Silverada Returns to Austin with Streamlined Lineup
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The best live country band in the world stopped into Austin’s Radio East on Friday night (4-25) on their current “Unlit Matches” tour to regale fans in the town the band originates from.
Bob Dylan: “I Wasn’t Dissing Merle, Not the Merle I Know.”
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Bob Dylan is pretty notorious for not speaking publicly very often, either in speeches or to the press. But after being honored at a Grammy Awards’ MusiCares event a week ago, and the impending melee that resulted from the 30-minute speech in which he specifically criticized Merle Haggard and Tom T. Hall among others, Dylan was forced into another public disposition with Rolling Stone on Friday.
Song Review – Jamey Johnson’s “You Can”
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Written by Johnson and Dan Couch somewhere around 2004 or 2005, “You Can” was kept on the sidelines as Jamey’s major releases The Dollar, That Lonesome Song, and The Guitar Song came out, never making the final cut. But now that Johnson is out from under the thumb of the industry, if he wants to randomly release a single on a cold day in February, he can. Whether it suits his best interests or not.
Sturgill Simpson’s “Metamodern Sounds” Reaches 100,000 in Sales
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Tired of seeing Sturgill Simpson news? Well then tell it to stop happening. If you can fathom this, the Kentucky-born singer is currently experiencing a renewed increase in interest, even while in the more long-term perspective he continues a meteoric rise which could have big implications on the country music community at large.
Review – Blackberry Smoke’s “Holding All The Roses”
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Blackberry Smoke comes rip rearing out of Atlanta, GA with their asses on fire, delivering this power packed, rockin’, country-fried brand new offering called ‘Holding All The Roses’ that doesn’t let up, doesn’t give in, and keeps spitting out flavorful hooks, delicious riffs, and infectious grooves one after another, all adding up to one hell of a good time worthy of immediate repeat.
Brandy Clark Sees Biggest Sales Spike of All Grammy Performers
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Why do the Grammy Awards matter? Well even if you don’t win anything, the exposure as a performer is just about priceless for those that get the opportunity. Brandy Clark was up for Best Country Album for her ’12 Stories’ release, and Best New Artist, and walked away with neither. But her performance with Dwight Yoakam on her song “Hold My Hand” landed Brandy the largest single percentage gain in song sales.
2015 Country Music Hall of Fame Picks & Prognostications
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It’s about that time of year again to start considering who the Country Music Hall of Fame will include in their list of 2015 inductees. That said, this announcement seems to inch later, and later (and later) each year. Nonetheless, if you want your opinion to amount to anything, you better get it out there early in the year as the people who make the picks for the final ballots and eventually inductees are doing their homework.
Johnny Cash’s Note to June Voted Greatest Love Letter of All Time
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To get everyone geared up for the impending Valentine’s Day festivities on Saturday the 14th, the Beagle Street Insurance Company out of Great Britain commissioned a poll to see what wordsmith was worthy of being lauded by the distinction of writing the “Greatest Love Letter of All Time.” And forging ahead and beating a field of stiff competition was America’s Man in Black.
Review – Amanda Shires & Jason Isbell’s “Sea Songs”
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The music epicenters of Muscle Shoals, AL and Lubbock, TX find their native son and daughter melding their respective talent offerings into a tempest of love and emotive expressions in this two-song, surprise release called Sea Songs. Maybe as a stop gap from both halves of this super couple as we all endure through the dark moments between proper LP releases, this 2-sided single satiates the belly…
NASH TV Launches, But Is Anyone Paying Attention?
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While nobody was paying attention, the Dickey Brothers of Cumulus Media added yet another tentacle to their increasingly tentacle-rich country music venture known as NASH. NASH TV boasts videos and programs from some of NASH radio’s biggest shows. Then you can get extremely niche-like with shows such as “Picks From The Sticks” and “HickXtreme.” Cue the incidental comedy.
Vince Gill & the Time Jumpers Give Special Moment to Joe Hannigan
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“The surgery has a 95% chance it will fix it. It’s pretty heavy duty though. By the third month they gave me the heart-sinking words that I’d officially lost my hearing in my left ear. So I was one of the 5% that lose their hearing as a result of the surgery. I wanted to throw all of my guitars away. It was the most depressing time.”
The 5 Grammys & 5 Lives of John Hartford’s “Gentle On My Mind”
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In every sense, “Gentle On My Mind” has become an American standard by sharing the sentiment of a generational mood ever present in the human experience. And its 2015 Grammy is just more validation for the song’s timeless impact, and the timeless impact of the song’s writer, John Hartford.
Taylor Swift Inc. Implements Cost Saving Measures (An Essay)
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Taylor Swift right now is at that same juncture as your favorite little company that has grown so big their founding philosophy begins to flounder, and they start to alienate the same customers and principles that got them to where they are. The problem with money is that you can always have more of it, and for many, the more money they have, apparently the more they think they need.