with I'm Still a Guy.
Is the Top 25 a Good Ol’ Boys’ Club?
One striking fact about the top 25 songs is the fact that almost all were performed by men. Only two female artists made it into the top 25: Carrie Underwood, with “Just a Dream” at #16 and “All American Girl” at #24, and singer Hillary Scott of the group Lady Antebellum, whose “Love Don’t Live Here” ranked #18. While the top-selling country albums of all time include a number of female acts, notably Shania Twain, the Dixie Chicks, Carrie Underwood, Faith Hill, and LeAnn Rimes, this year’s top songs were a nearly-all-male preserve.
How Billboard Tracks the Top 25 Songs
Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart is compiled based on radio airplay, as measured by the rating agency Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems. The 2008 chart year began with Billboard’s Dec. 1, 2007 issue and ended with the Nov. 29, 2008, issue, making it an unusual year with a chart calendar totaling 53 weeks.
Other Billboard Country Music Charts
Billboard publishes a number of charts that will interest country music lovers, including a list of the Hot 100 All-Time Top 10 Country Songs, top country albums for 2008, and top country artists for 2008.
If you liked this article, you may also like:
Rock Stars Cross over to Country Music Charts. Darius Rucker, Kid Rock, The Eagles, Robert Plant, Jewel, and Jon Bon Jovi are the latest in a long line of rock and pop stars to find success with country music.
Christine Mann - Christine Mann writes about quilting, home decor sewing, and creativity in daily life.
