Toby Keith Takes Control On New Album

Country superstar Toby Keith has written about topics ranging from patriotism to cowboys to beer for horses.

On Keith's latest album, "Big Dog Daddy," he sings about new topics, such as high maintenance women, but with one difference: he was the lone producer.

On Wednesday's "The Early Show," Toby Keith opened up about the experience of solo-producing his album, as well as the significance of his USO tours.

While Keith is excited about the album, it required perseverance through the production process. "I didn't know I'd make it through," he said. "I wanted to try it. I got about halfway through and we were doing really, really good, and I didn't quit."

"Big Dog Daddy," released June 12, was on Keith's own label, which gave him freedom to get his music to his fans quicker. "If I'm in the studio and I can come up with something really cool that I like that I want to take the fans, we can put it out tomorrow," he said.

Even though he says he's not a very political person, Keith says he has been judged by many because of his active role supporting the troops. One of the songs on his new album, "Love Me if You Can," addresses misconceptions that the public may have about him.

"I have been a political lightening rod for the past five years, but 'Love Me if You Can,' word-for-word, tells how I feel about stuff. I don't lean right or left. I stand straight," Keith said.

Keith's support of the troops includes frequent trips overseas to perform as part of USO tours. Recently, Keith traveled to the Afghan-Pakistani border to express his gratitude to the troops.

"There will be two or three or 400 people there that haven't seen anybody in two years," he said. "So I like to go in there and give them a little piece of America and say, 'Thank you,' for what you do for our country."