The 9513 - Country Music Blog

On December 3, Christie’s will hold The Country Music Sale, its first sale dedicated to the creation, history, and evolution of Country Music. The foundation of the sale consists of property from the estate of Hank Thompson, but also includes memorabilia from Roy Rogers, Hank Snow, Hank Williams, and many more classic country artists. There [...]

Continue reading "Christie’s Country Sale; Taylor Swift Inks Deal to Write Greeting Cards; New Music Magazine Launches in January"

School’s back in session! Maybe you’re a student, maybe you’re a teacher, maybe you’re a parent who’s thrilled to shove your spawn out the door every morning. Maybe you’re none of these things; listen to these songs anyway.

5. “Heartbreak School” – James Bonamy
Remember this smooth-voiced ’90s singer? “Heartbreak School,” written by Skip Ewing and Donny [...]

Continue reading "Friday Five: School Songs"

Juli Thanki
The Quintessential Hank Thompson 1948-1979 by Hank Thompson
New releases from George Strait and Reba McEntire received the lion’s share of attention this cycle, which means a couple excellent albums slipped under the radar. Gene Watson returned with A Taste of the Truth, which, in my opinion, is one of the best albums of the [...]

Continue reading "Staff Picks for July/August 2009"

So, did you hear Brooks & Dunn are splitting up? The duo will release #1’s…and then some next month and take a farewell tour, The Last Rodeo Tour, in 2010.
Your take: As a duo, is Brooks & Dunn’s Hall of Fame inclusion a forgone conclusion?

Country Universe listed 10 essential tracks and two hidden treasures [...]

Continue reading "Brooks & Dunn Split; New Releases; Oklahoma Hall Inducts Carrie Underwood;"

If the ghosts of Hank Thompson, Buddy Holly, and Doug Sahm could have been anywhere Saturday night, it would have been in the rafters of Gruene Hall watching the splendor of the Tejas Brothers. Whether it was the thrill of playing in the vaunted dance hall, the reunion with Eleven Hundred Springs–a band that’s cheered [...]

Continue reading "Tejas Brothers Inject New Life Into Classics At Gruene Hall"

Here are some more songs that I like; one song per artist, not necessarily his or her biggest hit. As always, I consider myself free to comment on other songs by the artist.
“Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song” – Billy Joe “B.J.” Thomas (1975)
His biggest country hit reached #1 and also topped the [...]

Continue reading "Great Country Songs from the 1970s, Pt. 8"

Disclaimer: Expect no objectivity at all from me with this article. Along with Webb Pierce and Merle Haggard, Ernest Tubb is one of my all-time favorite country artists. Yes, I know he started out most songs a quarter tone flat and worked his way flatter from there, and yes, I know that 80% of The [...]

Continue reading "Forgotten Artists: Ernest Tubb (1914-1984)"

You gaze at that guitar on your knee
In a way that you never look at me
This love affair of yours has gone too far
And I’m tired of playing second fiddle to an old guitar
From “Second Fiddle (To an Old Guitar),” Capitol Records, 1964

Kitty Wells may have been the reigning Queen of Country Music during the [...]

Continue reading "Forgotten Artists: Jean Shepard"

20. Joey + Rory Rising: A Talent Competition Actually Finds Talent
Outside of American Idol winner Carrie Underwood and Nashville Star castoff Miranda Lambert, the spate of talent competitions that we’ve endured since the advent of reality TV has produced few artists who could be said to possess a level of talent that aligns them with [...]

Continue reading "The Year In Review: Top 20 Country Music News Stories Of 2008"

A new children’s book, My Little Girl, penned by Tim McGraw and singer-songwriter Tom Douglas will hit bookshelves in October, with a forward foreword from Faith Hill.
Hal Bogerd gushes over Peter Cooper’s newest album, Mission Door, claiming “if the year keeps going like this my 2008 top ten list is going to get pretty crowded.”
Trisha [...]

Continue reading "Tim McGraw Channels Inner Shel Silverstein for New Children’s Book"