40 Years Ago: George Jones, Merle Haggard Bail Johnny PayCheck Out of Jail
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Johnny PayCheck ended up in the pokey after an altercation. Who showed up with $50,000 to bail him out of the Hillsboro Jail on May 22nd, 1986? George Jones and Merle Haggard.
Summer Dean to Channel Golden Era Greatness on “The Biggest Life”
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Fresh off of her win as the 2023 Ameripolitan Music Awards Honky Tonk Female, the blue jean Texas honky tonk queen Summer Dean has announced a new album, and released a new single that is classic country music gold. “The Biggest Life” will arrive via Bruce Robinson’s revivalist label The Next Waltz.
Steel Guitar Player & Online Advocate Bobby Lee [b0b] Has Died
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Maybe you have heard the name before, or maybe you haven’t. Maybe you remember him from his online handle “b0b”. But whether he was behind the most beautiful and confounding musical contraption known to man, or behind a screen helping to promote that contraption to a vibrant community…
Study: More Writers = More Repetitiveness in Country. Zach Bryan is the Exception
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You would think that if you had more cooks in the kitchen, they would come up with something more creative. But that’s not the case when it comes to country music songwriting, and a new study corroborates what our ears have been telling us for years. As the amount of songwriters per track has increased…
Logan Halstead to Release Debut Album “Dark Black Coal”
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Born in Kentucky and raised in West Virginia, at just 19 years old he’s getting ready to release his debut album Dark Black Coal via Thirty Tigers. Just over two years ago Logan was featured in a now viral video singing his song “Dark Black Coal” for Radio West Virginia and the comparisons to Tyler Childers poured in.
Clay Walker Recorded Berating His Tour Bus Driver
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Country star Clay Walker has issued a statement through his publicist after audio surfaced of him heavily berating a bus driver. On Monday (3-6), Tik-Tok user “_i.am.brooke_” posted a minute-long video containing audio allegedly of Clay Walker heavily cussing his bus driver for being late and not cleaning the bus.
Turnpike Troubadours Book D.C. Show, Hank Early Talks Arena Shows
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Are the Turnpike Troubadours post hiatus truly an arena act? Down in the Ark-La-Tex, the answer has definitely been certified as “yes.” That all changes when they play Friday, May 5th at the Capitol One Arena in Washington D.C., with Old Crow Medicine Show and Lucero set to open.
How Country Beat Back Rap in Mainstream Country
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For the last dozen years or so, one of the most contentious battles within the realm of commercial country music has centered around the incursion of hip-hop influences into the genre, and specifically the use of verses that are rapped as opposed to sung, and electronic beats replacing organic drums.
Album Review – Drayton Farley’s “Twenty on High”
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With a couple of acoustic releases over the last couple of years, Alabama songwriter Drayton Farley rocketed up the depth charts of emerging talent in the Americana realm with the way his songs resonated with audiences irrespective of their stripped-down nature, and tantalized the imagination.
Gary Rossington—Last Original Member of Lynyrd Skynyrd—Has Died
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As is often the case with legacy bands, the name of Lynyrd Skynyrd will live on in live performances, and likely for years to come. But the final living piece and last original member of what most consider the premier and most defining Southern rock band has passed on.
Newest Adds to Saving Country Music’s Top 25 Current Playlist (#115)
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The Saving Country Music Top 25 Playlist is built to keep you informed on all the best songs and albums coming out right here, right now in country and roots music. It’s available on most all streaming formats, or you can just use the song, artist, and album recommendations.
Supergroup Member and Session Player Michael Rhodes Has Died
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Everybody wanted him, on their albums and on their tours. But only the lucky could get him because he was so high in demand. His name was Michael Rhodes, and he was the bass player for countless artists, sessions, and tours over a nearly 50-year span, playing on some 60 Gold and Platinum albums.
Remembering Eddy and Billy Joe Shaver’s Super Duo “Shaver”
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Billy Joe Shaver was one of the greatest, most influential, and most colorful songwriter/performers in the history of country music. There may have never been a more important performer in country music who never had a Top 40 hit. Billy Joe’s son Eddy Shaver was no slouch either.