Hank Williams tribute leads country Grammy nominees

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The album "Timeless -- Hank Williams Tribute," recorded in memory of the legendary performer who died in 1953, led off the country music industry's Grammy Award nominations announced Friday.

Nominated for Best Country Album, the recording featured a number of artists who snagged individual nominations singing various Williams classics. Among them were Johnny Cash singing "I Dreamed About Mama Last Night," Lucinda Williams' "Cold Cold Heart," and Ryan Adams' "Lovesick Blues."

Grammy winners in all music categories will be announced on Feb. 27 in Los Angeles.

In another novelty, the sound track from Joel and Ethan Coen's movie "O Brother Where Art Thou?" spawned nominations for bluegrass veteran Ralph Stanley, as well as Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, Dan Tyminski and Alison Krauss. "If we've learned anything, it's that nothing can do as much for music as the movies," said Ed Benson, Executive Director of the Country Music Association.

Benson said he hoped the country music industry could forge better relations with Hollywood, noting that bluegrass music likely gained young fans thanks to "O Brother, Where Art Thou?," which became a success without radio exposure. "I think you'll see more recordings influenced by the upsurge of bluegrass featuring acoustic and mandolin and fiddle this year because of the movie," Benson added.

Krauss, a top bluegrass star, was nominated for Grammys in a total of four categories while Trisha Yearwood was named in three along with Tim McGraw.

Also garnering nominations were country music veterans George Jones and Garth Brooks for their duet "Beer Run," which appeared on Jones' album "The Rock: Stone Cold Country."