‘Catch of the Day’ – Aaron Watson – “Bluebonnets (Julia’s Song)” [AUDIO]

Today we focus on a singer and songwriter from Amarillo, TX who didn't learn to play guitar until college, who has had a ton of success on the Texas country music charts, and who is on the verge of a breakthrough on the national charts.

Raised on the music of Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and George Jones, as well as the gospel music he heard every Sunday in church, Aaron Watson quickly received acceptance by the Texas country music hierarchy, as his second album, The Honky Tonk Kid, was produced by Asleep At The Wheel's Ray Benson and featured a guest appearance by Willie Nelson. Watson has released 13 albums since 1999, all on independent labels.

It sounds like a lot of hard work, but Watson is no stranger to the concept. Watson is a road warrior, performing hundreds of shows every year, has worked with artists from Jack Ingram to Billy Joe Shaver to Willie Nelson, runs his own label and who does it all without a single bit of influence or interference of a major label or distributor.

Watson's first 7 albums were released on the now defunct Sonnet Records. In 2007, he decided to back his own recordings, opening his own label, Big Label Records, releasing his last 6 albums independently. Through Watson's hard work, his most recent album, 2015's The Underdog, became the first and only self produced and independently released album to debut at #1 on the Billboard Country Albums chart.

The Underdog has produced three singles, with only the lead single "That Look" cracking the top-50 on the Billboard Country chart. The song, which Watson wrote for his wife Kimberly, did well on downloads, and by the end of 2014, it was the year's best selling independent single, regardless of genre.

With the album's fourth single, Watson is hoping to break free of the "Texas country" label. The fourth single from The Underdog is in our spotlight today. Aaron Watson and "Bluebonnets (Julia's Song) is today's Catch of the Day, new music you haven't heard and you're going to want to hear it again.