Country Bites News snippets August 25 – August 31, 2014

Country Bites News snippets August 25 – August 31, 2014

SOURCES / LINKS shown in RED

UK & IRISH News

Taylor Swift’s pop single “Shake It Off” is now on the BBC Radio 1 Playlist (1 Sept, 2014). Whilst on the BBC Radio 2 Playlist (for the week commencing  30th August 2014) Dolly Parton with “Lay Your Hands On Me” remains on the A-List, The Shires with “Tonight” stay on the B-List and Kacey Musgraves’ “Keep It to Yourself” is still locked on the C-List. Leaving the B-list are the Country/Pop Salisbury UK duo Millers Daughter and Emma Stevens the folk/country/pop singer-songwriter  with “Make My Day”

Getting Noticed as A Country Singer (Novelty Country/ Yorkie Bird):

On Sept 1st 2014 Wes Butters on BBC Radio Leeds caught up with 34-year old Bramley, Leeds native and country/pop singer Carolynne Poole. 

She shared her real life story appearing on the X Factor in 2011 and 2012 and how things are manipulated as an entertainments show. She spoke about her country music roots, heroes, after school talent shows and moving to London on a whim 3 months before taking her A Levels! 


The stunning lady who appeared at the C2C Country To Country Pop Up stages in March 2014 described life after the X Factor process explaining the for’s and against’s. She is still recording for her debut album (recording and writing with Sandi Thom and Jeff Silbar who co-wrote "The Wind Beneath My Wings"). 
Carolynne will return to Nashville choosing songs for album in November with a possible release date slated for  March 2015.

UK CHART NEWS

Official UK Top 100 Singles Chart (Week Ending September 6, 2014)

Taylor Swift held at No.4 with her Pop single “Shake It Off” selling another 40,589 copies (sales up 8%) for a 2-week total of 78,184.

Official UK Top 100 Album Chart (Week Ending September 6, 2014)

Dolly Parton with BLUE SMOKE/THE BEST OF (Masterworks) fell 7-10 (7,738 sales; down 13% on previous week 8,940; 11-week total 183,899).

Brad Paisley with MOONSHINE IN THE TRUNK (Arista Nashville) made a debut at No.34 selling 2,387 copies. The C2C 2014 Festival headliner last charted with "WHEELHOUSE" which made a bow at No.69 selling 1,582 copies (chart week April 20, 2013) then fell off the Top 100. Maverick Magazine editor Alan Cackett awarded Paisley’s WHEELHOUSE  5 STARS saying “This is the kind of album people will pull out and listen to 50 years from now… my album of the year. No contest!

Southern rock band Blackberry Smoke who debuted at No.35 last week left the chart.

UK duo Ward Thomas in their 6th week also fell off the Top 100 from previous week’s No.94 with their full length debut album, FROM WHERE WE STAND (WTW MUSIC)

On The Independent Albums chart FROM WHERE WE STAND slumped 18-40

Official UK Country Album Chart (Week Ending September 6, 2014)

Brad Paisley with MOONSHINE IN THE TRUNK made a debut at No.1

The UK’s Ward Thomas with FROM WHERE WE STAND (WTW Music) slipped 1-2 in their a sixth week

Johnny Cash with OUT AMONG THE STARS (Columbia) fell 2-3 in its 22nd chart frame. Lady Antebellum with NEED YOU NOW moved 3-4  in their 144th week. Kacey Musgraves with SAME TRAILER DIFFERENT PARK (Decca) rounded out the top 5 (4-5) in her 72nd chart frame.

UK iTunes Top 1500 Country Albums  (Last updated Sept 1, 2014)

Dolly Parton’s album BLUE SMOKE/ THE BEST OF returns to the top 2-1 switching places with Brad Paisley’s new album MOONSHINE IN THE TRUNK.

Popular Irish artist Derek Ryan blows in at No.3 with his new set THE SIMPLE THINGS which released Aug 29th.

The Music of Nashville (Season 1, Vol. 2) is back in the Top 10 (Original Soundtrack) up to No.6

Ward Thomas with their 6 week old debut album FROM WHERE WE STAND slipped 6.9

Millers Daughter who made an arrival with their debut album titled SO HOLLYWOOD nosedive 11-176.

1 Dolly Parton Blue Smoke/ The Best Of  (#71 Overall UK Albums Chart)

2 Brad Paisley - Moonshine in the Trunk (#179 Overall UK Albums Chart)

3 Derek Ryan -The Simple Things (#207 Overall UK Albums Chart)

4 Taylor Swift - Red (#234 Overall UK Albums Chart)

5 Dolly Parton - The Very Best of Dolly Parton

6 Various Artists - American Heartland: Legends of Country

7 Johnny Cash - The Man Comes Around

8 Various Artists - The Music of Nashville - Season 1, Vol. 2 (Original Soundtrack)

9 Ward Thomas - From Where We Stand (#509 Overall UK Albums Chart)

10 Kacey Musgraves - Same Trailer Different Park (#565 Overall UK Albums Chart)

UK iTunes Top 1500 Country Singles  (Last updated August 26, 2014)

Taylor Swift with her official POP single “Shake It Off” stays at No1 and posts at No.3 with purchased tracks from forthcoming standard and Deluxe copy of “1989”

Dolly Parton signature tune “Jolene” still has glastonburr legs moving up 5-4

English duo The Shires with their Radio 2 playlisted single “Tonight” improved13-7. 

Ward Thomas who their former BBC Radio 2  “A” playlist with “Push For the Stride” fell back 10-18

1 Taylor Swift - Shake It Off (#4 Overall UK Singles Chart)

2 Johnny Cash - I Won't Back Down (#209 Overall UK Singles Chart)

3 Taylor Swift - Shake It Off (#207 Overall UK Singles Chart)

4 Dolly Parton - Jolene (#306 Overall UK Singles Chart)

5 Taylor Swift - Love Story

6 Taylor Swift - I Knew You Were Trouble.

7 The Shires - Tonight (#489 Overall UK Singles Chart)

8 Dolly Parton - 9 To 5

9 Dolly Parton & Kenny Rogers - Islands In the Stream

10 Faith Hill There - You'll Be (#515 Overall UK Singles Chart)

11 Lady Antebellum - Need You Now

12 The Shires - Nashville Grey Skies (#631 Overall UK Singles Chart)

18 Ward Thomas - Push For the Stride

On the Hotdisc Chart (August 31, 2014 Chart)

Tony Stampley (the son of Joe Stampley) made a 3-1 jump with "It Ain't All Good But It Ain't Half Bad" in his fourth chart frame to top the Top 40 summit.

The three week No.1 Jim Reeves’ duet with Barbi Franklin re-make of "How's The World Treating You" fell 1-3 with David Frizzell with "Maybe There's Love After You After All" holding in the runner’s up slot at No.2.

David Wood with “Who Left The Door To Heaven Open” was a non-mover at No.4.

On their 8th week on the charts US acts Brian Collins’ “Never Really Left” slipped 7-8 as Owen Howell with "Let's Start A Party" logged his highest ranking to date moving 8-7.

Cody Riley with “Something I Wrote” (co-written with Mando Saenz) made a notable 14-10 climb to reach the upper tier.

Outside the Top 10:

Sonia Leigh with “Put It In Your Pocket” (17-13) and David Shelby with “Southern Drawl” (16-11) made further strides northwards along with fellow US act M Callaghan (20-18).

Mike Ward with "Welcome Home" made a 13-12 move on the Top 40 to land his first No.1 on the British & Irish Hotdisc chart at his first attempt at the expense of the 3-week #1 from Charlie Boston who retreated 12-16 with “How I Only Wish I Could Fly” . Scotland’s Janey Kirk moved up 2 places 29-27 on the Top 40 with “Streets of Loneliness” to stay in third place on the British ranks.

UK COUNTRY ALBUM RELEASES

(3 Aug 2014) Malcolm Holcombe - Pitiful Blues (Gypsy Eyes Music)

10 Tracks/ Time: 34:45  CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Amazon.com 

(19 Aug 2014) Gretchen Wilson - Snapshot (Redneck Records) Compilation Album

10 Tracks/ Time: 35:09  CD - MP3 - Amazon.com

(29 August 2014) Derek Ryan - The Simple Things (Sharpe Music)

CD (8 Sept)- UK iTunes Ireland's biggest Country star, Derek Ryan returns with his brand new 15 track album including his collaboration with Sharon Shannon ‘Hold Onto Your Hat’ , ‘What Dancin’s For’, ‘The Ferryman’, ‘Desperado’, ‘Walking After Midnight’ and his latest single ‘Flowers In Your Hair’. Of the 13 song set 5 tracks were written by Derek himself (including ‘Hold on to Your Hat’ ‘Flowers In Your Hair’ and ‘The House that Jack Built’).

(2 Sept 2014) The Roys - The View (Rural Rhythm)

11 Tracks/ Time: 36:54 CD - MP3 - UK iTunes - Smart Choice Music - Amazon.com 

(2 Sep 2014) Larry Fleet - Larry Fleet  (Music Mill) EP

5 Tracks/ Time: 19:11 CD - MP3 - Amazon.com 

(1 Sept 2014) Jacqui Sharkey - Love and Other Things (self release)

12 Tracks/ Time: 45:59 MP3 - UK iTunes - CD BABY

NEWS

Country Aircheck's Insider Artist News:

August 29, 2014 Toby Keith (The Iceman Cometh), Brad Paisley (Paying The Cost To Be The Boss), Dolly Parton (Trickle Down Theory), Naomi Judd (Stage Duds)

September 2, 2014: Jason Aldean (Re-Boots), Carrie Underwood (Great Expectations), Luke Bryan (Winner Winner), Kenny Chesney ( Jam Session), Taylor Swift (Taylor-Made Advice), Canaan Smith (Got Married),

BABY NEWS

Carrie Underwood is pregnant! The 31-year-old singer and husband Mike Fisher announced Monday (Sept. 1) they are expecting a baby, with an assist from her two furry children. It will the first child for Underwood and her husband of four years. “In honor of “Labor” Day, Ace & Penny would like to make an announcement,” she wrote on social media. “Their parents couldn’t be happier…” Underwood has always left the door open for children, but never spoke with much urgency about starting a family

SINGLE / ALBUM NEWS

Gretchen Peters will release the follow-up to Hello Cruel World ("the album of her career" - NPR) in February 2015. The new studio album, coproduced with Doug Lancio (Patty Griffin, John Hiatt) & Barry Walsh, is called BLACKBIRDS. It features guest appearances by Jason Isbell, Jimmy LaFave, Jerry Douglas, Kim Richey, David Mead, Suzy Bogguss, Matraca Berg and more. A UK tour in March has been announced; US and European tours are in the works. Adding to her list of accolades, the twice Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter will be inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame on October 5th of this year, and will celebrate by making a return appearance on the Grand Ole Opry on October 4th. The UK release date for “Blackbirds” is February 9, 2015 and in the US it drops February 10.

Jason Aldean will release his sixth studio album, OLD BOOTS, NEW DIRT, on Oct. 7 via Broken Bow Records. Aldean, 37, recorded Old Boots, New Dirt’s 15 tracks over the course of a year - “For me, [Old Boots, New Dirt] just seemed like a fitting title to put on this album that we made during all this madness,” Aldean, who filed for divorce from his wife of almost 12 years in 2013, said in August. “In the last couple of years, it feels like everything I’ve done has been on blast, personally and professionally. That title and that song, ‘Old Boots, New Dirt,’ is about starting with a clean slate. I’m the same dude, but we’re gonna start over and hit some uncharted territory here.”

For some listeners, “Burnin’ It Down” is more “pop” than “country.” Aldean has heard the criticism, and he is unfazed. “If somebody can put a definition on what country music is, please tell me,” he said. “I’m pretty knowledgeable in country music, and I’ve never once seen where it says, ‘Country music doesn’t have a drum loop,’” he said. “It’s great to put your stuff out there and give your fans a chance to tell you what they think. But if you’re not careful, you can read way too much into what people are saying. No, [“Burnin’ It Down”] is not Hank Williams, Sr. or George Jones, but this also isn’t the ’60s and the ’70s. As great as that music was, you have a new wave of artists that were influenced by a whole different world of music, and country music is gonna evolve just like any kind of music.”

PRESS RELEASES

• Marty Raybon (lead singer) reunites with Shenandoah following a 17-year absence (Rollingstone exclusive). Raybon co-founded the band in 1984 but left after their 1997 tour.
• The Roys debut new album THE VIEW: Track-By-Track on The Boot
• Dolly Parton, who’s usually flooding stadiums with fans around the world, cools off her Summer by taking a dive into the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge (We T-Shirt contest)
• The Avett Brothers, Jackson Browne, Rosanne Cash, Patty Griffin, Jason Isbell, Valerie June, Loretta Lynn, Taj Mahal, The Milk Carton Kids, Sturgill Simpson and more than 175 other artists will be attending Americanafest September 17-21, 2014
• Montgomery Gentry’s brand new single, “Headlights,” available to download from September 2 as USAToday exclusively debuts Lyric Video
• David Shelby signs Endorsement deals
• Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton received their first joint CMA Award nomination since 1986 this morning for “You Can't Make Old Friends” in the Musical Event of the Year category. The song is featured on Rogers’ latest album of the same name as well as Dolly’s latest album Blue Smoke.
• Lara Landon finds that ‘There Is Grace’ with new Album. Three weeks after the unexpected death of her father she moves forward with plans to release her new album on September 9th as a tribute to the man that helped inspire it.

ARTICLES

Independent.co.uk She's dark, sarcastic, and bashes life in Nowheresville ... so how did Kacey Musgraves become country music's hottest new star? The girl from Nowheresville, Texas, has

the crowd in a tizzy. "London! You are mental! In the very best way," twangs tiny Kacey Musgraves from centre stage. With two Grammys for her first album under her belt, she is country music's hottest new star – and she's milking every minute.


 Her British fans have doubled in number since she was last here, nine months ago; the standing-only stalls look twice as packed. This warm July night is her last UK date for a few weeks, before she's back to play BBC Radio 2 Live in Hyde Park festival on 14 September, alongside Debbie Harry and Chrissie Hynde on

a mixed bill that suits Musgraves perfectly: she might be "too country" for some US radio stations, but she doesn't do musical genres – something she thinks she and the British have in common......

INTERVIEWS

American Songwriter Hometown Blues: A Q&A with Justin Townes Earle

WATCH

Lucas Hoge "Flip Flops"

Donna Ulisse "Showin' My Roots" (Official Video) It's a song Donna co-wrote with her husband Rick Stanley that pays tribute to some of her earliest musical influences; Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, Merle Haggard, Bonnie Owens and Carter Stanley. Bryan Sutton co-produced the track and Tom T. and Dixie Hall were kind enough to let them shoot the video on their property.

BIRTHDAYS

Sept 1: the late Conway Twitty (1933; died June 5, 1993 (aged 59)), the late Boxcar Willie - (1931; died April 12, 1999 (aged 67)) 

Sept 2: Paul Deakin (Mavericks) (1959)

Sept 3: Hank Thompson (1925; died November 6, 2007 (aged 82)), the late Tompall Glaser (1933; died: August 13, 2013)

Sept 6: Buddy Miller (1952), Mark Chesnutt (1963), David Alan Coe (1939), the late Mel McDaniel (1942; died March 31, 2011 (aged 68)), the late Buddy Holly (1936; died February 3, 1959 (aged 22)) , Michelle Poe (Burns & Roe)

Sept 7: Angela Kaset, Tim McKay