The four rounds represented hit songwriters performing CMA Song of the Year Award nominees or winners in each decade since The Bluebird Cafe's opening in 1982.
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(l. to r.) - Jon Vezner, Mark Irwin, Don Henry, Thom Schuyler
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Round One:
Thom Schulyer - "16th Avenue" (nominee, 1983)
Don Henry & Jon Vezner - "Where've You Been" (winner, 1990)
Mark Irwin - "Here In The Real World" (nominee, 1991)
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(l. to r.) - Matraca Berg, Beth Nielson Chapman, Dickie Lee, Karen Staley
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Round Two:
Karen Staley & Dickey Lee - "Keeper of the Stars" (nominee, 1996)
Matraca Berg - "Strawberry Wine" (winner, 1997)
Beth Neilsen Chapman - "This Kiss" (winner, 1999)
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(l. to r.) Marcus Hummon, Jeff Hanna, Tim Nichols, Doug Johnson
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Round Three:
Doug Johnson - "Three Wooden Crosses" (winner, 2003)
Tim Nichols - "Live Like You Were Dying" (winner, 2004)
Marcus Hummon & Jeff Hanna - "Bless The Broken Road" (nominee, 2005)
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(l. to r.) Ashley Gorley, Rhett Akins, Steven Lee Olsen
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(l. to r.) - Tom Douglas, Rhett Akins, Steven Lee Olsen
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Round Four:
Tom Douglas - "The House That Built Me" (winner, 2010)
Rhett Akins & Ashley Gorley - "Dirt On My Boots" (nominee, 2017)
Steven Lee Olsen - "Blue Ain't Your Color" (nominee, 2017)
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Bluebird Cafe opened in June of 1982 and is in the midst of an ambitious Indiegogo campaign to fund Bluebird: The Movie, an in depth documentary about the influence the tiny 90-seat venue has had on singers, songwriters and popular music in general. The campaign is currently online, and fans can contribute here.
About the CMA Awards:
The first "CMA Awards Banquet and Show" was held in 1967. The following year, the CMA Awards was broadcast for the first time - making it the longest running, annual music awards program on network television. The Awards have aired on ABC since 2006. ABC is the network home of the CMA Awards and CMA's other two television properties, "CMA Fest" and "CMA Country Christmas," through 2021. The CMA Awards air in 43 countries.
