Country music is without question the most patriotic of all the genres of music. So many artists have proudly declared their love of the United States in their music. In honor of July 4th, we picked four of the most patriotic songs in country music.
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1. "God Bless the USA" by Lee Greenwood
No list of patriotic songs in country music would be complete without "God Bless the USA" by Lee Greenwood. The song, first released in 1984, is still performed by Greenwood, more than 40 years later. "God Bless the USA" also charted again in 2001, after the tragic September 11 attacks.
"It was something I wanted to do my whole life anyway," Greenwood tells The New York Post. "But I never intended 'God Bless the USA' to be a hit."
Greenwood reveals that he didn't think "God Bless the USA" would be released as a single. But when Irving Azoff, the head of Greenwood's record label at the time, heard the song, he decided to release "God Bless the USA" as a single.
"If he hadn't made the call to release the single of the song, nobody would have heard of it - I guarantee you," says Greenwood. "It changed my life."
2. "Some Gave All" by Billy Ray Cyrus
Billy Ray Cyrus' name is synonymous with his biggest hit, the catchy and humours "Achy Breaky Heart." But Cyrus also has a serious side, which comes out in "Some Gave All." The song is the title track of his freshman album, and the final single from the record. Although the song didn't chart when it was released in 1993, it's still considered one of the most patriotic songs of all time, and often played on holidays like Memorial Day and July 4th.
Cyrus wrote "Some Gave All" with his former wife, Cindy Cyrus. For Cyrus, it's this song that started his entire career.
"I think it's the reason I bought a guitar and started a band," Cyrus tells Rolling Stone. "If I had only written and recorded that one song, I think that was and is my purpose. 'Some Gave All' has run a very special course through the line of our military."
3. "American Soldier" by Toby Keith
There may not be a song that is more patriotic than Toby Keith's "American Soldier." Released in 2003 from Keith's Shock'n Y'all album, Keith penned the song with Chuck Cannon, as a way to honor those in the military.
"This is a tremendous honor to the troops," Keith tells the Baltimore Sun. "We get so desensitized seeing them on the news every night that we forget that under the helmets is a mind, under the camouflage is a heart. They put it all on the line for us, man. The song was a tribute, but it also said to my critics, 'Now get up and say something about this ignorant redneck now.'"
4. "Only in America" by Brooks & Dunn
When "Only in America" was released by Brooks & Dunn in June of 2001, they had no idea how much the nation would need the song only a few months later. From their Steers & Stripes record, Brooks wrote the song with Don Cook and Ronnie Rogers, unaware that the song would become the patriotic anthem the country would need later that year.
"It starts going up the charts," Brooks recalls (via American Songwriter). "It was about somewhere in the Top 10 ... when 9/11 happened. And our country woke up to a morning that we had never seen before, and our true patriotic heart started pounding. ... To see our country just rally in a way where people are just hugging policemen, and anyone in the service is all of a sudden is respected for what they were and their commitment to our country. And that song all of a sudden took on a life of its own."
