Josh Turner Biography and Discography

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Josh Turner. Getty Images for Outback Concert / Getty Images
Updated March 28, 2017

Basics

Name: Joshua Otis Turner

Birthday: November 20, 1977

Birthplace: Florence, SC

"The life that I live and the experiences that I have always affect what comes out of me creatively. I think that's what makes music real."

Songwriting

After listening to the Hank Williams Sr. box set in the Belmont University library, Josh Turner was inspired to write "Long Black Train." After leaving the library, Josh explains, "All of a sudden, I got this vision of a wide open space, out on the plains.

There was a train running out in the middle of nowhere, and people were standing beside the tracks, just watching it go by. It dawned on me that the train was a physical metaphor for temptation. These people were standing there, deciding whether or not to get on it." After getting back to his room, the song just poured out of him.

Musical influences

"I think the very first [country music] I ever heard was at grandma's house. She loved music - The Stanley Brothers, The Osborne Brothers, a lot of gospel quartets and old Opry stars, Waylon and Johnny Cash."

Top Songs to Download:

Similar artists:

Artists with music similar to Josh Turner would be:

  • Randy Travis
  • Johnny Cash
  • Jeff Bates

Some of Josh Turner's Biggest Hits:

  • Long Black Train
  • Would You Go With Me
  • Your Man
  • Firecracker

Recommended Albums:

  • Long Black Train
  • Your Man
  • Everything is Fine

Biography:

Joshua Otis Turner was born on November 20, 1977, in Florence, SC. From a young age, religion played a large role in Turner's life, and he would sing lead and bass parts in the choir. He was part of the gospel quartet called Thankful Hearts, where he toured throughout South Carolina.

After high school, Josh moved to Nashville and enrolled in Belmont University.

Long Black Train

Josh made his first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry on December 21, 1997, and when he introduced a song he had written, "Long Black Train," the people started standing up and cheering. After he was done, the host, Bill Anderson asking him to play it again, and he received a second standing ovation.

Shortly after his Opry performance, he was signed by MCA Nashville and recorded his first album, Long Black Train in 2003. The song peaked at No. 13, but other singles didn't do as well.

Josh released his sophomore release, Your Man in 2006. That album earned him two No. 1 songs, with the title track, and "Would You Go With Me", as well as a duet with his hero, Ralph Stanley, "Me and God". In less than a year after it was released, the album earned Josh his first Platinum disc.

The Opry Calls

The fall of 2007 is probably one of Josh's favorite times. In the space of several months, he was asked to join the Opry, inducted, then a week later, his wife gave birth to the couple's first child, a son, Hampton Otis Turner, then, his third album, Everything is Fine, was released several weeks after that.

The first single, "Firecracker," was another strong hit, peaking at No.

2, and the next single, a duet with Trisha Yearwood called "Another Try," was released in late January 2008 and moved up the charts.

With a strong traditional background, Josh Turner is standing on solid ground. And he's just getting better all the time.