Alan Jackson’s gospel album, Precious Memories Volume II, was named Top Christian Album at the Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas. The album is a collection of traditional hymns and was released last year as a follow-up to Jackson’s 2006 Precious Memories.

“We had so many songs, of course, that we didn’t get to do on the first one,” Jackson says, recalling the decision to record a second album of hymns. “We tried to go in and do it like the first one – just heartfelt and simple. It’s just overwhelming how many people have enjoyed these albums – it means a lot.”

Precious Memories Volume II has proven to be a fan favorite and consistent seller – more than a year after its release, it remains in the Top 50 on Billboard’s weekly Top Country Albums chart, and it has never fallen off the chart since its release. Jackson’s original Precious Memories collection is closing in on double-platinum status, having sold nearly two-million copies.

About Alan Jackson

Alan Jackson is one of the most successful and respected singer-songwriters in music.  He is in the elite company of Paul McCartney and John Lennon among songwriters who’ve written more than 20 songs that they’ve recorded and taken to the top of the charts.  Jackson is one of the 10 best-selling artists since the inception of SoundScan, ranking alongside the likes of Eminem and Metallica.  His current album, The Bluegrass Album, was released September 24, 2013 and remains in the top of the charts after spending more than four months at #1 onBillboard’s Bluegrass Album Sales Chart – this week it’s ranked #2.

Jackson has sold nearly 60 million albums worldwide, topped the country singles charts 35 times, and scored more than 50 Top-10 hits.  He has written or co-written 24 of his 35 #1 hit singles and his songwriting has earned him the prestigious ASCAP Founders Award and an induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame as a 2011 Songwriter/Artist inductee.  Jackson is an 18-time ACM Award winner, a 16-time CMA Award recipient, a two-time Grammy-winning artist and a proud member of the Grand Ole Opry.

AUDIO: Alan Jackson says he’s been singing songs like those found on Precious Memories since he was a kid…which set the stage for his career in music.

AJ (Gospel) OC: …as a singer. :37
“I’d stand up and sing when the congregation was singing out of the hymn book, but…some of those melodies are a little tricky for a kid unless you knew the song real well. But I don’t remember thinking much about it. Everybody just stood up—if you didn’t stand up, you know, everybody was staring at you…so you had to stand up and act like you were singing anyway! But I went on to sing as a teenager. They had some organizations and choirs, and I remember singing in those some. And those were some of the early development for me as a singer, and that was probably the early days of getting a little confidence as a singer. The church and the activities that went with it affected me as a singer.”