Tim McGraw Tops Charts with Scorned Hits Package
- You know that Greatest Hits 3 album Tim McGraw apologized for? It’s now his 11th No. 1 album on the Top Country Albums chart, selling 44,000 copies in its first week.
- On October 26, 10 different venues in 10 different cities across Texas will host a Concert for the Coast. The event will bring together over 100 artists to help provide benefit for the communities hit by Hurricane Ike. Awesome stuff.
- After recording 2005’s There’s More Where That Came From, an album John Gerome says is arguably the best of Lee Ann Womack’s career, she tried to follow it up in 2006 with a new album. Things weren’t working out like she wanted, so she scrapped the project and took time off to regroup. Next week she’ll release Call Me Crazy and says it’s the album she wanted to make all along.
“The time I spent writing, looking for songs and meeting with Tony (producer Tony Brown) felt so effortless and natural,” said Womack, who arrived for a recent interview in a black Mercedes and cradling two Yorkshire terriers.
Don’t forget to enter our contest to win a copy of Call Me Crazy.
- The Museum of Bad Album Covers is currently featuring 156 awful albums covers, one of which is Satan is Real from The Louvin Brothers. They do however, append its inclusion with a note stating that “the Louvin Brothers were actually great two part harmonists … a kind of proto Everly Brothers.”
- Rachel Thibodeau, who took home song of the year honors at the ASCAP Awards on Monday night for co-writing “Good Directions,” has become the first writer signed to Little Champion Music, a publishing company owned by Martina McBride and husband John McBride.
- Billy Currington has been cleansed of negative energy and his new album is a reflection of that more positive outlook.
Did people try to pitch you the darker, soul-searching songs this time around?
Yeah. This time, I guess because of “Must Be Doin’ Something Right,” I got pitched a lot of soulful R&B type of songs. A bunch of it. And there were a lot of ballads in there, too, and a lot of it was on the sad side. I wasn’t really about that this time. (laughs) I just wanted to make a really positive, happy record.
- LoneStarMusic is giving away a Randy Rogers Band Beer Pong Fan Pack, which includes: a custom Randy Rogers Band Beer Pong table, an official beer pong glove, custom beer pong balls, and an autographed Randy Rogers Band CD and poster. (via Galleywinter)
- Toby Keith’s That Don’t Make Me A Bad Guy is available for pre-order on iTunes. (via NashvilleGab)
- Music Tomes‘ C. Eric Banister published an enlightening interview with Patsi Bale-Cox, who’s written books with Jenny Jones, Tanya Tucker, Wynonna and Country Music Hall of Fame members Ralph Emery and Loretta Lynn. She talks about her introduction to writing, missed opportunities (Harlan Howard biography), and recommends a few books.
What is your next project and how did you decide on the topic?
I have a book coming out in the spring of 2009, titled The Garth Factor: The Career Behind Country’s Big Boom. It is the story of his career, set within the times, the 1990s. I worked with Garth all through that decade and beyond. I worked for Capitol as a writer and in PR, so I saw what went down from both sides. One thing the book will show is that even the biggest superstars have to watch their backs when it comes to contracts, record labels and executives.
- If you’re a guitar player and a proud owner of an iPhone, check out GuitarToolkit. It’s an application that helps you tune your guitar, find chords and provides a beat for you using your iPhone.
- Carrie Underwood’s message to the pop/rock artists wanting to crossover to country: “Come on in — the water’s great.” (via ggcolumn)
- Rolling Stone’s David Fricke on Hank Williams‘ The Unreleased Recordings: (via Twang Nation)
“…the 54 performances in this three-CD set pack a magical, concentrated immediacy that is, in its time and way, as electrifying as Johnny Cash’s Sixties prison shows or Bob Dylan’s early acoustic concerts. Williams’ nasally drawl is crisp and strong, like the young Dylan without the sandpaper…”
- Listen to The Del McCoury Band perform a few songs from Moneyland on Mountain Stage.
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October 16, 2008 at 10:25 am Permalink
Thanks for the shout out guys. I was researching the Concert for the Coast and noticed it takes place on Oct. 26th. not the 12th. The press release was submitted on the 12th so that might have created some confusion.
October 16, 2008 at 10:29 am Permalink
I could have swore I typed the 26th, but nice catch. Thanks.
October 16, 2008 at 10:35 am Permalink
Rachel Thibodeaux is one of Rebecca Lynn Howard’s best friends and has often performed with Rebecca on the Opry over the last couple of years. Its nice to see Rachel getting some recognition for her songwriting abilities.
Here’s my favorite part of Carrie Underwood’s comments about the current country music scene:
“Country music is very open-minded to a lot of people, and I think that’s great. It’s one of the reasons so many people love it — even if they don’t make country music, they can appreciate it,” Underwood said in an interview from the road this week. “As far as artists go, it’s such a good place to be, and people are so nice — the fans are great. If I were on the outside looking in, I think I’d probably want to be a part of it, too.”
Well isn’t that nice that the mainstream country scene is primarily one big social club where whether the artist plays country music or not is totally irrelevant. Carrie has now earned the coveted title of “Spokesmodel Of The Airhead Country Kingdom”….
October 16, 2008 at 11:18 am Permalink
Rick = I would have preferred her to say “Country music is very open-minded to a lot of people. I mean look at me, if I can do it anybody can do it!”
October 16, 2008 at 3:10 pm Permalink
I think Razor X might assassinate Carrie for what she said here.
October 16, 2008 at 6:43 pm Permalink
The Randy Rogers band does know their audience, don’t they.
Carrie may want to throw a life jacket to Carrie Underwood, Kristy Lee Cook and Kellie Pickler.
October 16, 2008 at 7:44 pm Permalink
“I think Razor X might assassinate Carrie for what she said here.”
It’s the kind of thing I expect her to say.
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