This year's selections include such renowned BMI songwriters and composers as Dave Brubeck (Time Out), B.B. King (Live at the Regal), Martha and the Vandellas ("Dancing in the Street"), Edwin Hawkins ("Oh Happy Day"), Sonic Youth (Daydream Nation) and Elliot Carter ("Variations for Orchestra").

The National Recording Preservation Board, comprising experts from the music industry and preservation field including BMI's David Sanjek, culled its list from nominations made by the public for recordings considered "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant." Recordings must be 10 years old to be considered for preservation and final selections are made by the Librarian of Congress, James H. Billington.

The National Recording Registry was created by the National Recording Preservation Act of 2000, legislation that promotes and supports audio preservation. The registry celebrates the richness and variety of the nation's audio legacy and underscores the responsibility to assure the long-term preservation of that legacy for future generations.

2005 National Recording Registry (in chronological order):

1. "Canzone del Porter" from "Martha (von Flotow)," Edouard de Reszke (1903)
2. "Listen to the Lambs," Hampton Quartette; transcribed by Natalie Curtis Burlin (1917)
3. "Over There," Nora Bayes (1917)
4. "Crazy Blues," Mamie Smith (1920)
5. "My Man" and "Second Hand Rose," Fanny Brice (1921)
6. "Ory's Creole Trombone," Kid Ory (June 1922)
7. Inauguration of Calvin Coolidge (March 4, 1925)
8. "Tanec pid werbamy/Dance Under the Willows," Pawlo Huemiuk (1926)
9. "Singin' the Blues," Frankie Trumbauer and his Orchestra with Bix Beiderbecke (1927)
10. First official transatlantic telephone conversation (Jan. 7, 1927)
11. "El Manisero" ("The Peanut Vendor"), Rita Montaner, vocal with orchestra (1927); "El Manisero," Don Azpiazu and his Havana Casino orchestra (1930)
12. Light's Golden Jubilee Celebration (Oct. 21, 1929)
13. Beethoven's Egmont Overture, Op. 84, Modesto High School Band (1930)
14. "Show Boat," Helen Morgan, Paul Robeson, James Melton and others; Victor Young, conductor; Louis Alter, piano (1932)
15. "Wabash Cannonball," Roy Acuff (1936)
16. "One O'Clock Jump," Count Basie and his Orchestra (1937)
17. Archibald MacLeish's "Fall of the City," Orson Welles, narrator, Burgess Meredith, Paul Stewart (April 11, 1937)
18. "The Adventures of Robin Hood" radio broadcast of May 11, 1938
19. Joe Louis-Max Schmeling fight, Clem McCarthy, announcer (June
22,1938)
20. "John the Revelator," Golden Gate Quartet (1938)
21. "Adagio for Strings," Arturo Toscanini, conductor; NBC Symphony (1938)
22. "Command Performance" show No.21, Bob Hope, master of ceremonies (July 7, 1942)
23. "Straighten Up and Fly Right," Nat "King" Cole (1943)
24. "The Fred Allen Show"(Radio broadcast of Oct. 7, 1945)
25. "Jole Blon," Harry Choates (1946)
26. "Tubby the Tuba," Paul Tripp (words) and George Kleinsinger (music) (1946)
27. "Move on up a Little Higher," Mahalia Jackson (1948)
28. "Anthology of American Folk Music," edited by Harry Smith (1952)
29. "Schooner Bradley," performed by Pat Bonner (1952-60)
30. "Damnation of Faust," Boston Symphony Orchestra with the Harvard Glee Club and Radcliffe Choral Society (1954)
31. "Blueberry Hill," Fats Domino (1956)
32. "Variations for Orchestra," Louisville Orchestra (1956)
33. "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On," Jerry Lee Lewis (1957)
34. "That'll Be the Day," The Crickets (1957)
35. "Poeme Electronique," Edgard Varese (1958)
36. "Time Out," The Dave Brubeck Quartet (1959)
37. Studs Terkel interview with James Baldwin (Sept. 29, 1962)
38. William Faulkner address at West Point Military Academy (1962)
39. "Dancing in the Street," Martha and the Vandellas (1964)
40. "Live at the Regal," B.B. King (1965)
41. "Are You Experienced?" Jimi Hendrix Experience (1967)
42. "We're Only in It for the Money," Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention (1968)
43. "Switched-On Bach," Wendy Carlos (1968)
44. "Oh Happy Day," Edwin Hawkins Singers (1969)
45. "Don't Crush That Dwarf, Hand Me the Pliers," Firesign Theatre (1970)
46. "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," Gil Scott-Heron (1970)
47. "Will the Circle Be Unbroken," The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (1972)
48. The old foghorn, Kewaunee, Wis., recorded by James A. Lipsky (1972)
49. "Songs in the Key of Life," Stevie Wonder (1976)
50. "Daydream Nation," Sonic Youth (1988)

Both Hanna and McEuen are accomplished guitarists and songwriters who have logged more time on the road than many artists twice their age. Jonathan was performing with his dad by the time he was seven. "There were 9,000 people who stood up and screamed and cheered after I sang," he recalls of performing at his dad's annual Rocky Mountain Opry at Colorado's famed Red Rocks amphitheater. "I was in tears because it was so emotional. When you are seven years old and people are sitting and then they are standing and screaming because of something you did, that's when I got the buzz. From then on I knew."

Like McEuen, music was part of Hanna's life early on. After high school, he moved to Nashville to pursue a music career and met Mavericks frontman Raul Malo. "His music affected me and it just totally changed my perspective of country music," says Hanna, who went on the road with the Mavericks, handling harmony, rhythm guitar and percussion. He later performed on Malo's solo dates and the two co-wrote together. "Being in Nashville got me interested in songwriting," he notes

McEuen had been offered a pop deal with Universal, but the seeds for Hanna-McEuen were planted when Jonathan and Jaime recorded "Lowlands" in 2001 for the Dirt Band's Will the Circle Be Unbroken, Vol. III . The song was so well received, it paved the way for their debut disc, which fuses Hanna's Nashville sensibilities with McEuen's West Coast vibe. "It's just the accumulation of influences over the years," says Hanna. "We have very similar tones in our vocals, but we also have very different styles, so I think when you marry the two, it comes out to be what it is."

"We're opening a new chapter," says Jonathan of the duo's musical legacy, "It's something that I just love so much. It's [been] totally worth the wait."

Pictured are BMI's Bradley Collins, Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox and Joe Don Rooney, Marcus Hummon, Rascal Flatts' Jay DeMarcus, and Bobby E. Boyd

The awards presentations also praised the contributions of publishers Careers-BMG Music Publishing and Jeff Diggs Music (Hanna's company), producers Mark Bright and Marty Williams, and Lyric Street Records. The single is included on the #1, platinum-plus album Feels Like Today.

Producer Mark Bright, RF's Jay DeMarcus, BMI's Bradley Collins, Marcus Hummon, Bobby E. Boyd, RF's Joe Don Rooney and Gary LeVox, and producer Marty Williams

In addition to celebrating their multi-week #1 (six weeks on Billboard and R&R charts), the creative team also shared congratulations on their 2005 Academy of Country Music nominations. "Bless the Broken Road" is up for Song of the Year (nods to Boyd, Hanna, Hummon, Rascal Flatts, Careers-BMG Music and Jeff Diggs Music) and Single of the Year (Rascal Flatts, Bright and Williams). Rascal Flatts also earned a Top Vocal Group mention; they have won the award the past two years.

Danny Wells, Trent Tomlinson, Lyric Street's Doug Howard and Randy Goodman

Collectively, Boyd, Hanna and Hummon have written two dozen songs honored with BMI Awards or Million-Air plaques, including "In Pictures" and "Working Man's Ph.D.," (Boyd); "Baby's Got a Hold On Me" and "Down That Road Tonight" (Hanna); and "Born to Fly," "One of These Days" and "Cowboy Take Me Away" (Hummon).

Famous Music's Glenn Middleworth, David Lee, Famous Music's Curtis Green

"Bless the Broken Road" was written in 1993 and recorded three times prior to the Flatts: by Hummon on his 1995 Sony album, All in Good Time; by Melodie Crittenden, who released it as a single and music video on Asylum Records in 1997; and by Christian group Geoff Moore & the Distance.

Helen Naylor, Careers-BMG's Karen Conrad

Scott Siman, Marcus Hummon, BMI's Paul Corbin

Hope, Bobby, Hallelujah and Stacey Harrison Boyd

Bobby E. Boyd, Bug Music's Dave Durocher (accepting on behalf of Jeff Diggs Music), Careers-BMG Music's Karen Conrad, Marcus Hummon, Careers-BMG Music's Michelle Berlin

photos by Kay Williams

WSM Radio's Eddie Stubbs, Doyle Lawson, Del McCoury, Dan Tyminksi, BMI's Paul Corbin

Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver was named Vocal Group of the Year for a third time and claimed victory for Gospel Recorded Performance with "The Hand Made Cross." They shared Song of the Year honors for "Blue Train (Of the Heartbreak Line)" with legendary BMI Award-winner songwriter John D. Loudermilk.

Dan Tyminksi, BMI's David Preston, IBMA Executive Director Dan Hays

Rhonda Vincent was crowned Female Vocalist for the fourth consecutive year, and Dan Tyminski, a member of Alison Krauss + Union Station as well as a solo artist, collected his third Male Vocalist award.

Bradley Collins, Dixie & Tom T. Hall

Krauss and Tyminski, who hosted the show from the Kentucky Center for the Arts in Louisville, accepted the prize for Album of the Year for Alison Krauss + Union Station Live, along with band members Barry Bales, Ron Block and Jerry Douglas.

Randy Scruggs, David Preston, Steve Fishell

Will The Circle Be Unbroken Vol. III was named Recorded Event of the Year; produced by Randy Scruggs & The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, the project featured performances by BMI talents Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Matraca Berg, Sam Bush, Rodney Dillard, Jerry Douglas, Glen Duncan, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Taj Mahal, Jimmy Martin, Del McCoury, Robbie McCoury, Ronnie McCoury, The Nashville Bluegrass Band, Willie Nelson, Tony Rice, Earl Scruggs, Randy Scruggs, Doc Watson, Richard Watson, and Dwight Yoakam. Aubrey Haynie's The Bluegrass Fiddle Album was recognized as Instrumental Album of the Year. Top Instrumental Performers included six-time victor Rob Ickes (dobro) and four-time champ Jim Mills (guitar).

David Preston, Alison Krauss, Dan Tyminksi, DS Management's Denise Stiff

J.D. Crowe, who first gained bluegrass favor as a member of Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys and has recorded some of the genre's most influential albums, was inducted by Sonny Osborne to the IBMA's Bluegrass Hall of Honor.

Paul Corbin, Jerry Douglas, Bradley Collins

Mark Mason, Rhonda Vincent

Ronnie Bowman, David Preston

Congratulations to BMI's 2003 IBMA Award winners:

Hall of Honor Inductee
J. D. Crowe

Entertainer of the Year
The Del McCoury Band

Vocal Group of the Year
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver

Male Vocalist of the Year
Dan Tyminski

Female Vocalist of the Year
Rhonda Vincent

Song of the Year
"Blue Train (Of the Heartbreak Line)"
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver (artists), John D. Loudermilk (songwriter)

Album of the Year
Alison Krauss + Union Station LIVE
Alison Krauss + Union Station (artists and producers)

Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year
"The Hand Made Cross" (from the album Hard Game of Love)
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver (artists); Doyle Lawson (producer)

Instrumental Album of the Year
The Bluegrass Fiddle Album
Aubrey Haynie (artist and producer)

Recorded Event of the Year
Will The Circle Be Unbroken Vol. III
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Matraca Berg, Sam Bush, Rodney Dillard, Jerry Douglas, Glen Duncan, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Taj Mahal, Jimmy Martin, Del McCoury, Robbie McCoury, Ronnie McCoury, The Nashville Bluegrass Band, Willie Nelson, Tony Rice, Earl Scruggs, Randy Scruggs, Doc Watson, Richard Watson, Dwight Yoakam (artists); Randy Scruggs & The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (producers)

Instrumental Performers of the Year
Banjo
Jim Mills

Dobro
Rob Ickes

Del McCoury Band

Alison Krauss

Alison Krauss + Union Station garnered the most nominations with 13, including top Entertainer, Instrumental Group, Vocal Group, Album for Alison Krauss + Union Station LIVE, Female Vocalist for Alison Krauss and individual nods for Jerry Douglas (Dobro Player), Barry Bales (Bass Player) and Ron Block (Banjo Player). Dan Tyminski received two individual nominations for Guitar Player and Male Vocalist. Members of the group also participated on three projects that were mentioned for Recorded Event of the Year.

Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver

Doc Watson

The Del McCoury Band received 12 nominations, including Entertainer of the Year (which they won last year), Instrumental Group of the Year, Vocal Group of the Year, Male Vocalist for Del McCoury, and individual nods for Ronnie McCoury (Mandolin Player), Rob McCoury (Banjo Player), Mike Bub (Bass Player) and Jason Carter (Fiddle Player). Members of the group also appeared on other projects that received three Recorded Event mentions.

The Lynn Morris Band

J.D. Crowe

The Lynn Morris Band's amassed six nominations including best Album for Shape of a Tear, Song for "Shape of a Tear" (writer Hugh Campbell), a Female Vocalist nod for Lynn Morris, Bass Player for Marshall Wilborn and Fiddle Player for Ron Stewart. Band member Jesse Brock is up for Instrumental Album of the Year with Kickin' Grass.

Mountain Heart

Rhonda Vincent

Legendary guitarist and IBMA Hall of Honor Member Doc Watson gathered five nods including Guitar Player, three for his participation on albums that are up for Recorded Event (Christmas on the Mountain: A Bluegrass Christmas; Will The Circle Be Unbroken, Vol. III and Legacy) and one for top Album with Will The Circle Be Unbroken, Vol. III.

Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver accumulated four nominations including Entertainer, Vocal Group, best Song for "Blue Train (Of the Heartbreak Line)" (written by John D. Loudermilk) and Gospel Recorded Performance for "The Hand Made Cross."

Larry Cordle and Lonesome Standard Time were recognized for Song of the Year ("Anything Southbound"), Album of the Year (Songs From The Workbench), Gospel Recorded Performance ("Lost as a Ball In High Weeds") and Bass Player for Terry Eldredge.

IIIrd Tyme Out and its members have four nominations highlighted by Vocal Group honors. They are also up for Gospel Recorded Performance for Singing On Streets Of Gold and individual nods for Male Vocalist Russell Moore and Mandolin Player Wayne Benson.

Mountain Heart garnered three mentions for Entertainer, Instrumental Group and Vocal Group, plus an individual nod to mandolin player Adam Steffey.

J.D. Crowe will be inducted to IBMA's Hall of Honor. A prominent second generation bluegrass instrumentalist, he first gained national attention for his work as banjo player and baritone vocalist in Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys. In ensuing decades he continued to influence other players during an important solo performing and recording career.

Congratulations to BMI's 2003 IBMA Award nominees:

Entertainer of the Year
Alison Krauss + Union Station
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
The Del McCoury Band
Mountain Heart
Rhonda Vincent & The Rage

Instrumental Group of the Year
Blue Highway
Alison Krauss + Union Station
The Del McCoury Band
Mountain Heart

Vocal Group of the Year
Alison Krauss & Union Station
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
The Del McCoury Band
Mountain Heart
IIIrd Tyme Out

Male Vocalist of the Year
Ronnie Bowman
Del McCoury
Russell Moore
Dan Tyminski

Female Vocalist of the Year
Dale Ann Bradley
Alison Krauss
Patty Loveless
Lynn Morris
Rhonda Vincent

Song of the Year
"A Simple Life"
Harley Allen (writer)

"Anything Southbound"
Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time (artists), Larry Cordle & Mike
Anthony (songwriters)

"Blue Train (Of the Heartbreak Line)"
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver (artists), John D. Loudermilk (songwriter)

"Long Time Gone"
Dixie Chicks (artists)

"Shape of a Tear"
The Lynn Morris Band (artists)

Album of the Year
Alison Krauss + Union Station LIVE
Alison Krauss + Union Station (artists and producers)

Shape of a Tear
The Lynn Morris Band (artists), Lynn Morris (producer)

Songs From The Workbench
Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time (artists and producers)

Will The Circle Be Unbroken, Vol. III
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Matraca Berg, Sam Bush, Rodney Dillard, Jerry Douglas, Glen Duncan, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Taj Mahal, Jimmy Martin, Del McCoury, Robbie McCoury, Ronnie McCoury, The Nashville Bluegrass Band, Willie Nelson, Tony Rice, Earl Scruggs, Randy Scruggs, Doc Watson, Richard Watson, Dwight Yoakam (artist); Randy Scruggs and The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (producers)

Emerging Artists of the Year
Nothin' Fancy
David Peterson & 1946
Pine Mountain Railroad
Wildfire

Gospel Recorded Performance of the Year
Eye of the Storm
The Isaacs (artists), Ben Isaacs/The Isaacs (producers)

I'll Meet You in the Gloryland
Paul Williams & The Victory Trio (artists); Paul Williams (producer)
"Lost as a Ball in High Weeds" (from the album Songs From The Workbench)
Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time (artists and producers)

Singing On Streets of Gold
IIIrd Tyme Out (artists and producers)
"The Hand Made Cross" (from the album Hard Game of Love)
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver (artists); Doyle Lawson (producer)

Instrumental Album of the Year
The Bluegrass Fiddle Album
Aubrey Haynie (artist and producer)

Glen Duncan
Glen Duncan (artist and producer)

I Rest My Case
Randy Howard (artist), Randy Howard (producer)

Kickin' Grass
Jesse Brock (artist), Ron Stewart & Jesse Brock (producers)

Spider Bit The Baby
Kenny Baker (artist), Hugh Moore & Billy Troy (producers)

Recorded Event of the Year

Christmas On The Mountain: A Bluegrass Christmas Featuring The Del McCoury Band, Doc Watson, Mac Wiseman, Cyndi Wheeler, The Osborne Brothers, Ronnie McCoury and The GrooveGrass Boyz (artists); Scott Rouse (producer)

Down The Old Plank Road: The Nashville Sessions
The Chieftains featuring Bela Fleck, Vince Gill, John Hiatt, Alison Krauss, Martina McBride, The Del McCoury Band, Julie Miller, Earl Scruggs, Gillian Welch & David Rawlings and Jeff White (artists); Paddy Maloney (producer)

Legacy
Doc Watson and David Holt (artists), Steven Heller & David Holt (producers)

Old & In the Gray
David Grisman, Peter Rowan, Herb Pedersen (artist); David Grisman (producer)

Will The Circle Be Unbroken Vol. III
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Matraca Berg, Sam Bush, Rodney Dillard, Jerry Douglas, Glen Duncan, Vince Gill, Alison Krauss, Taj Mahal, Jimmy Martin, Del McCoury, Robbie McCoury, Ronnie McCoury, The Nashville Bluegrass Band, Willie Nelson, Tony Rice, Earl Scruggs, Randy Scruggs, Doc Watson, Richard Watson, Dwight Yoakam (artist); Randy Scruggs & The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band (producers)

Instrumental Performers of the Year
Banjo
Ron Block
J.D. Crowe
Rob McCoury
Jim Mills

Dobro
Mike Auldridge
Jerry Douglas
Rob Ickes

Bass
Missy Raines
Marshall Wilborn

Fiddle
Michael Cleveland
Stuart Duncan
Aubrey Haynie
Ron Stewart

Guitar
Jim Hurst
Tony Rice
Dan Tyminski
Doc Watson

Mandolin
Wayne Benson
Sam Bush
Mike Compton
Ronnie McCoury

Sheryl Crow

Eminem

Norah Jones

Other BMI writers who received multiple nominations included four each for country darlings the Dixie Chicks, producer Arif Mardin and Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger (including Record of the Year for the Nickelback smash "How You Remind Me"). Newcomer Vanessa Carlton picked up three. Fellow BMI pop divas Pink, Britney Spears and Michelle Branch garnered two nominations each, as did blues legend B.B. King, film composer Thomas Newman and gospel giant Fred Hammond.

BMI's 2003 Grammy nominees:

FIVE NOMINATIONS

Sheryl Crow
Eminem
Norah Jones

FOUR NOMINATIONS

Dixie Chicks
Chad Kroeger (SOCAN)

THREE NOMINATIONS

Vanessa Carlton
Floetry (Marsha Ambrosius, Natalie Stewart)
Arif Mardin
Pat Metheny

TWO NOMINATIONS

Michelle Branch
Michael Brecker
The Chieftains
Madukwu Chinwah
Natalie Cole
Dirty Vegas (PRS)
Foo Fighters
Carlos Franzetti
Kenny G
Pat Green
Herbie Hancock
Nellee Hooper (PRS)
B.B. King
Diana Krall (SOCAN)
Rashid Lonnie Lynn
Nappy Roots
Willie Nelson
Thomas Newman
Nickel Creek
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
Dolly Parton
Pink
Britney Spears
Ralph Stanley
3 Doors Down (Brad Arnold, Todd Harrell, Chris Henderson, Matt Roberts)
Doc Watson
John Williams

SINGLE NOMINEES

Aaliyah
Will Ackerman
John Adams
Christina Aguilera
Darol Anger
Audio Adrenaline
Bacilos
David Balakrishnan
Charli Baltimore
Banda El Recodo De Cruz Lizárraga
Jeff Bass
Daniel Bedingfield (PRS)
Big Tymers
Eddie Blazonczyk
The Blind Boys of Alabama
Kevin Bond
Ryan Bowser
David Bowie (PRS)
Brandy
Norman Brown
Solomon Burke
Burning Sky
R.L. Burnside
Gary Burton
Gary Calamar
Michel Camilo
Cam’Ron
The Canton Spirituals
Capleton (PRS)
Caribbean Jazz Project
Cee-Lo
Lauren Christy
The Clinch Mountain Boys
Andy Colver (PRS)
Commissioned
Common
Creed
Bill Cunliffe
The Charlie Daniels Band
Diamond Rio
Michael Doucet
Dave Douglas
Don Edwards
Danny Elfman
Enya (PRS)
Faith Evans
Tommy Flanagan
The Flaming Lips
Béla Fleck
Michael J. Fox
Allison Brewster Franzetti
The Funk Brothers
Peter Gabriel (PRS)
David Lee Garza y Los Musicales
Osvaldo Golijov
Gov’t Mule
Al Green
Grits
Dave Grusin
Deitrick Haddon
Fred Hammond
Roy Hargrove
Jesse Harris
Don Henley
Faith Hill
Dave Holland Big Band
David Holt
Intocable
Etta James
Jars of Clay
JaRule
Jay-Z
Maxi Jazz (PRS)
Little Joe & La Familia
Elton John (PRS)
The Jordanaires
Juanes
John P. Kee
Salif Keita (PRS)
R. Kelly
Kinky
Kitaro
Jennifer Knapp
Knoc-Turn’Al
Korn
Dave Koz
Jeff Koz
Alison Krauss
Femi Kuti (SACEM)
kd lang
Jim Lauderdale
Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver
Don Letts (PRS)
Lonestar
Los Angeles Guitar Quartet
The Light Crust Doughboys
Limi-T 21
Israel “Cachao” López
Taj Mahal
Lloyd Maines
Maraca
Martina McBride
Delbert McClinton
Freddie McGregor (PRS)
Lee Thomas Miller
Mingus Big Band
Moby
Charlie Musselwhite
Meshell Ndegeocello
The Neptunes
Newsong
Nickelback (SOCAN)
*NSYNC
The Oak Ridge Boys
Makoto Ozone (JASRAC)
Lee “Scratch” Perry
Pharrell
Queens of the Stone Age
Busta Rhymes
Riders In the Sky
Peter Rowan
Nancy Rumbel
Nicky Ryan (PRS)
Roma Ryan (PRS)
Mingo Saldivar y Sus Tremendos Cuatro Espadas
Santana
John Santos and the Machete Ensemble
Al Schmitt
The John Scofield Band
Earl Scruggs
Wayne Shorter
Jon Sidel
Siggno
Allan Slutsky
Arthur Smith (PRS)
The Spanish Harlem Orchestra
Scott Spock
Ralph Stanley II
Sting (PRS)
Angie Stone
Omar Sosa
Luciana Souza
Jimmy Sturr
Take Six
Susan Tedeschi
John Tesh
The Temptations
Eric Tingstad
Tobymac
Trick Pony
Kathy Troccoli
Los Tucanes De Tijuana
McCoy Tyner
Jai Uttal
Bebo Valdés
Carlos “Patato” Valdés
The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra
Scott Wenzel
Kenny Werner
Lucinda Williams
Robin Williams
Dean Wilson (PRS)
BeBe Winans
The Roland White Band
Pete Woodruff
Yellowjackets
Joe Zawinul

Indeed, Anderson's compositions have been recorded by an impressively broad array of acts, including Tim McGraw, Alabama, Wynonna, Deana Carter, Lonestar, Shenandoah, Jerry Lee Lewis, Aaron Tippin, Neal McCoy, Asleep at the Wheel, Etta James, K.T. Oslin, Sara Evans, Charlie Daniels, Tanya Tucker, Chris LeDoux, Deborah Allen, Ty England, Sammy Kershaw, Billy Ray Cyrus, Confederate Railroad, T. Graham Brown, Joe Diffie, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Neal McCoy, Rhonda Vincent, Stacy Dean Campbell, Lari White, Jason Sellers, Robbie Fulks and Olivia Newton-John.

Though he's risen to the level of Nashville royalty in recent years, Anderson was well known to rock fans long before he stormed the country charts. He first made his mark as singer, guitarist and main writer of the Connecticut foursome the Wildweeds, who scored a substantial regional hit in 1967 with his composition "No Good to Cry," and subsequently in a 24-year stint with the beloved cult band NRBQ. Over the course of a dozen or so NRBQ albums, Anderson contributed numerous memorable tunes, and was celebrated equally for his stellar instrumental work; in 1993, Musician magazine named him one of the Top 100 guitar players of the century.
At the end of 1993, Big Al shocked NRBQ's fans by exiting the hard-touring band to concentrate on working behind the scenes as a songwriter. Anderson says the decision to quit had more to do with embracing sobriety than any dissatisfaction with the legendarily eclectic band.

"I'll tell ya, those are very fuzzy years," Anderson laughs. "Playing with NRBQ was a great school, and I can't tell you how much I learned from those guys. It wasn't until I got clean that I realized that 24 years of the Quality Inn and Red Roof and smoky clubs and the same broken chairs in the dressing room was getting old for me. I was in the most free band in rock & roll, but I started to feel limited."

Anderson had actually begun going to Nashville to co-write in the mid-'80s, and Hank Williams Jr. recorded his "You're Gonna Be A Sorry Man" in 1988, but it wasn't until after leaving NRBQ that he began pursuing the life of a professional songwriter in earnest. His transition from road warrior to pro tunesmith began when he and Carlene Carter co-wrote "Every Little Thing," which became the biggest hit of Carter's career. Anderson followed that success with another Carter collaboration, "Something Already Gone," for the Maverick film soundtrack, and hasn't looked back since.

Anderson has also found himself in demand as a session player for the inventive guitar chops he honed during his years on the road, and his distinctively gruff vocals have been tapped for numerous commercial jingles. But it's his writing talents that are his main focus these days.
"I've learned a lot, but I still have no idea what I'm doing," he says. “I'm still a rock & roll guy, and I believe in recognizing the value of dumbness. My motto is 'Make dumb good.' 'All You Ever Do Is Bring Me Down' is, like, the dumbest song ever written — the chorus is exactly the same melody as the verses — but it's the greatest record goin'."

Anderson, whose discography includes three solo releases, says that he's hoping to release a new album of his own at some point in the near future, though not under his own name. He's more interesting in making an album with his Nashville-based combo Whitey, which also includes the aforementioned Jeffrey Steele, guitarist Scott Baggett, bassist Glenn Worf, keyboardist Reese Wynans and drummer Chad Cromwell. Though the band has played some local dates and Anderson admits that he misses performing, he's quick to add that he's in no hurry to return to the road.

"I'm not getting on the bus again," he says. "Considering that I'll be 54 in July, (songwriting) is a much nicer way to be making a living in music. I like feeling good every day."