The top 5 country and western music artists for this year are also favorites of mine so I was glad to see they had done well. Number one is Carrie Underwood. It was a quick ride to the top for her and she's already winning awards but she does have an amazing voice. My favorite song is "Before he cheats". She also recently did a Christmas album. Rascal Flatts is second. I love their last years CD, Me and My Gang, which did really well on the charts. Kenny Chasney is number 3. He has had 10 country music chart toppers this year. Number 4 is Brad Paisley. I don't have a lot of music from this artist yet but he certainly is doing well. Last but not least is Keith Urban at number 5. His music seems to have a little pop in it but it sounds good so it works. It seems to me that country music has improved greatly over the years. When I was a kid, I couldn't stand the sound of it because it was so twangy. Not too many of them sound like that anymore.