Album Review – Melissa Carper’s “A Very Carper Christmas”
13 Comments
What a genius idea to have Melissa Carper make a Christmas album, and not just one the reprises the old great standards, but with mostly original songs, in that vintage sound and style she’s known for.
Crystal Gayle Invited to Be The Newest Member of the Grand Ole Opry
23 Comments
Crystal Gayle will be the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry. This is the news out of Tuesday night’s (11-15) Opry presentation where Carrie Underwood surprised the crowd by walking out and inviting Gayle to the legendary country music institution while Gayle was performing her signature song, “Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue.”
Holly Dunn Wasn’t Happy About Her ‘Total Expunging’ from the Grand Ole Opry (RIP)
32 Comments
Another day, and another unfortunate passing in the country music community. On Tuesday morning (11-15) it was announced that Warner Bros. recording artist and once marquee Grand Ole Opry performer Holly Dunn has died. Dunn had announced earlier this year that she was diagnosed with ovarian Cancer. She was 59-years-old.
Album Review – Ronnie Dunn’s “Tattooed Heart”
38 Comments
Ronnie Dunn has the voice and the name to where if he wanted to transition into a legacy act or do like Tim McGraw and make the best of the opening up of the format to better songs, he could really do some damage. But he has to really commit to it. His days of #1 hits and CMA Awards are unfortunately in the past.
Beyond The Font Size, Stagecoach 2017 Offers Opportunity to the Overlooked
34 Comments
Every year the release of the lineup for the Stagecoach Festival in Indio, California is a good case study into who to watch for on the rise in country music. Similarly, every year a ruckus is made by traditional and independent country fans about how certain names are assigned a larger font than others in what seems like a backwards system.
Waylon’s Widow Jessi Colter to Release Memoir “An Outlaw and a Lady”
26 Comments
For those who can’t get enough info about legendary country music Outlaw Waylon Jennings and the wild and influential life he lived, you’re about to get one of the most up close and personal accounts of Hoss that’s possible to put in print, while also getting to know the lady who stood by his side in sickness and health.
Song Review – Aaron Watson’s “Outta Style”
14 Comments
What’s going “outta style” is Bro-Country and songs that chase trends, while traditional country has once again proved to be the timeless influence in country music that always comes back to the forefront. This should bode well for an artist like Aaron Watson if he sticks to what he does best.
Piano Legend Leon Russell Has Passed Away
18 Comments
From country to rock, from the studio to the stage, from collaborations with Willie Nelson, Eric Clapton, and Frank Sinatra, Leon Russell was popular music’s piano man for a generation. And now he has joined the list of music legends who took their final breath in 2016.
Album Review – Chris Stalcup & The Grange’s “Downhearted Fools”
12 Comments
Full of true-to-life stories run through a gritty filter, ‘Downhearted Fools’ is Chris Stalcup singing about what he finds right smack dab under his nose—the adversities and self-doubts that smack him in the face like every rising sun so rudely blasting through tattered shades, reminding one of the heartbreaks and sordid affairs of the night before.
How Many of These Country Music Veterans Can You Name?
29 Comments
So many of country music’s legendary artists also spent time earlier in their lives serving the country in one capacity or another. And on Veteran’s Day as we pay tribute to ALL the men and women who served in the military and put themselves in harm’s way, let’s have some fun by looking back to see how many of these country legends we can pick out by their pictures.
Jamey Johnson On New Music: “I’d Rather Not Get Into That Right Now.”
26 Comments
If you’re waiting for new music from Jamey Johnson, you best not hold your breath. This is what little can be gleaned from the reception a recent interviewer found when talking to Jamey Johnson on the subject, and receiving the answer “I’d rather not get into that right now.”
Leonard Cohen Could Have Been a Country Star (RIP)
26 Comments
As if mother universe hasn’t had a dandy old time over the last few days running all of us stuck on the mortal coil through the mother of all emotional gauntlets, now we’re being asked to field the devastating news that Canadian songwriter, performer, poet, and novelist Leonard Cohen has passed away this Thursday (11-10) at the age of 82.
Of Life & Limb: Why The Savannah Welch Story Feels Beyond Comprehension
5 Comments
Amputations are things we’re only used to hear about happening in war zones, not during lazy afternoons at the Wimberley Farmers Market. The news was so shocking, with the thought of this musician and a mother that has brought so much light and vitality to people being encumbered now for the rest of her life feels so unjust. Not Savannah. Anyone but Savannah.
