6 Country Albums Released This Year You Must Have in Your Collection [VIDEO]

This was a great year for country music. There were a ton of killer releases to fill up our music systems. We had new artists to fall in love with and some great new music from some of our hit making veterans of the format as well. I thought long and hard about it and came up with 6 albums that you must have in your collection that came out this year.

Let me start by giving props to a few that just missed my top 6. The debut by Maren Morris "Hero" is fantastic. Frankie Ballard put out his best work yet with "El Rio" and Jon Pardi's "California Sunrise" is equally as tasty. Buy these records today and you will love every song on each of them. Hats off to all three of these great artists on making such memorable pieces of work.

In order to make my list, the album had to be released in the 2016 calendar year with a couple of exceptions...one of the albums isn't even released until next week and one was released in November of last year but I say it's close enough to make the cut. Here we go!

Drake White - Spark - This is Drake's debut full length album and it is so worth the wait. The album does not officially come out until August 19th but you can preorder it now. It is incredible. Drake is about to blow up big time and this the spark to get the fire roaring. Here is one of my favorites from the project.

Dan + Shay - Obsessed - The boys followed up their amazing debut with an even tastier blend of harmonies and beautifully written and performed treats for your ears. Check out the title cut. I just love this one.

Old Dominion - Meat and Candy - This one came out in November but I am letting it make my list because it was so close to my deadline. I have listened to this thing hundreds and hundreds of times. I can say that I truly love every single cut on this fantastic debut project. We will be hearing these men for years to come. Here is their latest smash from the album.

Brandy Clark - Big Day in a Small Town - Wow!! This is such a dynamite album. There is not a weak cut on here. Brandy has a way of creating characters in her songs that are so real. You either are the person in the song or know that person being sung about. I have not been able to take this one out of my rotation since I first heard it. Here is little taste to whet your appetite.

Brothers Osborne - Pawn Shop - I am a huge fan of these guys. They won me over the first time I heard TJ Osborne sing. I knew I had found a new favorite. It is so cool when people are as kind as they are talented and Brothers Osborne fit that description perfectly. Here is the title cut from this awesome album.

Keith Urban - Ripcord - How can you be so far into your career and continue to get better album after album? Keith has been making outstanding records for years but his latest release is his finest project yet. There are so many different flavors and styles on this record and they all taste good. His latest single may be my favorite song he has done yet. Check it out here.