Urban legend

By Jane Norris

Published: April 3, 2008

Keith Urban and Carrie Underwood saw their most recent CD releases debut at No. 1. Next week, the Grammy Award-winning country stars will make another debut — at the John Paul Jones Arena.
Part of the “Love, Pain, and the whole crazy Carnival Ride Tour,’’ the first Charlottesville appearance by Urban, a New Zealand native, and Underwood, the “American Idol’’ season-four champion, brings chart-topping country hits Thursday night.
Both stars grew up immersed in country music and dreaming of music careers, and the similarities don’t stop there. Both — particularly Underwood — have become quite accomplished in a relatively short time. And fans count on both of them for compelling hit singles, which won’t be in short supply at the Jack.
Urban has landed seven tunes in the top spot, including “Somebody Like You,’’ “But for the Grace of God,’’ “Better Life,’’ “Making Memories of Us,’’ “Days Go By,’’ “Who Wouldn’t Want to Be Me’’ and “You’ll Think of Me.’’
Underwood’s five top singles include “Jesus Take the Wheel,’’ “Before He Cheats,’’ “So Small,’’ “All-American Girl’’ and “Don’t Forget to Remember Me.’’
Their combined tour just might need an additional bus to haul both stars’ troves of awards and honors.
The current tour blends the titles of the two stars’ blazing-hot CDs. Urban “Love Pain and the whole crazy thing’’ is a double-platinum smash, and Underwood’s “Carnival Ride’’ has helped her keep alive an amazing streak of seeing all her singles become No. 1 hits.
Underwood’s ride to the top has been a head-spinning one indeed.
Many “American Idol’’ contestants get bluntly painful critiques from judge Simon Cowell. When Underwood took the stage, however, Cowell predicted that she’d not only win the competition, but also sell more records than any of her “Idol’’ predecessors.
That was just the beginning for the 25-year-old Oklahoma native, who has made Cowell look like a psychic genius. Underwood made country music history with “Some Hearts,’’ her first CD, which sold enough copies to make it the top country album of 2006 and 2007 and was the best-selling album by a female artist in 2005, 2006 and 2007.
She also landed consecutive Grammys for best country song — for “Jesus Take the Wheel’’ in 2007 and “Before He Cheats’’ earlier this year.
Let’s hope that Underwood and Urban aren’t getting sick of seeing each other on tour, because both are getting nominated for plenty of awards that will have them sharing even more stages. One example is the upcoming 2008 CMT Awards show, set for April 14.
Urban will be performing at the CMT Awards, where he’s up for the male video of the year award for “I Told You So.’’ Fans can cast their votes at CMT.com through April 11.
Underwood has been nominated for video of the year for “Wasted’’ — a category in which she faces inaugural “Idol’’ winner Kelly Clarkson, who’s up for her duet with Reba McEntire on “Because of You.’’ Underwood also is nominated for female video of the year for “So Small.’’ (Fellow “Idol’’ alumni Bucky Covington and Kellie Pickler are vying with each other in the breakthrough video of the year category, and Pickler pops up in quite a few categories, including tearjerker video of the year for “I Wonder.’’)
A more eagerly anticipated prize is ahead for Urban later this year: He and his wife, Academy Award-winning actress Nicole Kidman, are expecting their first child together. (Don’t be fooled by the title of his Nov. 20 album, “Keith Urban Greatest Hits: 18 Kids.’’)
There’s plenty of good news on the horizon for Underwood as well. She will be inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on May 10 — a heady honor for a performer so young.
Urban, meanwhile, had achieved for No. 1 country songs in Australia before he’d even moved to Nashville. Underwood isn’t the only record setter on this tour. Urban charted the country single with the highest debut in history when his “Once in a Lifetime’’ entered the fray at No. 17 in 2006.
Urban is the only winner of the Country Music Association’s Horizon Award who has gone on to win entertainer of the year and male vocalist of the year. But vocals aren’t his only strong point.
Many fans first became aware of Urban for his work as a guitarist. An in-demand session musician before he became a household name in his own right, Urban, who has performed with Charlie Daniels and Brooks and Dunn, can be heard on the Dixie Chicks’ “Fly.’’ And if you look behind Alan Jackson in his “Mercury Blues’’ video, yes, that’s Urban backing him up on guitar.
Underwood also is displaying multiple talents. She has co-written four of the tracks on “Carnival Ride,’’ two of which — “So Small’’ and “All-American Girl’’ — have been chart successes.