Paul Overstreet

Paul Lester Overstreet (born March 17, 1955) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He recorded 10 studio albums between 1982 and 2005, and charted 16 singles on the Billboard country charts, including two No. 1 hits. He has also written singles for several other country acts, including No. 1 hits for Randy Travis, Blake Shelton, and Keith Whitley, as well as hits for The Judds and Kenny Chesney.

Paul Overstreet
Birth namePaul Lester Overstreet
Born (1955-03-17) March 17, 1955
Vancleave, Mississippi, U.S.
OriginNewton, Mississippi, U.S.
GenresCountry, Christian
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter
InstrumentsVocals, guitar
Years active1982–present
LabelsMTM Records
RCA Nashville
Scarlet Moon
Associated actsS-K-O
Tanya Tucker
Paul Davis
Randy Travis
Hot Chelle Rae
Websitehttp://www.pauloverstreet.com

Life and career

Overstreet was born in Vancleave, Mississippi, the son of Mary Lela (Havens) Hatten and William E. Overstreet, a minister,[1][2] and was raised in Newton.[3] Prior to his solo success, he was one third of the trio S-K-O, in which he recorded one studio album before departing and being replaced with Craig Bickhardt. Overstreet's sons, Nash and Chord, are also musicians. Nash is the lead guitarist for the pop band Hot Chelle Rae, while Chord played Sam Evans on Glee and signed with Island Records in 2016.

Songwriter

During his songwriting career, primarily in the country genre, Overstreet has written or co-written 27 Top Ten songs. During this time, he has won two Grammy Awards and also won ACM and CMA Song of the Year Awards (1987 and 1988). Overstreet was named the BMI Songwriter of the Year five straight years, from 1987 to 1991, an achievement on music row that has not been achieved before or since. He co-wrote "A Long Line of Love", "Love Can Build a Bridge", and "Forever and Ever, Amen". Other well-known hits of recent years he is known for are "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy" by Kenny Chesney and "Some Beach" by Blake Shelton, which was a Number One hit in 2004.[4]

Paul Overstreet is best known for writing country songs such as "Forever and Ever, Amen"[5] and "On the Other Hand", both of which were Number Ones for Randy Travis. He also co-wrote "When You Say Nothing at All" which was a Number One hit at the end of 1988 for Keith Whitley, and later a Top Five hit in 1995 for Alison Krauss, and revived later in 1999 by Ronan Keating of Boyzone. He is also known for writing the worship song God Is Good All The Time with Don Moen, which has become one of Moen's signature songs.

In 2019 he partnered with upcoming singer/songwriter Marcus King to write the song Beautiful Stranger.

Singer

Overstreet was first signed as a singer in 1982. His debut single, "Beautiful Baby", peaked at No. 76 on the country charts that year, and was the first single from his self-titled debut album. After co-writing Tanya Tucker's 1987 single "I Won't Take Less Than Your Love" with Don Schlitz, Overstreet and fellow singer-songwriter Paul Davis became guest vocalists on the song, which became a Number One hit that year.

Also in 1987, Overstreet founded the trio S-K-O (also known as Schuyler, Knobloch & Overstreet) with Thom Schuyler and J. Fred Knobloch, both former solo singers. S-K-O charted three singles with Overstreet as a member, including the Number One "Baby's Got a New Baby". After one album the trio was renamed S-K-B when Overstreet left and was replaced by Craig Bickhardt.

In 1988, Overstreet signed to RCA Nashville as a solo artist. His second solo album, Sowin' Love, accounted for five straight Top 10 hits on the country charts: "Love Helps Those", the title track, "All the Fun", "Seein' My Father in Me" and "Richest Man on Earth." His second album, 1990's Heroes, produced his only solo Number One in its lead-off single "Daddy's Come Around", which was followed by the Top Tens "Heroes" and "Ball and Chain". However, his chart success soon waned, with "If I Could Bottle This Up" peaking at No. 30 and "Billy Can't Read" falling short of Top 40. A third RCA album, Love Is Strong, produced the No. 22 "Me and My Baby" and two more singles which missed the Top 40. Also, the song "There But for the Grace of God Go I" won a Dove Award for Country Recorded Song of the Year at the 24th GMA Dove Awards in 1993. Three years later, Overstreet released his first album for Scarlet Moon Records, Time. It produced his last single to enter the country charts, "We've Got to Keep on Meeting Like This," which peaked at No. 73.

In 2013, Overstreet starred in a TV pilot titled Nashville Unplugged Live[6] taped in Las Vegas and produced and directed by Michael A. Bloom.[7] Also starring with Overstreet was songwriter Danny Myrick.

Solo discography

Albums
Year Album Chart Positions Label
US Country US Christian US
1982 Paul Overstreet RCA
1989 Sowin' Love 13 31
1991 Heroes 17 21 163
1992 Love Is Strong 60 28
1994 The Best of Paul Overstreet 16
1996 Time 37 Scarlet Moon
1999 A Songwriter's Project Vol. 1
2001 Living by the Book
Christmas: My Favorite Time of the Year
2005 Forever and Ever Amen
2008 Something For the Road
2010 My Favorite Demos I
My Favorite Demos II

Singles
Year Single Chart Positions Album
US Country CAN Country
1982 "Beautiful Baby" 76 — Paul Overstreet
1988 "Love Helps Those" 3 9 Sowin' Love
1989 "Sowin' Love" 9 41
"All the Fun" 5 10
1990 "Seein' My Father in Me" 2 2
"Richest Man on Earth" 3 4
"Daddy's Come Around" 1 2 Heroes
1991 "Heroes" 4 6
"Ball and Chain" 5 5
"If I Could Bottle This Up" 30 33
1992 "Billy Can't Read" 57 51
"Me and My Baby" 22 27 Love Is Strong
"Still Out There Swinging" 57 84
1993 "Take Another Run" 60 —
1996 "We've Got to Keep On Meeting Like This" 73 — Time
"Even When It Don't Feel Like It"[8] — —
2000 "When Mamma Ain't Happy" — — A Songwriter's Project Vol. 1
2008 "I Think She Only Loves Me for My Willie" — — Something For the Road

Guest singles
Year Single Artist Chart Positions Album
US Country CAN Country
1987 "I Won't Take Less Than Your Love" Tanya Tucker (with Paul Davis) 1 10 Love Me Like You Used To
1993 "I Don't Love You Like I Used To" Susie Luchsinger — — Real Love

Music videos
Year Video Director
1989 "All the Fun" Jim May[9]
1990 "Seein' My Father in Me" Jack Cole[10]
1991 "Heroes" Deaton Flanigen[11]
1992 "Billy Can't Read" Steven Goldmann[12]
1993 "Take Another Run" Jeff Smith[13]
1994 "I Don't Love You Like I Used To" (with Susie Luchsinger)[14]
1996 "We've Got to Keep On Meeting Like This"
"Even When It Don't Feel Like It"
2000 "When Mamma Ain't Happy"
2015 "Somewhere in the Caribbean" P. Tracey

References
  1. "William Overstreet Obituary – Vancleave, MS". Mississippi Press.
  2. "Mary Hatten Obituary - Ocean Springs, MS | The Sun Herald". Legacy.com. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
  3. Paul Overstreet biodata, Google Books. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
  4. Morris, Edward (February 23, 2005). "Paul Overstreet, Rory Lee Feek Bask on "Some Beach"". CMT. Retrieved January 2, 2014.
  5. Overstreet, Paul; Jeanne Halsey (2001). Forever and Ever Amen. Shippensburg: Destiny Image Publishers. ISBN 0-7684-2120-9.
  6. "Nashville Unplugged (TV Movie 2016)". IMDb.com.
  7. "Michael Bloom". IMDb.com.
  8. "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. May 18, 1996.
  9. "CMT : Videos : Paul Overstreet : All The Fun". Cmt.com. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
  10. "CMT : Videos : Paul Overstreet : Seein' My Father in Me". Posting.cmt.com. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
  11. "CMT : Videos : Paul Overstreet : Heroes". Cmt.com. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
  12. "CMT : Videos : Paul Overstreet : Billy Can't Read". Cmt.com. Retrieved September 29, 2011.
  13. "CMT : Videos : Paul Overstreet : Take Another Run". Cmt.com. Retrieved June 26, 2011.
  14. Price, Deborah Evans (October 29, 1994). "Second Christian Country Music Awards Set". Billboard: 41.
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