Eric Church’s ‘Country Heart’ To Shine At Hall Of Fame Exhibit
Eric Church is the subject of the Country Music Hall Of fame’s newest exhibition, “Eric Church: Country Heart, Restless Soul,” presented by Gibson. The exhibit will chronicle Church’s unique path…
Eric Church is the subject of the Country Music Hall Of fame's newest exhibition, "Eric Church: Country Heart, Restless Soul," presented by Gibson. The exhibit will chronicle Church's unique path to stardom. The exhibit, which opens July 13 and runs through June 2024, is included with museum admission.
Kyle Young, CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, said in a statement, "Eric Church has done it his way completely. His steadfast artistic vision and authenticity resonate deeply with audiences, and he continues to serve as an important collaborator and renegade role model for generations of country music artists."
Examples of items to be displayed include:
- The Harmony H-303 three-quarter-size acoustic guitar that belonged to Church when he was a child.
- Ray-Ban Aviator Mirror sunglasses worn by Church onstage.
- The Von Dutch trucker hat Church bought at a Mississippi truck stop in the late 2000s and began wearing onstage.
- The outfit worn by Church on the album cover of The Outsiders and at the CMA Awards in 2013, which includes a Rogue two-tone leather jacket, John Varvatos shirt, and Diesel jeans.
- A sculpture made from vinyl records of various sizes, which replicates the soundwave of Church's recording of "Record Year" and was used as a prop in the 2016 music video for the song.
- A Gibson Eric Church Hummingbird Dark guitar. Church contributed to the design of the limited-edition guitar and used it on his "Double Down Tour" (2019).
- The Tom Ford purple suede jacket that Church wore when he and Jazmine Sullivan sang the national anthem at Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, in 2021.
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Church recently celebrated the tenth anniversary of the release of his 2013 album Caught In The Act. The live album was captured in 2012 at the Tivoli Theater in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Eric said recording the album reminded him of when he played the bars and clubs before getting his record deal. He told us, "We kinda left the lights up, so you could kinda look around and see everybody. You could see the emotion; you could see the faces; you could hear 'em. I felt at home. I felt like I was back in those bars and clubs that I love so much, and theaters, that I've had that interaction, that connection with individual people."
The title, Caught in the Act, perfectly describes how they recorded the album. Church explained, "We wanted it to be as loose as it could be because that's what our career has been. It's been real. I remember, like an hour before that first show of myself and the band, we pulled out a sheet of paper, took out a pen, and went down and made a set list. We didn't know what we were starting with. We didn't know what we were finishing with."
He added, "We just went down and said, 'Hey, what do you want to play? What do you want to play? Hey, man, remember, we haven't played this in a long time.' There were songs that I thought there's no way I'll get through that, but our sentiment was let's try it. Let's go for it."
Eric Church celebrates his 46th birthday today (5/3). Having just announced a partnership for a brand of whiskey, and with a summer tour coming in June, Eric is a busy guy. Musically, he's also working on new songs and ideas to please his rabid fanbase, the Church Choir. To his credit, whatever comes out, he gives his fan club members first access to it as he is not one to underappreciate the people who support him and brought him to where he is today.
As Church blows out 46 candles today, just a handful of years away from his big 5-0 birthday, we gathered what we believe are the 20 finest songs in his lengthy catalog.
RELATED: Eric Church Partners For New Whiskey Brand
20. “How ‘Bout You” (2006)
UMGA good one for his debut single from his 2006 debut album “Sinners Like Me.” Church wrote this song with Brandon Church (his brother) and Brett Beavers.
19. “Give Me Back My Hometown” (2014)
UMGAn Eric co-write with Luke Laird. It was released in January 2014 as the second single from his album “The Outsiders.” The song reached number one on the US Billboard Country Airplay chart in May of that year.
18. “Guys Like Me” (2006)
UMGGreat line: “I ain’t scared to bleed.” In the song, Eric describes the ways in which his lifestyle appears incompatible with that of his partner. He hypothesizes that even though she has lots of other men interested in her, it is an act of God's will that motivates her to choose someone like him.
17. “Hell on the Heart” (2009)
UMGA top ten for Eric who sings about a girl he knows, saying that she is "heaven on the eyes / But boy, she's hell on the heart."
16. “Smoke a Little Smoke” (2010)
UMGSomewhat of a controversial song when it was first released, over a decade ago. The video sees Church driving vintage cars at Clarksville Speedway, and includes a cameo from NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne.
15. “The Outsiders” (2013)
UMGEric described it as a mix of Waylon Jennings and Metallica. Church also said when it came out, “It’s a bit of a statement. I wanted to send a message with this album that it’s gonna be different, it’s gonna be another level."
14. “Cold One” (2014)
UMGA straight up country song. Church states in the song that a woman took a beer from a twelve-pack that he was drinking at the time and describes both the beer and her sudden departure as a "cold one."
13. “Does to Me” (2020)
UMGEric joined one of his biggest fans on this duet with Luke Combs. It’s a solid collaboration co-written by Combs along with Ray Fulcher and Tyler Reeve, it is the third single from Combs's 2019 album 'What You See Is What You Get.’
12. “Mr. Misunderstood” (2015)
UMGChurch dropped this album of the same name backstage to media on the night of the 2015 CMA Awards. The song is about a misfit teenager, expressing sympathy for his being "misunderstood." In it, Eric says some encouraging words about the good things that will happen one day when people will appreciate him.
11. “Some of It” (2019)
UMG"Some of It" became Eric Church's eighth number one on the Billboard Country Airplay chart. It’s pure Church.
10. “Monsters” (2019)
UMGThis one is a bit eerie but makes a statement using the analogy of a monster hiding under a child's bed to represent troubles in one's life.
9. “Desperate Man” (2018)
UMGIn the cool music video for this song, Church gets "busted" by FBI agents whose uniforms read EMI, the name of his record label.
8. “Hell of a View” (2020)
UMGIt is the lead single from Eric’salbum “Soul,” part of a triple album set. The track features backing vocals from Church's longtime collaborator Joanna Cotton.
7. “Creepin'” (2012)
UMGChurch describes the memory of a former lover as being similar to "creepin'." The tune features a banjo and an electric guitar, as well as several vocal effects on Eric’s voice.
6. “Record Year” (2016)
UMGIt’s about a man who recovers from a broken heart by listening to a collection of vinyl record albums.
5. “Stick That in Your Country Song” (2020)
UMGThis is pure Church; even the title is exciting. The song doesn’t disappoint either as it addresses several social issues and situations including underprivileged lives in urban areas, a soldier coming back from war, and an overworked and underpaid school- teacher. It was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Country Solo Performance.
4. “Raise ‘Em Up” (2015)
UMGAn amazing duet with Keith Urban. It asks every concert crowd to simply “Raise ‘Em Up.”
3. “Talladega” (2014)
UMG"Talladega" is a song about a man who is sharing memories from a trip made to Talladega Superspeedway with friends after his senior year in high school. Eric and his crew filmed the video for the song at the real Talladega Superspeedway.
2. “Drink in My Hand” (2011)
UMGThis song is just infectious and gets you to really want to put a drink in your hand. It was Church’s first number one song on the Billboard Country Singles chart.
1. “Springsteen” (2012)
UMGInspired by an idol of his, Bruce Springsteen; like many of Bruce’s early songs, it tells the story of a teenage romance. And it got the attention of Jersey’s favorite son: if you search “Bruce Springsteen and Eric Church” on YouTube, you’ll see Bruce inviting Eric onstage for a duet of “Workin’ On The Highway.”
