Granted a prime spot at this year's Country Radio

Seminar, Travis Tritt made the most of the

opportunity Wednesday night (Feb. 28) before a

crowd of nearly 1,000 at the Nashville Convention

Center. Dressed in his trademark black leather

jacket and leather pants, Tritt spent an hour and

10 minutes charming the typically hard-sell radio

crowd with a sampling of old hits and new material

from his recent album, Down the Road I Go.

In his role as featured performer for this year's

"Super Faces Show," Tritt kicked off the 32nd

annual Country Radio Seminar. The four-day event

is the year's biggest schmooze-fest between

country radio professionals and the country music

industry. It features panels, discussions, networking and plenty of music.

After a nearly two-year hiatus from recording and touring, during which he

switched record labels and began a family, Tritt has returned to the charts with a

No. 1 single, "Best of Intentions." Stepping out of the limelight for a while involved

a certain risk, he admitted during an interview before his performance.

"There's always a fear, will people still want to buy the records, will they still want

to come to the shows?" he said. "To come back with a brand-new label and have

the first single do so well is phenomenal."

Tritt proved to the audience of broadcasters that he remains as much a

honky-tonk country singer as he is Southern rocker or balladeer. A lukewarm

initial response gave way to enthusiastic cheering for familiar songs such as

"Here's a Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares)," "Ten Feet Tall and Bulletproof,"

"Put Some Drive in Your Country," "Country Club" and "Anymore." The latter

earned the first of two standing ovations. New songs in the set included "Down

the Road I Go," "Living on Borrowed Time," "Modern Day Bonnie and Clyde," "It's

a Great Day to Be Alive" (his current single) and the driving "Southbound Train."

The crowd rose to its feet again after Tritt closed the show with a rousing,

blistering version of "T-R-O-U-B-L-E."

"[Radio broadcasters] are not just people you work with," Tritt said in the

interview. "They are really the cornerstone of your career. You deal with them

from the time you begin your career until you hang it up. Having the chance to go

out and re-establish those relationships was, quite frankly, the foundation that we

built the comeback on."

The audience's enthusiasm for Tritt's show and broadcasters' willingness to play

his music suggest the 38-year-old Georgian is primed for continued success as

a country artist.

"Radio welcomed me back with open arms," he said. "I enjoy the success more

and appreciate it more than I ever have. To be able to come back now, in such a

competitive business, and still have a presence in that market after 12 years of

doing this is extremely gratifying."