Trick Pony brought closure, not to mention full circle, to its career in recording its last album live as a band in mid-December at the Wild Horse Saloon in Nashville. Lead singer Heidi Newfield has left the band to record a solo album this year.

      "It was a very special and sentimental night for several reasons," says Newfield. "One, the Wildhorse stage is where we got our start 10 years ago, when Ira had bangs and I was WAY too blonde with interesting fashion sense! Secondly, it's where we got our record deal, and now it's where we played our last show together."

      It was an amazing ride, she acknowledged. "With this final show, we paid tribute to the fans, the music and the memories by recording a live album throughout the evening." They did it in three shows over one long evening.

      Trick Pony was Newfield, Keith Burns and Ira Dean. The group was known for outrageous performances and Newfield's stage dives. With their Gold album, Trick Pony, they earned themselves an ACM for Top New Vocal Group and an AMA for Favorite New Country Act.

      Alan Jackson found twice the artistic satisfaction as a pair of his critically acclaimed albums earned Grammy nominations. His Precious Memories and Like Red on a Rose, both No. 1 CDs in 2006, received a collective four nominations for music's highest honor in the 49th Grammy Awards.

      Precious Memories, his CMA-nominated Album of the Year, earned a Grammy nod for Best Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album, while Like Red on a Rose brought a Best Country Album nomination. Like Red on a Rose also honored songwriters Robert Lee Castleman and Melanie Castleman, who penned the Best Country Song-nominated title track.

      "It always feels good to be included in some of the best music in the business, especially with my wife and daughters' voices on the gospel album and the chance to step out a little on Like Red on a Rose," Jackson says.

      Precious Memories was originally intended as a family gift not meant for commercial release.

      Alison Krauss brought her distinctive touch to Like Red on a Rose as the producer. It was hailed as "a work of heartbreaking soul." Jackson's longtime producer, Keith Stegall, helmed Precious Memories, which established multiple chart records and drew high praise from, among others, Billboard, which touted the collection as "a masterpiece."

      The Grammys air February 11 on CBS TV.

      Martina McBride's latest single, "Anyway," is a hit, the fastest-rising single of her career since 2000. The song talks of some of life's challenges. "Anyway" also marks McBride's songwriting debut. She penned the ballad with fellow country artists the Warren Brothers.

      "I'm happy that this song has struck a chord with my fans. It's about believing in the bigger picture and realizing that we may not always know the plan for us, but we have the ability as human beings to see the good side and to have hope no matter what. We all need to feel that there is hope, especially in today's world. This song just encourages us to keep loving and giving and believing even when things don't work out the way we planned," she explains.

      She is nominated for a 2007 Grammy for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for "I Still Miss Someone" off her Platinum-selling "Timeless" album. It is her 10th Grammy nomination.

      She has sung her way to more than 16 million in album sales, six No. 1 hits, 20 Top 10 singles and a mantle of honors, including a record tying four CMA Female Vocalist of the Year trophies. McBride's new album will be released in spring.