Steve Earle, Mary Gauthier and Tift Merritt are the top nominees for the fourth annual Americana Honors & Awards, each receiving three nods from voting members of the Americana Music Association. Buddy Miller received two nominations.

Earle, Merritt and Miller are nominated for artist of the year along with John Prine.

Album of the year nominees are Earle's "The Revolution Starts Now" (E-Squared/Artemis), Gauthier's "Mercy Now" (Lost Highway), Merritt's "Tambourine" (Lost Highway) and Miller's "Universal United House of Prayer" (New West).

In the song of the year category, the nominees are Earle's "The Revolution Starts ... Now," Gauthier's "Mercy Now," Mark Heard's "Worry Too Much" and Merritt's "Good Hearted Man."

Gauthier is also nominated in the new/emerging artist of the year category along with Hayes Carll, the Duhks, Tom Gilliam and Martha Wainwright. Instrumentalist of the year nominees are Alison Brown, Jerry Douglas, Sonny Landreth and Gurf Morlix.

The Sept. 9 awards show will be hosted by two-time Americana Honors & Awards recipient Jim Lauderdale and held at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium. XM and Sirius Satellite Radio will broadcast the event live while Great American Country (GAC) tape the show for a Sept. 26 television broadcast at 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET/PT as part of "Americana Music Month."