Eric Church
By Catherine Lewis
History
He was born on May 3, 1977, in Granite Falls, North Carolina. When he was 13, he bought a guitar and started writing songs. By his senior year in high school he had gotten gigs at local bars. During his time performing at local bars he played Jimmy Buffett covers and few of his original songs. For a few years he played with the band, Mountain Boys in bars in North Carolina, the band consisted of his brother, college roommate, and a fellow guitarist.
Eric Church moved to Nashville, and in 2005 he co-wrote Terri Clark's song, "The World Needs a Drink," and "Whiskey Wings," on Dean Miller's album Platinum. He started working with multiple different producers but none of them thought he was ready for a recording contract. Then he met with Arthur Buenahora who was a producer at Sony Music, and together they convinced Capitol Nashville that Eric Church was ready for a contract. His First Single, "How 'Bout You" peaked as number 14 on the Hot Country Songs Chart, which led off his debut album Sinner Like Me. In April 2006 Eric Church got to perform at the Grand Ole Opry for the first time.
He has won awards for Academy of Country Music Award for New Male Vocalist of the Year, Academy of Country Music Award for Album of the Year, Country Music Association Award for Album of the Year, Academy of Country Music Award for Vocal Event of the Year, Academy of Country Music Awards Jim Reeves International Award, and Academy of Country Music Award for New Solo Vocalist of the Year.
Event That Propelled Him to Fame
Top Songs
"Springsteen"
"Talladega"
"Give Me Back My HomeTown"
"Drink In My Hand"
"Creepin'"
"Love Your Love the Most"
Top Albums
Sinners Like Me
Chief
Caught In The Act
Carolina
Characteristics of Country
-Memorable stories are shared through the lyrics
- Most songs are written by people raised in a rural area, that have been exposed to economic or social challenges.
-Includes guitar and drums
- It takes its roots from the southeastern genre of American Folk Music and Western Music.
"Springsteen"
H- Piano, Acoustic guitar, Drums
M- Main Vocals
R- Moderate, in 4
G- Soft-Moderate-Soft
Hill
Intro- Verse 1-Chorus- Verse 2- Chorus- Bridge- Chorus- Outro
Country
Works Cited
Turcotte, Bryon, and Jacob Harkins. "What Characteristics Define Country Music?" WiseGeek. Conjecture, n.d. Web. 04 May 2015.