The 9513 - Country Music Blog

If you want to start a heated discussion among a bunch of devoted country music fans or music makers, no matter what stripe, style, or era of country music they call their own, bring up the question of today’s mainstream country radio. You’re certain to hear some railing from somebody about a longstanding set of [...]

Continue reading "Scanning the Countryside: Country Radio—Your Way"

Jett Williams is the daughter of the legendary Hank Williams. That’s the short story. The amazing long version, part heartbreak and part celebration, begins in Montgomery, Alabama, five days after Hank Williams died in the back of a car on his way to Canton, Ohio in 1953. That’s when Jett Williams (then named Cathy) was [...]

Continue reading "Talking Hank Sr. with Jett Williams"

The New York Times‘ Charles McGrath interviewed Ralph Stanley before a recent concert: There are a lot of good bluegrass players these days, Mr. Martin among them, but Mr. Stanley said he didn’t listen to them much. He prefers to listen to the Stanley Brothers. “I may be a little prejudiced, but I like my [...]

Continue reading "Ralph Stanley’s His Own Favorite Entertainer; ‘All For The Hall’ Benefit; BR549 Not Done"

WSM, the radio station in Tennessee that’s famous for it’s exclusive broadcasts of the Grand Ole Opry, is introducing a live variety show called Back to the Barn, which borrows its name from the Opry’s original moniker, WSM Barn Dance. The new show will target a younger audience by showcasing music “from country and Americana [...]

Continue reading "Nashville Radio Station WSM Heads ‘Back to the Barn’"

NBC revealed the top 12 acts vying to become the next Nashville Star, and it seems they all have somewhat of a sob story overcome many adversities to get where they are. (via ggcolumn) In an open letter to her fans, Shania Twain expressed her gratitude for their words of encouragement during her rough time. [...]

Continue reading "Top 12 Nashville Star Contestants Revealed"

Time Life plans to periodically release 143 previously-unreleased Hank Williams‘ recordings over a three year period. The recordings were made in 1951 for Williams’ show on radio station WSM-AM in Nashville and were sponsored by Mother’s Best flour. Watch Jason Isbell perform “Dress Blues” live at Stubb’s in Austin, TX, then go read the story [...]

Continue reading "Time Life Plans to Release Previously- Unreleased Hank Williams’ Recordings"

As remarkable as Eddy Arnold‘s country music career was, Chet Flippo says, “his lasting legacy will be that he made the world safe for country pop music.” Flippo also pulled a snippet from a CMT interview where Arnold recalled one of the first times he recognized the split between pop and hillbilly music. Peter Cooper [...]

Continue reading "Country Music Writers Remember Eddy Arnold"

Born in Glendale, Arizona as Martin David Robison in 1925, Marty Robbins spent his childhood idolizing Gene Autry and the cowboy way. “I wanted to be Gene Autry,” he once said. “I wanted to ride off into the sunset.” His penchant for the the Old West was further fed by romanticized stories told by his [...]

Continue reading "A Nation’s Affair With Western Culture: The Story of Marty Robbins’ “El Paso”"

Let’s suppose you were going to create a list of the 100 Greatest Christmas Downers of All Time. I’d assume that you’d include plenty of country songs, because country is known for it’s downers, right? Well, EW.com saved us all the trouble and did exactly that. They’ve got Merle, Loretta, Bruce Robison & Kelly Willis, [...]

Continue reading "Brad Paisley Celebrates Two No. 1s in Four Months"

“The Opry left [the Ryman] in 1974 for the suburbs but music fans kept coming to commune with the ghosts. They wanted to come inside and look around, though the building had been left to moulder, with big holes in the roof, and to be torn down, but the persistent curiosity of ordinary people persuaded [...]

Continue reading "Book Review: Historic Photos of the Opry: Ryman Auditorium 1974"