Rhinestone romance: country couples for the ages

With their fashion-mag looks and Top-10 hooks, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill are country-music's current power couple. Their 74-date Soul2Soul II tour is selling out in most markets, making it this year's hottest tour. Billboard magazine recently predicted it'll end up being the highest-grossing country tour of all time.

But Tim 'n' Faith aren't exactly country music's first super-couple. To toast their arrival, here's a quick look at them, and country couples who paved their way.

Tim McGraw and Faith Hill: Currently unstoppable Nashville hitmakers.

Tied the knot: On Oct. 6, 1996, after the pair toured together — she was opening for him — on the aptly named "Spontaneous Combustion Tour."

Offspring output: Three daughters who often go on the road with them.

Rocky road? So far, so good. This year, they'll celebrate their 10-year anniversary. Tim can be a little competitive, "but in a nice way," Hill told Country Weekly magazine.

Offstage interests: Tabs and various fashion and music mags are always naming 'em "hottest" this, "most beautiful" that. A Country Weekly readers poll, for instance, just named Hill country music's most beautiful woman. Also, McGraw has said in several interviews that he has political aspirations. A Democrat, he has expressed interest in running for governor of Tennessee. Hill has hawked makeup. Both have appeared in movies and TV shows. McGraw stars in the upcoming film "Flicka." They're also involved in hurricane-relief efforts.

Duet to download: "Angry All the Time," a slightly bitter love song written by Texan Bruce Robison (another guy in a country couple) and turned into a No. 1 hit by McGraw and Hill.

Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash: Immortal country icons and subjects of the film "Walk the Line."

Tied the knot: 1968. He proposed to her onstage; she accepted.

Offspring output: Johnny had four daughters — including acclaimed singer Rosanne — with his first wife, Vivian Liberto, and a son with June, John Carter Cash.

Rocky road? Initially, they had a love-hate thing — he loved her, she hated him. Eventually fell in love, and Johnny often credited June with helping him kick drug dependency and alcoholism. They truly lived up to the "till death do us part" vow: They were still married when June died May 15, 2003, following complications from heart surgery. Johnny died four months later.

Offstage interests: She appeared in Robert Duvall's 1997 movie "The Apostle." The two appeared together on an episode of "Little House on the Prairie." Cash once hosted a music show on ABC.

Duet to download: "Oh, What a Good Thing We Had," which isn't as well-known as "Jackson" or "It Ain't Me, Babe," but is just as good.

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood: Couple whose separate commercial heydays were in the '90s, although Yearwood recently released a great record, "Jasper County." Brooks is in retirement. You'd retire, too, if you had all his money.

Tied the knot: Dec. 10, 2005, after Brooks pulled a Johnny Cash and proposed to Yearwood onstage. Brooks has admitted to having an affair with Yearwood while married to his first wife, Sandy.

Offspring output: Brooks has three kids from his first marriage; Yearwood is childless but has two ex-husbands, which, some women would argue, are just like kids.

Rocky road? Smooth sailing. They even live next door to Brooks' ex.

Offstage interests: The two are involved in several famine-relief and children's charities.

Duet to download: The couple's cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Who'll Stop the Rain" from "Shelter From the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast."

George Jones and Tammy Wynette: The golden-tongued couple.

Tied the knot: 1969.

Offspring output: In 1970, they had a daughter, Georgette.

Rocky road? Talk about your potholes. The two had a troubled relationship, mainly due to Jones' drinking problem, that led to a divorce six years later.

Offstage interests: Jones: Drinking. Wynette: Getting married. Jones was one of Wynette's five husbands.

Duet to download: The two recorded many hit duets, including "Golden Ring," "Two Story House," "The Ceremony" and "Near You." Best of the bunch is "We're Gonna Hold On," which the two recorded after they briefly reconciled. Not long after the song became a smash, Wynette left Jones and the two divorced. She died in 1998. Jones, who supposedly has kicked his habits, still records and tours.

Marty Stuart and Connie Smith: He of the blinding rhinestone jackets and she of "Once a Day" fame. She scored a hit with that song in the '60s (it spent eight weeks at No. 1) and stayed on the charts throughout the '70s.

Tied the knot: On July 8, 1997, on an Indian reservation. It was Stuart's second marriage (his first was to Cindy Cash, one of Johnny's daughters), her fourth. (Good luck, dude!)

Offspring output: None together; Smith has kids from a previous marriage.

Rocky road? More like a freeway — no probs to report. Matter of fact, Stuart has admitted to liking Smith when he was a teen and she was, well, not. There's a 17-year age difference, but love knows no age, right?

Offstage interests: Stuart produced Smith's 1998 self-titled comeback album, and while it sat well with critics, it didn't make much of a dent on the charts.

Duet to download: The two have yet to record an official duet, but they've written many songs together, including another duet, "Farmer's Blues," an exceptional cut from Stuart's "Country Music" CD. He sings it with another partner: longtime friend Merle Haggard.

Buddy and Julie Miller: King and queen of the alt-country scene.

Tied the knot: Buddy and Julie will celebrate their 25th anniversary in November.

Offspring output: No kids; just cats.

Rocky road? If so, they've kept it quiet, although some of their songs are so sad — the duo's "Keep Your Distance," Buddy's "Does My Ring Burn Your Finger?" — you just gotta wonder.

Offstage interests: Both have busy careers: He often leads Emmylou Harris' band and has penned songs for the Dixie Chicks and Lee Ann Womack; she has worked with Harris, as well as Patty Griffin, among many others.

Duet to download: "Forever Has Come to an End," a weepy ballad from their 2001 duets album, "Buddy & Julie Miller."

Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis: Texas' finest and most-talented country couple. Robison has written hits for George Strait and Lee Ann Womack, among others. Willis' sawdusty drawl could make the devil cry.

Tied the knot: 1996; happy 10th, y'all.

Offspring output: The pair has had four kids — including twins — in five years.

Rocky road? At the beginning of their relationship. After one pre-marriage breakup, Robison wrote the song "You're Not the Best," about dating women who were not Willis. Some of the pair's songs are so emotionally wrenching (such as the Robison-penned "Angry All the Time"), they introduce the songs in concert by saying they're not about one another. Sure, we believe 'em!

Offstage interests: The two appear in Claritin commercials — "Sniffly All the Time"?

Duet to download: "Friendless Marriage," from Robison's "Country Sunshine" CD, is simply one of the most heartbreaking songs you'll ever hear. Possibly trying to avoid explaining the song to gossip-seeking, curious audiences, they usually don't play it live. Despite the song, they are happily married.

Seriously.