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Songwriters: Who’s Your Favorite Unsung Hero?
Without songwriters, we wouldn’t have any songs, but they hardly receive the recognition they deserve for the contributions they make. We have the greats that are obvious like Harlan Howard, Cindy Walker, and even Hank Williams that are hard to pass up–and they really aren’t all that lacking in the accolades–so let’s limit this to […]
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Texas Monthly Gets Naked For Special Willie Nelson Cover
Subscribers of Texas Monthly will receive a copy adorned with a portrait of Willie Nelson on the cover and no text. The preview is pretty flippin’ sweet.
Jewel is returning to Nashville Star to join John Rich as a judge and mentor to the contestants.
On July 8 George Jones will release Burn Your Playhouse Down (The […]Continue reading "Texas Monthly Gets Naked For Special Willie Nelson Cover"
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Eric Church - “His Kind Of Money (My Kind Of Love)”
“His Kind Of Money (My Kind Of Love)” is the first single from Eric Church’s upcoming sophomore album. It’s a good song, not as transcendent as Church would have you believe, but still good, nonetheless, maybe even really good. Although the song is worth a few spins, it isn’t without it’s faults. Hank Williams’ […]
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Dolly Parton To Take Her Hits To American Idol Tomorrow Night
Dolly Parton will be the first of four superstar guest mentors on American Idol this year. Her stint as mentor begins tomorrow night when contestants will choose from her catalog for their performances, but don’t expect her to be too critical. “Even the bad (singers) are just as sincere as the good ones,” Parton said. […]
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President Bush Parodies “Green, Green Grass of Home”
Here’s a YouTube video of President Bush singing a parody of “Green, Green Grass of Home” at the Gridiron Club’s Annual Spring Dinner on March 8th.
Taylor Swift thinks the problem labels are having with trying to capture a younger audience is due to them trying too hard.
“There are record labels that are admitting to the […]Continue reading "President Bush Parodies “Green, Green Grass of Home”"
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Stop Cutting Hits: The Story of Lefty Frizzell’s “The Long Black Veil”
Lefty Frizzell rivaled and might have been bigger than Hank Williams in 1951, placing four songs in the top ten at the same time, a feat that’s never been matched. Like Williams, he led a turbulent life, mostly due to his own bad habits, but it was his friend Hank who was immortalized by an […]
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Jumping Ship: Reflections on Americana Music
It was hard times for roots based country acts in the 90s. Garth and Shania delivered an enormous audience to country music that the Nashville establishment had no intention of losing, and people who were playing “traditional” country music were being increasingly marginalized in favor of those who were playing a more pop-based variety. Country […]
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The Cyrus Virus: Billy Ray Tapped To Host Nashville Star
Billy Ray Cyrus announced he’ll be hosting the sixth-season of Nashville Star.
“This year it is all about the dream, about the music, about persistence and never giving up faith,” Billy Ray told Leno. “You know, I’ve been to the fair, and I’ve seen the bear, and I’m really excited.”Calvin Gilbert on the CMT blog: “At […]
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Vince Vaughn: Honky Tonk Man
I knew there was a reason I liked Vince Vaughn, aside from his fast-talking, used-car salesmanesque humor and wit. His twelve-song celebrity playlist on iTunes has a couple of songs apiece from Dwight Yoakam, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, and Merle Haggard and then he throws in a Hank Williams and Buck Owens duet with Yoakam […]
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Your Take: Visionary Collaborations
Collaboration between established artists has created some interesting and successful pairings throughout country music’s lifetime. Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty, Emmylou Harris and Gram Parsons, Alan Jackson and George Strait, and with the advent of technology, Alison Krauss & Keith Whitley, and Hank Williams and Bocephus. Last year, Raising […]
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Forgotten Artists: Bradley Kincaid In a manner similar to Alan Lomax, William Bradley “The Kentucky Mountain Boy” Kincaid was one of the great American musicologists and collectors of American folk, country and parlor songs.
Forgotten Artists: Goldie Hill Had Carl Smith and Goldie Hill been born 30 or 40 years later, they might have been like Faith Hill and Tim McGraw–the dominant married couple in country music.
Miranda Lambert - “More Like Her” This kind of material, as opposed to her tough-chick-done-wrong romps like “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” and “Gunpowder and Lead,” is where her real promise lies
Joey Rory - “Cheater, Cheater” It’s actually downright frivolous, but that just makes it all the more fun. And really, are you allowed to say “ho” on country radio?
Josh Gracin - “Unbelievable (Ann Marie)” Despite initial marketing that touted the album as deep and personal, “Unbelievable (Ann Marie)” is anything but deep or personal.
Josh Turner - "Everything Is Fine" Turner is the rare example of an artist who records material that’s both quality and trademark.
Darryl Worley - "Tequila On Ice" A groovy mid-tempo that sways, a refreshing reprieve from the exhausting pace of a format that clamors for loud music and swelling choruses.
Blake Shelton - "She Wouldn't Be Gone" It’s all about nailing the melody rather than providing a legitimate interpretation that accentuates the lyrical content, although Shelton does do a pretty good job of injecting what limited emotion he can.
Don’t look now, but Darius Rucker, lead singer of 90s rock group Hootie & The Blowfish, has a country hit on his hands. What you probably haven’t heard is that Rucker is the first black artist to chart a single in the country top 20 since Charley Pride last did it in 1988.
News that former Sugarland member and co-founder Kristen Hall is suing her ex-mates, to the tune of $1.5 million, goes a long way towards providing a bit of context regarding the Atlanta singer/songwriter’s sudden departure from the group.
In Memory of Don Helms (1927 - 2008) Helms dated back to a time when an excellent four or five piece band and a good singer were all that were needed to make great country music. No drums, no light shows, no production tricks in the recording studio–just good music.Current Discussion
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