Scotty McCreery‘s career started with a cover song…
A teenage McCreery mesmerized millions of viewers in 2011 when he auditioned for Season 10 of American Idol with a cover of Josh Turner‘s “Your Man.” McCreery continued to share his takes on other fan-favorite country songs as he advanced through the competition, including “Cross My Heart,” “Swingin’,” and “Always On My Mind.”
McCreery won that season of Idol. He’s now one of the show’s most successful winners, with multiple #1 songs to his name, including “Five More Minutes,” “Damn Strait,” and “In Between.”
Those songs, and a selection of McCreery’s other hits, appear on his retrospective album 15. The record, which debuted on July 17th, also contains a brand-new song (“Been a Good Run”) and three covers (“Your Man,” “Hello Darlin’,” and “Why Me, Lord”).
McCreery recently sat down with Billboard to talk about 15 and another project he has in the works. During their conversation, he listed five timeless country tracks that he always loves to sing, and explained why.
He named Josh Turner’s “Long Black Train” as one of those songs. McCreery described how he used to sing “Long Black Train” a lot while he was growing up, which has made it special to him.
He eventually covered “Long Black Train” on Idol and performed the song with Turner on another occasion.
McCreery noted that he also enjoys singing Jamey Johnson‘s “In Color.” He performed the song at a small show called Clayton Idol when he was young. He won the show, and that gave him the confidence he needed to try out for the real Idol.
He said the story of “In Color” speaks to him because it reminds him of the old photos he saw around his grandparents’ homes when he was young.
McCreery famously covered “In Color” for the CMA’s “Forever Country” series ahead of the 50th CMA Awards in 2016.
McCreery went on to list George Strait‘s “The Chair” and Garth Brooks‘ “Ain’t Goin’ Down (‘Til the Sun Comes Up)” as other country classics he loves to perform for his fans.
He told Billboard “The Chair” is one of his “favorite all-time songs,” and said “Ain’t Goin’ Down” is always “a crowd pleaser” at his shows.
McCreery and his fellow Opry member Dustin Lynch have united to perform the latter song a few times, and they always look like they’re having a blast!
Scotty McCreery Released A Full-Length Cover Of Conway Twitty’s “Hello Darlin’”
The fifth song Scotty McCreery named in his list for Billboard was “Hello Darlin’” by Conway Twitty. A video of him performing the track at the Grand Ole Opry went viral a few years ago, introducing him to a bunch of new fans.
As McCreery detailed in a recent video posted on social media, fans frequently ask him if he’s going to sing “Hello Darlin’” at his shows. He made the song a regular piece in his setlist because of those requests.
McCreery released a full-length recording of his “Hello Darlin’” cover on his new album, 15. The response has been larger than McCreery ever expected, as one video of him singing the tune in the studio has over 44 million views at the time of this writing.
“It’s great to see there’s a hunger and thirst for traditional country music and the throwback sound, all the way back to Conway,” McCreery told Billboard. “It makes me happy, and that’s the music I love to sing.”
You can listen to Scotty McCreery’s version of “Hello Darlin’” in the clip below. Which country song would you like him to cover next?
