Patty Loveless will release another volume of bluegrass-inspired music, Mountain Soul II, on Sept. 29 on Saguaro Road Records. She released the original Mountain Soul in 2001. Guests on the new project include Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Rebecca Lynn Howard, Carl Jackson, Del McCoury, Ronnie McCoury, Jon Randall and steel guitarist Al Perkins. Emory Gordy Jr., her husband, is producing the sessions. "It's Appalachian, bluegrass and country combined," Loveless said. "You should never try to duplicate something like Mountain Soul. What you should do is enhance. So this is like a continuation." Last year, Loveless released an album of country covers, Sleepless Nights, on Saguaro Road. source>>>
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Carrie Underwood, Rodney Atkins Schedule Free Shows at Fort Campbell, Ky.
Carrie Underwood, Rodney Atkins, Darius Rucker and John Rich are among those performing at Fort Campbell, Ky., for two Salute to the Troops concerts for soldiers and families of the 101st Airborne Division. The performances are part of an event billed as Week of the Eagles to celebrate the return of the 101st Airborne's Screaming Eagles from service in the Middle East. Underwood, Rich and Jake Owen will perform on Aug. 14. The Aug. 15 show features Atkins, Rucker and Jypsi. Underwood's performance at Fort Campbell is one of only a few concerts she has scheduled this summer. Her new album will be released later this year. The Salute to the Troops activities are free and open to the public, but all visitors to the military installation will be required to present a valid photo ID and show current registration and proof of insurance for any vehicle admitted. source>>>
Darryl Worley's Tough-Love Outlook Imitates Life on New Album
What Darryl Worley seems to lack in luck, he continues to make up for in determination. For nearly a decade, the singer-songwriter has bounced from one record label to another, unwavering in his fight for a career in country music -- even funding his newest album, Sounds Like Life.
"I wanted to do the music myself," he recently explained in an interview with CMT.com. "God's been good to me and my family and my career. Even though we've had to jump from one record label to the next, we've always found a way to get back in the thick of it."
Worley first found his musical home at the Nashville division of DreamWorks Records where he charted his first single, "When You Need My Love," in 2000. He continued throughout the years with a string of hits, including No. 1 hits, "I Miss My Friend," "Have You Forgotten?" and "Awful, Beautiful Life."
Things began changing for Worley after DreamWorks' record division was purchased by the Universal Music Group in 2003. UMG merged the label with Mercury and MCA a year later. In 2005, Worley found himself without a deal. Pushing on, he searched for other outlets for his music. In 2006, he signed with Neal McCoy's newly-started label, 903 Records -- but failed to reach the chart-topping success he had hoped.
"When the deal ended at 903, I made up my mind to wipe my slate completely clean," Worley explained. "I changed everything from the ground up -- the record label, producer, everything."
As a result, Worley used his own money to fund his sixth album and latest project, Sounds Like Life, released on Stroudavarious Records. Ironically, James Stroud, the founder of the new label, previously headed DreamWorks Nashville and signed Worley to his first recording contract almost 10 years ago.
"We made some great music together in the past," he said. "It was right. It is right."
Much like Worley's adamant climb, "Sounds Like Life to Me," his current single from the new album, continues to climb Billboard's country chart. Appropriately, the song carries Worley's same unshakable attitude.
"It's absolutely tough love" he said. "Not only that, it's a true story."
The inspiration for the song came from a friend who was facing a low place in his life, questioning eight years of hard-earned sobriety. When Worley got the call from his friend, who had already made his way to the bar, Worley said to him, "'Look, you can act like this is the end of the world, or you can walk out this door with me. If you don't see somebody that's in worse shape than you, I'll pay your house payment for the rest of the year.'"
Fortunately, Worley was able to talk his friend out of the bar and back home to his wife and children. "I'd been there, and everybody I know back where I come from has been there at one time or another," he said. "I wasn't hard on him. I just told him the truth."
"That's just how it is," he went on, "and I've had to do that myself. Everybody has a tendency to get down in the mouth sometimes."
On the album, Worley lightens the mood with several of his new upbeat songs. Having co-written a majority of the tracks, Worley takes his listeners on an up-beat musical journey through his "Honkytonk Life." He addresses the issues of wealth in tongue-in-cheek "Nothing but Money" and encourages listeners to let loose under the influence of his feel-good tunes like "Tequila on Ice" and "Best of Both Worlds."
"That's what people need," he said. "They need to whoop it up for a little while and forget about all the tough times we're going through.
"You have to be willing to stick it out against all odds. That's what American people do. It's like this economy and the hard times we're going through. It'll only last so long. We don't give up. We'll be fine." source>>>
Jennette McCurdy of Nickelodeon's iCarly Signs With Capitol Nashville
Jennette McCurdy, who stars in the Nickelodeon series, iCarly, has signed a record deal with Capitol Nashville, according to a blog on her MySpace page. "I am honored, ecstatic, elated and overwhelmed with joy! Capitol's expertise in country music will allow me the opportunity to give you guys the best I have to give in songwriting, singing and performing," she wrote. McCurdy turned 17 in June. Capitol Nashville's roster also includes Trace Adkins, Dierks Bentley, Luke Bryan, Lady Antebellum, Darius Rucker, Keith Urban and Emily West. source>>>
Rosanne Cash Announces Track Listing for New Covers Album
Rosanne Cash has announced the track listing of a new covers album, The List, due for release on Oct. 6 on Manhattan Records. The project was inspired by a list of 100 essential country songs her father, Johnny Cash, gave her in 1973. Selections include "Sea of Heartbreak" (with Bruce Springsteen), "Heartaches by the Number" (with Elvis Costello), "Long Black Veil" (with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy), "Silver Wings" (with Rufus Wainwright) "Miss the Mississippi and You," "Motherless Children," "Take These Chains From My Heart," "I'm Movin' On," "500 Miles," "She's Got You," "Girl From the North Country" and "Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow." It's her first album since undergoing surgery in 2007 after being diagnosed with chiari I malformation, a rare but benign congenital malformation of the skull that affects the brain and spinal cord. She has fully recovered. source>>>
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Royalty Deal With Music Labels Renews Internet Radio
The great battle between online radio and copyright owners seems to have reached an armistice.
SoundExchange, a non-profit group designated by the U.S. Copyright Office to collect royalties from digital playback of music, today announced a new agreement with Internet radio companies on royalty terms. The decision could enhance the revenue models of venture-backed music-streaming companies like Goom Radio LLC, Pandora Media Inc. and Slacker Inc.
applepandora_E_20090707191522.jpg
Webcasters were ordered in March 2007 to comply with a federal Copyright Royalty Board ruling that required a fee for each time a song was streamed. Online radio stations simply couldn't support the enormous royalty fees with advertising revenue. Many online music start-ups struggled to find the right model and several have shut down altogether.
With this new deal, Internet radio broadcasters will have the option of choosing to pay on a revenue-sharing basis, in return for more robust reporting requirements.
"More than two years in the making, this is an agreement we're proud of because it shows that both sides can address the business concerns of the Webcasters while giving artists and copyright holders the potential to share in the revenue growth of Webcasters," John Simson, Executive Director of SoundExchange, said in a statement. "It's a creative, groundbreaking approach that we wanted to try, and we hope it will work well for everyone involved - the artists, labels and eligible Webcasters."
Under the new agreement, which applies to songs streamed between 2006 to 2015, larger services - like Pandora - will pay the greater of either a per performance rate per song or 25% of total revenue, and will agree to provide more comprehensive reporting about the sound recordings used than regulations currently require. The per-song rate for large Webcasters continually increases from $0.00093 this year to $0.0014 in 2015.
Through 2014, small Webcasters with revenue below $1.25 million will pay 12% to 14% of revenue or an increasing per-song fee of $0.0015 this year to $0.0025 in 2015.
All stations will be required to pay an annual minimum fee of $25,000, which they can apply to their royalty payments.
Rob Williams, chief executive for Goom Radio and an industry veteran who most recently was president and market manager for Clear Channel in New York, said the agreement is a "step in a fair direction."
"It's exactly on par with what we expected," Williams said. "We've been hearing about it for a while, so it's nice to see it come together."
The new royalty rates are still far from what Williams experienced working in terrestrial radio, where broadcasters paid about 3.5% of revenues to the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, a royalty agency with more than 11,500 local commercial radio stations and 2000 non-commercial radio broadcasters being licensees.
However, Williams expects the current royalty rates for online stations will continue to decrease as more listeners tune into the Web.
"It shows people are looking at the online radio business," Williams said. "It's just a matter of time before people stop saying terrestrial radio and online radio. It will be considered professionally delivered content. It's the birth of a whole new industry." source>>>
Nas, Damian Marley Preview Album Collaboration On Rock The Bells Tour
Nas and Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley entered the studio early this year with a plan to do "an EP based on Africa," according to Marley. As previously reported, it's turned into a full length album, "Distant Relatives," which the duo has been previewing during their headlining run on this year's Rock The Bells tour though no release date or label has been determined yet.
"Once we started working on the music," Marley tells Billboard.com, "it was Nas who said to me, 'Yo, we should just make this a full album.' He really liked the energy, I guess."
Nas adds that "I just think it was me and Damian finding our way. When you have two different artists working on a record when they're used to doing their own thing their own way, it's not as easy as people may think. We just flowed, and the next thing we looked up and there were so many songs done or so many songs started and worked on...we just decided to keep it going. It's not reggae. It's not rap. It's different shit for each of us."
Nas and Marley -- who previously worked together on "Road to Zion" from the latter's gold-certified 2005 album "Welcome to Jamrock" -- are still putting the finishing touches on the album; Nas estimates it's about 90 percent done, Marley guesses a more conservative 75 percent, with songwriting contributions by Marley's brother Stephen and a guest feature by rapper K'Naan. They've already leaked part of one track, "As We Enter," and posted a trailer for the album online at myspace.com/distantrelatives. They plan to complete the set after their Rock The Bells commitment wraps in early August, but meanwhile they're treating audiences to "As We Enter" and other album tracks such as "Strong Will Continue" and "Africa Must Wake Up."
"I like to come out and tell the people live in person, 'Yo, the album is coming' and give them a little bit of music to start to get excited about it," says Marley, who was in the early stages of his own next album when "Distant Relatives" started. "I think it also will help with the finishing of the album because we're seeing how things work."
Nas, meanwhile, thinks the tour is helping to put the project in perspective for the duo and for the audience. "I know people are kind of like, 'What's happening? What's Nas doing? What's Damian doing? Is this really happening?' " Nas notes. "So just being out here on the road we get a good feel from people about this whole thing."
Nas and Marley say they're planning to tour more once the album is released.
Living Colour Back With Fifth Studio Album
The cult of personality will continue on this fall, when purveyors of hard funk-rock Living Colour return with "The Chair In The Doorway" - the band's first set of new material in nearly six years. Due September 15 on Megaforce Records, the eleven song set was recorded in numerous locations over the last few years, with a majority of the sessions taking place at Sono Studios outside of Prague in the Czech Republic.
According to lead singer Corey Glover, most of the material started coming to fruition after the band was asked to re-record "Cult of Personality" for "Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock." From there, the group fleshed out songs when on tour and while Glover had time off from touring duties as Judas in "Jesus Christ Superstar." "We recorded everywhere. We even recorded during shows - ideas that came up during shows turned into songs," Glover tells Billboard.com. "A lot of that turned onto [bassist] Doug [Wimbish]. Doug made up a lot of grooves; we took a lot of grooves we had from soundchecks and gigs - and he sort of codified and made a library of that stuff."
In 1988, Living Colour made an immediate mark on the rock world with the multi-platinum debut "Vivid," an album that yielded a Grammy for "Best Hard Rock Performance" for the song "Cult of Personality." In 1990, the follow up album's titular track "Time's Up" also won in the same category. While the group slowed down considerably after 1993's "Stain," all the members have been active with various projects over the years. Guitarist Vernon Reid has worked with Mick Jagger, Tracy Chapman, and recently K'Naan. Drummer Will Calhoun has contributed his talents to albums by Mos Def, Kaki King, Herb Alpert, and Wayne Shorter along with his own jazz oriented releases. Wimbish has also branched out considerably, working in many different genres including sessions with the Rolling Stones, Depeche Mode, Placebo, Talib Kweli, BT, and Annie Lennox.
Glover says the perception over the years has been that Living Colour broke up and have entered a reunion stage of their career, but he's quick to dispel those notions. "Everyone sees the video and thinks we're a band from the eighties or we broke up or we're not together," he says. "But it's not a reunion thing. In some form or another, all of us have been playing with each other. Will and Doug have a band that I would sit in every now and then. Vernon had a band that I'd come in and do some stuff. Even in those times when we weren't together we were still playing together."
Long time fans of the band should be pleased with the new material, as "The Chair In The Doorway" retains Glover's signature, impassioned vocals, rounded out with a mix of hard rock, funk metal and blues-influenced arrangements. For Glover, the record's theme revolves around sentiments of introspection. "Because we are older, we got kids - that's the impetus for the name of the album, "The Chair In The Doorway." Sometimes it's the most ridiculous things are the most obvious. The most obvious thing to me is 'Yeah we are older. Yeah we live in a post-9/11 world.' We do have these things. But we still got to eat. I can't let the world stop me from being me." source>>>
Country Stars Remember Michael Jackson
Michael Jackson never made a country record, but his career transcended musical genres and inspired singers and musicians growing up in rural America and big cities alike. Ever since his death on June 25, members of the country music community have been sharing their feelings about the King of Pop.
Only a handful of country artists ever recorded with Jackson. Among them were Kenny Rogers and Willie Nelson, who were among the all-star cast contributing vocals to the 1986 recording of the charity project, "We Are the World," a song written by Jackson and Lionel Richie.
Nelson has not commented on the death, but Rogers talked about Jackson during a June 28 appearance on CNN's Larry King Live. Asked how he viewed Jackson artistically, Rogers told King, "First of all, you start off envying, and then you're just thankful you don't have to go through what he went through. I mean, that would have been treacherous for anybody. And so I loved his music. ... There are very few people that represent certain eras of music. And he definitely was one of them."
In 2001, Reba McEntire worked with Jackson on another charity recording, "What More Can I Give." Others performing at the all-star session included country artist Billy Gilman, along with Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan, Luther Vandross and 'N Sync.
"After 'We Are the World,' Michael wanted to do another song, and so he got a lot of the artists together," McEntire told CMT Insider. "He asked me to come do a line in it. And so we met at a studio in Los Angeles. ... He produced my part of it there. He wore a shiny red satin shirt and black pants and was very nice."
McEntire first met Jackson in 2000 when she performed at London's Royal Albert Hall during a concert tribute to actress Elizabeth Taylor. As it turned out, Jackson was also staying at the same hotel chosen by McEntire and her husband and manager, Narvel Blackstock.
"There were so many fans outside that hotel, they circled it," she recalled. "And all 24 hours a day, you could hear [people yelling] 'Michael! Michael! Michael!' Really amazing. He's huge. In life and death, huge, and I do hope that everybody remembers the good times. Let's forget the bad."
In an interview with CMT Radio, Craig Morgan said the public's awareness of Jackson knew no boundaries.
"Here's a guy that is probably the most famous singer in the world," Morgan said. "Maybe one of the most famous individuals. I mean, he was truly global. You can go to Iraq and Afghanistan and go to a poppy field, and they're working out there. They have no TV, no radio -- and they know Michael Jackson. I mean, its pretty insane how famous he was."
Among the other country artists commenting on Jackson and his death:
"I am stunned. I remember meeting Michael and walking away thinking that he is one of the most unique artists of all time. I have always felt tenderness for him because of what he has had to endure. ... We have lost another legend. It hits close to home. He is my generation." -- Wynonna
"No matter what kind of music you're into, if you grew up in the '80s, and especially if you had an older sister, you couldn't help but be influenced and awed by Michael Jackson's music and talent." -- Dierks Bentley
"I loved him since I was a kid. We all sang Thriller, the album itself, 'Man in the Mirror.' I can go on and on about the songs that he wrote and produced or whatever. But I do know that I could only wish to be as great musically as that guy." -- Billy Currington
"Thriller was the first album I ever bought with my own money. Michael Jackson was truly a pioneer." -- Joe Nichols
"My parents had Elvis. ... I had Michael Jackson." -- Luke Bryan
"I am a huge Michael Jackson fan. I was just listening to his music two days ago as I was running in the park. I grew up listening to him and, in fact, I used to moonwalk down the hallway in school when I was in the sixth grade. My favorite song of his is 'Billie Jean.' I just can't believe it. We have now experienced a day like my mom explained to me the world experienced when Elvis died." -- Jimmy Wayne
"He was larger than life. He's an artist that has had an impact on every other artist, consciously or subconsciously. Musically, he helped to change the world, and his records will live on forever." -- Miranda Lambert
"I will remember Michael Jackson as the kid that overcame ... as the mesmerizing, moonwalking worldwide artist. He was forced to fill shoes that must have been crippling to walk in, but yet he found a reason and a way to dance in them like no one on earth." -- Rodney Atkins
"I was in Kansas City, getting ready for a show, and I went to take a shower hearing that Michael Jackson was rushed to the hospital. When I got out of the shower, he was pronounced dead. ... The first thing I started to think of was when I tried to moonwalk in my kitchen as a kid. We lost an amazing talent that touched so many lives. He will be missed." -- Chuck Wicks
"Michael was a once-in-a-lifetime artist that not only influenced us, but changed the whole landscape of popular music. We were shocked to hear the news of his passing, and will always remember his creative genius and far-reaching impact on all music genres and the world. He was such an inspiration to us, and his special soul will be greatly missed." -- Little Big Town
Other country artists used Twitter to express their feelings about Jackson:
"Michael Jackson will be missed by so many, and that includes Rascal Flatts. The mark he left on the world with his music is that of legend." -- Jay DeMarcus (Rascal Flatts)
"Michael Jackson was my inspiration. Love and blessings." -- Miley Cyrus source>>>
Carrie Underwood's New Album Scheduled for Nov. 3
Carrie Underwood's third album will be released on Nov. 3 on 19 Recordings/Arista Nashville. She is currently completing the project, which does not yet have a title, and a new single is expected to be released late this summer. Mark Bright returns as a producer. Underwood's previous albums include Some Hearts (2005) and Carnival Ride (2007). She has sold more than 10 million albums since winning American Idol in 2005. source>>>
George Strait Releasing New Album, Twang, on Aug. 11
George Strait will release a new album, Twang, on Aug. 11. The album's first single, "Living for the Night," was co-written by Strait, his son Bubba and veteran songwriter Dean Dillon. The three men also co-wrote "He's Got That Something Special," while the younger Strait wrote "Arkansas Dave." Bubba and George Strait also co-wrote "Out of Sight Out of Mind." Strait co-produced the album with Tony Brown in Key West, Fla. source>>>
Monday, July 6, 2009
Two Members Quit Panic At The Disco
Panic at the Disco guitarist Ryan Ross and bassist Jon Walker are leaving the band "to embark on a musical excursion of their own," they announced today.
"Though the four of us have made music together in the past, we've creatively evolved in different directions which has compromised what each of us want to personally achieve," wrote Ross and Walker in a post on the band's website. "Over the years, we have remained close and honest with each other, which helped us to realize that our goals were different and that parting ways is truly what is best for each of us. We are all excited for the future, you should be too."
The post confirmed that drummer Spencer Smith, who founded the band with Ross in 2004, and frontman Brendon Urie will continue as Panic At The Disco. It also said that all touring and album plans for Panic will continue as previously announced.
Panic at the Disco is currently scheduled to open for No Doubt on August 8 in San Diego, and has U.S. dates with Blink-182 planned throughout August. source>>>
Former Beatles, Stones Manager Allen Klein Dies
Infamous record label owner Allen Klein, who played a key role in the demise of the Beatles and also nabbed control of some of the Rolling Stones' best-known songs, died in New York on Saturday after a battle with Alzheimer's disease, a spokesman said. He was 77.
During a career spanning more than 50 years, the New Jersey-born accountant enjoyed a reputation as a savvy gangster-like figure. His ruthless business practices were reviled by many, but he also earned grudging respect for bullying labels into giving rich deals to his clients.
"Don't talk to me about ethics," he told Playboy magazine in 1971.
"Every man makes his own. It's like a war. You choose your side early and from then on, you're being shot at. The man you beat is likely to call you unethical. So what?"
It did not hurt his reputation when he was sentenced to two months in prison in 1979 for tax evasion.
He once said John Lennon hired him to protect his interest in the Beatles because he and wife Yoko Ono wanted "a real shark -- someone to keep the other sharks away."
His company, ABKCO Music & Records, is one of the biggest independent labels in an industry controlled by multinational corporations. The spokesman said it would remain family-controlled.
Two of Klein's three adult children work at the company, including son Jody who runs ABKCO. (The acronym stands for Allen and Betty Klein Co., Betty being his wife.)
Its assets include recordings by the Rolling Stones, the Animals, Herman's Hermits, Bobby Womack, the Kinks, Chubby Checker, Bobby Rydell and many others.
The publishing arm boasts more than 2,000 copyrights including compositions by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, Cooke, Womack, Ray Davies of the Kinks and Pete Townshend of the Who.
SAM COOKE TO BEATLES
Klein broke into the music business by auditing record labels on behalf of clients including Bobby Darin and Connie Francis. When he found they were owed royalties, he took half of the difference as a fee.
His first big management client was Sam Cooke, for whom he negotiated a lucrative recording deal in 1963 that gave the soul star unprecedented control over his own catalog.
Klein, who was already representing "British Invasion" artists such as the Animals, Dave Clark Five and Herman's Hermits, set his sights on the Rolling Stones, who were laboring under an onerous deal.
He renegotiated their pact in 1965, and ended up managing the group for about five years -- taking a 20 percent fee.
The Stones eventually tired of Klein. But the only way to break free of him was to give up the rights to their master recordings and rights to such timeless tunes as "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" and "Jumpin' Jack Flash."
"In some ways Allen Klein was very much ahead of his time," Jagger said in the 1989 Stones documentary "25x5." "We lasted about three or four years with him, really, though the ramifications of that still continue to this day."
Richards was more philosophical, describing their experience with Klein as "the price of an education."
By then, Klein was focused on the ultimate prize, the Beatles. He offered his help to Lennon in early 1969, when the Fab Four's idealistic Apple Corps. label was fast draining the fractured group's coffers.
George Harrison and Ringo Starr also warmed to his pitch, but Paul McCartney was fiercely opposed. He preferred the expertise of his father-in-law, high-powered New York attorney Lee Eastman.
Amid a series of complex maneuverings that also have consequences to this day, Klein unsuccessfully tried to secure control of the Beatles' copyrights on behalf of the group. Michael Jackson ended up with the rights 16 years later.
Klein did score a rich recording deal for the Beatles, but relations within the group were past frayed, and it dissolved in 1970.
That year, Harrison "honored" Klein in a rough version of his song "Beware of Darkness" with the line "beware of ABKCO." "It might have ended up being prophetic. But at the time it was just a little joke," Harrison told Reuters in 2000.
Indeed, Harrison and Klein reunited in 1971 to put on the all-star Concert for Bangladesh shows at Madison Square Garden in New York. It took a decade for the funds to reach the refugees because of complex tax problems.
In addition to his children and wife, Klein is survived by his longtime girlfriend Iris Keitel, an ABKCO executive. His funeral will take place in New York on Tuesday. source>>>
Bob Dylan Closes Out Rothbury With Classics-Heavy Set
On the first fully sun-soaked day of this year's Rothbury Festival, Bob Dylan sent fans home "Blowin' in the Wind" with a 90-minute, 17-song show to close out the festival's Odeum main stage.
For the fourth show of his U.S. tour promoting his latest album, "Together Through Life," Dylan and his band -- who are mostly playing minor league baseball stadiums with Willie Nelson (who also played Rothbury) and John Mellencamp -- offered up just one song from the set, "Jolene," instead dipping into his iconic catalog for a wealth of favorites such as "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat," a slinky treatment of "Tangled Up In Blue," "Highway 61 Revisited," "Ballad of a Thin Man," "Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again," "Like A Rolling Stone" and fierce "All Along The Watchtower."
Playing guitar on the night's first two songs and then switching to keyboards and/or harmonica for the rest, Dylan, sporting a dark suit and hat, also served up less well-known selections such as "Senor (Tales of Yankee Power)," "Rollin' and Tumblin'," "Po' Boy," "Nettie Moore," "'Til I Fell in Love With You" and "Thunder on the Mountain." "Blowin' in the Wind" was added at the end, after the night's set list had already been determined. source>>>
The Browns Celebrate 50th Anniversary of "The Three Bells"
The Browns celebrated the 50th anniversary of the release of their crossover hit, "The Three Bells," with performances Saturday night (July 4) at the Grand Ole Opry and the Ernest Tubb Record Shop's Midnite Jamboree. Cheering the brother and sisters trio on were more than 40 of their children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews who came to Nashville from all over the nation to witness the occasion. Since officially disbanding as a singing group in 1967, Jim Ed Brown and his sisters Maxine and Bonnie have performed together only rarely, although Jim Ed continues his career as a solo member of the Opry. Produced for RCA Records by Chet Atkins, "The Three Bells" was released on July 3, 1959 and went on to top the country chart for 10 weeks and the pop charts for four. It made the Browns international stars. source>>>
Elvis, Hank, Michael: Killed by Fame; Mortality and Tragedy Stalk Musical Stars in All Genres
Hank Williams was lucky. That's a seemingly bizarre but logical argument that posits that his legacy was guaranteed by his early death while he was still at the top of his musical and songwriting powers. He was only 29 when he expired in the back seat of his Cadillac in 1953, and his music was still strong, vibrant and getting better by the year even as his personal life spiraled downward. What country patriarch Roy Acuff cynically termed Williams' "timely death" ensured his enshrinement as a music icon who was still on top of the country music world and would always be remembered that way.
Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson were not so lucky, in terms of their legacies. Both died very untimely deaths, legacy-wise. Both were well over the hill musically and both were striving for comebacks when they died -- Presley at 42, Jackson at 50. Both deaths were shrouded by mysteries and tawdry circumstances. And, indeed, as was Hank's.
Hank, Elvis and Michael were all in poor health, all prisoners of drugs and abetted by compliant, drug-dispensing doctors and dubious associates. None of them was ever comfortable with or fully cognizant of all the costly wages of huge superstardom and all that it demands. None was ever groomed in childhood or in any career development to understand the enormous personal sacrifices they would have to make to become a public star and persona whom millions of fans believed that they personally owned.
All three responded in what can be viewed, in retrospect, in very predictable manner, given their modest upbringings and surroundings. None ever ultimately succeeded in their personal struggles. Hank withdrew into a shadow world of alcohol and drugs. His marriage crumbled, and he entered into a bizarre public wedding (to his second wife, who was named Billie Jean) as two performances for which admission was charged. His career, which in those days relied on personal appearances, declined because of his drug-related problems, and he was trying to mount a comeback when he died. But his music, based as ever on total real life experience, had become almost surreally alive even as he began to step outside of his life.
Jackson's apogee was 1982's spectacular album, Thriller, which dramatically transformed the musical and the video and the video channel landscape. Ten years later, though, the world was changed. His Dangerous album was rudely replaced at No. 1 on the Billboard chart by Nirvana's Nevermind. Jackson's era vanished, and his world would never be the same again. His personal life became a cipher, and he withdrew into a personal wonderland.
Elvis was at his peak just as he entered the Army in 1958. When he returned, his manager pressed him into a lifetime of churning out mostly worthless movies that obviously began to drain his self-confidence. The largely mediocre recordings that followed seemed to drain the life out of him. His personal life suffered badly, his marriage did not survive and he became a bloated walking drugstore.
Why don't music stars know when to retire? Why do they desperately try to cling to stardom when the voice is shot and the music has faded? Unfortunately, there are some easy answers. Many artists, because of poor choices and trust in the wrong people, are in bad financial shape, if not in bad debt. They need to try to work forever. Many are so deluded from years of listening only to "yes" people that they believe that their talents are as sharp and in as much in demand as ever. Many have such strong egos that they cannot imagine ever walking away from fame and stardom and adulation.
Many have involuntary retirement forced upon them. Tragedy strikes in the form of death from drugs or alcohol or from car wrecks or plane crashes or -- in a case such as John Lennon's -- by a deranged stalker who imagines that fame makes him part of the star's world.
I cannot think of many country music stars who have willingly walked away from stardom when they were relatively healthy and when their music was still viable. One that I know who has, and whom I admire, is Carl Smith, who had a long, successful country music career and a happy personal life, then retired to his horse farm and is still doing well. He's a fortunate exception.
I can -- and so can you -- unfortunately come up with the names of many rock and country stars who died young or while trying to stay in the saddle. In country alone, they include Patsy Cline, Keith Whitley, Waylon Jennings, Hawkshaw Hawkins and many more.
In rock the list is long: John Lennon, Buddy Holly, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Keith Moon, Brian Jones, Mama Cass Elliot and many others.
The lessons for these would-be Gods? Don't be mortal.
Carrie Underwood Salutes Teachers, Including Her Mom and Sisters
arrie Underwood is the first country artist to take part in a public service campaign saluting teachers. Underwood is featured with three teachers -- her two sisters, Stephanie Shelton and Shanna Means, and their mother, Carole Underwood. The "Behind Every Famous Person Is a Fabulous Teacher" campaign pairs public figures with their favorite teachers. "Teaching was something that ran in my family," the singer said. "I have always admired my mother and sisters for making a difference in the lives of so many." source>>>
Billy Currington Will Join CMA Songwriter Series in New York City
Billy Currington will take part in the CMA Songwriters Series on July 30 at Joe's Pub in New York City. The performance will be hosted by Bob DiPiero and will also feature Keith Follese and Jason Sellers. Tickets are $25. Currington has co-written several of his hit singles, including "I Got a Feeling," "Why, Why, Why" and "Walk a Little Straighter." Currington and Holly Williams perform Wednesday (July 8) in Green Bay, Wis., as part of Sugarland's tour. source>>>
Toby Keith's Golf Classic Raises $550,000 for children with cancer and their families.
Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic raised $550,000 for children with cancer and their families. Keith hosted the charitable event on behalf of the Ally's House organization on June 12-13 in Norman, Okla. Celebrity guests included comedian Rodney Carrington, gymnast Bart Conner, NASCAR driver Bobby Hillin Jr. and University of Oklahoma football coach Bob Stoops. The organization is named for the late Allison Webb, the two-year-old daughte of Scott Webb, who was one of Keith's original band members. source>>>
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Kid Rock's Badass Beer to debut at Comerica Park concerts in July
If you're lucky enough to be holding tickets to one of Kid Rock's shows in Comerica Park on July 17 and 18, consider yourself now doubly blessed.
Drink Americas Holdings, the company that teamed up with Kid Rock last fall to launch his signature beer, just announced that the brew will be finished in time to be put in kegs and sold at kiosks at Kid's Detroit concerts.
It's only fitting that the beer, created by the Romeo-native who calls himself an "American Badass" will be called American Badass Beer.
The beer is so patriotic, it will even share a birthday with the U.S.A.
The Webberville-based Michigan Brewing Company will start production on July 4th. According to Drink Americas' CEO, orders are already coming in.
Yahoo Finance, July 1: J. Patrick Kenny, CEO of Drinks Americas, said, "We are very excited about the launch date, the beer and all the work that has been put into making Kid Rock's AMERICAN BADASS BEER™ a success. Based on orders alone we are off to a very good start. We will let the beer speak for itself as people begin to taste this great product."
According to a report from the Country Music Channel earlier this year, the new beer will create 349 jobs in Michigan. source >>>
