Song of the Year is one of the top honors in the Taste of Country Awards.

The nominees in this category represent the best song craft to come out of Nashville in 2014, revealing the enormous diversity of contemporary country music. There are some cutting edge tracks, some classic country and at least one real curveball among the nominated songs.

Dierks Bentley reached a high water mark with 'I Hold On,' one of the most personal songs of his career. Written with Brett James, the song is more a mission statement for Bentley than just another song. Miranda Lambert also took the personal approach with 'Automatic,' which she co-wrote with Nicolle Galyon and Natalie Hemby. The lyric looks back wistfully on a more innocent time.

Eric Church showed his more sensitive side with 'Give Me Back My Hometown,' an acoustic track that laments how time changes everything -- relationships, people and places. Lee Brice drew from his own life for the romantic 'I Don't Dance,' which he co-wrote with Rob Hatch and Dallas Davidson, while Tim McGraw invited Faith Hill to duet with him on 'Meanwhile Back at Mama's,' a very special song that returned him to his roots after quite a few more experimental commercial tracks in recent years.

In a year defined in part by a lack of opportunity for women in country music, two of our nominees bucked every trend to release important songs. Kacey Musgraves set the industry on its ear by releasing 'Follow Your Arrow' as a single to country radio; written with Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally, the track takes a no-big-deal position on same-sex relationships and marijuana use as part of a larger message that celebrates individuality. Though it didn't receive across-the-board support from country radio, the song won Song of the Year at the 2014 CMA Awards. Could it do the same at the 2015 ToC Awards?

Maddie & Tae also took a huge risk with their debut single 'Girl in a Country Song,' which turns the tables on the stereotypes of bro-country. The song pushes back against the sexist perceptions of women in country music and scored the duo a No. 1 hit straight out of the gate.

McGraw took top honors last year with 'Highway Don't Care,' his collaboration with Keith Urban and Taylor Swift. Which one of this year's fine nominees gets your vote for Song of the Year in the 2015 Taste of Country Awards? Vote below as often as once an hour until voting closes on Monday, Feb. 2 at 11:59PM ET.

Best of Country Music 2014

More From Taste of Country