It seems strange to characterize George Strait’s latest record Honky Tonk Time Machine as a return to his roots. After all, this is George Strait. But nonetheless, it’s a fair accreditation to make, and a welcome conclusion to settle upon when you appreciate the authority with which George Strait can deliver a honky tonk heartbreaker.
Songwriter and Texas music wildman Jack Ingram has a new album on the way called ‘Ridin’ High … Again.’ It will be Ingram’s tenth studio record overall, and was recorded at Austin, TX’s iconic Arlyn Studios in just two days in what Ingram describes as one “forty-eight hour party.”
“We are all the same. There is no difference anywhere in the world. People are people. They laugh, cry, feel, and love, and music seems to be the common denominator that brings us all together. Music cuts through all boundaries and goes right to the soul.” — Willie Nelson
What started out to be a small and intimate alternative to Austin’s sprawling SXSW gathering every March, and that was only known initially through invite or word of mouth, has now become arguably the most important and exclusive gatherings in all of American roots music every year.
Once again Willie Nelson’s Outlaw Music Fest sponsored by Blackbird Presents will be rolling down the road, and they have just released the 10 separate lineups, dates, and locations for the 2019 season. Originally started as a one-off event in 2016, for the last two years the Outlaw Music Festival has been a touring affair.
Brandi Carlile is the big winner coming out of the 2019 Grammy Awards Premier Ceremony, where some 70+ awards are handed out ahead of the telecast version of the awards show. This makes Brandi Carlile three for three with the six nominations she is up for on the night.
With little prospect for radio play, George Strait appears to just be doing what he wants to do on Honky Tonk Time Machine, which is traveling back in time to when country was country. “I’m really excited to have some new music coming out,” shares Strait. “It’s been about two years since I’ve released a record.”
“It’s an honor to be here tonight. This is my first time ever playing the inside Bridgestone,” Sturgill Simpson said before launching into the song, making reference to his notorious busking set streamed on the internet during the 2017 CMA Awards. Then he launched into “Red Headed Rounder.”
It’s both weird that fellow Texans and country legends Willie Nelson and George Strait have never collaborated together or even performed side by side in their illustrious careers, and yet it also makes perfect sense. But it was bound to happen eventually that the two would sing together.
The nominees for the 2019 Grammy Awards were announced Friday morning (12-7), and some of the things we anticipated happening have happened. But the biggest takeaway, and surprisingly so, is Brandi Carlile earning six total nominations, including all-genre nominations for Album, Song, and Record of the Year.
Blackbird Presents is at it again planning another huge tribute for a country legend, and this one might be the biggest of them all. Often working with Willie Nelson via tributes to others, as well as his multi-city “Outlaw Fest” tours each summer, now Blackbird Presents is putting together a tribute for Willie himself.
“As far as government politics, hell no!” said original ‘Rolling Stone Country’ Senior Editor Beville Dunkerley in May of 2014, assuring readers the publication would not engage in political discourse as part of its country music coverage. Now that has all changed.
It’s very early in the process, and we don’t know if it’s just a few songs or an entire album. But the word out of Pittsburgh, PA is that Irish singing/songwriting legend Van Morrison and country music icon Willie Nelson were recently in the studio together collaborating on an upcoming project.
Encompassing over 16 hours across eight separate episodes, the film will include footage from 56 separate interviews with artists and historians, including interviews with 40 Country Music Hall of Famers, and a few artists who have passed away since film production was commenced.
The summer is winding down, but the fall and winter release cycle in country and roots music is heating up, with some of the most anticipated projects of the entire year to be released between now and when the hammer falls on 2018. To help you keep up, here’s a list of Saving Country Music’s most anticipated releases for the final portion of 2018.
As first reported by Saving Country Music weeks ago, Willie Nelson’s next record will be a tribute to Ol’ Blue Eyes himself, Frank Sinatra. Now we have confirmation and details of the new record to be called My Way that is set to be released on September 14th via Sony’s Legacy Recordings.
For the first time—at least in physical form—Willie Nelson’s earliest recordings have been compiled together and released as a proper album. Called ‘Things To Remember–The Pamper Demos,’ it contains the very first recordings of what would go on become some of Willie Nelson’s most iconic songs.
Willie Nelson’s 2018 4th of July Picnic in Austin, TX was disrupted by heavy thunderstorms that moved through the area on Wednesday, resulting in cancellations in numerous performances. Being held at the Circuit of the Americas just south of Austin proper, fans were told to take shelter at roughly 2:30 p.m.
Willie Nelson calls Frank Sinatra a “close friend,” and the two played shows together in Las Vegas, and even once recorded a PSA for NASA together. “I learned a lot about phrasing listening to Frank,” Willie says. “He didn’t worry about behind the beat or in front of the beat, or whatever – he could sing it either way…”
Announced on Wednesday (6-20), a massive tribute album dedicated to the King of the Road will be making its way to music lovers. And though tribute records come down the pike all the time and make you wonder if your time and money is worth heaping onto songs you already know, this one has a little something special in the recipe.
Remember a couple of weeks back when the 85-year-old Willie Nelson had the runs so bad he couldn’t perform in Charlotte? They’ve announced additional performers for the makeup date, and all of a sudden what was supposed to be a simple makeup performance for Willie has turned into a pretty badass show all unto itself.
Pound for pound, if you’re looking the most enjoyable record of Willie Nelson’s career, the one that captures him at his creative apex the most, the one that birthed some of his most lasting contributions to recorded music, it’s not a studio record of his at all. It’s a double live album he recorded in April of 1978 at Harrah’s Casino in Lake Tahoe.
Live promoter Blackbird Presents has rescheduled the Willie Nelson performance in Charlotte, North Carolina that was originally slotted to occur on Saturday, May 26th at the PNC Music Pavilion. Willie Nelson canceled his original performance Saturday night after suffering from a stomach bug.
Can you imagine having the #1 song on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the last six months—something Ernest Tubb, Roy Acuff, Hank Williams, George Strait, and Kenny Chesney never came close to doing—and not even knowing about the massive present-day pop country band you collaborated with to pull it off?