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Keith is nominated for Best Male Country Vocal performance
for "You'll Think Of Me" in the 2005 Grammy Awards. The Australian-born
Urban's debut solo album achieved three top 5 hits and securing him the
title of Top New Male Vocalist Award at the 2001
Academy of Country Music
Awards. In this album he combined canned fiddle 'n' steel licks with
hip-hop-flavored drum loops. The rock edge that characterized his previous
band, the Ranch, a three-piece group that released one album in 1997 to
critical acclaim, was replaced by pretty-boy poses and puppy-love lyrics
that aimed straight at the young female demographic. He joined the ranks of
hip young artists breaking down the barriers of traditional country. His
recent single "Where the Blacktop Ends" hit No. 3 on "Billboard"'s country
chart. The only demonstration of Urban's guitar dexterity was perfectly
blended in the by-the-numbers instrumental "Rollercoaster." A couple of the
better songs hinted at darker moods and adult emotions that were close to
the real Keith Urban. But too often he came across as another latter-day
Urban Cowboy who is simply seen in the shiny boots and Stetson for bare feet
and an earring. Keith has performed as a session musician on albums such as
Garth Brooks' Double Live and Dixie Chicks' Fly. His collaboration with
Garth Brooks was an experience in itself. Keith was so obliged; he stated
that if Garth would have wanted he could have gotten many artists to play on
that album. Often referred to by his peers as a "rock star in disguise,"
Urban borrows his guitar riffs from Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Aerosmith,
while his vocals seem to be in rhythm with Glen Campbell.
After the hot off double-platinum success of his 2002
sophomore album, Golden Road, which was kind of like contemporary country's
Tom Cruise, Keith became all the more loveable. The success of the single
Somebody Like You rocketed his career into high gear. The single spent eight
consecutive weeks at the top of the charts, remaining at #1 longer than any
other country artist in 2002. The album went platinum in every country where
it was been released and was triple platinum in the
U.S. The video featured
supermodel Niki Taylor. In 2003, another single from the album, "Who
Wouldn't Want to Be Me," also reached No. 1. IN Be Here, with his resolute
tenor and dazzling lead guitar work, he breathed real pain and passion into
moving confessionals like Matraca Berg's "Nobody Drinks Alone," "Tonight I
Wanna Cry" (a heart-rending ballad co-written by Urban), and a gentle Rodney
Crowell gem called "Memories of Us." With BE HERE, Urban has made the most
ambitious and heartfelt music of his career to date -- a song cycle that
reflects Urban's great musical range and personal point of view as never
before. Urban continued his meteoric rise to fame in 2005 with the very
successful Alive in '05 tour. He performed in the Live 8 Philadelphia
concert on July 2nd 2005.
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