Country Bites News snippets September 7 - September
15, 2013
SOURCES / LINKS
shown in RED
UK & IRISH News
The lovely 25
year old Glaswegian star Lisa McHugh
has a brand new single, release Sept 6, 2013 title "Hey I'm a Woman".
It's one of
her latest compositions alongside her great friend and No.1 songwriter – Don
Mescall. “Don
and I met last year at a function in Ireland and I must say his songs are
incredible! He has such a gift and I am deeply honored to be working and
writing with him throughout this record” she shares.
“Hey I’m A
Woman” is the title of the new track and when asked to comment on the story
Lisa said ” It
says it all in the title, (she laughs) I’m forever surrounded by men in this
business that don’t necessarily
take me or my true feelings seriously
which I guess happens to a lot of Woman in life and in general, so this one is
for the girls! We’ve got to stick together!
Lisa has some
mainland UK dates in October:
Fisher Theatre (Bungay, Suffolk; Thurs 3rd Oct),
Conways 3 (Edgware, Fri 4th Oct),
St Kentergans Club (Fallowfield, Manchester;
Sat 5th Oct), Irish Centre (Deritend, Birmingham; Sun 6th Oct) and Lazyacre CM
Club (The Lord Hill Hotel, Abbey Forgate, Shrewsbury; Mon 7th Oct) -
Did you see her
video on the Lawrence John Show on Showcase TV (Tues)? Watch "Lets Pretend We Never Met"
LeAnn Rimes took a trip to the emergency room in Dublin,
Ireland on Thursday (Sept. 12), following a coughing fit that wouldn’t quit.
The result: 100 percent vocal rest and a canceled show. Instead of playing
Vicar Street Leann was in a Dublin ER ward.
Leann first
tweeted “Coughing can’t deal!” Followed by: “Never thought I’d
see the ER in Dublin. I have coughed myself into pain. The spasm is intense.
Being human sucks sometimes.” And late last night she tweeted: “So nice to meet
all my loyal fans who tweeted me about the Dublin show. I didn’t get to sing or
talk to you, but I got to give you all a hug”
 |
| LeAnn Rimes live in Birmingham, UK |
LeAnn Rimes
Cibrian @leannrimes Got a massive shot
in my ass OMG it freaking hurts I'm limping down the streets of Dublin This
could sound really bad on so many levels lol. Recent interview
As a result of
her emergency room visit, the singer was put on full vocal rest.
The Birmingham
Symphony Hall confirmed that Leanne' concert was going ahead as planned on Sept
14th
The star
thrilled fans at Belfast's Waterfront Hall on Tuesday Sept 10th. Despite
seemingly suffering from a cold, the Texan country favourite charmed the pants
off a capacity crowd as she kicked off her latest European tour.
Returning to
Belfast for the first time in a decade, the beaming star declared how happy she
was to be back in the city. ..Read the review
Logan Mize opening for Leann Rimes on the UK Tour. Logan Mize
is a Country music artist/songwriter from Clearwater, Kansas. In April of 2009,
Logan signed a publishing/record deal with Big Yellow Dog Music and a booking
deal with William Morris Endeavor followed in August of 2010. In 2012, Logan’s
second album, NOBODY IN NASHVILLE (released on Big Yellow Dog Music), charted to No.
49 on Billboard Country Albums and No. 15 on Billboard Heatseekers Albums. Mize
has opened for multiple headlining acts including Lady Antebellum, The Band
Perry, Eric Church, Dierks Bentley, Charlie Daniels Band, Blake Shelton (on the
Blake Shelton Country Cruise), Stoney LaRue, Hank Williams and a special
tribute with Merle Haggard. Logan has also experienced success as a songwriter,
notably when country music singer Bucky Covington recorded his song “Mexicoma”
on his album Good Guys, which charted to No. 30 on Billboard Country Albums and
No.43 on Billboard Independent Albums.
TV Alert: Tune into BBC
ALBA for the Ceol Country
programme who are broadcasting highlights from the 2013 Festival.
Evelyn Coull
and Kevin Walker present highlights from the 10th Northern Nashville Caithness Country Music Festival,
stating; "Bringing
you the finest music from Britain, Europe and the States".
 |
| CEOL COUNTRY Click to ENLARGE |
The
festival attracts 15,000 people over the weekend and festival director Bob De
Jong has expanded the festival since its conception 18 years ago which he calls
the "Peoples Festival".
In 2004 the Northern Nashville Country Music
Club took the gamble and ran their first ever Northern Nashville Caithness
Country Music Festival (NNCCMF). Country music fans converge on Caithness over
the Easter Weekend to be part of a 3-day 5-show extravaganza.
The first
programme of Series 6 features Will
Banister, Ireland's John McNicholl,
Scotland's The Chicken Picker's,
Netherland's The Music Road Pilots, Bobby Flores & The Yellow Rose Band
and line dance favourite Scooter Lee
who said: "line
dancing is the 3rd most popular extra curricular activity in the world, I mean
it is huge, everywhere, were bringing more and more people into line dancing
and here we will have 10,000 line dancers and 4,000 or 5,000 will be under the
age of 35"
Ceol Country -
Series 6 (Episodes 1 - 4) Where/When:
BBC ALBA, 9:00PM
Tues, 17 Sept
2013 (repeated Sun, 22 Sept 2013 - Available on the BBC iPlayer till Sun 20 Oct 2013), Tues 24 Sept
(repeated Sun 29 Sept), Tues 1 Oct
(repeated Sun, 6 Oct) &
Tues 8 Oct
(repeated Sun 13 Oct)
Northern
Nashville Country Music Club:
Clannad's long awaited new album, Nádúr (Nature), their first album
in 15 years comes out on Sept 20th (EPK).
They made an
appearance on Ireland's Late Late Show. Their performance of the new track
Brave Enough begins at 1:31:08. They were joined by Duke Special. www.rte.ie/player
Florida
Georgia Line's "Cruise" feat. rapper Nelly has been
pulled from the BBC Radio 2 “B” playlist for the the week commencing
September 14th. They first appeared on the B” list Playlist back on the week commencing
Saturday 10th August.
- Two HogsHead Round-Up CM Festivals coming to Wales in 2014 - Image
- The 34th Americana International 2014 takes place July
10 - 13 at Prestwold Park Nr. Loughborough Leicestershire Line Up
Confirmed So Far….Joe Brown, Si Cranstoun, George Hamilton Iv (USA) &
Friends, Toni Wille (Nl), Chas'n'dave, The Country Sisters (CZ), The Mod
All Stars, Bo Walton, T.Rextasy, Quill, Sierra Cecil (USA) and many more See Faceboo Event - Flyer
- Fort Santone Country Music Festival 18th - 20th October 2013 have added session prices -
- UK Tour Page updates
- The ABC of British Country Music Live listings for Artists, Bands &
Clubs
- Scottish Country gigs - Blog
Link
UK CHART NEWS
On the Official UK
Singles Top 100 Chart (Week Ending September 21, 2013)
Taylor Swift’s ” Everything Has Changed” (Mercury) feat.
Ed Sheeran, falls down 24 slots (58-82) in its 17th retail week.
On the Official UK
Albums Top 100 (Week Ending September 21, 2013)
Taylor
Swift’s RED was
down 18 slots 57-75 in its 47th chart week.
The Civil Wars,
the alt/Rock/Country duo fell off the Top 100 from No.84 in their 6th week at
retail.
Official UK
Country Album Chart (Week
Ending September 21, 2013)
Kacey
Musgraves with SAME TRAILER DIFFERENT PARK stays at No.1 its 22nd chart week
Lady
Antebellum rebounds 5-2 with NEED YOU NOW
(94 chart weeks)as their new set GOLDEN (Decca) stays at No.3
its 19th week. Glen
Campbell’s SEE YOU THERE drops
2-4 in its fifth week. and Nathan Carter
with WHERE I WANNA BE (Sharpe Music) fell one slot (4-5) in
his sixth week.
On the Hotdisc Chart
(September 15, 2013 Chart)
Toby Keith with his latest offering, "Drinks After Work" (written by Natalie
Hemby/Luke Laird/Barry Dean) stepped 3-1 to top
the Hotdisc Top 40. The Lawrence John Project moved up 2 places 4-2 with his
self penned “We’re On Our Way To Heaven”.
Chris Higbee’s
“Living The Dream” co-written with
Tommy Hardin and Doug Stokes hops up 5-3.
After
2 weeks at the summit Drew Gregory with “Truck.Beer.Girl” falls 1-4.
Josh Thompson climbed 2 slots (8-6) with “Cold Beer With Your Name On It” while Lost Hollow’s “Drifting”
makes a deserved Top 10 jumping up 4 places from #11 to #7.
Also
entering the Top 10 are Fergal Flaherty’s “I
Won’t Let You Down” (12-8) which tops the British & Irish Chart
followed by the Hayley Oliver Band with “Good Old Days” which hops 13-9 (#2
British & Irish Chart).
Making positive
strides are Allan
Craig Miller (“Let’s Get Gone” #14-#12), Denae Gardner (“Sound Of A Woman
Saying Goodbye”, #15-#13), and Australia’s Nicki Gillis with Bob Howe (“Slipping Away” jumps
up 5, #19-#14)
Top 20 Irish Chart Indie Individual
Artist Albums
LW TW TITLE
ARTIST
NE 01 Am Arctic
Monkeys Domino 1
01 02 Where I
Wanna Be Nathan Carter (Sharpe Music)
6 weeks on the chart
04 06 Wagon
Wheel Nathan Carter (Sharpe Music)
48 weeks on the chart
UK COUNTRY ALBUM RELEASES
(16 Sep 2013) Chris Young - A.M.
Audio CD 11 tracks (Sony Music) CD
(17 Sept 2013) Billy Currington - We Are Tonight
(import) 10 tracks CD
BLUEGRASS NEWS
Donna Ulisse's new CD titled SHOWIN' MY ROOTS is available through her online store. It officially drop on Oct 15,
2013
AUSSIE NEWS
Lee Kernaghan has taken over the number one position on this
week's national Country Tracks Top 30 singles chart with
his latest hit “Flying
With The King”. Brad Paisley is at #2 with “Beat This Summer”, Graeme Connors' Flesh And Blood is at #3
and Morgan Evans' Carry On is at #4.
Kaylee Bell's “Heart First” edged up
one to #5. Doug Bruce's “Thank God
I'm A Cowboy” moved up two #6 and Beccy
Cole's “The Clown” is also up two to #7.
CANADIAN NEWS
Top Country Charts in Canada (August 7)
NEWS
- “Just A Girl,” singer Adrianna Freeman’s single caught the attention of the Christian
Broadcasting Network.
- Toby Keith's
Oklahoma
Twister Relief Concert raised the spirits of more than 60,000
fans and in total raised approximately $2 million for the
United Way Of Central Oklahoma's May Tornadoes Relief Fund. The eight-hour
concert took place July 6 in Norman and featured performances from Keith,
Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Willie Nelson, Ronnie Dunn,Krystal Keith,
Kellie Coffey, Wade Hayes and Carrie Underwood (via Satellite from the
Grand Ole Opry in Nashville) among others.
- Americana Music Festival 2013 showcase lineup revealed for September 18th - 22nd.
- With the SOLD OUT George Jones
tribute concert at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee on
Nov 22 already hosting top names in all genres of music, Nancy Jones announced the addition of George Strait, Blake Shelton, Miranda
Lambert, Eric Church, Reba McEntire, and Alabama to the all-star lineup. – Press Release
- Has Trace Adkins lost his record deal at Toby Keith's Show
Dog-Universal record label? Adkins is no longer listed as a Show Dog artist
on label's website.
- The United States Postal Service
will honor Ray Charles with his
own postage stamp later this month as part
of its Music Icons Forever series. The limited-edition stamp will be
available starting on September 23, which would have been the late music
legend’s 83rd birthday. In conjunction with the stamp’s debut, a
retrospective CD/DVD set titled Ray Charles Forever will be released on
September 24.
- Tim McGraw
heads to Vancouver next week to begin filming his part in the new Disney
film, Tomorrowland, starring George Clooney. Details on the
script and other production elements are being kept under wraps for now.
- Paisley Pictures:"Usually a song is sort of a product of a movie," Brad Paisley says of the project spawned by his latest single. "When we finished recording 'I Can’t Change the World,' I remember thinking, 'Boy, that feels cinematic. That feels like a score.' It feels like something that goes underneath of a film." A movie based on the tune is in the works and the songwriter took on the role of screenwriter to bring it to life. "I really do feel like I have a knack for writing [movies]," he says. "I say that humbly knowing I’ve got a long way to go, but it’s fun to think about the ways that music can be served by crossing into a few of these things.” Kind of ironic, considering his first album was titled Who Needs Pictures.
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COUNTRY AWARDS
Blake Shelton and Luke
Bryan will return to host the 2014 ACM Awards. No date has been set yet.
When Kacey Musgraves collected six
nominations from the CMA, on Sept. 10, she and cowriter Shane McAnally
accomplished something that’s only happened once before in the ceremony’s
47-year history. They were both nominated twice for Song of the Year: for
“Merry Go Round” and “Mama’s Broken Heart.” The only other songwriting pair who
shared double nominations the same year was Don Schlitz and Paul Overstreet in
1987 for “On the Other Hand” and “Forever and Ever, Amen.”
The Nashville
music community turned out at the Ryman Auditorium Tuesday night (9/10) for the
7th Annual ACM
Honors, hosted by Dierks
Bentley. Special Awards recipients including Jason Aldean (Crystal Milestone Award >> (Watch video), Blake Shelton (Gene Weed Special Achievement Award - Video), the late Keith Whitley (Cliffie Stone Pioneer Award), Lady Antebellum (Jim Reeves International Award- Video) and The Judds (Cliffie Stone Pioneer Award) were celebrated as musical
performances were delivered by Dave Haywood and Charles Kelley, Thompson
Square, Chris Young, Kree Harrison, Bentley and more. See the full list of honorees
Lady
Antebellum's Charles Kelly and Dave Haywood paid tribute to Dallas Davidson by
performing “We Own the Night,” which he co-wrote, along with Luke Bryan’s “I
Don’t Want This Night to End,” another Dallas composition. The night’s host,
Dierks Bentley, played his new single, “I Hold On,” Vince Gill and steel player
Paul Franklin performed Buck Owens’ “Together Again,” and Jamey Johnson and
Holly Williams honored Holly’s legendary grandfather with “I Saw the Light.”
According to Country weekly Chris Young arguably stole
the show with a tribute to George Jones. Chris’ nuanced voice lit up a medley
of “The Window Up Above,” “The Race Is On” and George’s signature song, “He
Stopped Loving Her Today” on a week that would have been the Possum’s 82nd
birthday.
Billboard: Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean and Lady Antebellum Embrace ACM Honors
How important are the CMAs? Blake
Shelton owed last year’s victory and last week’s Gene Weed Special
Achievement Award in great part to his role on NBC’s “The Voice,” which allowed
him to showcase his wit, charm and savvy before a national audience. Yet when
the network rolled out its fall schedule, Shelton had the audacity to call and
complain to the NBC brass that it had booked an episode of “The Voice” the same
night as the CMAs, Warner Music Nashville president John Esposito told the
crowd at a Bridgestone after-party. Shelton, according to Esposito, essentially
told the network that he had to be at the CMAs, meaning he would miss an
episode of “The Voice” on Nov. 6. NBC
supposedly rejiggered the schedule just to accommodate him! Who will with the
CMA 2013 Entertainer of the Year?:
Taylor Swift -
The high-production cheerleader for young women.
Blake Shelton -
The chatty TV personality, with comedic usage of four-letter words and a
playful affinity for alcohol.
Luke Bryan -
The party boy
Jason Aldean -
The rebel spirit, a country singer who
fronts a rock band.
George Strait -
The no-frills veteran who oozes class and lets the music do the talking.
TV
Nashville Bartender
Rachel Potter tested her vocal
skills with an audition on The X Factor USA.
The 29-year-old
has been in Music City trying to pursue her dream of becoming a country singer,
but after seeing girls younger than her continue to get signed, she became
discouraged. As a final ‘hail mary,’ Potter figured the show was a great
opportunity to show what she’s got.
Covering a country-infused
version of Queen’s “Somebody
To Love,” Potter wowed both the live and at home audiences,
as well as the judges. New judge Paulina Rubio was amazed, saying “Wow, amazing,
powerful future.” Judge Kelly Rowland added to Rubio, exclaiming
“You are a beast!” Simon Cowell, who is notorious for his criticisms, said “You sounded like
you’ve been waiting for that performance to prove a point. And you proved it.”
Demi Lovato added, “You have the look. You have the best voice I’ve heard.
This industry is ready for you.” Potter received four yes’s and will
move on to the next round in the competition. >> Reaction – In May 2012 Rachel released a
great 6 Track Digi-pac Titled “Live the Dream” - Amazon UK
Sound Effects: Carrie Underwood's Maria will be joined by HBO's True
Blood star Stephen Moyer as Captain Von Trapp in NBC's The Sound Of Music. Tony Award
winners Audra McDonald, Laura Benanti and Christian Borle have also joined the
cast. The three-hour production, from Oscar producers Neil Meron and Craig Zadan,
will air Dec. 5 on NBC-TV. The official one-sheet for the upcoming holiday
telecast is reminiscent of one of the most memorable moments in the 1965 film
adaptation starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer.
Carrie Underwood’s Blown Away Tour: Live DVD enjoyed 3 weeks at #1 on
Billboard Top Music Videos. It marked the first time that a video by a female
country artist has logged three weeks at #1 since this chart originated (as Top
Music Videocassettes) in March 1985. Shania Twain’s "The Woman In
Me", Martina McBride’s "CMT Crossroads" (a collabo with Train)
and Taylor Swift’s "Journey To Fearless" all spent two weeks at #1.
In addition, a female country group, Dixie Chicks, spent two weeks on top with
An Evening With The Dixie Chicks. In her four week on the chart Carrie sits at
#2 after "Up All Night: The Live Tour" from One Direction returned to
the top. GAC DVD Review: Carrie Underwood’s The
Blown Away Tour: LIVE - Buy on Amazon UK
Carrie Underwood
full chart history (Updated 12 Sept 2013 PDF)
MUSIC NEWS
Independent record labels are to receive
grants worth millions
of pounds to help boost their overseas sales, thanks to a new Government
initiative. Prime Minister David Cameron
met record executives at Downing Street to finalise the Music Export Growth
scheme. The scheme will make £3 million available over
three years to labels who are attempting to promote their acts internationally
at the start of their careers.
SINGLE / ALBUM NEWS
- Julie Roberts
has revealed the track list and cover art
for her fan funded (PledgeMusic) upcoming Sun Records release
"Good
Wine And Bad Decisions", which drops October 29. The album
features guest vocal from Buddy Miller and Vince Gill on the tracks,
"Gasoline And Matches" and "Old Strings,"
respectively. Listen to the title cut at soundcloud. Julie and her producer
wrote it 3 years ago. "I loved the title so much because I love good red
wine and yes, I have definitely called or sent texts to old boyfriends
after drinking wine!!!" she spills. The "Break Down
Here" singer continues "it became the track that defined the
direction and sound of the entire record" . An album release part
takes place November 19th at 3rd & Lindsley in Nashville.
- Deana Carter
has formed her own record label, Little Nugget Records, and plans to
release her first new studio album since 2007 in November. SOUTHERN WAY
OF LIFE is expected to be released the week of Thanksgiving. Today,
as she readies her latest bundle of uniquely crafted tunes for upcoming
release on Southern Way of Life , Carter explores many subjects commonly
shared over a quaint dinner, afternoon coffee or a sunny day hike with a
good friend.
- Lindi Ortega
will be releasing her new album TIN STAR on Oct 8th, 2013. The album was recorded by
Grammy-nominated producer Dave Cobb in Nashville.
- Jason Aldean's Sanford Stadium show will get a full-set encore on DVD
as "Night
Train To Georgia" hits stores Oct. 15. " Watch the
trailer here.
- Gretchen Wilson will return to the famous St. Louis nightclub The Pageant where
she celebrated the 2004 release of her debut album, Here For The Party, on
October 15. Gretchen and her band will perform the album in its entirety
for the first time. The event will be recorded for a live STILL Here
For The Party CD and DVD which will be released in May 2014 to
celebrate the album’s 10-year anniversary.
- There's a new Jim Lauderdale bluegrass album coming out Sept 24th.
PRESS RELEASES
- Florida Georgia Line earns third Consecutive #1 with
Gold-Certified “Round Here”
- Larry Wayne Gatlin comes to Nashville’s iconic 650 AM WSM radio station to host "Only in America"
beginning in January of 2014.
- Chris Young’s
highly anticipated fourth album, A.M., drops Sept 17 and the 28-years young
RCA Records singer-songwriter is gearing up for a stacked week of media appearances (ABC’S GMA etc) and
concert dates.
- The Americana Music Association
will honor the staggering accomplishments
of Dr. John, Duane Eddy, Robert Hunter, Old Crow Medicine Show, Stephen
Stills, Chris Strachwitz and Hank Williams by presenting them with lifetime and
special achievement awards at the Association’s Honors &
Awards show Wednesday, Sept 18, 2013, at the Ryman Auditorium.
- Special Parties at AmericanaFest
September 18-22: Pre
Honors & Awards Happy Hour at the Hard Rock Cafe
- The National Rifle Association (NRA Country)
has teamed up with country star Justin Moore to release a series of behind-the-scenes video clips that fans can see first only at www.NRACountry.com in anticipation of his brand new album, OFF THE BEATEN PATH, which hits stores on September 17th. * This year more American's have been killed by toddlers with guns than by terrorists. Are you aghast at the state of gun control in the country? The NRA keep on saying that the solution to mass shootings in schools is to arm teachers.
- Lisa Matassa's new "I Won't Ask" lyric video premiered on THE BOOT. The mood-setting piece's
black and white still shots were taken in Austin, Texas and are excerpts
from the Country songstress' upcoming music video
- Randy Travis
21st studio album titled Influence Vol. 1: The Man I Am to release a day early on Mon, September
30th. Exclusive Pre-Order Bundle now available for preorder.
- Pre-order Tyler Farr's debut album, Redneck Crazy, available Sept. 30th,
for only $7.99 on US iTunes (£7.99 UK iTunes) and get the hit song, ''Redneck Crazy'.
Listen to his song "Hello Goodbye" on Spotify
- Open Road Recordings celebrated 10 Years Press Release - Video
- PDF File (10 pages) Country newcomer Chase Rice has been on the road
building a fan base show-by-show, city-by-city since 2012, and now, with
the release of his new single “Ready Set Roll,” all his years of hard
work are paying off. "Ready Set Roll," which was written by
Rice, Rhett Akins and Chris DeStefano, is the debut release and title
track of Rice’s forthcoming EP recorded with producer/engineer Scott Cooke
(Jake Owen, Nickelback), DeStefano, and Chad Carlson.
- Sarah Darling
whips up one of her Signature
Desserts at The Loveless Café.
- Rural Rhythm Records is proud to announce that it will be the exclusive
distributor of the Old Dominion masters which are owned by
Bluegrass legends Jim & Jesse
McReynolds. Rural Rhythm will
have both physical and digital rights.
- The Oak Ridge Boys announce 2013 Christmas Time's-A-Comin' Us Tour,
the hit-making group celebrate 24th Anniversary of Christmas Tour.
- Amy Allen
, a blues-accented country, pop and Americana singer-songwriter to release 'Someday Is Today' CD (Sept.
24) with Nashville Party and Concert.
- Big Machine
Label Group Newsletter
- Steve Wariner
will be part of three exhibits at the Tennessee State Museum
centered around a musical theme. The exhibition, entitled "Wariner’s
Watercolors: Paintings by Steve Wariner," will feature approximately 21 of
Wariner’s favorite paintings. It opens on October 11.
- Mike Scott
busy with Civil War performances and as an International
Ambassador (dates in Japan)
ARTICLES
- Billboard 615 Spotlight: Angel Mary & The Tennessee Werewolves Visit the Cash Cabin
- The Examiner: Gary
Allan blasts Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift for not being country....Extract:
Gary Allan finds himself in hot
water after his recent comments to Larry King claiming superstar
hit-makers Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift are not country singers. With
the recent move to more mainstream appeal, country music as a whole has
come under fire this year for its genre-bending rules and pop leanings as
demonstrated on both targeted artists' most recent records "Blown
Away" and "Red," respectively....He continues, "I feel
like I don't make music for a genre anymore. I did 10, 15 years ago. But
since the Clear
- Channels and the Cumulus and all the big companies bought up all
the chains, now it's about a demographic."
- Rolling Stone: Kellie
Pickler Branches Out on New Album 'The Woman I Am'
- Billboard 615: Kacey Musgraves Loves That She's
Turning You On to Country Music...."Merry Go 'Round" singer
talks about her whirlwind year, which includes six nominations for the CMA
Awards...Extract: What has been the
highlight for Musgraves this year? "It would be seeing the music
grow, and more and more people singing along with the lyrics," she
said. "It's a grass-roots feeling to see it spread, and people get so
excited, and relate to it in their own way." She also appreciates the
fact that fans of other genres are accepting of her traditional style.
"Seeing people outside of country music, and those that are into
different kinds of music really enjoy it. That's something that is really
cool for me
- Nashvillescene.com: A Breakdown of the Lyrical Content of Billboard's Top 20
Country Songs:
- CMA Close Up:Taylor Swift Sees Red and Stays Country by Kip Kirby
vulture.com Rosen: Does Country Music Have a Problem With Women?
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| Click To ENLARGE Graphic |
There’s the girl in the current country No. 1, Luke Bryan’s “That’s My Kinda Night”: “You got that
suntan skirt and boots / Waiting on you to look my way and scoot / Your little
hot self over here / Girl, hand me another beer.” Bryan’s hottie bears some resemblance to the girl in the Nos. 2 and 3
songs, “Cruise”
and “Round
Here,” both by bro-country tyros Florida Georgia
Line. (In “Cruise,” she wears a “bikini top on her” and boasts “them long
tanned legs”; in “Round Here,” she has “Wild Cherry on her lips” and “the jeans
with a tear that her mama never fixed.”)
There’s the girl in the song at No. 4,
“Night Train,” whom Jason Aldean takes to
the edge of town to snuggle under a blanket and sip Southern Comfort, and
there’s the girl who’s serenaded by Thomas Rhett’s gallant — “Hey, girl, you
make me wanna write a song / Sit you down, I'll sing it to you all night long”
— in the No. 5 hit, “It
Goes Like This.”
In the song at No. 6, Keith Urban’s “Little
Bit of Everything,” there’s a dream girl, who evidently was
born prior to the publication of The Feminine Mystique: “I want a
cool chick that'll cook for me / But'll dance on the bar in her tan bare feet /
And do what I want when I want.” I’m a bit concerned about the girl in Tyler
Farr’s No. 7 hit, “Redneck
Crazy,” who by the sound of things could use a restraining
order. (“You know you broke the wrong heart baby, and drove me redneck crazy,”
Farr sings, promising, “I'm about to get my pissed off on … I'm gonna aim my
headlights into your bedroom windows / Throw empty beer cans at both of your
shadows.”) The girl in Brett Eldrige’s “Don’t
Ya” (No. 8), like the one in “Round Here,” has a pair of
surgically altered dungarees (“Girl, you cut those jeans just right”); and
Bryan also has fashion on his mind in his No. 9 hit, “Crash
My Party”: “Girl, I don’t care / Oh, I just gotta see what
you’re wearing.” The top ten is rounded out by Billy Currington’s new single,
whose title says it all: “Hey
Girl.” …… What’s missing here, besides any trace of post-1960 sexual politics,
are actual girls — or, as they’re sometimes called, women.……As it happens, this is shaping up as an outstanding
year for country women. It’s refreshing to see the CMA's getting behind Musgraves [Kacey],
whose album balanced commercial appeal with an uncompromising artistic vision.
It would be better if radio programmers followed suit. “To look at the list of nominations … you'd think female singers
actually got played on country radio,” quipped Brian Mansfield in USA
Today. “The girls” deserve more than a whistle — or an award. A little
airplay would be nice, too.
REVIEWS
ForTheCountryRecord: Keith
Urban’s ‘Fuse’ ignites, but does little to fan flames – Album Review
threechordsandthetruthuk (Live Review) Carrie
Rodriguez - Henry Tudor House, Shrewsbury Sunday 25th August 2013
Shout4Music - Caitlin
Rose at Shepherd's Bush Empire, London (Sept 12, 2013)
INTERVIEWS
Radio.com: Clint
Black Talks Songwriting, love songs & revisiting past successes on new
album ‘When I Said I Do’
"I am a songwriter first. I start with the song."
CountryMusicNation.com: Zac Brown expresses distaste for Contemporary
Country Music.. “If I hear one
more tailgate in the moonlight, daisy duke song, I’m gonna throw up. There’s
songs out there on the radio right now that make me be ashamed to be even in
the same format as some other artists.”
However, Brown’s comments about country
music’s most popular songwriters weren’t so forgiving. “You can look and see some of the same
songwriters [*Dallas Davidson, Rhett
Akins, Ben Hayslip (Peach Pickers), Chris DeStefano, Ashley Gorley?] on every one of the songs. There’s been like
10 number one songs in the last two or three years that were written by the
same people and it’s the exact same words, just arranged different ways.” ….So how does he feel about Luke Bryan‘s
latest single? “I love Luke Bryan and he’s had some great songs, but this
new song is the worst song I’ve ever
heard. I know Luke, he’s a friend. ['That's] My Kinda Night’ is one of the
worst songs I’ve ever heard.
Listen from 3 mins on soundcloud.com - Premiere: Luke Bryan's
"Hot Video" (?) for “That's My Kind of Night”
Luke Bryan's tour performance video for "That's
My Kind of Night"
Last week in Nashville, Dallas Davidson was honoured with the ACM’s Songwriter
of the Year prize!!! *Davidson is the cowriter of "Honky-Tonk
Badonkadonk," "That's My Kinda Night," "Boys Round
Here," and "Country Girl (Shake It For Me)"
MAGAZINES
Carl Jackson,
Darden Smith and Helo Strangers feature in the Direct Buzz September Issue
LISTEN
Granger Smith's new radio single "Miles
And Mud Tires" (Thirty Tigers) is now at radio released
from the album Dirt Road Driveway. Blurb: With Over 13 Million YouTube views,
200K tracks sold, 200 tour dates NATION wide,
and a social following of 514K+ and growing each day, Granger Smith is a
MUST watch artist. Granger’s last single "Silverado Bench Seat"
scored the #1 spot on TX radio and held the top position for 3 consecutive
weeks. Stats: Social media: Granger
Twitter: 65,612 followers, Granger Facebook: 47,517 likes, YouTube: over 13
MILLION unique views. Over 200,000 Tracks SOLD in last 4.5 months from New
Album Dirt Road Driveway
Listen to Striking Matches "Trouble Is As Trouble Does" their new
single impacted radio on September 9th. Since releasing their debut EP one year
ago, Striking Matches have been popping up all over the place. On ABC’s
‘Nashville,’ ( Two songs featured on ABC’s "Nashville" in Season 1.
(More to come in Season 2) the Grand Ole Opry (15 appearances in 2013) , on
stage with Charles Kelley’s bawdy side project … it’s almost hard to get away
from them! They have opened for Hunter Hayes, Ashley Monroe, Kip Moore, Martina
McBride, Huey Lewis & the News, John Hiatt, Billy Currington, Scotty
McCreery, The Fray, Love & Theft & more.
Rodney Atkin's new single "Doin'It Right" (Soundcloud Link) will impact radio October
14th. The lead-off single from his upcoming album from Curb Records. Blurb: This inspirational tune, written by
Award-winning songwriter Jay Knowles, is sure to hit home for many listeners as
the track showcases the star's ability to connect with audiences on a level
most other artists can only fathom doing.
SPOTIFY COUNTRY
For users of
this online music streaming service here are some of the more recent additions
and recommendations. When its free and
easy on Spotify who needs music piracy?
You might get the party started at the
White House?
Craig Morgan – The Journey (Livin' Hits) - Sept 3, 2013 release
Steve Wariner – It Ain't All Bad - Sept 10, 2013 release
Reckless Kelly - Long Night Moon - Sept 3, 2013 release
Drew Kennedy - Wide Listener - Sept 10, 2013 release
Peter Cooper Opening Day - Sept 10,
2013 release
Rawley Taylor "The Country Rap" (Single) - UKCountryRadio.com's
current most played track!
Sheryl Crow – "Easy" (Single)
Hotdisc #177 (Rush
Released) Sept 2013 cuts:
Premier Cut from Self Titled album
Premier Cut from Self Titled album
Premier Cut from the album ABINGER GROVE
Fergal Flaherty "I Won't Let You Down" - Premier Cut from album IT’s GONNA BE A GREAT DAY
David Shelby “Moonshine” from 7 Track mini album RUST BELT COWBOY
Matt Kennon “Awful Good” from the 6 track EP FOUR ON THE FLOOR
Lost Hollow “Drifting” from the album LOST HOLLOW
James Morris “Pieces Of Your Heart” from forthcoming album WAIT FOR THE SUNSHINE
- Single
Ace Diamond “Rock Me Baby Doll” from the album ROCKABILLY MAN (Bad-Ass Hillbilly Band) - heavily
promoted artist on CMR Nashville.
Tune into the Hotdisc Chart Show with Stuart Cameron every Sunday at 12 Noon in
the UK on CMR Nashville Radio ("Europe's #1
Country Music Radio Station") or the British & Irish Hotdisc Show with
Phil Butler every Monday at 8pm in the UK
exclusively on UKCountryRadio.com (“Playing the Hottest
Country Music for the UK, 24 hours a day”)
You can contact Stuart c/o Hotdisc Studios:
Hotdisc Ltd, The
Old Manse, Hallidays Park, Selkirk TD7 4LA, Scotland
Tele: +44
(0)1750 720014 / Email: sturadio@hotmail.com
/ Website: www.hotdisc.co.uk
FREE DOWNLOADS
The Howlin' Brothers are a "country-blues" string band have 6 free noisetrade songs for an email share THE SUN STUDIO SESSION. Recommended for fans
of The Avett Brothers, Old Crow Medicine Show and Carloina Chocolate Drops.
Los Angeles
singer-songwriter Carly Ritter’s
rich, burnished, folk-rooted sound of her self-titled debut album came out on
23rd August 2013 on Vanguard Records - makes it seem that this music was
unearthed from a time capsule buried during the late ’60s. She’s the
granddaughter of early country & western star Tex Ritter
Download 5
songs from the album here for an email share.
Listen to
"Storms Of The Ocean" at soundcloud - Album Artwork - UK iTunes - ** "It Don't Come Easy" video & "Oh Farmer" previews - Facebook-
WATCH
- Yallwire
have footage of Phil Vassar, Bob DiPiero,
Shane McAnally, & Brandy Clark from CMA Songwriters Series in the
Big Apple.
- Clare Bowen
(Scarlett O'Conner) from ABC's NASHVILLE performs a Season 1 favorite
"When The Right One Comes Along"
at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.
- Keith Urban
Live At Tootsie's Nashville with
special guest Steven Tyler. On September 6th, 2013 the Keith Urban
"Tour" of Nashville's Lower Broadway (aka The Pub Crawl three
stop) included Legends Corner, Tootsies Orchid Lounge, and The Stage.
- Sarah Jarosz
"Build Me Up From Bones"
- Dean Brody
"Bounty"
- For fans of Taylor Swift check out
the new video by young Albertan Livy
Jeanne performing "Any Other Way" (Black Box
Recordings) or Lyric
Vid - Website
- Available on iTunes.ca and Amazon UK
- The official music video for
Canadian duo Autumn Hill's
newest single "Fire"
- Tawmorth based artist Ashleigh Dallas a singer
songwriter and multi instrumentalist has a debut record "Dancing With
A Ghost" releasing September 27th with Warner Music Australia. Watch
her video for single "Me" (release Sept 6). Pre-order
on iTunes AU - Website
- Facebook
- Drinkin' Problem: Kendall Beard raised in a small East Texas town on a diet of Muscle Shoals and Louisiana sounds has a new vid "Drinkin'" co-written with producer AJ Vallejo.Her brand new CD "All Around Girl" (VMG) drops Tuesday, September 17th. The 10 songs are described as "crossed with Sheryl Crow and Miranda Lambert" preview - Website
- Drinkin' Problem #2 - Eli Young Band Have a Crazy Night
Out in ‘Drunk Last Night’ video which recounts
what happens when you drink too much and reach for the phone. Hint: It
doesn’t usually end well.The opening shot of the video starts out with a
surefire way to get intoxicated — a Jagerbomb. Then, we get a close-up of
a glass of beer with a shot of whiskey sinking to the bottom. But this
isn’t your typical party-heavy country music video. ‘Drunk Last Night’ is
about the mistakes you make after you have a crazy night at the bar.
COUNTRY FASHION
Reba McEntire is loving the spring collection of Reba Style boots and shoes!!! Just saw them
today! Woohooo!
Taylor Swift met fans at Club RED in Charlottesville wearing a Free People
Floral Mesh Lace Dress ($128.00) in Antique. She also wore this dress in Black
a few months ago – Fashion Pic.
 |
| Cassadee |
Laura Bell Bundy is the host of the YouTube series OMC: Oh My
Country. The bi-weekly web original features Laura Bell and some of her friends
offering fashion tips, discussing trends and critiquing fashions on the red
carpet and beyond - “I always really love like vintage stuff,” she says. “Like
taking a vintage piece and then a brand new type of jacket—you know, I like to
mix.”
More than
anything, Laura Bell says what’s important is to wear things that are
appropriate for your body type. “I’m a bigger proponent of women wearing things that look
good on their bodies than wearing things that are in Vogue. I just think that
when a woman feels good about what they’re wearing, and wears a smile on their
face, they look the best.”
Laura Bell does admit that one of her fashion weaknesses are short shorts, like she wears in the video for her latest single, “Two Step”!
Laura Bell does admit that one of her fashion weaknesses are short shorts, like she wears in the video for her latest single, “Two Step”!
COUNTRY GOSSIP
- Kacey Musgraves clinched an astonishing six 2013 CMA Award nominees, tying with
mega superstar Taylor Swift. But Musgraves wasn’t glued to the television
with the volume up high … because she was in bed. The ‘Merry Go ‘Round’
singer was a little, uh, under the weather after partying with
friends the night before, so she slept through the reveal. So when her
producer, Shane McAnally, called her with the big news, Musgraves didn’t
exactly jump up and down. “I was like, ‘Hello?’ I was really hungover,”
Kacey tells reporters with a laugh (quote via Country Weekly). Even if she
wasn’t nursing a hangover, the songstress — known for her cool and
collected attitude — probably wouldn’t have waited on the edge of her seat
(or bed) waiting for the nominations to drop.
- Florida Georgia Line nabbed four
CMA noms last week and members Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley explain the excitement that comes from
"getting out of the box a bit." "I think we get excited about making
fresh music," says Hubbard. "People come up and tell us they weren't
a country music fan or didn't like country music until they heard us...
that's the biggest compliment we can get, to know people from other genres
are digging country music now, and the new sound." ....
So, what artist FGL will team up with next? "We'd love to collaborate
with Lil Wayne or Rihanna or something like that," Hubbard laughs.
"Who
knows, you never know what's going to happen!"
- Billy Currington's new album, We Are Tonight, is in stores Tuesday featuring his
latest hit, "Hey Girl."
The song is all about simply saying "hey girl" to a woman
as a pickup
line. Billy admits he and his friend relied on
that straightforward approach quite a few times while trying to meet girls
back home in Georgia.
- Recent reports claimed that Taylor Swift and actor Brenton Thwaites had some sort of
relationship going, because the two of them were seen hanging out together
at an after-party during the Toronto Film Festival on Monday night. But now, witnesses tell Life & Style
Weekly magazine that Thwaites vehemently denies the two are involved,
and is dismayed at the implication. "He was with a group of about eight people at
Bar Masa in NYC on Wednesday night," a source tells the
magazine. "At one point, after dinner, I heard someone ask him
about hanging out with Taylor...two nights ago in Toronto and he said, 'I
took one photo with the girl! I mean, we were hanging out all night, but
now suddenly she's my girlfriend!'"
- Grace Potter & The Nocturnals had a show in Vermont Saturday night and Kenny Chesney was there to sing a
tune. He shocked fans by sporting his first ever beard.
- Florida Georgia Line are considering ways to expand their empire and they say they’re
not afraid to go out of the box so they’re talking about maybe a men’s
underwear line.
- Keith Urban’s wife Nicole Kidman was knocked off
her 4-inch heels by an out of control bicycle-riding paparazzi
in New York recently. He was illegally riding on the sidewalk and she hit the ground pretty hard.
- Sheryl Crow says Lance Armstrong has "zero relevance" to her life. The singer was briefly engaged to the now disgraced pro cyclist - who was banned from cycling and stripped of his seven gold medals after admitting to doping - before they called things off in 2006, but she insists she has put the memories of their relationship firmly behind her. Speaking on CNN's 'Piers Morgan Live', Sheryl said: "It has such little relevance to my life right now - in fact, zero relevance. I watch it kind of like everybody else is watching it. I watched a little bit of the first interview [with Oprah Winfrey] and I have such a big detachment from it that I probably feel the same as everyone else. "I haven't seen him in years. It feels like a lifetime ago, honestly." The country musician - who has adoptive sons Wyatt, six, and Levi, three - is irked by her reputation as one of the 'most dumped' celebrities and believes her focus on her career is what has made it hard to hold down a relationship.
- ACM Honors Recap: Charles Kelley on Blake Shelton:
“He’s an A**hole” Lady A’s Front Man Rips On His Buddy Blake.
PHOTO
Brandy Clark: Was a great night celebrating "Mama's Broken
Heart" [Miranda Lambert] the #1 party with Shane and Kacey!
That Tuxedo
Keepin’ You Warm Enough? Lauren Alaina
chats with a resident of SeaWorld Orlando's
newest attraction
BIRTHDAYS
Sept 14: A
belated Happy birthday to Danielle Peck
Sept 16: David Bellamy (1950) ; Sept 17: Hank Williams (1923) ; Sept 19: Trisha Yearwood (1964)
Sept 20: Garth Fundis (1949)
Sept 21: Faith Hill (1967) Mark Wright (1957) Ronna
Reeves (1966), Don Felder
(Eagles)
Sept 22: June Forester (Forester Sisters)
R.I.P
Ray Dolby, who
invented some of the technologies that revolutionized film and sound recording,
died at age 80 (Sept 12) in San Francisco.
Even if Ray Dolby (photo) doesn't ring a bell, you have
undoubtably come upon his name in the movie theater or along the edge of a
cassette tape.
You've also heard his work: He pioneered a noise reduction
format called Dolby SR and his
company was instrumental in developing surround sound technology. He came to
Britain to study for a PhD at Cambridge and founded Dolby Laboratories in
London in 1965 which he then moved to California in 1976.
Dolby had been living with Alzheimer's and was diagnosed with leukemia
this summer. His company published a video that encapsulates his life.
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