George Strait Bags Fifty-Sixth No. 1
- Although the charts aren’t officially out until Thursday, word has it that George Strait earned his 56th No. 1 with “I Saw God Today.”
- Another day, another pop artist wanting to make the crossover. Nelly Furtado has recorded a duet with Keith Urban on one of her previous hits, “In God’s Hands.” Check it out at a digital retailer near you.
- Country Universe’s “100 Greatest Women” feature is currently resting at #73 with Melba Montgomery:
She was a natural fit with [George] Jones, her traditional twang complementing his voice perfectly. Whereas he holds back his twang on those later [Tammy] Wynette duets, he absolutely revels in it when singing with Montgomery. Starting with the classic “We Must Have Been Out of Our Minds” in 1962, the pair had a string of hits that lasted throughout the decade.
- Check out the latest issue of Country Weekly (on sale today) for a great cover story on Trace Adkins. Then, flip to the “reviews” section, where you’ll find a review of Lady Antebellum’s self-titled debut album–written by The 9513’s own Jim Malec.
- Harold and Don Reid of the Statler Brothers wrote a book, The Statler Brothers: Random Memories, “filled with revelations about their 38-plus years on the road and in recording studios prior to the group’s retirement in 2002.” In light of their upcoming Hall of Fame induction they talked to Edward Morris an spilled some of those stories from their past.
- Willie Nelson landed at number two on Reuter’s list of Top Ten Green Music Acts.
- On the first night of his tour, Kenny Chesney forgot a verse to “Never Wanted Nothing More,” so the crowd got to hear the song twice. (via ggcolumn)
- Ben Sisario wrote an article on the state of record stores in New York and things aren’t looking up. According to the market research firm Almighty Institute of Music Retail, around 3,100 record stores nationwide have closed since 2003. (via Twang Nation)
- Sunny Sweeney added a new song to her set list and posted the lyrics on her MySpace. The song is titled “You’re My Hotel, He’s My Home” and was co-written with Adam Hood.
- Chris Parker on Dale Watson:
Shortly after his divorce in 2000, the Austin, TX singer met the love of his life. She died four months later in an accident, as she was leaving his house after a fight. Devastated, Watson attempted suicide, and eventually channeled his grief into his 2001 album, Every Song I Write Is For You. But it wasn’t enough to exorcise the demons. A year later, he checked into a psychiatric hospital, a period Watson discusses in the 2006 documentary, Crazy Again.
- The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum announced they’ll be opening an exhibit to honor country music’s first female superstar, Kitty Wells, on August 15.
- Video of Willie and Snoop on stage in Amsterdam performing “Superman.”
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Current Discussion
- Kelly: OK, OK. I have just heard that particular song more than I care to - a pretty simple concept (or ...
- Jon: 4 different versions of a song - must be some kind of record.
- Kelly: @Brady - of course, you are right about how many types of songs were recorded over and over way back ...
- Ashley: jason i love your music the song keep the girl and the truth are my favorite yet keep it ...
- luckyoldsun: Paul, You beat me to the punch on that one. Frankie Laine had the definitive versions of "Jezebel," "Ghost Riders In the ...
- Steve from Boston: I think Occasional Hope's on the right track about the concept for Patty's new video. And I like it a ...
- Scott: WOW,the comments I've read sure are "deep." Really everyone, it's just a song. Enjoy it, take whatever you ...
- stormy: Josh: But you have to remember that, in the aftermath of the earthquake, a so-called Christian man DID say it was ...
- SMB: How could you not point out Josh's blatant theft of Keith Urban's "Love Pain & the whole crazy thing" album ...
- Steve: I'm surprised this wasn't mentioned. CMT has a new Studio 330 Sessions showcasing Kellie Pickler's outstanding vocals and songs. http://www.cmt.com/videos/studio-330-sessions/kellie-pickler/475944/makin-me-fall-in-love-again.jhtml?id=1630380
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Trackback URI for this postApril 22, 2008
[...] It’s been a while since I posted on Austin’s own Sunny Sweeney, so allow me to make ammends by letting ya;ll know Sunny has added a new song “You’re My Hotel, He’s My Home” (co-written with Adam Hood) to her set list and posted the lyrics on her MySpace blog. (via the 9513) [...]
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April 22, 2008 at 9:29 am Permalink
Thanks for the CW shoutout, and to Jim for a nice job.
Nonetheless, no dollar today!
April 22, 2008 at 9:40 am Permalink
As I watched AI last week, they make such a big deal out of the Mariah Carey getting her 18th #1 and “moving past Elvis Presley as the most dominant solo performer of all time” — so how can this be if we all know the George Strait has this many….
April 22, 2008 at 9:47 am Permalink
Strait’s are “country” number ones, not “hot 100″, or whatever….
April 22, 2008 at 9:54 am Permalink
I like the lyrics to Sunny’s new cheatin’ song, but I still prefer Mike Parker’s “I Think I’m Gonna Puke” from the recent review of the new Sucky Covington single topic thread…..
I’m a subscriber to Country Weekly and the focus they place on the music itself is miniscule. Because the magazine is geared almost exclusively towards women, you mostly get articles on the personal lives of country artists, recipies, make-up tips and other such piffel. Its kind of like a countrified version of People or US. The album reviews are so brief as to be meaningless and I’d never base a buying decision on them. Thank goodness Jim Malec gets to write whatever he wants here on The 9513…..
Its nice they are doing a Kitty Wells exhibit to honor her achievements while she is still alive. WSM DJ Eddie Stubbs considers Kitty to be the undisputed Queen of Country Music……
April 22, 2008 at 9:56 am Permalink
I’m glad “I Saw God Today” is doing as well as it is. I don’t think it’s a perfect song, but I do applaud the GS camp for releasing something a bit left of center. Congrats to George. What he has done so well for so long is truly amazing.
April 22, 2008 at 10:00 am Permalink
Strait’s 56 No. 1s are also the combined total of several charts, btw.
Nice to know my reviews are “meaningless.” I’ll keep it in mind!
April 22, 2008 at 10:22 am Permalink
Mike: “I saw God today” is left of center??? I’d say that its smack dab in the middle of the center. I can picture just about any random newcomer, wannabe singing that (not with Strait’s vocals of course). “what is so left of center” about that song?
April 22, 2008 at 10:30 am Permalink
Maybe not left of center for Country radio as much as left of center for George Strait. I may be missing one, but I don’t recall many GS radio songs (with the exception of Love Without End, Amen) that even touch on religion. He usually has a hint of playfulness in his singles, again- there are exceptions, but this one is more straightforward and serious. The language is also a bit more poetic than usual.
April 22, 2008 at 10:37 am Permalink
I gotcha. I wasnt looking at it from that perspective, thanks for clearing that up for me….
April 22, 2008 at 11:57 am Permalink
If she’s trying to crossover, I WON’T check it out. Thanks for the heads up! That could have been painful.
April 22, 2008 at 11:58 am Permalink
George Strait, Willie, and Snoop would be a cool trio… Make that happen Tony Brown!
April 22, 2008 at 12:05 pm Permalink
Willie Nelson landed at number two on Reuter’s list of Top Ten Green Music Acts.
No suprise there. I don’t think Willie will touch that skanky brown Mexican shake. Nothing but fuzzy gold and green for Willie.
April 22, 2008 at 12:13 pm Permalink
Jim Malec
congrats brother.
Chris N.
I believe that’s the second time that your reviews over at Country Weekly have been accused of being meaningless here on the9513.
Having never read an issue of Country Weekly, I can’t comment on them, but I can say that I find your snark in the9513 comments to be quite meaningful!
April 22, 2008 at 12:19 pm Permalink
did he give the lady antibellumm cd a good review?
April 22, 2008 at 12:48 pm Permalink
George + Willie – Snoop = Great In My Opinion
April 22, 2008 at 2:11 pm Permalink
I also contribute to a number of print publications, and I can tell you that writing for Country Weekly was no more constraining than writing for Westword, etc. The word count I was given to work with was absolutely standard, and I had no trouble condensing my thoughts on the album into the space allotted.
I admit that I enjoy the freedom of the electronic media, but I also appreciate the challenge of writing more concisely for print. i certainly don’t think a well stated 150-word review is “meaningless”.
Aside from that, Chris is a fantastic critic, and frankly I hope to someday be as good with 75 words as he is.
I don’t always agree with his allocations of stars…but the day critics agree on everything will be the day hell freezes over.
The fact is that he’s very good at what he does.
April 22, 2008 at 2:13 pm Permalink
Check’s in the mail!
April 22, 2008 at 3:02 pm Permalink
I didn’t mean to ruffle any feathers here. Its just the fact that country music itself is treated like an afterthought at Country Weekly that galls me a bit. The album review page always has a big picture which leaves little room for the highly condensed album reviews. A 3 and half star rating is typically used for utterly average and nondescript albums, and any rating less than that means “watch out”!
Jim, I was trying to say that the extremely short length of the reviews is what makes them typically meaningless, not the actual content or author. Its the Country Weekly album review format I take issue with, not the reviews themselves. I’d prefer more depth than the thumbnail sketches their layout format dictates. Country Weekly could drop the album review page entirely and the vast majority of their female readership wouldn’t care one bit. They want more fashion tips from the mainstream female stars and to vote on who are the best looking male country music stars…..
April 22, 2008 at 3:25 pm Permalink
“Country Weekly could drop the album review page entirely and the vast majority of their female readership wouldn’t care one bit.”
In fact, this is sadly and demonstrably true — we dropped the page for about a year and got, as I recall, perhaps two complaints total. I fought like hell to get it reinstated anyway, which apparently makes me a sucker who likes to do extra work for no good reason.
And yes, most CW readers are women. Most mainstream country listeners are women, so it would logically follow.
April 22, 2008 at 5:30 pm Permalink
Most mainstream country listeners are women, so it would logically follow.
I guess that explains Bucky Covington’s hair.
April 22, 2008 at 7:48 pm Permalink
Most listeners of all kinds of music are women.
When I pick up Country Weekly (which is probably 2-5 times a year, depending on the year) I usually read it for some sort of story behind an artist.
April 22, 2008 at 8:35 pm Permalink
All I can tell you is that you’re vastly outnumbered. That’s democracy for you.
April 22, 2008 at 9:12 pm Permalink
Most listeners of all kinds of music are women.
you apparently don’t attend very many death metal, stoner rock, or traditional country shows.
April 22, 2008 at 9:52 pm Permalink
Are implying that there are fewer female stoners than male?! You sexist pig, you.
April 24, 2008 at 1:44 pm Permalink
I’m saying music added together in general, women buy the CDs. I don’t ateend death metal or stoner rock, but I have been to shows with traditional guys and was outnumbered 2 to 1 by women.
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