Next Monday night is a big night in the lives on UK Country music fans! It’s the announcement show, featuring Ben Earle of The Shires, that will reveal the line up for the Country to Country (C2C) festival in London, Dublin and Glasgow next March. Months of wishing, predictions and crazy ideas are put to bed as the organisers announce which lucky acts get to come across the Atlantic and treat the tens of thousands of people that descend on the O2 and the other venues to some quality Country music.
If you want to be in the venue and hear the announcement as it happens there are still tickets available.
The proximity to the announcement and the prospect of buying some tickets next week got us to thinking about the amount of great songs we’ve been able to see at the festival over the years. Iconic songs that have defined particular eras of Country music. So, here’s 10 of the most iconic Country music songs to have been played at the festival.
Tim McGraw – ‘Live Like You Were Dying’
Surely McGraw’s pinnacle in terms of meaning and melody? A true modern Country legend who has appeared at the festival twice now.
Darius Rucker – ‘Wagon Wheel’
Such an iconic song wherever in the world you go and Country music is played. Love it or hate it you can’t deny its impact!
The Chicks – ‘Goodbye Earl’
Seminal revenge track from the trio who are long overdue a return. Yes, you might prefer a different song of theirs but this is the one that most people in the O2 arena would have been looking forward to seeing back in 2014.
Florida Georgia Line – ‘Cruise’
A song that defined a whole sub-genre of music from a band that have only played once in this country – you can’t get more iconic than that. Never likely to see them again, now, either. (Until the re-union tour in a few years!)
Chris Stapleton ‘Tennessee Whiskey’
Stapleton has played twice at the festival and yes, he arguably has better songs but this is the iconic one that fuelled much of the ‘Traveller’ era. This song started everything off for him and burned brightly during Country music’s ascent over in the UK too.
Little Big Town – ‘Girl Crush’
The biggest award winning song in terms of CMAs and Grammys across 2015 and 2016. If that isn’t the very definition of iconic, we don’t know what is.
Reba McEntire – ‘Fancy’
An all time iconic Country music superstar, playing her most iconic song! What a moment for the festival organisers and the fans who appreciated the history of the moment.
Lady Antebellum – Need You Now’
The biggest crossover Country music hit of the last decade, played twice from a band who have always supported the UK and their fans on this side of the pond.
Carrie Underwood – ‘Before He Cheats’
Another classic revenge song that is bigger than the genre that birthed it. Yes, Carrie has lots of other great songs and potentially bigger hits but this, alongside the terrific video that came with it, is her most iconic song to us.
Brad Paisley – Mona Lisa
Video credit to Dan at Your Life in a Song. Not a lot we can say about this aside from it was never a hit, most American’s wouldn’t have it in Brad’s setlist and it was never an iconic song for him anywhere else than over here. If you know, you know!
