George Strait Agrees to Record Five More Albums With MCA

George Strait has released 40 albums on MCA Nashville, but that total will reach at least 45 before he's done. On Wednesday night (Aug. 28), his label CEO announced that the legend has signed a contract to record five more albums, even though he's retiring from the road after next year.

Universal Music Group president Mike Dungan shared the news during an event to celebrate Strait's music. According to the Tennessean, Strait then took the Schermerhorn Symphony Center stage with his Ace in the Hole Band.

"In 1981, when I signed with MCA Records, it seems like yesterday," he told a private audience full of industry personnel and songwriters (quote via USA Today). "I think I've been at MCA longer than most people in this room have."

Strait's two-year farewell tour ends in 2014, and its expected dates for those shows will be revealed in the next week or two. The 61-year-old announced his retirement from the road last September, but stressed that he'd continue recording music.