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World Series of Country Music Proudly Presents Stock Car Racing's Entertainers of the Year

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World Series of Country Music Proudly Presents Stock Car Racing's Entertainers of the Year
Studio album by
Various artists
Released1985
GenreCountry
LabelWorld Series of Country Music
ProducerMike Hopkins

World Series of Country Music Proudly Presents Stock Car Racing's Entertainers of the Year is a studio album released in 1985 by World Series of Country Music. The album was compiled of 21 original country music songs with lead vocals of all songs all sung by various NASCAR drivers, plus an introduction track by Ned Jarrett.

Background

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The album was the creation of country music promoter Mike Hopkins, who wanted to create a concept album featuring NASCAR's biggest stars to express themselves musically. Hopkins, trying to avoid the flop of NASCAR Goes Country, hired 25 professional songwriters to write songs for the album, of which 80 songs were created, and 21 were chosen for drivers to sing. Songs were chosen based on a driver interview, asking them what drove their ambition, heroes, families, and more.[1] Hopkins told the songwriters "Here are the words of an auto racer, what he believes, what he stands for. You go and write me a song from this material."[2] Around $200,000 was poured into the project.

Many of the songs relate to achievements or the drivers' personality. For example, Bobby Hillin Jr. talks about his crew chief, Harry Hyde. Dale Earnhardt's song, "Hard Charger", relates to his rough reputation. Bill Elliott's song talks about his career.[3]

Fans formerly could order an album by sending $19.95 plus $3.00 handling to World Series of Country Music. To help promote the album, NASCAR driver and legend Ned Jarrett would make commercials promoting the album in 1985.[4][5]

Track listing

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No.TitleArtistLength
1."Moderation"Ned Jarrett0:52
2."The People Who Love Me (Worry a Lot)"Kyle Petty3:52
3."Wizard of the Wheel"Dick Brooks3:15
4."Born to Drive"Phil Parsons2:23
5."A Crazy Racin' Man"Bill Elliott1:29
6."Race Track Fever"Dale Jarrett2:17
7."I'm Puttin' You in My Rearview"Buddy Baker2:18
8."A Driver's Prayer"Trevor Boys3:33
9."The All-American Stock Car Racing Fan"James Hylton1:51
10."The Winner"Cale Yarborough2:36
11."Trying to Win It All"Ricky Rudd1:58
12."Me and the Rookie"Benny Parsons3:58
13."Thanks for the Ride, Harry Hyde"Bobby Hillin Jr.1:56
14."That Race Car Makes a Demon Out of Me"Bobby Allison2:08
15."It's What's Up Front That Counts"Rusty Wallace2:29
16."Super Speedway Man"Ron Bouchard1:57
17."The Iceman's Hot"Terry Labonte2:14
18."The Man, Geoff Bodine"Geoff Bodine2:54
19."I'm Doin' the Best with What I Got"Dave Marcis2:00
20."T-Bone"Richard Childress2:46
21."I'm Always a Winner with You"Joe Ruttman2:42
22."Hard Charger"Dale Earnhardt2:23

Reception

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While better than the previous album including NASCAR drivers, it was still a flop. Only 20,000 copies were ever sold, and the album was eventually pulled a couple of years later by the label. The album has gone largely into obscurity, but on occasion NASCAR and its drivers still remember the album.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Country Throwback: Dale Earnhardt Sr., Other NASCAR Icons Record Honky-tonk Album in 1985". Outsider. 2020-12-08. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
  2. ^ Barnhardt, William. "NASCAR DRIVERS ARE NOW TUNING UP THEIR VOICES ALONG WITH THEIR CARS". Sports Illustrated Vault | SI.com. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
  3. ^ "NASCAR Drivers Recorded A CD In The '80s And It's The Best Thing Ever". Jalopnik. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
  4. ^ Stock Car Racing's Entertainers of The Year Ned Jarrett 1985 Commercial, NASCAR Sings, retrieved 2021-10-09
  5. ^ NASCAR Country Music Album Commercial, 1985, retrieved 2021-10-09
  6. ^ "The NASCAR Country Album You Need To Hear". DrivingLine. Retrieved 2021-10-08.
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