The new year is upon us, and so is a whole list of new country music releases for 2012. This time around, we say forget the sure-to-fail weight loss resolutions and resolve to pick up your favorite artists’ albums instead. Hey, two-steppin’ is a workout, after all!

2012 will bring new records from many big name artists, starting with Kellie Pickler‘s ’100 Proof,’ out just weeks after the ball drops in Times Square. The title is meant to prove that Miss Pickler is as country as it gets, though the album content is said to have a heavy mix of songs detailing her troubled childhood and distant relationship with her parents. While that’s not quite the happy-go-lucky inspiration we’re looking for to kick off a new start, we’re excited to hear new music from the former ‘American Idol’ famer.

Also hot for the new year, Dierks Bentley will unveil his latest collection of works in ‘Home,’ which includes his already flaming singles ‘Am I the Only One’ and the title track. Of what fans can expect from the album, Bentley explained in a press release: “This album is more than a year’s worth of writing, recording and testing out material on the road in front of our hard core fans. The end result is an album that runs through all the types of country songs and sounds I enjoy singing and playing. I can’t wait to share it with the fans!”

As the weather warms up, the new country music releases will start flying onto the shelves (and then 0ff), as Rascal Flatts, Pat Green, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and more are expected to unleash new tunes. Stay clicked to Taste of Country because we’ll be updating this page as information about new album releases becomes available, just like we did in 2011!

New Country Music Releases 2012:

January 17

Martina McBride, ‘Hits and More’

January 24

Kellie Pickler, ’100 Proof’

Neal McCoy, ‘XII’

Tim McGraw, ‘Emotional Traffic’

February 7

Dierks Bentley, ‘Home’

Various, ‘Waylon – The Music Inside: A Collaboration Dedicated to Waylon Jennings, Volume II’

February 14

Gene Watson, ‘Best of the Best: 25 Greatest Hits’

Granger Smith, ‘Live at the Chicken’

February 28

Craig Morgan, ‘This Ole Boy’

Lyle Lovett, ‘Release Me’

March 6

Neal McCoy, ‘XII’

Ty Stone, ‘American Style’

March 13

Shooter Jennings, ‘Family Man’

March 20

Casey James, ‘Casey James’

March 27

Lionel Richie, ‘Tuskegee’

April 2

‘An Evening With … Dolly’

April 3

Rascal Flatts, ‘Changed’

Johnny Cash, ‘Bootleg IV: The Soul of Truth’

April 24

Josh Abbott Band, ‘Small Town Family Dream’

Kip Moore, ‘Up All Night’

Lee Brice, ‘Hard 2 Love’

Marty Stuart, ‘Nashville Volume 1 – Tear the Woodpile Down’

May 1

Carrie Underwood, ‘Blown Away’

May 8

Pat Green, ‘Songs We Wish We’d Written II’

May 15

Willie Nelson, ‘Heroes’

May 29

Wade Bowen, ‘The Given’

June 5

Alan Jackson, ‘Thirty Miles West’

Jana Kramer, ‘Jana Kramer’

June 12

Darryl Worley, ‘One Time Around’

Edens Edge, ‘Edens Edge’

Josh Turner, ‘Punching Bag’

June 19

Don Williams, ‘And So It Goes’

Kenny Chesney, ‘Welcome to the Fishbowl’

Marlee Scott, ‘Beautiful Maybe’

June 26

Aaron Lewis, ‘The Road’

Chris Cagle, ‘Back in the Saddle’

July 10

Zac Brown Band, ‘Uncaged’

Hank Williams Jr., ‘Old School, New Rules’

July 17

David Nail, ’1979′ EP

The FARM, ‘The Farm’

July 24

Love and Theft, ‘Love and Theft’

July 31

Gloriana, ‘A Thousand Miles Left Behind’

August 7

Colt Ford, ‘Declaration of Independence’

August 14

Blackberry Smoke, ‘Whippoorwill’

August 21

Dierks Bentley, ‘Country & Cold Cans’ EP

Dustin Lynch, ‘Dustin Lynch

JT Hodges, ‘JT Hodges’

August 27

Josh Turner, ‘Live Across America’

September 11

Aaron Lewis, ‘The Road’

Bucky Covington, ‘Good Guys’

Kix Brooks, ‘New to This Town’

Little Big Town, ‘Tornado’

September 18

Big & Rich, ‘Hillbilly Jedi’

Dwight Yoakam, ’3 Pears’

Easton Corbin, ‘All Over the Road’

September 25

Jake Owen, ‘Endless Summer’

The Mavericks, ‘In Time’

Ricky Skaggs, ‘Music To My Ears’

October 2

Blake Shelton, ‘Cheers, It’s Christmas’

Jerrod Niemann, ‘Free the Music’

October 16

Jason Aldean, ‘Night Train’

October 22

Taylor Swift, ‘Red’

November 13

Toby Keith, ‘Hope on the Rocks’

TBA:

Brett Eldredge, ‘One Way Ticket’

Darius Rucker

Faith Hill, ‘Illusion’

Jacob Lyda, ‘Just Another Song I Had To Write’

James Wesley, ‘Real’

Josh Thompson, ‘Change’

Lee Ann Womack, ‘The Way That I’m Living’

LoCash Cowboys, ‘This Is How We Do It’

More From 98.1 The Hawk