Craig Morgan has signed a record deal with Black River Entertainment, the label home of Jeff Bates, Sarah Darling and Due West.

There are plans for Craig to release a new album later this year.

"You could take a poll of country fans and be pretty sure at least one or two of Craig's hits would be among their all-time favorites," says Gordon S. Kerr, Black River's Chief Operating Officer. "We're immensely proud to have Craig join the Black River family."

Craig left BNA in February this year, after scoring a couple of Top 10 hits in 2009 - "Love Remembers" and "Bonfire" - during his two year run with that label. Before signing with BNA, the country singer had gathered a long list of Top 10 hits for Broken Bow Records, including "Almost Home," "Redneck Yacht Club," "Little Bit of Life," "International Harvester" and his 2005 hit, "That's What I Love About Sunday,"  which topped the charts for four weeks.

A solider in the US Army for 10 years before trading military life for a recording career in 2000, Craig was honored by the Tennessee City Volunteer Department at the Grand Ole Opry for his heroism in February, when he rushed into a burning house and rescued two children who were trapped inside.