Keith Urban Finds Inspiration Close to Home

As his latest album, 'Defying Gravity,' continues to unfold one chart-topper after another, Keith Urban reflects on the emotional effect his wife, actress Nicole Kidman, had on him while he was working at home on the record -- from the first exploratory guitar parts to the finished product in the studio.

"The way she approaches life, I find just beautifully inspiring -- and that in turn has inspired my art," Keith tells St. Louis Today. "I write at home, and often times, she's there. She knows a lot of these songs from the very first inception, just in terms of guitar riffs. I love that she's a part of that journey."

Keith's love for Nicole also affected him while he was in the studio recording 'Thank You,' his tender ode of gratitude to his wife.

"We recorded it quickly," he notes. "I think the important thing with that song was to not belabor it too long. Capturing those things in their real form is the most important thing, not worrying about all the other stuff. It's hard to talk about that stuff ... it's not meant to be talked about. It's meant to be played, and people take from it what they want. But it's something I wanted to be able to do for my wife, too. She's been an incredible strength for me ... in the last couple of years, particularly so."

Keith says he's always working on new guitar riffs and new songs at home, but confesses he's not exactly in a hurry to get another record out any time soon.

"I've heard a few songs that have been written by other people that are unrecorded, and I'm thinking about those," he says. "Sometimes it takes that, too -- I hear other songs I love, and they inspire me. I don't know when I'm gonna be in the studio, probably not 'til early next year. At the same time, we've got hopefully another couple singles on this album."

Keith just celebrated another No. 1 single with 'Only You Can Love Me This Way,' from his latest album.