The Dixie Chicks Are Officially Back – Announce Major North American Tour
Hey, so what does everybody think about what the Dixie Chicks said about Dubya?
Just kidding, just kidding. There’s nothing more nauseating than watching country fans expose their ingrained political neuroses as they get all hot and bothered about something that happened nearly 13 years ago and should have amounted to a popcorn fart to be begin with.
“Screw that Trig, freedom of speech doesn’t mean freedom from speech. They got what they deserved!”
Yeah whatever. Either you like the music, or you don’t. Go see it, or stay home. It is a bit ironic the Dixie Chicks decided to launch their big comeback in the midst of a Presidential campaign when everyone’s blood is already boiling over with self-manufactured political crises meant to pit American vs. American to keep as much money flowing into the political process as possible. Music is supposed to be a respite from all that crap, right?
Besides, from the country music perspective, we need female talent. The dissolving of the Dixie Chicks is one of the reasons the huge gender gap in country opened up.
So here’s some North American dates the Dixie Chicks just announced to go along with some European dates announced previously. They’re calling it the “DCXMMXVI” tour. I guess that means the Dixie Chicks are officially back. So be joyous, or dress up three old Cabbage Patch dolls like them and burn them in your driveway in effigy while you blare Toby Keith like it’s still 2002. Just keep my comments section clean of your crap, mkay?
READ: Destroying The Dixie Chicks Ten Years After
– – – – – – – – – – –
TOUR DATES
Sat, Apr 16 – Lotto Arena – Antwerp, BE
Sun, Apr 17 – Hallenstadion – Zurich, CH
Tue, Apr 19 – Heineken Music Hall – Amsterdam, NL
Wed, Apr 20 – Heineken Music Hall – Amsterdam, NL
Fri, Apr 22 – Forum Horsens Outdoor – Horsens, DK
Sun, Apr 24 – Oslo Spektrum – Oslo, NO
Mon, Apr 25 – Globe Arena – Stockholm, SE
Wed, Apr 27 – Arena – Malmo, Sw
Fri, Apr 29 – Barclaycard Arena – Birmingham, GB
Sat, Apr 30 – Manchester Arena – Manchester, GB
Sun, May 01 – O2 Arena – London, GB
Tue, May 03 – SSE Hydro – Glasgow, GB
Wed, May 04 – 3Arena – Dublin, IE
Wed, Jun 01 – Riverbend Music Center – Cincinnati, OH
Fri, Jun 03 – Blossom Music Center – Cleveland, OH
Sat, Jun 04 – DTE Energy Music Theatre – Detroit, MI
Sun, Jun 05 – Hollywood Casino Amphitheater – Chicago, IL
Wed, Jun 08 – P.N.C. Bank Arts Center – Holmdel, NJ
Fri, Jun 10 – First Niagara Pavilion – Pittsburgh, PA
Sat, Jun 11 – Saratoga Performing Arts Center – Saratoga Springs, NY
Mon, Jun 13 – Madison Square Garden – New York City, NY
Tue, Jun 14 – Xfinity Center – Boston, MA
Thu, Jun 16 – Darling’s Waterfront Pavilion – Bangor, ME
Fri, Jun 17 – The Xfinity Theater – Hartford, CT
Sat, Jun 18 – BB&T Pavilion – Camden, NJ
Tue, Jun 21 – Molson Canadian Amphitheatre – Toronto, ON
Fri, Jun 24 – Hershey Park – Hershey, PA
Sat, Jun 25 – Jiffy Lube Live – Bristow, VA
Thu, Jul 07 – Rogers Arena – Vancouver, BC
Fri, Jul 08 – White River Amphitheatre – Seattle, WA
Sat, Jul 09 – Sunlight Supply Amphitheater – Portland, OR
Tue, Jul 12 – Shoreline Amphitheater – Mountain View, CA
Wed, Jul 13 – Toyota Amphitheater – Sacramento, CA
Fri, Jul 15 – Sleep Train Amphitheater – San Diego, CA
Sat, Jul 16 – Las Vegas Arena – Las Vegas, NV
Sun, Jul 17 – Ak-Chin Pavilion – Phoenix, AZ
Wed, Jul 20 – Irvine Meadows Amphitheater – Irvine, CA
Fri, Aug 05 – Gexa Energy Paviliion – Dallas, TX
Sat, Aug 06 – Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion – Houston, TX
Sun, Aug 07 – Austin360 Amphitheatre – Austin, TX
Wed, Aug 10 – Farm Bureau Live – Virginia Beach, VA
Fri, Aug 12 – Walnut Creek Amphitheatre – Raleigh, NC
Sat, Aug 13 – PNC Music Pavilion – Charlotte, NC
Sun, Aug 14 – Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park – Alpharetta, GA
Wed, Aug 17 – Bridgestone Arena – Nashville, TN
Fri, Aug 19 – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheater – Tampa, FL
Sat, Aug 20 – Perfect Vodka Amphitheater – West Palm Beach, FL
Wed, Aug 24 – Hollywood Casino Amphitheater – St. Louis, MO
Thu, Aug 25 – Klipsch Music Center – Indianapolis, IN
Sat, Aug 27 – Minnesota State Fair – Minneapolis, MN
Tue, Aug 30 – Sprint Center – Kansas City, MO
Thu, Sep 01 – Fiddler’s Green Amphitheatre – Englewood, CO
Fri, Sep 02 – USANA Amphitheatre – Salt Lake City, UT
Mon, Oct 10 – Hollywood Bowl – Los Angeles, CA
November 16, 2015 @ 9:58 am
Hell yes this is great news and I couldn’t agree more with your thoughts on how they were treated by the country music community (fans, radio, etc).
I didn’t appreciate the Chicks when they were popular, but have come to really like their music and sound. Natalie Maines has an awesome voice. I’m looking forward to some new material from them as well. Great news.
November 16, 2015 @ 9:59 am
I see far the most part their tour locations are mainly liberal areas. I have a chicken house they could play in located in Oklahoma. Chicks in the Chicken House tour. Likely to be plenty of room for the “crowd”.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:21 pm
Would we have acted differently if we had known the quagmire that these warrior actions caused? Hell, it has turned into an even bigger debacle than was Vietnam. But we do need to go after ISIS before they cause more damage like they just did in Paris.
November 16, 2015 @ 9:59 am
Best news I’ve heard all day. I love their music. Come hell or high water, I’m going to the Nashville show.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:04 am
“There”™s nothing more nauseating than watching country fans expose their ingrained political neuroses as they get all hot and bothered about something that happened nearly 13 years ago and should have amounted to a popcorn fart to be begin with.”
Easy for me to agree with ( as a Canadian ) and certainly NO disrespect meant – but yeah ….no kidding .
Loved this band …loved the songs , the sound ,the themes , the arrangements and the sheer talent .
I HOPE this isn’t just a ‘ greatest hits ” tour ( a la Shania milking the same ol tunes for over 20 years at Vegas and on the road now….B-O-R-I-N-G .) Tiime for some new material .
I think Maddie and Tae are direct descendants of the Chicks in their attitude , vibe , fun-loving yet serious approach to making good COUNTRY music and respecting tradition in writing and arranging a record and as such are one of my absolute favorite new acts .
Long Live the Dixie Chicks . I ‘m looking forward to some GREAT new material from them .
November 16, 2015 @ 11:55 am
Maddie and Tae’s “attitude” is a farce perpetrated by the Country Music Templars at Big Machine.
They made their name calling out bro-country, then said they loved it.
Then they said of Tweedle-Dee in FGL “he’s a dude. he just doesn’t get it.”
Natalie Maines said Toby Keith made all of Country Music look dumb. and the FGL guys make Country Music look worse than he ever did, so why aren’t Maddie and Tae bringing that up?
Because they’re fake. It’s all a ruse by Big Machine to plant a worm in our wallets and steal our money.
Remember these two girls did exactly the same thing that so many of the bros do, they walked into Scott Borchetta’s office and he made them a hit. They’re no different than Cole Swindell. (for the hundredth time)
The Country Music Templars outwitted the traditionalists with Maddie and Tae, and they’re laughing at us because we fell for this sham. They still hold the power, and they still have a chokehold on our genre, our traditions and our heritage.
If you buy music by Maddie and Tae you are lining the coffers of the guy who created Thomas Rhett and Brett Elderidge, and he’s not going to use that money to put Country Music back on the radio.
November 16, 2015 @ 12:18 pm
So first Ward Thomas had to bear the burdens of all of Maddie & Tae’s sins. Now the Dixie Chicks? Jeez, they’re just a girl duo that had a hit song, no Satan incarnate.
And by the way, Brett Eldredge is on Atlantic Nashville, which means Scott Borchetta has nothing to do with him. He does have something to do with NASH Icon, which intends to put “country music back on the radio” (though with mixed results so far).
November 16, 2015 @ 12:22 pm
It’s not about “sins” it’s about honesty in marketing.
Thanks for clearing up the Eldredge thing. I just googled “big machine artists” and his name was on the list.
And the Dixie Chicks aren’t bearing anybody’s sins, in fact I specifically complemented Natalie Maines (something I’m not apt to do) for speaking her mind about Toby Keith, even if I disagree with her.
My comment was more of a wish that Maddie and Tae would attack these bros the way Natalie Maines attacked Toby Keith.
November 16, 2015 @ 2:21 pm
“My comment was more of a wish that Maddie and Tae would attack these bros the way Natalie Maines attacked Toby Keith.”
Fuzzy ….with respect I think Maddie and Tae’s approach had way more impact WITHOUT alienating them from either camp . Smart ,diplomatic, effective , successful commercially and HONEST….what a concept !
November 16, 2015 @ 1:13 pm
NASH Icon is the closest thing to a traditional station in Atlanta, and they play a pretty brutal amount of FGL.
Thank God they’ve got two hip hop stations that play 80s cuts.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:26 pm
I am a writer of song lyrics, many of which are aimed at more traditional country. If any of you know anyone who might be interested in possibly recording some of them, you can reply here as I will be checking in at various times. For starters you can try Googling “Jeannie (I Didn’t Mean to Hurt You)”.
November 16, 2015 @ 7:36 pm
Hey Brian, I don’t think i saw the song you were referencing, but I’m actually looking for some traditional country songs, I’d love to check them out.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:50 pm
I’ll just tell you that you would be wrong on how and where they were discovered as far as maddie and tae is concerned. My friend has their playlist from the first showcase they did for the label.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:07 am
WOOOOOO!!!
Hell fucking yes.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:14 am
They are talented and put on great shows my spouse is a mega fan so no doubt we’ll be going to the Dallas date. The bottom line to me was freedom of speech Natilie said what she was free to say. The market place reacted the way it was free to do. That’s freedom 101. I suspect today’s marketplace will respond positively to their return.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:27 pm
Recall that Hank Williams wasn’t that well liked in his day, and was even fired from the Grand Ol’ Opry. Yet he eventually became a patron saint of country music.
November 16, 2015 @ 9:21 pm
I wouldn’t go as far as to say Hank Williams was unliked. I think he was very well liked in his day. He was fired from the Opry though.
November 16, 2015 @ 9:58 pm
Hank Williams had 35 singles that hit the Top 10, including 11 #1 singles. He was certainly more well-liked that anyone else in country music at the time.
November 17, 2015 @ 12:19 am
Being fired from the Opry does not suggest that someone is unliked.
It could be that an artist is so big that he and his manager want to go out and make their own deals–and not obey whatever rules the Opry imposes. In those days, the Opry was very dictatorial–like baseball owners when they had the reserve clause.
November 17, 2015 @ 9:00 am
If your analogy is correct it is similar with what occurred with the Notre Dame football team back in their heyday. They were in Big Ten country but were so popular that they became independent. I believe they still are to this day.
March 28, 2017 @ 8:42 am
Notre Dame was blackballed from the Big 10 because of anti-Catholic bigotry and slander.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:15 am
This news, while not totally unexpected, came as a most welcome surprise and made my day (and week) this morning! I hope the tour is a HUGE success and I plan on doing my part to make that happen.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:16 am
Woohoo! I know what I’m doing on August 7, 2016! It’s long overdue!
November 16, 2015 @ 10:51 am
The Dixie Chicks are headlining all those dates??
Madison Square Garden!– Is that really the main arena (not the side theater)?
Are they really that big?
November 16, 2015 @ 11:15 am
I’m seeing a lot of snarky comments from folks saying they don’t think anyone will be at these shows. Trust me, the draw for the Dixie Chicks will be huge. I’m not going to predict sell outs for all the dates, but I do expect some of them to sell out, and all the venues to be full. Otherwise, promoters would have never put the dates on the schedule. There is a lot of pent up demand for the Dixie Chicks, and you can see that in how this tour announcement is basically dominating the country music news this morning.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:38 am
This tour is gonna be huge. Idk what people are talking about. And the timing of this tour is significant.
November 16, 2015 @ 12:19 pm
It’s because they don’t like them personally, and everyone in their Facebook feed is bitching about it, so they think nobody must like them and this tour is doomed.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:29 pm
But don’t you suppose that much of the audience will be made up of those who are tired of the political system being so skewed in favor of the top few percent? They never made up that much of the country music audience anyway, and it was spawned in the rural countryside of America, hence the name country. Might there be a lot of Bernie Sanders supporters in their audience?
November 16, 2015 @ 6:53 pm
I saw them there on their last 2 tours, they were big, but that was quite a while ago.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:57 am
I thought the little one hated country music and was going to take the world by storm by becoming a rock star,because that had always been her musical preference..What happened to that?
November 16, 2015 @ 12:22 pm
Natalie Maines said “I just didn”™t like how blatant country music was. Nothing seemed poetic or subtle.”
I agree with that if she’s talking about today’s mainstream pop country. As I said at the time, Maines needed to offer more distinction to her comments, lest people think she’s talking about the music folks like her father Lloyd has been making for years.
https://savingcountrymusic.com/no-distinction-in-natalie-maines-anti-country-comments
November 16, 2015 @ 1:08 pm
Another problem is, around the time Maines released “Mother”, she admitted she wasn’t even going out of her way listening to country music in either the mainstream or beyond it (though she did watch one country music awards show and admitted she didn’t know who Aldean was but said was anonymous).
So she has been beset by the same cognitive dissidence as Tom Petty, for instance, who has claimed country music today is bad rock with a fiddle, but also lacks distinction.
I do hope Natalie Maines at least watched the CMAs a week and a half ago, as I believe she would praise someone like Chris Stapleton as living up to the poetic and subtle characteristics. There has to be a sure shot she is at the very least aware of the names Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves and Ashley Monroe as well, who could easily inspire her to re-evaluate the overall state of country music beyond just radio…………..and thus come around to producing country music again.
November 16, 2015 @ 3:19 pm
The same lack of distinction Natalie Maines made is the same lazy approach a lot of Chris Stapleton naysayers are taking. They’ve become so morose over the mainstream, they discount it entirely without becoming informed. If the Dixie Chicks do release new music, they may need some support from the mainstream for it to be successful. They may not receive it after the bad blood Maines stirred.
November 16, 2015 @ 5:25 pm
Well, their last album was pretty successful (commercially) without much help from the country mainstream, to say the least.
November 16, 2015 @ 7:19 pm
Yeah, I don’t know if the Dixie Chicks are planning on recording new material or not, but I think the time is right for their return, both from a commercial and an artistic perspective.
First of all, it seems to me that they would be right in time to join the rising tide of independent-minded country artists currently making a splash outside the context of country radio. The fact is that they wouldn’t need to re-engage their battle with the country radio industry at this point, they could easily bypass radio entirely. And if folks like Aaron Watson can garner number one country albums in the current landscape, it ought to be a cakewalk for The Dixie Chicks.
Artistically and sonically, it seems like The Chicks’ style of music should be in fashion at the moment. They fit right in with the current wave of substantive female country acts like Brandy, Kacey, Ashley, Maddie and Tae, The Pistol Annies, etcetera, and their previous sound is right in line with a lot of the Texas country stuff as well. I know they also have a lot of supporters in the Americana community.
Plus, there is just a real hunger right now for genuine country music, as well as for musianship and authenticity in general. And, you know, the whole 90’s revival is pretty pervasive in every aspect of pop culture these days.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:19 pm
Not seeing this 90s revival, in either country or pop.
The closest that country ever got to the 90s style was in the immediate pre-bro era, with acts like David Nail.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:32 pm
I’m sure the same as many before them, including Waylon’s kid Shooter, who was part of a rock band before his old man passed. And same with many former rockers who became big in country, most notably Conway Twitty and Kenny O’Dell. And the list of pop performers who also did country goes on and on–Ray Charles, Tom Jones, Linda Ronstadt, Norah Jones–just to name four. And we also can’t leave out Ringo Starr, who once made an entire country album.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:02 am
Happy to see them back, too. What always bugged me about Country radio’s reaction to the Dixie Chick was
1. We are not going to play there new stuff because of what they said about our president.
2. We will still play songs off “Fly” and “Wide Open Spaces” every hour because they have a lot of fans.
What?
I love that I can listen to country music now and not have to turn on my radio.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:15 am
Great. Just what we always needed. Unoriginal musicians who rehash someone else’s ideas and turn them into hits.
See also: Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt, and Steve Jobs.
Seriously, these three had a lot of talent, and almost ZERO new ideas. It was like the Judds 2.0, and that meant that a lot of it was bland, easy listening fare.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:33 am
Normally agree with ya, Fuzzy, but not on this one. Saw them in Knoxville right after the shit storm. Absolutely awesome show. My late wife, while not a huge country fan, thought it one of the best concerts she had attended, 2nd only to The Boss. Still love their stuff, other than their last blatantly pop cd. Might try to make a show, or two.
November 16, 2015 @ 12:48 pm
They received the secular martyr label. And anyone with the secular martyr title was a brilliant genius who died too soon and knew more than the rest of us.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:35 pm
I believe you are referring to Steve Jobs. Or is it someone else?
November 17, 2015 @ 8:26 am
Steve Jobs is a lie.
Steve Jobs didn’t save Apple, John Sculley did. John Sculley was the CEO at Apple when the Ipod launched, AND he was the CEO when Apple announced their first stock dividends. While Apple was booming as a company under Sculley, Steve Jobs was working on the NeXT Computer that flopped miserably.
November 17, 2015 @ 8:53 am
But then somehow Steve Jobs became to computers what Henry Ford was to automobiles.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:04 pm
I don’t know what your standards for “new ideas” are, but I would rank them as probably the best (combining quality and impact) country artists of the late 90s. They released a continuous string of great singles (many of which I own), including “Wide Open Spaces”, “You Were Mine”, “Without You”, “There’s Your Trouble”, and “Tonight The Heartache’s On Me”.
To top it all off, “Traveling Soldier” was one of the best war songs of all time. Gives me shivers every time I hear it.
November 17, 2015 @ 1:01 am
“Travelin’ Soldier” is a song written by Bruce Robison, Charlie Robison’s brother. Charlie being Emily Robison’s then-husband (when the Dixie Chicks recorded it.) Just in case you or others didn’t know that. So it wasn’t their idea anyway.
November 17, 2015 @ 1:52 am
I know that.
Throughout the history of country music, most of the great vocalists never took part in the writing of most of their songs. Holding the Dixie Chicks to a higher standard does not make sense.
November 17, 2015 @ 8:21 am
On the “New Ideas” thing: It just sounds like a lot of other music made by other female performers.
And on top of that, it strikes me as very “un-exciting.” With a few exceptions, most Dixie Chicks music is just kind of easy, smooth, it doesn’t really “go” anywhere musically, it just meanders…
As a kid I remember absolutely LOVING “Traveling Soldier.”
November 17, 2015 @ 9:33 am
How many male artists, even the good ones, present “new ideas?” It seems like you just don’t like listening to music that comes from a female point of view, because clearly women are shallow and immature.
November 17, 2015 @ 12:32 pm
On the contrary, but follow my reasoning:
Most of music’s innovations have been made by men. Patsy, Loretta, and Kitty Wells are the most notable exceptions to this rule.
And let’s just look at style:
Diana Krall is unique, as are Billie Holiday, Edie Brickell and Mairead Carlin. By comparison, Natalie Maines is just a discount Wynonna Judd.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:16 am
I am really glad that Dixie Chicks are coming back. They make really good country music and we need them back to take our country music back right now!
November 16, 2015 @ 11:17 am
Good news!
I’ve always wondered how much Sony had to do with the blow up with the W thing? Artists say stupid shit all the time. But, this happened right after lawsuits filed from both sides over monies and control. ?
November 16, 2015 @ 4:59 pm
I think it had something to do with it. Used to be a very knowledgable poster on country weekly when they used to have a forum. Looked for it but had a political side to it also. It may have been tony Blair but I can’t recall exactly. I’ve tried searching for it. The statements didn’t come out until like 4 days later, when the associated press picked it up. Perhaps tony or someone else was trying to make a name for themselves and an edge in the political scene.
If you remember the reason they sued their label was because of a poor contract. Natalie did an interview with Barbra Walters and she questioned if she was rich. Natalie stated she didn’t have a million in the bank. That’s after both albums went diamond. Similar to Garth they had to sell a lot of albums to make money on the third. Seemed so sure since the first two sis so well, but then the statements and it didn’t happen.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:21 am
Love this band. Kinda funny that one of the few mainstream country artists to rebel against authority gets ostracized by the genre for doing so. This tour will do huge business, and it is well deserved. If anything, this band is underrated.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:36 pm
It just proves that the practice of blacklisting didn’t die with Joe McCarthy. He probably was rolling over in his grave at the time.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:31 am
Hey, if we can forgive France – remember Fredom Fries??? – and color our FB profile pics with the colors of their flag, then we can certainly feel not guilty about attending a Dixie Chicks concert!
November 16, 2015 @ 11:43 am
Are they working a package tour? Some of these venues are pretty huge for a band that has been out of the spotlight a decade or more and just got back together.
November 16, 2015 @ 12:24 pm
Being out of the spotlight can create pent up demand. See: Garth Brooks. There will be plenty of folks at these shows.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:43 am
I like me some Dixie Chicks. Hope they’re still not ready to make nice.
November 16, 2015 @ 11:59 am
Now that Toby Keith is drunk enough , the Chicks are back. I’m waiting for good music.
November 16, 2015 @ 12:36 pm
I wouldn’t walk across the street to see them, but they are better than 99% of what passes for country music today.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:37 pm
Check out some of the new traditionalists on YouTube. Kevin Moon, Jade Jack and Janice Maynard, just to name three. You could probably ferret out some more from there.
November 16, 2015 @ 12:46 pm
I guess a possible need for money outweighs her dislike for the country genre and its listeners.
Whatever, they are back and now the whole, overblown whine fest can cease.
November 16, 2015 @ 1:04 pm
I don’t think it will cease. I think it will ramp up…
November 16, 2015 @ 4:04 pm
You are correct. I should have written “should” instead of “can”, because Martyr Maines won’t let it go.
November 16, 2015 @ 12:56 pm
Absence makes the heart grow fonder, especially in the context of Tomatogate and the repeated admission among country music fans that their back catalog is demonstrably more traditionally country than almost anything impacting the dial as of late.
Count me among those who embrace their return with open arms and say: “Welcome back home!” =)
By the way the tour dates are scheduled well in advance, I think that’s a solid sign Natalie Maines has finally felt inspired again as a recording artist and new material is in the pipeline. I think they know better than anyone it wouldn’t make sense going through all the trouble organizing a massive tour if they didn’t have something more to prove.
November 16, 2015 @ 1:05 pm
The only way I’d go is if they were touring on a new album. I’ve seen too many tours not supporting new music that seemed stale or uninspired – like the artist was just going through the motions. Some of those have been farewell tours (Alabama, Brooks & Dunn), but more recently a My Morning Jacket concert that wasn’t ancored by a new album – forgettable. It’s like the artist need the new music to feel inspired or motivated.
November 16, 2015 @ 1:11 pm
On the other hand, I’ve never seen them live, so I’m pumped no matter what.
Neutral Milk Hotel weren’t promoting new music, but seeing them at the Tabernacle is one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to.
November 16, 2015 @ 1:11 pm
The only other reason to go through all the trouble organizing a massive tour after a long hiatus, is if it’s a “farewell tour”.
And there’s no reason to believe this is a farewell tour. They or their PR team would have straight-up called it that if it were the case.
November 16, 2015 @ 1:54 pm
Glad to see this. Probably a large turnout at these shows considering the way radio has totally shunned them, maybe even a few sell-out shows.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:40 pm
But even the late, legendary George Jones was shunned by radio during his twilight years although he put out some very critically acclaimed music. He was considered “too country”. Too country for country radio? Isn’t that like a baseball player being told he can’t play because he is too good a hitter?
November 16, 2015 @ 2:21 pm
Only an idiot would think they will have problems selling tickets in Liberal America for this tour. (I won’t be there.) This is not 2000-2007. It’s 2015….America is a different place now. (unfortunately)
November 16, 2015 @ 9:54 pm
Interesting that you mention 2000-2007. Hmm, I wonder what two major events transpired in the mid-to-late 00s that made America more liberal…
November 16, 2015 @ 3:08 pm
I will start by saying I’ve always liked the Dixie Chicks music. I’ve also always liked Toby Keith’s music. Natalie got her feelings hurt all those years ago and decided that her ego was more important than keeping herself, her band, and a whole lot of other people employed. She could have sucked it up and swallowed her pride but she didn’t. Because of it a lot of people that worked for Dixie Chicks Inc. lost their jobs. Their timing couldn’t be worse though since it’s looking a lot like 911 right now so we will see if she has anything to say because it’s the democrats (Dianne Feinstein among others) who are beating the war drum now. My guess is they saw Garth Brooks bring home a dump truck full of money and thought they could do the same. I hope they do because I’m always in favor of musical acts making money.
November 16, 2015 @ 3:17 pm
I didn’t freak out about what they said about W. Thought it was lame but no huge deal.
It was how they tried to make themselves into martyrs that bugged the hell outta me. They even made a documentary about how oppressed they were. The Dixie Chicks, especially Maines have done just as much to keep this going as any red state yokel.
The sisters have been trying to get the band going for years. It was Maines and her ego that choose to move to Brentwood so she could be surrounded by people who think exactly like her. Why should anyone think that this isn’t just a cash grab on her part?
November 16, 2015 @ 4:44 pm
The Chicks were simply the Weavers of our time. This legendary folk music act was similarly shunned in the early 1950s in the midst of the Joe McCarthy-led blacklisting frenzy. One of their members was the recently deceased Pete Seeger, who went on to do OK as a solo artist. Any of those three probably could have easily done the same, but the main point is that this sort of reaction is nothing new and proves that the practice of blacklisting isn’t dead, and it happens to ordinary mainstream folks as well.
November 17, 2015 @ 6:55 am
The problem with your “analysis” is that McCarthy has since been proven to have been 100% correct. It is a hard pill to swallow for the Left, or even for moderates like my parents, who were raised to believe that McCarthy was a monster. In fact, he was a hero and patriot. The only victim of McCarthyism was McCarthy himself.
Anyway, the Dixie Chicks were not “blacklisted.” Fans/consumers made a decision to not buy their concert tickets or albums.
November 18, 2015 @ 4:08 pm
Do you seriously believe that Senator McCarthy was a hero? I generally enjoy your musical commentary (at least when you’re not being overly negative), but you have got some strange beliefs, RD.
November 18, 2015 @ 6:54 pm
Yes.
November 18, 2015 @ 7:04 pm
Well said. You’re right. The sisters tried to move beyond it but Nat wouldn’t have it.
November 16, 2015 @ 3:29 pm
Sadly for Shawn Bailey, America has moved forward and left you Tories behind.
I still have no respect for the country establishment. Any “artist” who jumped on the bandwagon to assault the Chicks are the ones I would NEVER give a second of time nor a cent of my money to.
November 16, 2015 @ 4:08 pm
Cool. Unfortunately, even if country radio would touch them, they would be too country for radio. It is really unfortunate what happened to them with all the TK drama. I mean even if I hate the current president, I would never say it publicly or be ashamed of being from the same state as him. So, some of the backlash has merit, IMO. Man I love their cut of “landslide” and “wide open spaces” is awesome.
November 16, 2015 @ 5:09 pm
Why is it every time a big tour gets announced it’s like the shows not for 8 mouths but tickets are on sale tomorrow so you better have money ready. I was really looking forward seeing them live but to pay $30 for their Fan Club to get presale code just to have a shot at good seats is stupid. I’m tired of ticket sales being geared towards the secondary market.
November 16, 2015 @ 6:38 pm
The Dixie Chicks were a damn good country band, and having them active again will be a boon to the genre from a musical perspective. That’s all that really needs to be said about this, in my opinion.
As other commenters have previously mentioned, I’m one of those who didn’t come to fully appreciate the Dixie Chicks’ music until after the peak of their popularity. (It was actually after they had disbanded, in my case.) I ultimately gave the Chicks’ music a second listen due this site as well as a couple other country music blogs which ranked the Home album as one of the best of the 2000’s. I also remember Trigger writing something in a previous article about how The Dixie Chicks were pushing popular country music in a more rootsy, acoustic direction around the turn of the turn of the millennium. Man, I wish that angle had stuck. I’m trying to imagine one of FGL, Thomas Rhett, or Kelsea Ballerini actually playing mandolin or fiddle leads. It’s not gonna happen.
All I’m gonna say about the political stuff is that seems unfortunate that all the controversy and extra curricular crap has overshadowed the actual music, which is what should really be important. Hopefully that will eventually change.
November 16, 2015 @ 10:09 pm
I have this amazing idea!!! If you don’t care for the Dixie Chicks, don’t go to their concerts. See? Problem solved.
November 17, 2015 @ 6:38 am
I’ll go see them if I can. I don’t know if their politics align with mine, because I don’t care enough to find out. I’ve never agreed with the notion that every artist I see is obliged to have the “correct” politics for me to enjoy their show.
November 17, 2015 @ 8:57 am
If 97.1 HANK FM was having a ticket giveaway I would at least call in.
But not if they were lawn seats at Klipsch.
November 17, 2015 @ 11:50 am
I’m glad they are back. I have missed the voice of the Dixie Chicks for far too long. Listening to their old cd’s and wondering what might have been has become a tired game.
November 17, 2015 @ 12:11 pm
http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/11/cia-directors-documentary-911-bush-213353
The hero to the country establishment had much knowledge of the 9/11 attacks before hand.
November 20, 2015 @ 7:42 pm
Very glad to hear about the Chicks resurfacing. Lately the NASH station in NY has been playing quite a bit of Chicks music.I will admit to being a tad bit excited to hear them. Cowboy Take Me Away was on and I just love the fiddle solo at the end of it. Sweet.
December 19, 2015 @ 9:42 am
I have seen hundreds and hundreds of shows, but only five in an arena or stadium. I just don’t like that environment for live music, and had promised myself never to experience it again. I will make an exception for the Dixie Chicks. Important band, important tour. I may even go twice.
December 19, 2015 @ 9:58 am
Though there’s not a huge difference between arenas and amphitheaters, amphitheaters tend to be slightly smaller, and with better acoustics and sight lines because they’re built for music as opposed to sports.
January 24, 2016 @ 4:35 pm
Three very gifted girls who let the air between their ears allowed them to forget they were entertainers to a given fan base like all entertainers and they chose to spit in their fan bases eye which is their right but there is a cost.
March 18, 2019 @ 7:18 am
I liked Dixie Chicks music and i don’t think it was what she said about Bush that was so bad it was just where she was when she said it. When you say bad things about homeland while in other countries it sometimes don’t go over to well, but i do think it got blew out of kilter.