The 9513 - Country Music Blog

For the first twenty minutes of his show at Nashville’s Mercy Lounge, Texas singer-songwriter Hayes Carll didn’t care much for small talk. Songs like “Hard Out Here” and “Trouble in Mind” passed by with barely a word uttered between them. Carll’s clever brand of country-rock, featuring incisive songwriting reminiscent of heroes Ray Wylie Hubbard and [...]

Continue reading "Hayes Carll and Band On Point at Nashville’s Mercy Lounge"

As I settled into my seat at Garth Brooks’ third show in two nights on Dec. 17, a large woman disrupted the peace. She scooted past me, shivering with excitement. “I’ve been waiting my whole life for this,” she yelped while touching my arm. “I might cry.” An older lady seated next to me gaffed [...]

Continue reading "Garth Brooks Live at Bridgestone Arena"

“Light blue or dark blue shirt?” I asked my girlfriend Kristen as we hurriedly prepared for the CMAs. “It says on the ticket that evening/business attire is required—or else they kick you out.” “Oh please,” she responded. “If that were the case, they probably wouldn’t let Brad Paisley in.” Ah, the CMA Music Awards—the one [...]

Continue reading "A View from the CMA Awards"

After 50 years of fostering and honing the chops of singers and songwriters in Nashville, Tootsies finally got the celebration it deserves. Revered as a breeding ground for Nashville’s music machine, the venerable honky tonk on Lower Broadway simply teems with character and legend. And all of those who gathered to celebrate at the Ryman [...]

Continue reading "Tootsie’s 50th Anniversary: Celebrating a Page in Country Music History"

A chalkboard at the door promised “Old time country and Americana,” and any passerby curious enough to venture down the long hallway and up the old wooden stairs into the main room of the intimate Palms Playhouse would have found just that during Elizabeth Cook’s 90-minute Friday night set. Beginning with “Today I Started Loving [...]

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The journey that started four days ago certainly didn’t finish on a sour note. The final night of music at the Americana Music Festival was—again—full of talent, making for another difficult decision as to what to cover. Lo and behold, my intuition—and a diverse lineup—led me to the Cannery Ballroom and Mercy Lounge. Fairfield Four [...]

Continue reading "AmericanaFest Goes Out With A Bang"

Americana Music Festival goers didn’t even get a chance to settle down after a surprise 30-minute Robert Plant performance at the Awards Show before more showcases around town fired back up. Tonight’s venue of choice was the Mercy Lounge–where both Dale Watson and Wanda Jackson took the stage. For a guy who wrote tunes like [...]

Continue reading "AmericanaFest Recap: Mercy Lounge Happenings"

For one four-day period in September, Nashville sheds its commercial country image and Americana Fest banners dot the lamp posts along Music Row. During that time, the words, sounds and melodies take the place of image, dollar signs and auto tune–and Nashville becomes the envy–not the perceived antithesis–of the roots music world. Over the next [...]

Continue reading "AmericanaFest Recap: Music That Works"

Photo by James Minchin It’s hard to imagine that last night was the first time Marty Stuart and the Fabulous Superlatives performed a full show on a Nashville stage. After all, Stuart is one of those omniscient Nashville figures who could/will pop up anywhere in town. He hosts his own show on RFD-TV and frequents [...]

Continue reading "Eights Years After Forming, Marty Stuart & His Fabulous Superlatives Play First Full-Show In Nashville"

It’s not often the venue for any concert is as much a part of the discussion as the performance, but for the Wynonna Judd show during the Lake Tahoe Music Festival at Northstar at Tahoe this past Saturday, that was definitely the case. Quite the unique experience awaits attendees as they pull into Northstar at [...]

Continue reading "Live: Wynonna at Lake Tahoe Music Festival & Northstar at Tahoe"