Bringing Back the Sunshine

Album: Bringing Back the Sunshine (2014)
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Songfacts®:

  • This Jess Leary and Anthony Smith penned tune is the title track of Blake Shelton's ninth studio album. The song is his response to the debate in country music about what defines the genre. "It's the only way to be a little more political about where we are in country music," the singer told Rolling Stone Country, "and I'm as guilty of it as anybody."
  • The album cover depicts a water tower bearing the word "Ada," which is Shelton's home town in Oklahoma. Above it, the sun can be seen breaking through a stormy sky. Shelton staged a televised benefit concert, Healing in the Heartland, which aired on May 29, 2013 to raise money for the victims of the tornado that struck Oklahoma earlier in the month.
  • Shelton said that with its spirit of optimism, it made perfect sense to title the album after this tune. "I love the message of the song. It's about a couple that's gone through something, probably separated, and just decided to get back together, what's most important is their love," he explained. "There's something magical about that title, and given what this album is all about, I thought 'Bringing Back the Sunshine' is like I'm bringing back some country music, some of these sounds we don't hear that much anymore in country, at least in the mainstream. Country is sunshine to me."

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