Country singer Chris Cagle [ tickets ] has had it rough in recent years. He was forced to take cover from the tabloids after he found out he wasn't the father of his then-girlfriend's baby. He's been embroiled in a lawsuit with a former manager. Then, in December, police cited him for punching a man in the face after a charity show in Tucson, AZ.

So, when it came time to name his new album, the words "My Life's Been a Country Song" just fit.

"That's what I do for a living," Cagle told LiveDaily during a recent telephone interview. "My life is a country song, one song at a time, one beat at a time. At the same time--I know it's no secret--the last three or four years of my life have been a little bit tumultuous."

The album, which hit stores Feb. 19, marks the first time Cagle used outside songwriters, a decision made by his co-producer.

"To be honest, my co-producer, Scott Hendricks, he came to me and said, 'I've done a bunch of research and the one thing that comes up in the negative category on your career over and over is the fact that your critics would like you to perform stronger material,'" Cagle explained.

"It was kind of a tough pill to swallow, being a singer/songwriter. But, the bottom line is, I just told Scott, 'If we can get the big hit songs from the A-list guys, then I'll cut 'em.' I think he [added] a lot of validity to me as an artist."

Once the word was out that Cagle was looking for songwriters, he said people began to come out of the woodwork. He and Hendricks ended up listening to 4,000 songs, all of which were documented on a spreadsheet.

"It was grueling, just to put it in a polite way," Cagle said. "For the most part, we had a lot of great material. There's a very fine line between a good song and a great song. It's something that's hard to distinguish, but you have to just take the time and get your mind cleared up to be able to do so."

The "great material" allowed "My Life's Been a Country Song" to debut at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Country Albums chart, selling 37,000 copies its first week, according to Billboard. The first single, "What Kinda Gone," went Top 10 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart.

"Scott Hendricks is going to be one of the legendary producers in this business when his career is over, if he's not already. He was one of the pioneers and shapers in production of contemporary country music. I think he makes great records."