Beloved Country Drummer Mark Laws Murdered in Home Shooting
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Tragic news out of Cumberland Gap, Tennessee as it’s been confirmed that beloved country music drummer, bandleader, producer, and studio owner Mark Laws was murdered in a domestic dispute on May 25th.
The Best Country Albums of 2015 So Far
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So we’re close enough to the half way pole in 2015 to start thinking about what the best has been so far, and to get ready for what is sure to be a pretty exciting second half of 2015 for album releases. There’s been some big surprises, a few letdowns, but overall 2015 so far has been a pretty varied season for releases.
Song Review – Randy Houser’s “We Went”
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Some bad songs make you angry that such a monstrosity would ever be released under the country banner. Some make you sad for what country music has become. This one? Randy Houser’s entry into this new R&B sexy time Bee Gees-inspired country music disco craze? This thing had me laughing out loud so hard from being so embarrassing and absurd, I had milk shooting out of my nose. And I wasn’t even drinking milk.
So Jonathan Davis From Korn is Working on Some Country Project
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Sorry syntax Nazis, I couldn’t figure out how to turn my R’s backwards, but I am definitely talking about the 90’s era “nu metal” rap rock noise band Korn, and principally their frontman, vocalist, and bagpipe player Jonathan Davis who is apparently working on a country “project” if you are to believe the brief Instagram post a few days ago.
Annual Kenny Chesney Concert Headache in Pittsburgh Shows Some Improvement
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For the last two years, the annual Kenny Chesney concert at Pittsburgh’s Heinz Field on the city’s North Shore has resulted in awe-inspiring images of the trash accumulated by tailgaters arriving early in the morning and drinking to excess before the concert even begins, and jaw-dropping tallies for the amount of arrests, citations, and paramedic activity necessary by city police and EMS personnel.
Album Review – Jamie Lin Wilson’s “Holidays & Wedding Rings”
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A hiatus in The Trishas project presented a window for Jamie to spread her wings, and that’s what she does in Holidays & Wedding Rings. Far from a songwriter who has spent her best material on past projects, or is too burdened with home and family to find time for the guitar and notepad, Wilson taps into the keenest observations and inspirations of her career.
Zac Brown on Jason Isbell: “He’s Badass. I Want His Fan Base to Grow.”
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Zac Brown covered Isbell’s “Dress Blues” on his recent release Jekyll + Hyde. Though it was fairly common back on the 70’s through the 90’s to have bigger artists cover songs from alt-country voices such as Townes Van Zandt, Guy Clark, and Lucinda Williams, the “Dress Blues” cover is one of the first examples of the newer generation of Americana artists garnering wider exposure through the vehicle of bigger stars.
Judge Rules Wayne Mills Killer Won’t Receive New Trial, But An Appeal May Move Forward
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Chris Michael Ferrell won’t receive a new trial in the shooting death of country music artist Wayne Mills. That was the decision Judge Steve Dozier of the Davidson County Criminal Court came to on Friday (5-29), despite the pleas of Ferrell’s defense attorney David Raybin. However the appeal process may be just beginning for the Ferrell defense.
Jamey Johnson’s Big Gassed Records Signs New Artist – To Release New Album
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When country music traditionalist Jamey Johnson announced he was starting his own Big Gassed record label in late 2014, he promised he wouldn’t be the only one on the roster. Part of his motivation to go independent was to release music from other artists who inspired him, and now it appears that the first full-length release from Big Gassed won’t be from Jamey, but the label’s first signee (aside from Johnson).
Starry Eyes & Honky Tonk Angels: How Women Originally Won Equality in Country Music
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The last week of May in 2015 will be one to remember in the history of country music after the comments made by industry radio consultant Keith Hill to Country Aircheck on Tuesday (5-26) stirred quite the controversy. Mr. Hill insisted that if country radio stations wanted to increase their ratings, they needed to yank female performers from the airwaves…
Why Justin Timberlake Should Make a Country Record. And Now.
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What on God’s wide creation would compel a cantankerous country music critic who normally would rear up like an infuriated grizzly bear on its hind legs whenever some washed up rocker or crumbling pop princess decides that country music is the nursing home of their career and actually call for a pop star to crossover into country?
Merle Haggard Turned Down a Highwaymen Spot / Doesn’t Know “What The F**K” is Wrong w/ Dylan
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Merle Haggard is getting ready for the release of his new album with Willie Nelson next week called Django & Jimmie, and ahead of the release he had some interesting revelations about some things in his past, and what he might have coming up in the future. Many have wondered why Merle never joined the Highwaymen, but it apparently wasn’t because they didn’t want him.
Country Radio Consultant: “If you want to make ratings in country radio, take females out.” (aka SaladGate)
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In an interview posted with Keith Hill on Tuesday (5-26) in Country Aircheck, the industry consultant not only advised country radio not to play female artists, and certainly not to play them back to back, but had the audacity to compare them to the “tomatoes” of the country music salad. “If you want to make ratings in country radio, take females out,” Keith Hill said point blank in the interview.