Rascal Flatts’ ‘Banjo’ Success Is a Pleasant Surprise

Rascal Flatts are currently in the Top 15 and climbing with their latest hit, 'Banjo,' the debut tune from their upcoming CD, 'Changed.' But the hot new single would have remained solely an album cut if band member Jay DeMarcus (pictured right) had had his way.

"I was a little skeptical of that song at first being the lead-off single for the record, because you usually try to put your biggest piece of work out first on a record, your best foot forward," he admits to ABC News Radio. "Boy, was I wrong. This one has been smoking up the charts."

The bassist admits that the fans knew the song would be a hit before he did. "It usually takes a long time for us to work a song like that into our set," he notes, "and we started doing it immediately, and you could see the response immediately. It was kind of strange."

'Changed' is set to hit shelves on April 3, and Jay says it might be the trio's strongest album yet. "It's really exciting for us to get in there and the three of us work on our music together without any outside influence," the multi-instrumentalist tells GAC. "It was a really great creative outlet for us to get in there and sort of experiment ourselves and make some of the music ourselves so we're really, really excited about that."

Jay, Gary LeVox and Joe Don Rooney will have plenty of opportunities to perform their current hit. They hit the road for their American Band tour beginning June 15, with the Eli Young Band, Little Big Town and Edens Edge all serving as opening acts.

They can also bee seen on the big screen on April 5, when their movie, 'Changed,' will be shown in theaters nationwide for one night only. See showtimes here.