Editing Toby Keith (section)

===1996–1998: ''Blue Moon'', ''Dream Walkin{{'}}'', and ''Greatest Hits Volume One''===
Keith then signed with the short-lived Nashville division of [[A&M Records]] to release his third album ''[[Blue Moon (Toby Keith album)|Blue Moon]]'' in April 1996. That album received a platinum certification and produced three singles. Its first single, "[[Does That Blue Moon Ever Shine on You]]", which Keith wrote in 1987,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=WB&s_site=timesleader&p_multi=WB&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB71C278953DD73&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=Nothing shaky about Keith's music success|date=November 12, 1996|work=The Times-Leader|page=1C|access-date=March 28, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=MT&s_site=macon&p_multi=MT&p_theme=realcities&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EB76D3553C1FB48&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title=Stages are set|date=March 29, 1996|work=Macon Telegraph|page=1D|access-date=March 28, 2010}}</ref> peaked at number 2. Following it were "[[A Woman's Touch (song)|A Woman's Touch]]" at number 6, and "[[Me Too (Toby Keith song)|Me Too]]", which became his third number one hit in March 1997.<ref name="whitburn"/> Keith also appeared on [[The Beach Boys]]' now out-of-print 1996 album ''[[Stars and Stripes Vol. 1]]'' performing a cover of their 1963 hit "[[Be True to Your School]]" with the Beach Boys themselves providing the harmonies and backing vocals.<ref name=ten/>

Following a corporate merger, Keith returned to Mercury in 1997. His fourth studio album, ''[[Dream Walkin']]'', was also his first produced by [[James Stroud]], who would also serve as Keith's co-producer until 2005.<ref name="allmusic"/> It produced two consecutive number 2 hits with "[[We Were in Love]]" and a cover of [[Sting (musician)|Sting]]'s 1996 single "[[I'm So Happy I Can't Stop Crying]]". Sting also sang duet vocals and played bass guitar on it,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=AT&p_theme=at&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0EADA35EBA81992C&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM|title= Keith, Sting duet gives tune second wind|date=November 7, 1997|work=[[The Atlanta Journal-Constitution]]|page=P3|access-date=July 3, 2009}}</ref> and the two also performed the song at the 1997 [[Country Music Association]] awards.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cmt.com/news/country-music/1473203/31st-annual-cma-awards-show.jhtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116005230/http://www.cmt.com/news/country-music/1473203/31st-annual-cma-awards-show.jhtml|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 16, 2009|title=31st Annual CMA Awards Show|last=Wix|first=Kimmy|date=September 24, 1997|work=[[Country Music Television|CMT]]|access-date=July 3, 2009}}</ref> After this song, the album's [[Dream Walkin' (song)|title track]] reached number 5, while "Double Wide Paradise" peaked at number 40.<ref name="whitburn"/>

Keith's last Mercury release was ''[[Greatest Hits Volume One (Toby Keith album)|Greatest Hits Volume One]]'' in October 1998. The album included twelve of his prior singles and two new songs: the [[country rap]] "[[Getcha Some]]"<ref name="rap">{{cite web|url=http://www.songwriteruniverse.com/braddock.htm|title= Bobby Braddock article|access-date=July 19, 2007|last=Crossan|first=Jeff|work=Songwriter Universe}}</ref> and "If a Man Answers". Both were released as singles, with "Getcha Some" reaching the Top 20, but "If a Man Answers" became his first single to miss the Top 40.<ref name="whitburn"/> According to Keith, these two songs were originally to be put on a studio album, but Mercury executives, dissatisfied with the album that Keith had made, chose to put those two songs on a greatest hits package, and asked him to "go work on another album". After he recorded two more songs which the label also rejected, he asked to terminate his contract with the label.<ref name="waddell">{{cite magazine|last=Waddell|first=Ray|date=June 18, 2005|title=Toby Keith: Superstar graduates from 'Honkytonk University'|magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|volume=117|issue=25|pages=45, 46, 48, 50|issn=0006-2510|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2RQEAAAAMBAJ&q=%22toby+keith%22+%22when+love+fades%22&pg=PA48}}</ref> After exiting Mercury, Keith co-wrote [[Shane Minor]]'s debut single "[[Slave to the Habit]]" with [[Chuck Cannon]] and [[Kostas Lazarides|Kostas]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Benitez-Eves |first=Tina |date=May 3, 2023 |title=3 Songs You Didn't Know Toby Keith Wrote for Other Artists |url=https://americansongwriter.com/3-songs-you-didnt-know-toby-keith-wrote-for-other-artists/ |access-date=February 17, 2024 |website=American Songwriter |language=en-US}}</ref>

[[File:Toby Keith in concert.jpg|thumb|upright|Toby Keith in 2004]]