Cindy Walker Willed Catalog to Hall of Fame; Tracy Lawrence Hospitalized
- Tracy Lawrence was hospitalized on Tuesday for a respiratory infection. He was diagnosed with early signs of pneumonia.
- The Star-Telegram’s Preston Jones is not fond of the latest from George Strait:
Whatever the case, too much of Twang feels like Strait, who produced the record with longtime collaborator Tony Brown, capitalizing on his present, increased visibility. The songs come off as rote, lacking the emotional punch of Troubadour. While not every Strait album needs to have the weight and heft of that late-career opus (although The Breath You Take goes some way toward forgiving doofus ditties like album closer El Rey, Arkansas Dave and Hot Grease and Zydeco), neither can he just dump product into the marketplace.
- Since opening for his father’s band The Flatlanders, Colin Gilmore says doors have been opening for him all over the place and he hopes to have a new disc, co-produced by Lloyd Maines, out sometime this year.
- My Kind of Country’s J.R. Journey laments the fact that “Half of My Mistakes” was never released as a single for Gary Allan and asks: “What songs from recent albums do you think got looked over and would have been hits?”
- View the cover art for Tim McGraw’s Oct. 20 release Southern Voice at That Nashville Sound.
- Music Fog has a live video of The Wiyos — who are currently touring with John Mellencamp, Willie Nelson, and Bob Dylan — performing “Promenade” for a recent show.
- Juli Thanki reviewed Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson’s stop at the Birchmere on Tuesday night for The Washington Post.
- CMT published a portion of the transcript from an interview that Brooks & Dunn did for CMT Insider.
What about the differences between being a successful duo and having a successful marriage. Both of you have successful marriages. What are the similarities there?
Brooks: (laughs) I’ve got some stuff that keeps my marriage together that I don’t have in common with Ronnie Dunn! I mean, music’s good and everything, but it ain’t enough to keep us running for another 20 years, OK?
Dunn: I’m with you, hoss. Ditto on that … hoss.
- Listen to “The Love She Left Behind,” the first single from Chris Jones & The Night Driver’s upcoming album Cloud of Dust. The song feature harmony vocals from Darrin Vincent and Jones’ wife, Sally.
- Farce the Music parodied the lyrics of Reba McEntire’s “Strange” with a song by the name of “Skank.”
- Asleep at the Wheel is uploading one track a week from a concert at The Lone Star Cafe in New York City from July 1, 1980. The songs are available as free downloads if you enter your email address.
- Country Universe’s Leeann Ward is soliciting recommendations for religious albums.
- The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum announced on Wednesday that Cindy Walker left her catalog of about 500 songs to the institution when she died in 2006. Since then, the songs have netted more than $500,000 in royalties. The Hall has other plans for the songs as well. Vince Gill, Tony Brown and Fred Foster will invite artists from different musical genres to create new arrangements for Walker’s songs and will serve as producers.
- Watch the new video for Toby Keith’s “American Ride.”
- Billy Joe Shaver will celebrate his 70th birthday on Friday at the Firehouse Saloon in Houston.
- Listen to “The Guitar,” from Guy Clark’s upcoming album Somedays The Song Writes You.
- Country Haiku:
I saw some cowboys
Chasing a herd through the sky
This peyote works- Big Rock Candy Mountain recommends a “Country’n'Western feller” by the name of Eddie Noack. He never really gained a foothold in country music, but was covered by artists like George Jones, Hank Snow, Ernest Tubb and Elvis Costello. Check out some of his tunes at the end of The Mountain’s post.
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Asleep at the Wheel // Billy Joe Shaver // Bob Dylan // Chris Jones // Cindy Walker // Colin Gilmore // Country Music Hall of Fame // Darrin Vincent // Elvis Costello // Ernest Tubb // Flatlanders // Fred Foster // Gary Allan // George Jones // George Strait // Guy Clark // Hank Snow // John Mellencamp // Kasey Chambers // Reba McEntire // Ronnie Dunn // Shane Nicholson // The Flatlanders // Tim McGraw // Toby Keith // Tracy Lawrence // Vince Gill // Willie Nelson
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August 13, 2009 at 11:06 am Permalink
“wild coyote” … killer FTM parody as usual.
The new Toby Keith video looks like the South Park Spirit of Christmas short. At least he didn’t make a video like that for a quality song.
August 13, 2009 at 11:08 am Permalink
Apparently Toby is running out of video ideas and thought doing a Jib Jab cartoon seemed like his best option.
August 13, 2009 at 11:28 am Permalink
Wow, a reviewer in Dallas, Fort Worth calling some of King George’s new songs “Doofus Ditties”! Some personal security measures might be justified here…(lol)
I ‘d like the CMHOF to use some of those Cindy Walker song royalties to buy me a free ticket to the Los Angels “Guitar Pull” as I don’t have a spare $ 750 laying around these days.
As far as great songs that should have been singles, I still nominate Amber Dotson’s “Good Ol’ Boys Kinda Girl” which is only available on her MySpace website. When I hear those opening bars I can’t help but smile and it elicits a stronger emotional response in me than any other song I’ve encountered in the last few months. Talk about a “fun” country song! Sheesh!
Link: http://www.myspace.com/amberdotson
(Its too bad “Good Ol’ Boys Kinda Girl” isn’t the first song on the media player there. Oh well.)
Leeann, I’d recommend Vern Gosdin’s “Gospel Album” for the song “I’m Gonna be Moving” alone.
August 13, 2009 at 11:41 am Permalink
Wow, Dunn “hossed” Brooks, they didnt stand a chance.
August 13, 2009 at 12:08 pm Permalink
Yay for the new Tim cover. It’s like Christmas at FTM when new covers come out!!
August 13, 2009 at 2:08 pm Permalink
It’s very notable, I believe, that the Star-Telegram put Strait’s latest album in context for the review.
“Shiftwork” wasn’t terribly remarkable from Strait’s perspective but, along with (the crappy) “River of Love,” it created a (rare) new story around Strait, that he was trying new things.
And while the truth is that he can’t “approximate the faux folksiness of Brooks & Dunn or Brad Paisley’s down-home, boy-next-door goofiness” (not that he should have to), it is a bit troubling to consider that whatever changes are taking place in his music may be influenced by his outsized experiences this past year in an attempt to capitalize on them.
A sad thing, because Strait has always been assumed (at least by me) to be above all that. The great thing about his career is its consistency. His fans aren’t allowed to divide themselves into camps who either (a) love the new stuff or (b) love the old stuff because, with minor exceptions, it’s all the same. And that’s a good thing.
I’d say the same thing about Brooks & Dunn but the big difference between them and him is that there are writers out there who write songs singularly intended for Strait to sing them; and while B&D were consistent, again with (sometimes major) exceptions, they were never celebrated for it. In fact, their consistent sound was deemed a liability at times.
So I guess what makes “River of Love” and the idea that he’s “forcing himself into” these new songs (at least according to the Star-Telegram) so disappointing is that it all seems calculated, and I don’t believe that’s the George Strait we want to hear from.
August 13, 2009 at 2:16 pm Permalink
Hope Tracy gets well soon!
August 13, 2009 at 3:51 pm Permalink
I love “The Guitar”
August 13, 2009 at 4:49 pm Permalink
There should be a test to see if people are worthy of listening to Guy Clarks music.
August 13, 2009 at 4:53 pm Permalink
OTHER NEWS
Guitar great and inventor of the guitar that bore his name, Les Paul, is dead at age 94. He continued playing right up until the end, and leaves a legacy that will last for as long as people love the sound of the electrified guitar.
August 13, 2009 at 4:55 pm Permalink
There should be a test to see if people are worthy of listening to Guy Clarks music.
We would all fail.
August 13, 2009 at 5:14 pm Permalink
That is the only problem with my suggestion, Stormy.
August 13, 2009 at 5:38 pm Permalink
well, maybe the test should be to see if you can stay awake while listening to his new disc in its entirety…you’re a true fan, or drink on 27 red bulls if you can pull that off…
August 13, 2009 at 5:41 pm Permalink
Hater.
August 13, 2009 at 6:32 pm Permalink
I’m so sad about Les Paul. He was in his 90’s though. Also: Taylor Swift wants to work with Jack White. No response from Jack yet on the possibility of that actually happening.
August 13, 2009 at 7:16 pm Permalink
I’d much rather hear that Taylor Swift would like to do a duet with Willie Nelson or Merle Haggard while they are still around. Well assuming she knows who they are that is….
August 13, 2009 at 8:45 pm Permalink
Rick,
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard would rather be waterboarded by Dick Cheney then do a duet with Taylor Swift.
August 13, 2009 at 9:16 pm Permalink
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard would rather be waterboarded by Dick Cheney then do a duet with Taylor Swift.
You may be right about Haggard but Willie isn’t known for being discriminating about who he works with.
August 13, 2009 at 9:18 pm Permalink
Actually Willie and Merle are going to be onstage singing with Taylor Swift at the VMAs for that new version of her song You Belong With Me; they’re going to mash it up with Willie’s “Whiskey River” and Merle and Rose Maddox’s “Dusty Memories”, after the VMAs are over they are planning on sitting down and writing a song together based on this story http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=9B0DE6D81730E033A25750C1A9649D94659ED7CF
August 13, 2009 at 9:27 pm Permalink
Will they be standing under a waterfall whle they sing it?
August 13, 2009 at 9:35 pm Permalink
I’m pretty sure I read that they’re going to be standing on a castle wall and quoting Monty Python, but who knows, a waterfall would add to the surrealism.
August 13, 2009 at 11:02 pm Permalink
Rick,
Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard would rather be waterboarded by Dick Cheney then do a duet with Taylor Swift.
Ahem… http://www.countrycalifornia.com/willie-nelson-to-record-duets-album-with-you/
August 13, 2009 at 11:05 pm Permalink
Wow, I sure hope Tracy makes a speedy recovery.
August 14, 2009 at 12:30 am Permalink
All i’m saying is, I know Jack White met Ashley Monroe and Taylor Swift in the same exact instance, and he sought Ashley out to work with her.
Yes Kelly, you are a hater. Based on the two songs i’ve heard from the album, it’s hardly going to be hard to stay awake for.
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