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Bless the Broken Road
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Wikipedia article
"'Bless the Broken Road'" is a song that has been recorded by several American country music artists. Co-written by Marcus Hummon, Bobby Boyd, and Jeff Hanna in 1994, it tells how the journey through relationship heartbreak and disappointment was an important series of lessons along the broken road to finding ones true love. It was first recorded by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in 1994, followed by Hummon on his 1995 album 'All in Good Time'.
Since then, many artists have recorded the song with Rascal Flatts' version being the highest-charting, becoming a number 1 hit on the 'Billboard' country music charts in 2005 and earning the songwriters a Grammy Award for Best Country Song.
History
Singer-songwriter Marcus Hummon co-wrote the song with Jeff Hanna (of Nitty Gritty Dirt Band) and Bobby Boyd. Nitty Gritty Dirt Band recorded it for the 1994 album 'Acoustic'. One year later, Hummon covered the song for his debut album 'All in Good Time' for Columbia Records. His rendition includes backing vocals from Hanna and Matraca Berg. Michael McCall of 'New Country' magazine thought that Hummon's rendition was the best track on the album.
Sons of the Desert recorded its own version of the song, for a planned second album on Epic Records that would have been released in 1998. This album was not released, due to a dispute between the band and its label.
Since then, many artists have recorded the song including Melodie Crittenden, Geoff Moore, Selah, Jamie Slocum, Carrie Underwood, Buddy Greene, and Rascal Flatts.
Melodie Crittenden version
Also in 1998, Melodie Crittenden recorded the song under the title "Broken Road," and included it on her self-titled debut album for Asylum Records. Released as the first of two singles from it, this version was a number 42 single on the 'Billboard' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts.
This version was featured on an episode of 'Dawson's Creek'.
Critical reception
'Billboard' gave Crittenden's version a positive review in the January 17, 1998, issue, calling it "sheer poetry with a moving message."Chart positions
Rascal Flatts version
The highest-charting rendition is by the country music group Rascal Flatts, who cut the song for the 'Feels Like Today' album. Released in November 2004, this version spent five weeks at number one on the Hot Country Singles & Tracks charts. It also won a Grammy Award for Best Country SongWhitburn, p. 339 and earned a platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of America. The song topped the 2 million mark in paid downloads on September 18, 2010. It's Rascal Flatts' third song to reach that mark, following "Life Is a Highway" and "What Hurts the Most". As of January 2020, the song has sold 3,719,000 copies in the US.
On May 25, 2005, during a live performance on 'American Idol' by Carrie Underwood and Rascal Flatts, an additional version was recorded. While not in wide release, and never included on an album, the version received enough radio airplay to enter the country music charts at number 50.
In 2009, an acoustic version recorded by Rascal Flatts was included in the soundtrack of 'Hannah Montana: The Movie'.
On May 19, 2012, "Bless the Broken Road" debuted at number 76 and went to number 41 next week on the UK Singles chart (The Official Charts Company), the band's first and only appearance on the chart.
On February 26, 2020, the song received renewed attention after California-based artist RMR sampled the piano melody for his debut song Rascal. The song and music video would go on to be a viral hit.
Song information
Rascal Flatts' version of the song is set in the key of C major, with a vocal range from C4 to A5.Charts
Year-end charts
Certifications and sales
Selah version
Selah, a contemporary Christian music band, covered the song in 2006 on the album 'Bless the Broken Road: The Duets Album' featuring a duet vocal from Crittenden. Also released as a single, Selah's version peaked at number five on the Hot Christian Songs charts.
Charts
{|class="wikitable sortable"!align="left"|Chart (2006)
!align="center"|Peak
position
|-
|align="left"|U.S. 'Billboard' Hot Christian Songs
|align="center"|5
|}
Accolades
In 2007, this version of the song was nominated for a Dove Award for Song of the Year at the 38th GMA Dove Awards.[http://christianmusic.about.com/od/doves/a/gma07awards.htm 38th Annual GMA Awards] on About.com
Film version
A feature film based on the song, titled 'God Bless the Broken Road', began filming in 2015, and was originally announced to be released in 2016. The actual release was September 7, 2018.
References
Category:1994 songs
Category:1998 debut singles
Category:2004 singles
Category:2006 singles
Category:Melodie Crittenden songs
Category:Nitty Gritty Dirt Band songs
Category:Rascal Flatts songs
Category:Carrie Underwood songs
Category:Sons of the Desert (band) songs
Category:Selah (band) songs
Category:Songs written by Marcus Hummon
Category:Lyric Street Records singles
Category:Asylum Records singles
Category:Curb Records singles
Category:Country ballads
Category:Song recordings produced by Mark Bright (record producer)
Category:Songs written by Jeff Hanna
Category:Songs written by Bobby Boyd (songwriter)
Category:Vocal collaborations
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