NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Alison Krauss and Robert Plant were nominated Wednesday night for top album, No. 1 song and best duo in the seventh annual Americana Honors and Awards.

They received the nominations based on their million-selling "Raising Sand" album.

The awards, to be presented Sept. 18 at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, are for country-based roots music that often is bypassed by country radio stations.

Steve Earle, Levon Helm, Jim Lauderdale and James McMurtry were nominated for artist of the year.

Nominees for album of the year besides "Raising Sand" were Hayes Carll for "Trouble in Mind," McMurtry for "Just Us Kids" and Helm for "Dirt Farmer."

Finalists for song of the year were "Broken" by Tift Merritt; "Cheney's Toy" by McMurtry; "Gone Gone Gone" by Krauss and Plant; "Poor Old Dirt Farmer" by Helm; and "She Left Me for Jesus" by Carll.

Source: AP