Brooks & Dunn, Montgomery Gentry contribute to CD for troops

"CD for the Troops" will be available for anyone with a valid military identification card to download at no cost from the Army and Air Force Exchange Service Web site, www.aafes.com.

It was not clear what songs were contributed by Brooks & Dunn or Montgomery Gentry.

"We're thankful to all the artists who have agreed to lend their name and talent to this special CD," said Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary of defense for internal communications and community liaison. "To have 'CD for the Troops' produced and dedicated in special honor to our active-duty military members and veterans is just another demonstration of the support so many people in our nation have for our troops."

Other contributors were the Goo Goo Dolls, Jewel, Los Lonely Boys, the Neville Brothers, Sarah McLachlan, the Lt. Dan Band, The Fray and Five For Fighting.

John Ondrasik, the singer-songwriter who performs under the stage name "Five For Fighting," helped spearhead the effort after being asked to write a forward and contribute a song to a compilation of local bands sending music to troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I thought it was a wonderful gesture," he said, explaining his belief that music is a unique medium that can affect morale and mental health. "I started making a few calls to friends of mine, and six months later we have the CD for the troops."

While Ondrasik hopes the downloadable version of "CD for the Troops" will be available on the AAFES Web site through April, hard copies also will find their way to the troops. Troops in theater, military hospitals and Fisher Houses will get a share of 200,000 hard CDs, he said.