Chart Watch Extra: That September Day

9/11 triggered a flood of emotions, so it's fitting that the songs that are linked to the tragedy also reflect a wide range of moods. These songs range from Alan Jackson's tender and thoughtful "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)" to Ray Stevens' novelty record "Osama-Yo' Mama."

In the months after the attacks, we heard from everyone from "the singing policeman," NYPD's own Daniel Rodriguez, to world-famous rock stars Paul McCartney and Bruce Springsteen. Country artists were especially vocal, as seen in such songs as Hank Williams Jr.'s "America Will Survive," a reworked version of his 1982 country hit "A Country Boy Can Survive."

9/11 also gave a second life to several older recordings, notably Lee Greenwood's "God Bless The USA" and Whitney Houston's "The Star Spangled Banner." Greenwood first released "God Bless The USA" in the spring of 1984. It reached #7 on Billboard's country chart that year, but it didn't crack the Hot 100 until after 9/11. The success of the song revived Greenwood's album, American Patriot, which logged nine weeks at #1 on Top Catalog Albums.

Houston sang "The Star Spangled Banner" at the Super Bowl on Jan. 27, 1991, just 10 days after the start of the Persian Gulf War. The recording was released as a single the following month and cracked the top 20. It easily surpassed that (climbing to #6) when it was re-released in the wake of 9/11.

Most radio stations largely abandoned their playlists in favor of news coverage on 9/11. Broadcast Data Systems, which monitors radio play, reported that the number of songs "detected" on that historic day was down by more than 50% compared to a normal day. When stations did start playing music again, they sprinkled in patriotic songs and songs offering hope and inspiration.

The top four new entries on the Hot 100 in the week after the tragedy were all boosted by the events of that day. Greenwood's "God Bless The USA" debuted at #16, Enrique Iglesias' "Hero" bowed at #44, Houston's "The Star Spangled Banner" re-entered the chart at #50 and U2's "Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of" opened at #62.

Two songs that were already on the chart at the time of the attacks reached new heights in the week afterwards. Enya's serene "Only Time" climbed to #18. Brooks & Dunn's rousing "Only In America" (with its uncanny opening line "sun coming up over New York City") climbed to #35.

Country singer Aaron Tippin recorded "Where The Stars And Stripes And The Eagle Fly" (which he had co-written a few years earlier) in the weekend after the attacks. It was rush-released to country radio on Sept. 17. The song entered the country chart at #34 in the issue dated Oct. 6.  It peaked #2. It entered the Hot 100 on Oct. 20. It peaked at #20.

Ten days after the tragedy, two dozen top stars performed on a telethon, America: A Tribute To Heroes. The show aired on all four major networks. Performers included Neil Young, who sang John Lennon's "Imagine," U2 ("Walk On"), Faith Hill ("There Will Come A Day") and Alicia Keys ("Someday We'll All Be Free"). In December, a video from the event debuted at #1 on Billboard's Top Music Videos chart. It held the top spot for six weeks. Also, a two-CD set from the special cracked the top 20 on The Billboard 200.

On Oct. 20, The Concert For New York City was held at Madison Square Garden. Paul McCartney was the driving force behind the show, which aired on VH1.  McCartney performed "Freedom," which he told the audience he wrote the day after the attacks, and such Beatles classics as "Yesterday" and "Let It Be." The show also featured such stars as David Bowie, Elton John, Billy Joel and John Mellencamp. A two-CD set reached the top 30 on The Billboard 200 in December. In February, the video entered Top Music Videos at #1.

On Oct. 21, another concert, United We Stand: What More Can I Give, was held at RFK Stadium in Washington D.C. Performers included Michael Jackson, Aerosmith, James Brown, Carole King and Rod Stewart.

On Nov. 3, a compilation album, God Bless America, entered The Billboard 200 at #1. The album featured Celine Dion's version of "God Bless America," which she had performed on America: ATribute To Heroes. The rest of the album consisted of previously released tracks, such as Mariah Carey's "Hero," Bob Dylan's "Blowin' In The Wind" and Pete Seeger's "This Land Is Your Land."

On Nov. 4, Barbra Streisand made a surprise appearance at the close of the 53rd annual  Emmy Awards, where she sang the inspirational classic "You'll Never Walk Alone." She was backed by a gospel choir on the Rodgers & Hammerstein song, which she had recorded for her 1997 album Higher Ground.

Alan Jackson's "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)" was the first song written about the tragedy to crack the Hot 100. Jackson premiered the song on the annual Country Music Assn. Awards telecast on Nov. 7. The song entered the pop and country charts in the issue dated on Nov. 24.  It reached #1 on Hot Country Singles & Tracks in just six weeks, faster than any other song in more than four years. It held on to the top spot for five weeks and reached #28 on the Hot 100. (It was later featured on Jackson's album, Drive, which topped The Billboard 200 for four weeks in 2002.)

In the Dec. 15 issue of Billboard, fully 10 of the 60 songs on Hot Country Singles & Tracks had patriotic themes. Here are the songs that were on the chart that week that I haven't already mentioned: David Ball's "Riding With Private Malone," the Charlie Daniels Band's "This Ain't No Rag, It's A Flag," Blackhawk's "Days Of America," Kenny Rogers' "Homeland" and Craig Morgan's "God, Family And Country."

That same week, Paul McCartney entered the Hot 100 with "Freedom." While far from his best work, it was a fitting salute to New York City, which had embraced the Beatles so enthusiastically in 1964.

In the last week of December, Daniel Rodriguez charted with "God Bless America." Rodriguez, an operatic tenor, was a member of the New York Police Department on 9/11. He sang at numerous high-profile events in months after the attacks, including the World Series, the Macys' Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Rockefeller Center tree-lighting ceremony. Rudy Giuliani, then the mayor of New York City, gave a spoken introduction on the record.

That same week, Ray Stevens, who had recorded dozens of novelty songs since 1960, cracked the country chart with "Osama-Yo' Mama." The key line: "Osama, your karma's really got you in a jam/But that's just what you get when you mess with Uncle Sam."

When Nielsen SoundScan released its year-end sales charts for 2001, eight 9/11-boosted songs ranked among the year's 200 best-selling singles. Three placed in the top 50: Houston's "The Star Spangled Banner," Greenwood's "God Bless The USA" and Tippin's "Where The Stars And Stripes And The Eagle Fly." Further down the list were Enya's "Only Time," Elvis Presley's "America The Beautiful," Randy Travis' "America Will Always Stand," LeAnn Rimes' "God Bless America" and Daniel Rodriguez's "God Bless America."

Three 9/11-boosted albums ranked among the top 200 sellers of 2001, per Nielsen SoundScan. The multi-artist God Bless America sold 974K copies during the year, followed by Greenwood's American Patriot (515K) and America: A Tribute To Heroes (490K).

U2 opened the 44th annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 27, 2002 by performing "Walk On," a song about coming back from a heartbreaking experience which resonated in the wake of 9/11. Also, Alan Jackson sang "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)" and Billy Joel and Tony Bennett teamed for "New York State Of Mind."  "Walk On" won as Record of the Year.

Two highly disparate songs about 9/11 hit it big in 2002. Toby Keith's "Courtesy Of The Red, White And Blue (The Angry American)," with its crowd-pleasing line "we'll put a boot in your ass/it's the American way," reached #1 on Hot Country Singles & Tracks.  Bruce Springsteen's poetic "The Rising" made the top 25 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. Both songs were featured on #1 albums: Keith's Unleashed and Springsteen's The Rising.

Near the end of the year, saxophonist Kenny G released a "Freedom Mix" of his 1999 hit "Auld Lang Syne."

At the 54th annual Emmy Awards on Sept. 22, 2002, America: A Tribute To Heroes and The Concert For New York City were both nominated for Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special. America: A Tribute To Heroes won.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performed "The Rising" at the 45th annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 23, 2003. The show was held in New York for the first time in five years. It included performances by such hometown favorites as the New York Philharmonic and Simon & Garfunkel as well as newcomer Norah Jones.

"The Rising" and "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning)" were both finalists for Song of the Year. Neither won, but both won Grammys in their genre categories. Jackson's song was voted Best Country Song, while Springsteen's was named Best Rock Song. "The Rising" also won for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. The album of the same name won as Best Rock Album.

Darryl Worley's "Have You Forgotten?," which expressed his view that people seemed to have forgotten the events of 9/11, charted on March 15, 2003. Worley co-wrote the song, with its key line "And you say we shouldn't worry about Bin Laden/Have you forgotten?" The song was #1 on the country chart for seven weeks. It reached #22 on the Hot 100.

Toby Keith returned in December 2003 with "American Soldier." The song topped the country chart for four weeks.

Hat Tip: As part of my research for this column, I went back and re-read the Singles Minded columns that appeared in Billboard in late 2001. Silvio Pietroluongo, Minal Patel and Wade Jessen did a great job of capturing the mood of the times.

Read more from Paul Grein at Chart Watch.

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