Toby Keith Readies New Album, Single To Kick Off 2005

NEW YORK ( Dreamworks Nashville) Singer/songwriter and acclaimed country entertainer Toby Keith dominated the genre in 2004, landing atop five of Billboard's year end rankings including Top Country Artist, and he's ready to do it again in '05 with all new music.

Keith's first full length studio album since 2003's acclaimed quadruple platinum Shock'N Y'all is set for a May 17 street date, a timeline reinforced this week in the recording studio. Toby, producer James Stroud and an all-star cast of musicians gathered to record "Honky Tonk U," the semi-autobiographical first single scheduled for release to radio in early February.

Top players at the session included drummer Eddie Bayers, David Hungate on bass, Brent Rowan on electric guitar, Mark Casstevens on acoustic guitar, steel player Dan Dugmore, Clayton Ivey on Wurlitzer, Gordon Mote on piano and Mickey Raphael on harmonica. Award winning director Michael Salomon will direct the song's video.

The Keith-penned song harkens back to days spent working in a nightclub owned by his grandmother. Toby would visit in the summers, stock shelves and dabble in singing and performing. The education he received there has obviously paid off, and 2004 might just have been his doctoral dissertation.

Not only was the previous year's Shock'N Y'all one of the top selling country offerings of 2004, his November release of Greatest Hits 2 is nearing triple platinum and remains one of the genre's top sellers. Keith remains one of country's top touring acts and a highly respected musician and songwriter. Willie Nelson has included a version of the Keith-penned "Tired" on his new album, out in October. Rolling Stone recently called the track a "heartbreaking cover." He was also recently featured in a prestigious Playboy article in the January issue and was the first country music artist to perform an AOL Music Live concert with 850,000 downloads in the first 24 hours. Keith continues to schedule tour dates through out the US, including two sell-out shows in Green Bay at the end of the month.