Billy Dukes

In 1996 a doctor told Clay Walker he'd be in a wheelchair by 2000, and dead by 2004. It was a grim prognosis for a singer who was just beginning a superstar career. He was 26 years old, had a handful of No. 1 hits and a baby girl waiting for him at home. At first, the Texan just accepted the news. 

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'Let's Face the Music and Dance' is a great place for a young country music fan to meet Willie Nelson. It won't be his most famous, and it won't create any hit singles. This wonderfully consistent effort proves what longtime fans of the legend already know: At 79 years old (80 on April 30), Nelson is still as important and skilled a vocalist as there is in country music. 

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'Dance Baby Dance' is one of the finest songs of Chris Cagle's career -- perhaps his best ballad. A few fathers (and maybe a couple of mothers) will be wiping away tears before the end of the first verse. He hits that sweet spot between familiar and hokey. 

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Two days after 'Set You Free' was released in January, Gary Allan began thinking about his next album. He tells Taste of Country that he was at an event with songwriter Hillary Lindsey -- whose credits include 'Every Storm (Runs Out of Rain)' and 'Two Black Cadillacs' -- during release week, and he tried to corner her to write. She laughed and reminded him that his last project was just days old. "That means we have one year to get this done," he remembers telling her, semi-seriously.

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The Pistol Annies (Miranda Lambert, Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley) are as close as sisters, for better and worse. Recently, the trio shared that they insist on riding the same tour bus together ("We travel in a pack"), but sometimes that means there's nowhere to go when they fight. Oh, yeah -- they fight. 

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This old grainy footage of a bride kissing her groom comes from a relatively new country music video. It's a video that focuses on the past, however -- specifically those who've moved on to life after death. Do you recognize this kissing couple? There are plenty more famous faces found throughout the entire clip. 

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A pacemaker won't slow Charlie Daniels down. The Charlie Daniels Band frontman says his fiddling or movements on stage won't be compromised with the device implanted in his chest. He underwent the procedure last month after being hospitalized with pneumonia. He returns to the stage Friday night (April 12) in Verona, N.Y.

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An outsider may look at the rough-and-rowdy Brantley Gilbert and actress and model-turned-country singer Jana Kramer and wonder why they work so well together. It sounds like they do, too. In an interview with Taste of Country, Gilbert described his relationship with his fiance with one simple phrase...

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Tate Stevens, winner of the most recent season of 'X Factor,' makes a strong debut on the Taste of Country Top 10 Video Countdown this week. Fans pushed his debut single 'Power of a Love Song' to No. 6. It's a strong statement for the newcomer, but he'll need even more support if he's to blow by Top 10 staples by Carrie Underwood, Casey James and Toby Keith. 

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What inspired 'Pioneer'? What's in store for their future? Talk about touring with Rascal Flatts ... These are all professional questions to ask a band like the Band Perry, a family trio that just found out their new album is atop the country album charts, with almost 130,000 copies sold it its debut week. Fans want the scoop though, and Neil, Kimberly and Reid were kind enough to dish it in an interview feature we call 60 Seconds With the Band Perry. 

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The big stars are out for awards season. New songs on the radio for April 2013 made their debut at the ACM Awards on April 7. Hunter Hayes and Luke Bryan were two singers to introduce new music, while Blake Shelton played his new one for the first time at the Las Vegas awards show. 

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Country heartthrobs like Luke Bryan and Jake Owen may not be the best looking members of their own family. Beauty finds beauty it seems, and this list of country music's hottest wives is confirmation. You already know what superstar spouses like Faith Hill and Miranda Lambert look like. These ladies are the lesser-known better halves of country music's top singers.

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