Rascal Flatts scored the most important signature song of their career with “Bless the Broken Road,” but they were not the first act to record it … or the second or the third, for that matter.
In fact, the song had been kicking around Nashville for years before the hitmaking trio took it to No. 1 on Feb. 12, 2005.
Who Wrote Rascal Flatts’ “Bless the Broken Road?”
Marcus Hummon, Bobby Boyd and Jeff Hanna from the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band wrote “Bless the Broken Road” in 1994, inspired by a conversation Hanna had with Hummon right after returning from his honeymoon with songwriter Matraca Berg.
What Inspired “Bless the Broken Road”?
“We got to talking about the circuitous route you take in life and how sometimes you think things are horrible and are never going to get better, but they lead you to something that ultimately is a lot better, whether it’s a relationship, spiritual path, business or whatever,” Hanna recalls to the Boot.
Hummon played Hanna an idea and an outline he had already sketched out for a song along those lines, and they wrote it out within a few hours.
They decided to credit Boyd as a songwriter because Hummon’s original idea came from a conversation he’d had with Boyd.
Who Cut “Bless the Broken Road” Before Rascal Flatts?
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band cut the song first, including it on their 1994 album Acoustic.
Hummon also cut the song for his debut album, All in Good Time, in 1995, and Sons of the Desert cut it for an album that ended up not getting released in 1998.
READ MORE: Are Rascal Flatts Adding a New Member Soon?
Melodie Crittenden recorded the song for her self-titled debut album in 1998, under the title “Broken Road,” but it never realized its full potential until Rascal Flatts included it on their Feels Like Today album in 2004 — ten years after it was written.
Released as the second single from the album in November of 2004, “Bless the Broken Road” reached No. 1 on Billboard‘s Hot Country Singles & Track chart on Feb. 12, 2005, and spent five weeks at the top of the chart.
It went on to receive platinum certification and won a Grammy for Best Country Song, and has gone on to become Rascal Flatts’ most important signature career song.
11 Country Covers That Became Even Bigger Hits
Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes
30 Best Country Covers of Non-Country Songs, Ranked
Who says country artists have to stay in genre all the time? Not us. These 30 superstars have all recorded out-of-genre covers, and they sound incredible. Scroll through the list below to find everything from big hits to hidden gems.
Gallery Credit: Carena Liptak
