Alan Jackson is definitely a country boy, so it’s a bit surprising that his favorite July 4th memory of all time took place in New York City! The 64-year-old recalled one Independence Day in the Big Apple, where he had a front-row view of the city’s elaborate fireworks display.
“A couple of years ago, maybe longer than that now, I had an old boat in Florida,” Jackson recalled to his record label. “It’s like an old antique motor yacht, and it was kind of a cool old boat. I had taken that boat — I’ve always wanted to take it up north like to New York and up in that area, up in the northeast where it’s so pretty. So, we took the boat up there, Denise and the girls, we all went up. They like going to New York City, which I don’t really care about going to the city. So, I got to stay in my boat there at the harbor tied up, which was cool anyway.
“They spent time in the city a few days and then that was Fourth of July, and we went out in the Hudson River that night,” he recalled. “They shot the fireworks off and we were anchored out in front of the Statue of Liberty and New York City was behind us, and the Statue of Liberty and the fireworks were going off sitting on that boat. That was the coolest thing and my girls still talk about that. I mean, that was the coolest thing on Fourth of July I can ever remember. I can’t top that one probably. It was emotional sitting there watching the Statue of Liberty and thinking about all that. It was very cool.”
Jackson announced in 2021 that he had been diagnosed with Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease, but he isn’t going to let that stop him from making more music.
“Well, yes. I would hope so,” Jackson said on his daughter’s In Joy Life with Mattie Jackson podcast, when asked if he had more music he wanted to share. “I may not have toured much, but the creative part jumps out every now and then. I’m always scribbling down ideas and thinking about melodies and I feel like there’ll be some more music to come, yes.”
“It’s like, you can be a singer and go out and tour, but it’s kind of like you’re just doing the same thing over and over,” he continued. “When you make an album, or especially when you write a lot of the songs, that’s creating something. It’s a challenge, so it keeps you interested a little more. If I didn’t write, I think I would’ve gotten bored just singing a long time ago.”
Music and upcoming performances can be found at AlanJackson.com.