Bernie Nelson Reveals Divine Inspiration Behind 40 Country Hits In New Book

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Bernie Nelson

Songwriter Bernie Nelson is sharing the stories and inspirations behind some of the biggest hits in country music in his new book, HonkyTonk Angels: Stories of God’s Influence on Nashville’s Most Iconic Songs.

From “Old Flame” (Alabama) to “On the Other Hand” (Randy Travis) and “The House That Built Me” (Miranda Lambert), Nelson takes readers on a tour through some of the most iconic songs ever recorded in country music and how they got out into the world.

In one chapter, the story goes that Kenny Rogers recorded “Lucille” when he was on his last leg as a pop star. His producer decided to record the song because he had lost in a game of cards to one of the co-writers and owed him a fair sum of money. Rogers recorded the track, and the rest is history.

“My hope in writing the book is, first of all, to give those that have never had an inside view of the songwriting world a peek behind the curtain,” Nelson shares. “Secondly, to show both songwriters and or anyone trying to achieve their goal that God has a perfect plan for you and your gifts and to be both hardworking and patient.”

Nelson has had multi-Platinum cuts by Conway Twitty, Ricky Van Shelton, Kenny Chesney, Wynonna, Collin Raye, Confederate Railroad, Chris Ledoux, Kris Kristofferson, John Anderson and many more. Throughout his career, his songs have sold over 25 million copies.

Lorie Hollabaugh
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