by Matt Bishop | November 6, 2016
Last night, Josh Turner’s 2016 tour made a stop at the Santander Performing Arts Center in Reading, PA. The country crooner is out on the road playing his biggest hits, and previewing songs from his upcoming sixth studio album. His last effort, 2012’s Punching Bag, debuted at #4 on the Billboard Top 200 and #1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart. “I’ve been talking with the record label over the last few days, and I can tell you all that the new Josh Turner album will be out early next year, probably in the spring,” Turner stated. And the crowd was ecstatic that their 5 year wait for new Turner tunes was coming to an end.
Up-and-comer Drew Baldridge kicked off the show, playing tracks from his debut LP that dropped back in June. The highlight of the set was his infectious “Dance With Ya,” the lead single from he record that’s been garnering some solid airplay on country radio. Baldridge has the charisma and the voice, and some Luke Bryan-esque jeans to top it all off. It will surely be exciting to see how his career progresses from here.
Turner took the stage and started his set with his high-energy hit “Why Don’t We Just Dance.” He rolled right into “Firecracker,” and never looked back. In addition to all his familiar fan favorites, Turner also played his new single “Hometown Girl” as well as some other tracks from his upcoming 2017 album including “Bench Seat,” “Deep South,” and “Beach Bums.” Fans have been waiting nearly half a decade for a new Josh Turner record, and they definitely found the new material refreshing. Other hits included “Backwoods Boy,” “Me and God,” “Haywire,” “Long Black Train,” and “Time Is Love.” He closed out the night with his upbeat ballad “Your Man,” which received a standing ovation. Once again, Turner proved that he is certainly one of country music’s most coveted voices.
Josh Turner exploded onto the country music scene in 2003. He inked a deal with MCA Records and released his first LP, Long Black Train. His sophomore effort, 2006’s Your Man, gave Turner his first two #1 singles. The album itself hit #2 on the Billboard Top 200 and #1 on Billboard Country Albums. Turner’s next two releases would also hit the Top 5 on the Billboard charts.
His latest effort, 2012’s Punching Bag, debuted at #4 on the Billboard Top 200 and #1 on Billboard Country Albums. The album’s lead single “Time Is Love” was the top country song of the year. Josh recently released his first book Man Stuff via HarperCollins Publishing. Throughout his career, Turner has been nominated for two Grammy Awards and seven CMA Awards.
