Alan Back on Traditional Track

1/31/2008 Stephen L. Betts   Alan Jackson says it’s time for him to return to traditional country music. The singer took two slight detours with his most recent releases. Precious Memories was a gospel album he recorded for his mother, and the somber Alison Krauss-produced Like Red on a Rose was even more off the beaten path. Alan tells Billboard, “I always come back to what I came to Nashville to do and that is make traditional-sounding country music.” Alan says his Good Time disc, due March 4, is just that. It also marks the first time he is the sole writer of every song on a project. “Small Town Southern Man” is the first single from the upcoming album, which also includes “Never Loved Before,” a duet with Martina McBride. The album also reunites Alan with producer Keith Stegall, who worked with him on every one of his albums except Like Red on a Rose.