Alan Jackson Has a "Good Time" at No. 1

Alan Jackson photo courtesy of SonyBMG Nashville.

July 18, 2008 — Alan Jackson intended for his song "Good Time" to make a statement, and apparently it has: It slid into the No. 1 position on the "Country Aircheck" singles chart this week.

His singles in recent years have tended toward ballads, and his Precious Memories album had a serious tone to it as well. Alan thought "Good Time," which is the title track to his current album, would remind fans that he knows how to party, and he actually intended for it to precede "Small Town Southern Man" as a single.

"I wanted to come out with ‘Good Time’ first," he says. "Since ‘It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,’ most of my songs have been ‘Remember When’ and this gospel thing and I-forgot-what-all out between now and then. I needed somethin', I felt, like a little more fun, uptempo thing like ‘Chattahoochee’ or ‘Little Bitty’ or ‘Don’t Rock The Jukebox,’ some of the songs I’ve had over the years. ‘Good Time’ was my choice [as the first single], but the label felt like at the time they wanted ‘Southern Man,’ and I didn’t disagree. Lookin’ back, it was probably a good choice. It was winter time, and it was more typical of what people expect of me sometimes, I think, and the song’s done well. It was probably a good way to crack this album open and put out somethin' else for the summer."

That "somethin’ else," of course, was "Good Time," which now peaks right in the heart of the summer. Not that Alan’s only thinking about this season — he’s already got a tour on the docket for the fall that will pair him with Trace Adkins.