Australian musician Keith Urban has been named in the top 100 country music artists of all-time by Billboard.
The iconic American music and entertainment magazine ranked the Queensland-raised musician 71st in the list of greats, with Dolly Parton taking out the top spot.
In its listing, Billboard said Urban, who grew up in Caboolture, north of Brisbane, “may have been raised in Australia, but Nashville claims him now”.
It said Urban had developed into one of country music’s most impressive shapeshifters, easily merging a number of styles, but always with country as his homebase.
“The fluidity of his guitar playing has made the CMA Awards’ 2005 and 2018 entertainer of the year one of the genre’s top guitar-slingers, and a live draw who sells out around the world.
“Songs like Somebody Like You, Wasted Time and Days Go By were tailor-made for riding with the windows down and radio blaring, while sultry tunes like Making Memories of Us, You Look Good In My Shirt, and Blue Ain’t Your Color turn on the romance.”
In anointing Parton as the best country musician ever, Billboard said: “There’s never been anyone like her, and it’s impossible to believe that there ever will be again”.
Billboard’s Top 10 country artists of all time:
- Dolly Parton.
- Johnny Cash.
- Willie Nelson.
- Loretta Lynn.
- Hank Williams Sr.
- George Jones.
- Garth Brooks.
- Charley Pride.
- George Strait.
- Merle Haggard.
