Current Feed Content from 2 Sep 08 10:17
BILLY RAY CYRUS SHOOTS NEW VIDEO FOR SINGLE
8/28/2008 4:03:12 PM8/28/2008 4:03 PM
Billy Ray Cyrus was recently in Tarzana, California to film the music video for his newly released single, “Somebody Said A Prayer.” The video is directed by Roman White and includes a cameo by Billy Ray’s son Trace, lead guitarist for the band Metro Station. The video will make its TV and online debut in the coming weeks. “Somebody Said A Prayer, ” written by country powerhouses Neil Thrasher and Craig Wiseman, is from Cyrus’s upcoming new CD, Back To Tennessee, which will be released later this year. To learn more about Billy Ray Cyrus visit www.billyraycyrus.com or www.myspace.com/billyraycyrus. Lyric Street Records and Walt Disney Records are a part of the Disney Music Group. The Disney Music Group is the recorded music and music publishing arm of the Walt Disney Studios.DigitalRodeo.com2008 CMA AWARDS TICKETS GO ON SALE SEPT. 19
8/26/2008 2:28:08 PM8/26/2008 2:28 PM
Prestigious Event Once Again Open to the Public NASHVILLE – “The 42nd Annual CMA Awards” will be broadcast live on Wednesday, Nov. 12 (8:00-11:00 PM/ET) on the ABC Television Network from the Sommet Center in Nashville. And for the fourth consecutive year, the public will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to attend. Tickets for the 2008 CMA Awards will be on sale to the public beginning Friday, Sept. 19, at 10:00 AM/CT and can be purchased by logging on to www.ticketmaster.com calling (615) 255-9600; or in person at the Sommet Center box office, 501 Broadway (corner of Fifth Avenue and Broadway, in Nashville). Ticket prices begin at $110 for Bronze-level seating (upper level), $327.75 for Silver-level seating (club level), and $382.50 for Gold-level seating (lower level). All prices include sales tax but exclude applicable service/handling fees. “We are thrilled to once again be able to offer our fans the opportunity to attend ‘Country Music’s Biggest Night’ in person where they can root for their favorite nominees, ” said Tammy Genovese, CMA Chief Executive Officer. “The enthusiasm of the fans mixed with the anticipation of the nominees creates an exciting evening for everyone.” CMA members will be able to purchase tickets online beginning Wednesday, Aug. 27, through the CMA membership site, my.CMAworld.com. CMA members will need their username and password to purchase CMA Awards tickets. CMA members can obtain this information at membership@CMAworld.com or 1-800-788-3045 if they have misplaced their username or password. Members needing a reminder of this information should e-mail or call 48 hours before they plan to login and purchase their tickets. “The 42nd Annual CMA Awards” is a production of the Country Music Association. Robert Deaton is the Producer. Paul Miller is the Director. The special will be shot in high definition and broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC’s selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound. Premiere Radio Networks is the official radio packager of the CMA Awards, including a stereo-radio simulcast of the gala event. American Airlines is the official airline of the 2008 CMA Awards. Chevy: The Official Ride of Country Music. Mary Kay® is the Official Beauty Sponsor of the 2008 CMA Awards.DigitalRodeo.comCMA SONGWRITERS SERIES RETURNS TO JOE’S PUB SEPT 9 WITH SPECIAL GUEST JOSH TURNER AT 9:30 PM SHOW
8/26/2008 2:25:09 PM8/26/2008 2:25 PM
NASHVILLE – The CMA Songwriters Series returns to Joe’s Pub in New York City for another intimate night of songs and storytelling on Tuesday, Sept. 9 (6:30 and 9:30 PM/ET) with special guest Josh Turner during the second show. “Hosting the Songwriters Series at Joe’s Pub the night before we announce the final nominees for the CMA Awards on ‘Good Morning America’ made perfect sense. It showcases our outstanding songwriters, and Josh, who was nominated for Male Vocalist of the Year in 2007, ” said CMA Chief Executive Officer Tammy Genovese. “The Songwriters Show will be a great leadup to what are the industry’s most anticipated announcements.” Hosted by Bob DiPiero (“Take Me As I Am” recorded by Faith Hill, “You Can’t Take the Honky Tonk Out of the Girl” recorded by Brooks & Dunn, and “Blue Clear Sky” recorded by George Strait), other participating songwriters include Gary Burr (“What Mattered Most” recorded by Ty Herndon, “I Try To Think About Elvis” recorded by Patty Loveless, and “To Be Loved By You” recorded by Wynonna) and Sam and Annie Tate (“Moments” recorded by Emerson Drive, “If You’re Going Through Hell [Before the Devil Even Knows]” recorded by Rodney Atkins, and “Somebody” recorded by Reba McEntire). MCA recording artist Turner will be the special guest for the 9:30 PM show only. Turner hit the Country Music scene in 2003 with his self-penned single “Long Black Train” which won the CMA’s Song of the Year Award in 2004. He has since become a multi-platinum selling artist, writing and recording hits including the top 5 single “Firecracker” and his no. 1 smashes “Your Man” and “Would You Go With Me.” Turner will also be a performer on the “CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock” television special airing Monday, Sept. 8 (9:00-11:00 PM/ET) on the ABC Television Network. Additional CMA Songwriters Series performances are scheduled for October 29 and 30 (6:30 and 9:30 PM/ET). Tickets for the July 9 CMA Songwriters Series at Joe’s Pub are $25 each. For information about Joe’s Pub or to order tickets, visit www.joespub.com or call (212) 967-7555 between the hours of 10:00 AM and 9:00 PM/ET. Joe’s Pub is located at 425 Lafayette St. in New York City. Official sponsors for the CMA Songwriters Series include American Airlines, ASCAP, BMI, Great American Country (GAC) and SESAC.DigitalRodeo.comTrisha Yearwood: I Survived a Plane Emergency
8/26/2008 11:17:07 AM8/26/2008 11:17 AM
By Jessica Herndon and K.C. Baker To quote one of Trisha Yearwood's hits, the country star may have been wondering, "How do I live?" during a plane ride last week. On her way home to Oklahoma from a three-day, 60-mile walk to benefit the Susan G. Komen breast cancer research fund last week, Yearwood took an unfortunate detour. While miles in the sky, passengers heard a disturbing noise. "We had been in the air for almost an hour when we heard a loud pop, " says Yearwood. What she said sounded "almost like a gunshot" was in fact the cracking of the front left window of the plane at 30, 000 feet. "The flight attendant came back and told us to remain calm, " says Yearwood. "That's when we saw the two pilots with the oxygen masks on. Hearing them breathe like Darth Vader made it a little harder to stay calm." Though the crack in the window became larger and larger, the pilots made an emergency landing in Baltimore before the break had a chance to affect control of the plane. Yearwood wasn't the only musician to make it through a plane emergency recently: Barenaked Ladies frontman Ed Robertson walked away from a plane crash in Ontario, Canada, this Sunday morning. "We never lost cabin pressure, " says Yearwood, "so we didn't have to use our oxygen masks. I can't imagine what might have happened if that window had shattered at 30, 000 feet!" Despite the drama, which continued on the ground with firetrucks and emergency crews, the singer made the best of it. During her three-hour wait for another plane she headed to Phillips Seafood at the Baltimore Harbor's Light Street Pavillion for a "fantastic" dinner. Says Yearwood: "We toasted to surviving the three-day walk – and the emergency landing!"DigitalRodeo.comGeorge Jones Applauds a Legend
8/26/2008 11:12:45 AM8/26/2008 11:12 AM
When Billy Sherrill becomes the first producer inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in October, it will cement the legacy of one of Nashville’s most significant behind-the-scenes talents, and few people will have as much firsthand appreciation for the accomplishment as George Jones.
"Billy Sherrill is a genius, " George told The Tennessean. "He knew how to put these things together. He was behind so much of my success."
Billy hired the musicians, ran the sessions and found the material for George — GAC’s Artist of the Month for August — and for many other artists, including Tammy Wynette, Tanya Tucker, Johnny Paycheck and Charlie Rich.
Billy was particularly influential in George’s classic "He Stopped Loving Her Today": He directed songwriters Bobby Braddock and Curly Putman through several re-writes until they got the sad, final version; and he prodded the Possum — who kept singing it with the wrong melody — to finally deliver one solid take. George bet Billy $100 it would be a flop; instead it became one of the most-loved songs in country music history.
Among Billy’s other production credits are such classics as "Behind Closed Doors, " "Stand By Your Man, " "Take This Job And Shove It" and Willie Nelson’s duet with Ray Charles, "Seven Spanish Angels." As smart as Billy was about production, he was also smart enough to know when it was time to hang it up.
"When you're a record producer, " he said, "and you've got a George Jones session in a couple of days and you're dreading it, then it's time to quit."
Billy produced a number of the tracks that appear on George’s just-released compilation, Burn Your Playhouse Down: The Unreleased Duets. His contributions include songs that feature Tammy, Jim Lauderdale, Shelby Lynne and Dolly Parton.DigitalRodeo.comToby Keith’s Glowing Concert Operation
8/26/2008 10:31:15 AM8/26/2008 10:31 AM
When Toby Keith launched his own record label, Show Dog Nashville, he titled his first album White Trash With Money, and his concert contracts suggest that he looks after his financial empire quite closely.
Along with the contract for a date, a concert promoter usually receives a rider — an addendum that spells out how the artist wants to be accommodated as he or she sets up to live one day on the venue’s turf. According to The San Diego Reader, Toby’s rider requires that the "opening act must match the artist’s merchandise prices" and that the venue not sell some of the extra items that get peddled at many arenas.
Toby "has his own roaming glow ring, glow rose and live rose operation, " his rider says. "No glow products of any nature or any live roses are allowed to be sold by anyone other than representatives of the artist."
If you twiddle a glow necklace at Toby’s Biggest & Baddest Tour, at least you know where your money is going.
A few of the other provisions required by country-associated stars, according to The Reader:
• Clint Black requires his band to receive skinless, boneless, non-processed chicken breasts; a loaf of whole-wheat bread; two bags of Guiltless Gourmet tortilla chips; non-fat yogurts; and two packages of fat-free cookies — preferably Snackwells Devil’s food.
• Vince Gill wants carpet in his dressing room, as well as a clothes rack, two full-length mirrors and an ironing board.
• Jimmy Buffett expects "five limosines or four 15-person passenger vans." He says his dressing room "needs to have the nicest bathroom." And he’s adamant about having 90 minutes for his soundcheck; if not, he "shall be paid full compensation without the necessity of performing."
• LeAnn Rimes asks for a vegetable and fruit tray, 10 quarts of juice, two six-packs of soda and a bowl of fresh tuna.
• Don Henley stipulates quick delivery of all messages, letters and gifts "with particular urgency provided for the delivery of messages or other items of a bizarre, threatening or otherwise inappropriate nature." He also knocks out the opportunity for promoters to curry favors with friends by introducing them to the Eagles drummer: "The presence of anyone backstage who is not involved in the performance (including friends, guests, relatives and business acquaintances of promoter) will cause artist to become extremely upset."DigitalRodeo.comVince Gill, Rodney Crowell Co-Write Hank Sr. Song
8/26/2008 8:41:00 AM8/26/2008 8:41 AM
Vince Gill and Rodney Crowell finished writing a song that Hank Williams left unfinished, then recorded it in what may prove to be an extremely historic session.
Vince and Rodney completed "I Hope You Shed A Million Tears, " one of a number of lyrics that Hank left behind when he died on New Year’s Day 1953. Bob Dylan is overseeing a project to have many of those songs finished, and Vince and Rodney took the concept the extra mile by bringing in Hank’s former steel guitarist, Don Helms, to play on the session.
"I told Rodney, 'I heard Don play the other day, and I just think it would be so authentic and great if we had him play on it, " Vince related to The Los Angeles Times. "The neat thing for me was how the spirit of it felt like the era of that music. We all gathered in a circle and played together, played live; there was no overdubbing, no fixing it in a studio."
Don passed away two weeks ago. He was the last surviving member of Hank’s original Drifting Cowboys band, which makes the recording with Vince and Rodney even more special.
"I don't have any idea if that's the last thing he ever played on, " Vince said. "It very well could be. If it was, I'll treasure it like nothing else I've ever done."
Other artists who’ve worked on the Hank Williams project include Willie Nelson, Alan Jackson, Lucinda Williams, Jack White and Norah Jones.DigitalRodeo.comLee Ann Womack Acts on Impulse
8/25/2008 11:30:45 AM8/25/2008 11:30 AM
Lee Ann Womack has done quite well in Nashville’s music business, which is not an easy feat. But the acting industry in Los Angeles can be even tougher to crack, which makes Lee Ann a bit nervous for 17-year-old daughter Aubrie, who’s got some acting ambitions.
With that in mind, Lee Ann got a little firsthand experience with the camera and the process of making movies when she was asked to act in an independent film called Noble Things.
"There were some kids in Beaumont that were making a film about a murder, and they reached out to me to play a part in it, " Lee Ann told the national radio show GAC Nights: Live From Nashville. "I’d never wanted to act, but my daughter, Aubrie, has always wanted to act, and I’ve always been scared of the whole thing because I don’t know anything about that business. This, our business, is so controlled and nice and I know everybody, and ‘I thought I’ll just do this project, and I’ll just see what it’s all about.’ And I became even more convinced that I hope she decides not to go into that field."
Tracy Byrd also had a role in the picture, which was shot in 2006. The film has a website, noblethingsmovie.com, but it does not indicate that a release date is imminent. In the meantime, Lee Ann has pegged Oct. 7 as the release date for her next album, Call Me Crazy.DigitalRodeo.comJamey Johnson Targets Waylon
8/25/2008 10:15:45 AM8/25/2008 10:15 AM
Jamey Johnson’s new album, "That Lonesome Song, " sounds very much like a Waylon Jennings album, an observation that Jamey takes as a supreme compliment.
In fact, he’s such a fan of Waylon that the new CD features two covers of songs that appeared on Waylon’s 1975 album Dreaming My Dreams: the title cut and "The Door Is Always Open." Jamey had several personal setbacks that sent him into depression before he recorded That Lonesome Song, and listening to Dreaming My Dreams helped him connect with the emotions he was feeling.
"Very inspirational album to me growin’ up, " Jamey assesses. "It’s one of the things that got me started off on the right foot. I got to hear songwriting [on that album] from guys like Cowboy Jack Clement, Allen Reynolds, Bob McDill, Dickey Lee — and not to mention Waylon Jennings. There’s a Roger Miller tune on that album. There’s so many good things about that one album in particular for me that it’s just an education, and it’s been one of my favorite albums in my whole life. Every so often, I’ll go back and listen to the whole thing, start to finish again. I wanna hear that and feel it, and every time you learn somethin' different."
Jamey is now friends with Waylon’s son, Shooter Jennings, who pays honor to his dad with the Oct. 21 release of Waylon Forever. The disc features a number of songs that Shooter and Waylon recorded in the mid-1990s, including remakes of "Ain’t Living Long Like This, " "Are You Ready For The Country" and "Lonesome, On’ry And Mean."DigitalRodeo.comDarius Rucker Fights for Hit
8/25/2008 8:03:45 AM8/25/2008 8:03 AM
Darius Rucker reached the Top 10 on the Mediabase country singles chart this week for the first time, taking a hefty jump from No. 13 to No. 8 with "Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It." single’s success is particularly rewarding for Darius because he basically called the shots on the single. When the Hootie + The Blowfish singer signed with the country division of Capitol Records, he found himself in disagreement with the label head over "Don’t Think, " and he ultimately had to take a stand over releasing it to radio.
"I said, 'Dude, this is it. This is what we want, '" Darius recalled to Dial-Global. "I said, 'It's not the best song on the record, but this is the song that could get us in the door and, you know, that's what we want.' We went round and round about it, and finally, I guess for lack of any other reason, they put it out, and it worked for us. I love that song! Somebody told me the other day, 'You know, you're gonna be playin' that song for the rest of your life.' I've been playin' 'Let Her Cry' for 22 years, and I'm okay with that. So I'll be okay with [this]."
Darius co-wrote the song with Clay Mills, who’s also found success as a songwriter on Diamond Rio’s "Beautiful Mess" and Clay Walker’s "Fall." "Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It" appears on Darius’ first country album, Learn To Live, set for release on Sept. 16.DigitalRodeo.comLady Antebellum Enjoys Its Firsts
8/21/2008 12:10:49 PM8/21/2008 12:10 PM
Lady Antebellum has had several precedents in its first year of existence: The trio released its first single, which became its first hit; released its first album; and won its first award.
The group — Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood — has found the process enormously rewarding, but they’re also aware that other artists often look back at the first year or two in their careers and find it’s nothing but a blur. As a result, they’re doing everything they can to be fully present at each juncture along the way.
"We made a pact to try and process everything that's happening as much as we can, to not take it for granted, " Hillary told The Detroit Free Press. "It seems like there's something new that happens every single day. There's never going to be another time like this in our career, and we're soaking it up as much as possible. We're meeting as many people and shaking as many hands as we can. It's about getting the music in people's hands."
Nothing is more symbolic of that than the April 15 release of their first album. The morning it went on sale, Hillary made a point of going to a 24-hour department store and watching it get loaded onto the sales rack.
"There it was, under new releases, right between James Otto and Mariah Carey, " she recalled. "I was so overcome with emotion. Not only because I had worked my whole life for this, but because of how much we'd worked since we got together. These songs were our babies. I can't tell you how overwhelming this was. I just lost it."DigitalRodeo.com
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