Saturday 23 June 2012

Country Bites News snippets June 18 – June 22, 2012

Country Bites News snippets June 18 – June 22, 2012

UK & IRISH News
North East England Show & Gig Guide has been updated (Events June 2012 – March 2013) – Page Link

International country singers shine at CMA Fest
(Travellin Rose and Colm Kirwan get a mention)
Travellin Rose Live at CMA Festival 2012

Travellin Rose, a duo from the UK calls themselves 'gypsies' because they've lived in so many places. The pair grew up on a farm, living in a trailer and their sound is all country. "We've tried to sing English and we sound Australian. So it [doesn't] work. We're blaming Loretta [Lynn] and Patsy [Cline]. That's what we listened to growing up," said Talia Smith, half of the Travellin Rose duo.
Breaking into country music is hard for all musicians, but Smith told Nashville's News 2 that it's even harder for someone who doesn't sound country when they talk. "Let's say we just pick someone off the street, they'd probably get more credibility than us. That is the problem, credibility," she explained (wkrn.com Story)
Kelly Isaacs and Talia Smith (aka Travellin Rose) in Nashville, Tennesse

Dolly Parton BBC Breakfast (Screenshot)

Dolly Parton's musical 9 to 5 is coming to the UK. On Broadway, the show earned four Tony Award nominations including best original score.The musical comedy based on the hit movie, centres on three office workers who turn the tables on their sexist, egotistical, lying, boss. Parton starred in the 1980 film comedy alongside Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin and has written the music and lyrics for the stage adaptation.
Dolly Parton spoke to BBC's Breakfast from Nashville, Tennessee on Weds June 20 during the 5 - 9 show (3am in America!) .
 The story’s about three women having to put up with this lying hypocritical, egotistical bigot of a boss, so it’s all the fun we have trying to put him in his place, stringing him up, taking control and running the company the way we think it should be run, which makes it a success," Dolly explained. “There’s a lot of fun, music, a lot of jokes, a lot of ways at pointing the finger at some serious issues, while still being able to enjoy it." The musical, which ran on Broadway in 2009, will open in Manchester in October (Fri 12th - Sat 20 Oct 2012 Manchester Opera House) before a UK tour.

Dolly Parton’s song “From Here To The Moon and Back” (ft. Kris Kristofferson and Jeremy Jordan) is currently on the BBC Radio 2 “B” Playlist. Drawn for the soundtrack A JOYFUL NOISE the film starring: Queen Latifah;Dolly Parton;Kris Kristofferson and Keke Palmer gets it’s UK release on Friday 29 June 2012 in cinemas in the UK distributed by Warner Bros. synopsis

Declan Nerney is just back from a tour of Scotland where the crowds flocked to his shows last weekend. The man from Longford has had a great career, going back to the days when he played with a band called Gerry Reynolds and the Hi-Lows while still in school.
Years later, the man with the distinctive falsetto voice ultimately opted for a career in music. He auditioned for Gene Stuart's new band and landed the role of their guitarist."Gene Stuart was a big country star at that time in the '70s, and he left The Mighty Avons to form his own band," Declan recalls. "I was absolutely thrilled when I got the job and I would go on to spend six years playing with him. You could say it was my university in the music business."After Gene Stuart, Declan went on to join another great Irish country singer, Brian Coll and The Buckaroos, where he spent another eight years playing lead and steel guitar as well as singing. It was in 1988 that Declan stepped out into the limelight as a performer in his own right.
Another big event coming up for Declan is his annual Hooley In The Sun. This year he will heading off to Santa Ponza, Majorca, with 340 fans and an allstar line-up. "The people who travel with me like this type of holiday and get to see all their favourite artists on it," he says. Appearing on this year's Hooley will be Nathan Carter, Roly Daniels, Lisa McHugh, Derek Ryan, Gerry Guthrie, Philomena Begley, Brian Coll, Brendan Quinn, Hugo Duncan, Seamus Moore, Sean Wilson, Shunnie Crampsey, Gerry Keenan, Mary Darcy and The Hooley Orchestra.

One of Donegal’s greatest ambassadors, Daniel O’Donnell, has just received the Freedom of Donegal at a touching ceremony at County House in Lifford. A large crowd of family and friends gathered for what the singer said was the biggest honour of his career.
There was standing-room only as tribute after tribute was paid to the 50 year old entertainer.
The singer received the award in official recognition of his contribution to music and the ambassadorial role he has undertaken for Donegal for decades.The Kincasslagh man becomes only the fifth person to receive the honour joining sport-stars Shay Given, Packie Bonner, songwriter Phil Coulter and the Brennan family from Clannad. Watch Daniel’s Civic Reception  >>  YouTube

Gretchen Peters has announced 14 UK & Irelands dates for 2013 - 

Currently touring in America with Tift Merritt, Mary Chapin Carpenter has announced this Dublin date with Shawn Colvin, more to follow next week.
Oct 16, 2012 - The National Concert Hall,Earlsfort Terrace,Ranelagh, Dublin 2, Dublin - http://www.nch.ie/online/

AUSSIE NEWS
Kiwi born Aussie Mr. Keith Urban has announced 4 east-coast shows in January 2013 which kick off his 2013 tour. Keith has spent a lot of time down under in 2012, mentoring contestants on the highly popular TV show The Voice, while his latest release THE STORY SO FAR reached #1 on the ARIA Album charts. The dates are:
Friday 25 January 2013 - Brisbane Entertainment Centre  / Saturday 26 January - Brisbane Entertainment Centre
Wednesday 30 January - Allphones Arena, Sydney Olympic Park /  Saturday 2 February - Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne

Lyn Bowtell calls into the ABC Saturday Night studio for “Down at the Local” to play songs from and discuss her new album SECRET SONGS. >> Listen  - Studio Photo - Album Cover – Raw emotion penned and captured in this universally touching track “Beautiful Liar Video” – it has something of a Shawn Colvin vibe  >> YouTube

Tania Kernaghan has signed with Australia’s leading Country Music Distributor, WJO Distribution / Checked  Entertainment for the retail release of her highly anticipated “GREATEST HITS” CD+DVD collectors pack (Available through her website).
The CD features 20 of Tania’s ground breaking songs including the hits “Boys In Boots”, “When I Ride”, “Harley McTaggart”, “Nine Mile Run”, “Dunroamin Station” and of course the award winning duet with her brother Lee, “A Bushman Can’t Survive”.
The DVD component includes over 2 hours of exclusive video content such as music video clips, an up close & personal interview with Tania, featurettes, galleries and more!
A bonus track 'Believe in Angels (inspired by Angel Flight) makes the cut on the CD. One of the highlights of the DVD is the special video for her song, “Here’s To Us”, which features many Tania Kernaghan fans from around the globe who submitted photos with their partners celebrating true love.
Read her extensive interview with suite101.com . **  The music is available for download on UK iTunes


NEWS
Guitar legend Roy J. Ayres died June 9 at his Riverview home surrounded by family. Ayres was 82 years old.
He was born in Columbus, Miss., on Dec. 10, 1929, and grew up loving music.
At the age of 8 years he taught himself how to play the steel guitar. Shortly after turning 16, he began his professional musical career when he join Pee Wee King and the Golden West Cowboys, playing weekly on the Grand Ole Opry.
He was best known as Pee Wee King’s lead steel guitarist on the original recording of the "Tennessee Waltz," which was widely considered the most successful record of its era. In 2007 he achieved the highest honour for a steel guitarist when he was the 57th inductee into the International Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in St. Louis.

It looks like there’s nothing “Hard To Love” about Lee Brice! He and his fiancée Sarah Reevely are planning a wedding for next spring. “We’re looking at April,” Lee told Taste of Country.

Kenny Rogers' Estate is up for auction on June 26. The county music star’s home will be sold via absolute auction by Grand Estates promptly starting at 2:00 p.m. next Tuesday, June 26th.
Kenny “The Gambler” Rogers is betting on an absolute auction – no minimum bid or reserve price – to unload his lakefront estate. “Grand Estates Auction Company is the most experienced and successful luxury real estate auction company in North America,” stated Rogers. “My lake house is a one-of-a-kind property, so when I decided to sell it, I went to the experts.” Home of legendary entertainer Kenny Rogers the magical 150± acre retreat was conceived and designed by Kenny to capture one's spiritual serenity. Built in a virgin forest, overlooking an 8 acre fully stocked lake, childhood memories of the wonder of nature are refreshed.

It has seemed like 37-year old Jennifer Nettles has been extra bubbly during her first season of ‘Duets’ on ABC. The Sugarland singer and reality television judge is close to five months pregnant! The band’s manager broke the news to People on Monday (June 18) morning.“They are thrilled beyond belief,” Gail Gellman said. Last November, Nettles married longtime boyfriend Justin Miller during a small, private ceremony in Tennessee. The new arrival — the first for both of them — should coincide with the couple’s first wedding anniversary.
Brooke McClymont (and Adam) recently announced that she's expecting the couples first child a miniature McClymont is on the way.

Country Babies of 2012 so far  :
Jo Dee Messina welcomed her second son in January: Jonah Christopher
It was a first grandchild for George Strait this year on Feb. 2. His son Bubba welcomed home: George Harvey Strait III.
Ronnie Dunn‘s first grandchild walked into the world on Johnny Cash‘s birthday (Feb. 26). Huxton Wayne Dunn was born to Dunn’s son Jesse.
Randy Houser's wife Jessica gave birth a “beautiful son” in early March to: West Yantz Houser
Mindy McCready and her boyfriend David Wilson welcomed a new baby boy into the world on April 9; Zayne Wilson
After years of trying, Joe Nichols and his wife Heather gave birth to a little girl in April to: Dylan River Nichols
Former ‘American Idol’ singer Bo Bice welcomed his fourth child in late April.His wife Caroline gave birth to their first daughter: Merrin Elizabeth Joy Bice
In May Josh Kelley and wife Katherine Heigl adopted a new baby daughter: Adalaide Marie Hope Kelley.She joined big sister Naleigh, 3½, whom Heigl, 33, and Kelley adopted from South Korea in 2009.
Trace Adkins celebrated Father's day early. The eldest of his five daughters gave birth to his newest grandson: Jackson Trace Webber (born June 6)

The Pistol Annies are calling all Annies and Andys to come join them in the Henhouse! The Henhouse is a new online community built to share creativity and promote the Annies' be-who-you-are lifestyle inspired by the Pistol Annies. Fans can upload their inspirations and browse other Annies' discoveries, plus get exclusive behind the scenes content of how the Pistol Annies operate - www.pistolannies.com/henhouse   >> YouTube

Taylor Swift says she gets her name from the "You've Got a Friend" singer. The country star is set to be the guest star July 2 for a James Taylor concert in Lenox, Mass., outside Boston, according to The Berkshire Eagle.

Wynonna Judd got married for the third time on a sunset wedding Sunday June 10th. The 48 year old diva tied the knot with band mate, Cactus Moser on her Leipers Fork farm. Judd’s two children from her first husband, Arch Kelly III were on hand with daughter Grace serving as maid of honor. Mother Naomi and sister Ashley did not attend. The singer went barefoot in a Houri Barahimi dress, and the groom wore a gun, holster and pocketwatch with his suit. “We kept it really simple. We wanted it to be just us and our kids” Judd told Us Weekly magazine. Cactus popped the question last year on New Year’s Eve.

Wynnona Wedding
US Weekly


"I felt a joy that hasn't been there before," the bride told the magazine. The 48-year-old singer walked down the aisle barefoot in a Houri Barahimi gown while her chidlren, Grace (16) and Elijah (17), looked on. Wynonna's mother, Naomi Judd, and sister, actress Ashley Judd, were not in attendance.
A drummer in Judd’s band, The Big Noise, 55-year old (Cactus) Moser was cowboy chic in his tuxedo, which he accessorized with a vest, pocket watch and holster.
Dating since 2009, Judd and Moser announced their engagement last December. Judd divorced her second husband, D.R. Roach after four years in 2007, and split from businessman Arch Kelly III — with whom she has two children — in 1998
Wynonna explained why her famous mother and sister weren’t in attendance in the Us Weekly interview. Judd admits her relationship with Naomi and Ashley Judd is strained, and that their presence would have made her nervous.
If I know Ashley, she would have re-positioned my dress, or Mom would have given me a Kleenex to stuff in my bra, or told me I have something in my teeth,” Judd says. “I just didn’t want that. I just wanted to get married!” Wynonna adds that she doesn’t know if the two even knew her wedding took place.
Naomi and Ashley have separate homes on the farm where Judd married 55-year-old Moser on June 10.. There seems to be some family fallout from Ashley Judd’s 2011 memoir ‘All That Is Bitter and Sweet,’ which revealed a traumatic childhood.
We’re getting ready to sit down with our life coach and re-evaluate what we want out of this relationship,” Wynonna tells Us Weekly. “We just don’t have a lot of contact right now, if any, because we’re all doing our own thing.” Of her wedding day, she adds, “I didn’t want it to be about anyone but Cactus and me.”

Corey Wagar, heads home to New Jersey to take the stage Saturday, June 30th as she opens for Grammy-nominated country artist Dierks Bentley at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ. “After all the excitement this summer in Nashville, it’s nice to get a chance to go head home and play some new music, especially my new single, Take Ya Back,” says Corey. Hot off the heels of a new single release, Corey has been all over promoting her latest radio smash “Take Ya Back.” Just recently, Corey appeared in Nashville during the week of the CMA Music Festival. Belting out vocals that put her in the ranks with today’s top-notch singers, Corey gave festival goers an acoustic performance inside the Bridgestone Arena. (Press Release

Donna Hilley, who spent 31 years at Sony/ATV Nashville -- eventually becoming the company's president and CEO -- and was one of the most prominent female publishing executives in country music, died Wednesday [June 20] of an extended illness. She was 65.  After Sony purchased Tree International in 1989 -- a deal which Hilley brokered -- she became president and CEO of Sony/ATV Nashville in 1994, retiring in 2005. With Hilley at the helm, the company signed acts such as Little Big Town  (Billboard)

 
Brad Paisley and The Band Perry have announced four tour dates in Sweden and Norway in early November. The Scandinavian portion of Paisley's Virtual Reality World Tour will include Stockholm on Nov. 8; Goteborg, Sweden, on Nov. 9; Oslo, Norway, on Nov. 10; and Stavanger, Norway, on Nov. 11. Paisley toured in Scandinavia in 2011 (CMT)

Martina McBride’s landed a new TV Reality show. She's ben added to Nigel Lythgoe's artist development team on ‘Opening Act,’ a musical reality show debuting on E! July 9. The team will search the net for undiscovered artists.

Streamsound Records artist Jaida Dreyer is set to make her GRAND OLE OPRY debut this SATURDAY, JUNE 23rd in NASHVILLE. JAIDA will perform her upcoming single, “Confessions” being released to radio next month.
Performing at the Grand Ole Opry stage is like a rite of passage in Country music and has been a dream of mine since I was a little girl. I feel honored to get to take the stage that so many of my idols and Country music favorites have all performed on,” said JAIDA

Rolling Stone has revealed their list of the 50 Greatest Albums of All Time from Women Who Rock, and Taylor SWIFT'S SPEAK NOW made the cut. She shows up at #45 on the list, with Rolling Stone calling Taylor "one of the few genuine rock stars we've got these days, with a flawless ear for what makes a song click." Dolly Parton's 1975 compilation The Best of Dolly Parton comes in at #32. Aretha Franklin tops the list with her 1967 release I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You

Toby Keith’s daughter Krystal tweets, “I'm in Nashville right now listening to my dad record his new album!

Mark Wills tweets: Me with Sue Ellen Ewing (Linda Gray) a blast from my childhood!! -  Photo 

Carrie Underwood’s family had cows, she became a vegetarian early on and says, "cows were like big dogs to me. I bottle-fed them, gave them names and I could pet them."

Carrie Uderwood
Twittenr Photo
While in London, Carrie Underwood had fun with one of England’s oldest traditions.
“Me and @makeupmelissa having fun in London!” Underwood tweeted. (That's Carrie's makeup professional Melissa Schleicher).

SINGLE / ALBUM NEWS
If you live in America Gretchen Peters album HELLO CRUEL WORLD is available for download for $5 for the rest on June at
Amazon.com . NOTE - In The UK the full album download is currently available for £6.49 at Amazon.uk

Faith Hill admits she is as anxious as the fans to get the new music heard. Recently she talked to reporters about the upcoming project’s direction. “I spent a great deal of time on this last record — an extraordinary amount of time, and for good reason,” Hill said during the CMA Music Fest in Nashville, Tenn. last weekend (quota via The Boot). ”I was really digging and searching … as an artist who has grown, searching for a place that I can live creatively. A lot of people put in many, many hours, lots of heart and soul. I’m very excited.”
When asked about the musical direction of the new project — rumored to be titled ‘ILLUSION’ — Hill says, ”I came from the church; I’m a soul singer. I’ve tried for so many years to mesh the two worlds together. My love of country music has been my backbone; I was raised with country music.” “But I’m a soul singer,” Hill says, “so to bring those two worlds together in a way that’s authentic and that is true — to me, that’s the most important thing. I want my music to be truthful. I feel like I’ve accomplished that.” Faith is currently unable to divulge details of the album release date or tour plans.

Easton Corbin
Artwork

Easton Corbin will release his sophomore album ALL OVER THE ROAD on Mercury Records on Sept. 18. The 11-song set includes the fast-rising single “Lovin’ You Is Fun,” written by Bob DiPiero and Jim Beavers, and was produced by Carson Chamberlain.
All Over The Road highlights the singer’s traditional stylings with songs such as the title track, written by Chamberlain, Ashley Gorley and Wade Kirby; “Tulsa Texas” written by Tony Lane, David Lee and Mike Lane; and “A Thing For You,” written by Corbin, Chamberlain and Lane.

Rising country star Jana Kramer released her self-titled debut album on Elektra Nashville on June 5th, which features her Top 20 debut single “Why Ya Wanna.” Fans will also be able to purchase her limited edition deluxe ‘ZinePak (ZEEN-pack) version of the album only at Walmart stores and on Walmart.com. Jana Kramer’s ‘ZinePak pairs the full-length album with a 60-page magazine filled with exclusive interviews and dozens of never-before-seen photos. The package also includes a magnetic photo frame with 40 break-away message magnets.

The COUNTDOWN is on, 23 Days to go! With the 20th anniversary of multi-platinum country band LONESTAR already underway, fans will be excited to hear that the release of their new single, the melodically sparkling and lyrically urgent “The Countdown,” has been confirmed for July 17.  A new album--on their own label, 4 STAR RECORDS--is expected in October.
The recently reunited quartet--MICHAEL BRITT, lead guitar & backing vocals; RICHIE McDONALD, lead vocals & piano; KEECH RAINWATER, drums; and DEAN SAMS, keyboards and backing vocals--kicked off 2012 with a hugely successful and acclaimed European tour on a multi-artist bill with Reba McEntire and Ricky Scaggs. LONESTAR also recently performed at the CMA Fest in Nashville: an invitation-only sold out show for their fan club at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum as well as on the Riverfront Stage for CMA festival attendees.  The group debuted “The Countdown” for the standing-room-only festival show, as well as another new song, “Pretty Good Day.”  “It was a blast” says SAMS.  “Fans were singing along to the new single by the second verse.”  McDONALD added, “What a way to start the summer: in the heat, outside, with thousands of fans singing along.  Back on the bus!”

INDUSTRY NEWS
EMI Music Publishing has signed a long-term worldwide publishing agreement with singer, songwriter Angaleena Presley. All future songwriting work will be represented by EMI on a global basis, in partnership with Ten Ten Music. Presley is a member of Pistol Annies, and co-wrote the band’s debut album Hell On Heels. “The road from my front porch in Kentucky to Music Row has been long and hard but well worth traveling,” expressed Presley. “I want to thank everyone at EMI and Ten Ten Music for helping make my little songs reach front porch dreamers all over the world.”

Yep Roc Records is proud to add Tift Merritt as the newest addition to its label family.
Tift’s new album and label debut TRAVELING ALONE is due October 2. The album was recorded in Brooklyn with Tucker Martine (The Decemberists, My Morning Jacket, Spoon).
From Tift: I am awfully proud of and excited to announce this new record!  We sure had a great time making it. To make a record that was raw & real & live off the floor – it was really a dream for me to do that with such an amazing cast. I’m also awfully excited to take it on home to Yep Roc.  It feels like family to have this record cared for and coming to you from North Carolina.  I can’t wait to get back out on the road with these new songs and my lovely musical family. I hope we see you soon out there”.
Although it’s Tift’s first solo album with Yep Roc, she returns to the label after her first album appearance was released here in 1999. She joined the Two Dollar Pistols on its country duets album, the aptly titled The Two Dollar Pistols with Tift Merritt.
Tift also hits the road this month, including a string of shows with Mary Chapin Carpenter.

Debbie Moore has been promoted to Vice President of Nashville-based Third Coast Talent, where she will focus on artist contracts, press, and media. She joined Third Coast in 2002 as Entertainment Coordinator, and previously worked with BMI for 11 years. She is also a member of Moore & Moore (with her twin sister Carrie) who played the UK in 2012. As a songwriter she co-wrote Mark Wills #1 hit “Wish You Were Here” with Skip Ewing and Bill Anderson.

ARTICLES
Fans of traditional country music have a lot to complain about in the modern era of country music, but one of its biggest faults is the pervasive materialism seeping into the lyrics. Do the things that symbolize country living define the meaning of the music?

Ask an outsider what country music is about and they will respond with something like this: “My girl left me, my truck broke down, and my dog ran away.” Add some whiskey to that, and you’ve got a formula for a good country song.

What is modern Country music about? It is increasingly becoming a list of stuff you need to possess in order to be a “country boy.” If you don’t have a truck, a beer, a girl, a grill, a boat, a porch swing, a hat, jeans with a Skoal ring, a tractor, sweet tea, and some fried chicken, count yourself out.  Read the full article at - www.crisismagazine.com

I Never Owned Any Music To Begin With / Letter to Emily White at NPR All Songs Considered
Emily White a college senior at American University in Washington D.C and the general manager of WVAU is this summer's NPR All Songs Considered intern.
She writes in her Blog (an excerpt):
I never went through the transition from physical to digital. I'm almost 21, and since I first began to love music I've been spoiled by the Internet.
I am an avid music listener, concertgoer, and college radio DJ. My world is music-centric. I've only bought 15 CDs in my lifetime. Yet, my entire iTunes library exceeds 11,000 songs. I wish I could say I miss album packaging and liner notes and rue the decline in album sales the digital world has caused. But the truth is, I've never supported physical music as a consumer. As monumental a role as musicians and albums have played in my life, I've never invested money in them aside from concert tickets and T-shirts.

But I didn't illegally download (most) of my songs. A few are, admittedly, from a stint in the 5th grade with the file-sharing program Kazaa. Some are from my family. I've swapped hundreds of mix CDs with friends...

In Reply NPR Author David Lowery writes (An excerpt):
Recorded music revenue is down 64% since 1999.
Per capita spending on music is 47% lower than it was in 1973!!
The number of professional musicians has fallen 25% since 2000.
Of the 75,000 albums released in 2010 only 2,000 sold more than 5,000 copies. Only 1,000 sold more than 10,000 copies. Without going into details, 10,000 albums is about the point where independent artists begin to go into the black on professional album production, marketing and promotion…….

The existential questions that your generation gets to answer are these:
Why do we value the network and hardware that delivers music but not the music itself?
Why are we willing to pay for computers, iPods, smartphones, data plans, and high speed internet access but not the music itself?
Why do we gladly give our money to some of the largest richest corporations in the world but not the companies and individuals who create and sell music?......

First, the mechanical royalty to the songwriters. This is generally the artist. The royalty that is supposed to be paid by law is 9.1 cents a song for every download or copy. So that is $1,001 for all 11,000 of your songs. Now let’s suppose the artist has an average 15% royalty rate. This is calculated at wholesale value. Trust me, but this comes to 10.35 cents a song or $1,138.50. So to ethically and morally “get right” with the artists you would need to pay $2,139.50….Read the FULL ARTICLE with over 500 comments

An Artist reponse
We recently received our first pay statements from our digital distributor for two streaming services:
* Rhapsody: $.0091 per stream / * Spotify: $.0008 per stream

Further Reading:
LAGUNA NIGUEL, Calif. — “Steve Jobs was a digital pioneer, but when he went home, he listened to vinyl.”
This is not popular mythology. This is not rumor. This is legendary recording artist Neil Young, sharing his thoughts on the state of digital music at the D: Dive Into Media conference on Tuesday, fiercely arguing his point: Quality needs to return to the music industry.
But to Young’s dismay — as well as that of thousands of other artists — the ease of digital downloads comes with a significant loss in another area: quality. Bitrates for most tracks on iTunes average 256 kbps AAC audio encoding, drastically inferior to direct recording quality. As Young himself cited, even CDs offer only 15 percent of the recording information from the master tracks. Pare that down to 256 kbps files, and you’ve lost a great deal of richness and complexity in audio.
My goal is to try and rescue the art form that I’ve been practicing for the past 50 years,” Young said. “We live in the digital age, and unfortunately it’s degrading our music, not improving.”......Young believes that not everything has changed. In particular, Young thinks there is no reason why we should lose the rich, full experience of listening to whole albums just because digital downloads offer other ways of purchasing music. That connection between an artist, an audience and that sound is no accident of a particular kind of media.
The CD is over,” Young said, “but the album will never be dead.”

How music finally recovered from CDs (Daily Telegraph June 16, 2012)
Ken Ishiwata – a crucial figure in the development of compact discs – tells Matt Warman the music industry sacrificed quality for cost but is now finally primed to recovery.
Ken Ishiwata worked on the earliest CDs and is now working on digital music systems such as the forthcoming Marantz Consolette. From vinyl to cassettes, through to CDs and now to iPods and MP3 players, music has never been more convenient. But does it sound better? In the view of one of hifi’s most respected personalities: no. “Sound quality has gone down for the average user over the last ten to 15 years,” says Ken Ishiwata.
A 30-year veteran of the hifi industry, Ishiwata was the godfather of the first CD players to offer sound close in quality to their analogue predecessors. A key audio engineer at Marantz, he worked at the firm before it was bought by Phillips to bring out the first CD players. Only now, he says, is digital music turning the corner and beginning to sound as good as vinyl did. He says that at the beginning of each cycle of innovation, the audio industry has consistently sacrificed quality for convenience, and then left others to pick up the pieces...

INTERVIEWS
Country music veteran David Frizzell talks to Suite101 about his new single "Say Hello to Heaven," and his brother, Lefty's biography, which he authored.
(Excerpt) "Say Hello to Heaven"-"I ran across this song a couple of years ago," he says. "A producer here in Nashville asked me if I would listen to it, and I did, and I liked it. There was something about it when I first heard it. As we recorded it, it reminded me of an incident in 1998, when I lost my niece to a drunk driver, and she was 32 years old coming home from her birthday party, and she was killed on her birthday. The song reminded me of her. It is my latest single and we did a TV program on it as well. The song has been on the charts for about fifteen to sixteen weeks now. Our goal is to get the message of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) out across the nation……

LISTEN
Preview Kenny Chesney's new album WELCOME TO THE FISHBOWL at https://www.welcometothefishbowl.com/

WATCH
When I'm Gone" (Official Music Video) Written by Sandy Lawrence and performed by JOEY+RORY. From their new album "HIS and HERS"  - >>  YouTube -

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