re: Where does George Strait rank all time in country?

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input singers have in what they choose to sing and what is chosen or available for them.

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I would imagine that after you have a couple #1 hits, top songwriters would feed you great tunes to cut.

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I don't know how much input singers have in what they choose to sing and what is chosen or available for them.

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Nashville is a music factory. The record companies have a system & division of labor they prefer. Get a talented singer, put them in a studio with the record company's chosen producer & session musicians, and have them record songs they didn't write. It's been this way for decades. The whole outlaw movement was a rebellion against this system. The record companies like to control the whole process with a select few professionals. However, songwriters are often outside of their control. There are always a ton of songs floating around. George Strait had his pick of any song for 20+ years. Everyone else was picking after him.