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Saturday, 26 June, 2010 10:41 PM

Country star Mark Chesnutt releases new studio album, Outlaw

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Mark Chesnutt was born on Sept. 6, 1963 in Beaumont, Texas. He has had more than 30 singles on the Billboard Country Singles chart including eight number ones. The country singer is best known for the hits "Brother Jukebox," "It Sure Is Monday," "It's a Little Too Late" and "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing." Chesnutt has just released his 14th studio album titled Outlaw. The album is available everywhere music is sold on Saguaro Road Records.

Chesnutt's father, Bob, was also a country singer and he offered some advice on how to be successful to his son.

"The best advice he gave me was not to move to Nashville," he recalls. "Stay here in Beaumont, Texas and keep working the clubs. I wanted to move to Nashville at an early age. But he told me, 'If you move to Nashville, you're just going to be one of thousands of singers. You'll have to get two or three day jobs just to support yourself. Music would have to take a back seat.' Here in Texas, I can make a living. I can sing seven nights a week if I wanted to in honky tonks. That's what I did. I stayed here in Texas playing clubs and learning my craft and going to Nashville every now and then. It all worked out like just he said it would."

The country singer has had many hit singles over the years, but which is his favorite to perform?

"I get a kick out of doing all of them," Chesnutt responded. "I guess if I had to pick one, I think 'Too Cold at Home.' It was my very first hit. That's the song that brought me to this career. I found it in Nashville singing, meeting people and I found the guy who wrote 'Too Cold at Home.' I recorded it in Texas. Because of that song, I had people from MCA coming down to Beaumont, Texas just to see me. That's how it all got started."

He released his 14th studio album titled Outlaw on June 22, 2010. It contains 12 songs. Amber Digby joins Chesnutt on the fourth song, "A Couple More Years."

"The obvious high point in this album for me is 'Lovin' Her Was Easier,' the country singer said. "It's a Kris Kristofferson song and I never sang that song until I recorded it. I always thought the song was too deep for me. I found out it was just right for me. A beautiful well-written song. There's 12 songs so maybe listeners are going to have their own."

The new record also features songs written by Billy Joe Shaver, Neil Young, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Hank Williams Jr., among many others.

"A lot of songs from the '70s, '80s outlaw era," Chesnutt said. "This one was recorded in L.A. It was not done like all my other CDs. They were all done in Nashville and recorded with the same studio guys that we used on all of the albums we had hits with. This was done out in L.A. with Pete Anderson producing and playing most of the instruments. This had a whole different feel to it."

What was it like performing with Joe Diffie and Tracy Lawrence on the Rockin' Roadhouse Tour?

"That was probably the best time I've ever had on tour working with those guys," he answered. "That was so much fun with those guys. One band with the three of us on stage at the same time most of the night. It was a hoot. We had a good time. I don't see much of them anymore. I sure miss them. We sure had a great time."

Chesnutt will be going on tour this summer, however there are no dates scheduled for Michigan right now.

"I'm sure something will pop on the schedule there," Chesnutt said. "It usually does. We usually get to Michigan once or twice a year. I hope to be up there soon. I love the weather y'all have there."

What do you think of the talent coming out of shows like Nashville Star and American Idol?

"Well, I think some of them are great," the country singer responded. "I'm glad to see that they have a launching pad. We didn't have anything like that when I was coming up. We just had to take the bumpy road. I'm not saying what they're doing is easy, but it's a good thing for young talent to be seen, heard. These guys are getting worldwide media attention and even people who don't win. So I think it's a cool thing."

He shared some advice for people looking to break into the music industry.

"Get an education first," Chesnutt responded. "Go to school, graduate, go to college, graduate. Get something else and play music on the side. This day and time is totally different than 20 years ago when I got started. These days you make it in the music business if you're extremely, extremely lucky. There's more people trying to get into it. It's harder to make a living these days without a great education. If you've got a good education and something to fall back on, music ain't always something you can depend on. You're here today, gone tomorrow in this business."

His new album, Outlaw, is available in stores everywhere. It is basically a compilation of re-recordings of outlaw classics. This is a great album for any country music lover. It is currently rated four out of five stars on Amazon. Go pick up a copy for yourself and another for your friends or family.

For more information on Mark Chesnutt, visit www.markchesnutt.com.