Tough Times in Toby Keith Land
Every year near the end of June, Forbes posts its list of the world’s highest-paid celebrities. And when it comes to the realm of country music, Toby Keith has been the perennial king of the hill in recent memory. Even as his career has declined from his high-flying heyday in the oughts, as the owner of his own Show Dog label, and as one of the original investors in Scott Borchetta’s now massive Big Machine Label Group, Toby Keith gets paid big even if his own records aren’t selling. Every time Taylor Swift and Florida Georgia Line sell a record, Toby receives a little nugget, and he would even annually top Taylor Swift when it came to the Forbes’ rankings.
But times have changed, and so has the situation surrounding Toby Keith and his label. Let’s not kid ourselves, Toby Keith is still doing just fine. At an annual salary of $53 million, he’s still a major powerhouse. But now Toby Keith is only #32 on the Forbes list, and not only is Taylor Swift smoking him at #8 with $80 million banked, but the recently-unretired Garth Brooks comes in at #6 with $90 million. Toby Keith lost $12 million in salary in the last year. Meanwhile in the years prior, his income has stayed mostly stable.
But that only tells part of the story.
On July 2nd, it was announced that the Big Machine Label Group had re-signed a distribution deal with Universal, and in the deal, Big Machine has acquired full ownership of the imprint Republic Nashville. Previously, reports had Scott Borchetta attempting to sell Big Machine to larger labels, but Borchetta’s evaluation of the label’s value and the value assigned to it by potential suitors was too far off. Also, Borchetta was insisting if he sold to a major, that he would become the heir apparent CEO. Borchetta also looked at selling to non label entities like iHeartMedia and Snapchat before deciding to stay put.
When Toby Keith and Scott Borchetta parted ways in 2005 to start their own respective labels, they both were in the fledgling stages. Since then, Borchetta has built Big Machine into a monolith of music with five separate labels groups, each with five or more artists: Big Machine, Valory, Dot, Nash Icon, and now Republic Nashville under sole ownership. And where is Toby Keith’s Show Dog? Struggling to even keep five artists signed. Bigger names like Randy Houser, Joe Nichols and Trace Adkins have left, and their future star Josh Thompson has yet to significantly develop. Right now the Show Dog roster only has four names, and that includes Toby Keith himself, his daughter Krystal Keith, and a new band named Native Run along with Josh Thompson.
In November of 2014, Universal Music Group announced a restructuring of Toby Keith’s Show Dog Universal, and as part of the deal, announced that Keith’s latest record 35 MPH Town would be release in the “spring of 2015.” Obviously the spring of 2015 has come and passed, and not only do we not have the new Toby Keith record, we don’t even have a release date yet. With the lead time needed before an album can be released properly, it’s unlikely we’ll see the new album until the fall at the earliest, and maybe longer. What’s the delay? And why announce a spring release if you can meet it, or can’t even come close? Meanwhile the latest Toby Keith single “35 MPH Town” has completely stalled at radio, peaking at #51 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.
But possibly the most troubling sign that something is not right in the Toby Keith camp is the continued stories about strange closings and other curious issues surrounding the “Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill” restaurant chain. Keith founded the restaurants in 2005, and they are operated out of Phoenix by Boomtown Entertainment. Over the last 18 months, the franchise has been going through what they characterize as “tactical” restructuring, but the strange stories have yet to stop, and have dramatically accelerated over the past couple of months.
“Unfortunately my manager received a call this morning that Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar Orlando has closed it’s doors unexpectedly,” said country artist Grayson Rogers to fans right before the 4th of July weekend. “We have been unable to reach the corporate office so we do not know the reasoning behind the closure. We are terribly sorry for those who were planning to travel to Orlando this weekend for the shows.”
What’s even more strange about the unexpected closing is that the Orlando location was just opened in December of 2014, and was supposed to be replacing other under-performing locations as part of the restaurant chain’s new strategy. The closing was very abrupt, and left many employees and scheduled performers in a lurch.
Ten locations of Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar & Grill have closed total, an each one under similarly abrupt circumstances.
” The Tucson, Arizona location closed on March 7th, 2014 after being evicted from their property for breach of contract.
” The Newport News, Virgina location closed on January 1st, 2015 after being evicted from the property and reportedly owing $554,000 in rent and fees.
” The Houston, TX location closed on January 3rd for unpaid rent, and reportedly owes nearly $150,000 in unpaid services.
” The Savannah, Georgia location scheduled to open in August of 2014 never did, and the franchise was served an eviction notice for the space in the Savannah Mall on April 7th, 2015.
” The Oxnard, California location closed on May 3rd, 2015 after being open less than a year, and owning $605,000 in back rent.
” The Syracuse, New York location closed abruptly on May 17th, 2015 reportedly because of unpaid rent.
” The Orange Beach, Alabama location was closed on June 3rd, 2015 after being evicted from the property.
” And the locations in Folsom, California (12-30-14), Woodbridge, Virginia (5-2-15), and St. Louis Park, Minnesota (6-24-15) have all closed as well.
Six of the ten closings have all occurred since May (roughly when Toby Keith’s latest album was supposed to come out), and the closings have accelerated over the last few weeks. Granted, Toby Keith appears to have little direct daily involvement in the operations of the restaurant chain at this point, but it is his name emboldened on the front of each shuttered store, and he is the founder.
The issues facing Toby Keith’s restaurants seem somewhat symbolic of the ending of an era for one of country music’s most successful franchises in recent memory. Just as the fern bar concept has fallen behind the times in American culture recently, so possibly has Toby Keith.
The singer has undoubtedly amassed a war chest of resources during his historic, and likely Hall of Fame run in country music. But with the lack of upper-tier commercial talent at his label, a stalled album and single of his own, and serious issues with the restaurant franchise that bears his name, we could be on the brink of one of the hardest falls we’ve seen from a major country music star in quite some time.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:16 am
I wonder if Natalie Maines has anything to add hahahaha
July 6, 2015 @ 9:19 am
Toby Keith could be mucking sewers for eternity and he would still have more respect and dignity than Natalie Maines.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:38 am
the woman has no taste or class, and I’m certainly hoping this ‘reunion’ of the DC is short lived.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:05 am
…do you not like good country music, or something?
July 6, 2015 @ 10:30 am
not when it’s made by these immature obnoxious clowns. I have nothing bad to say about their music, save that it isn’t super original, but I cannot tolerate their personalities. I’m no islamophobe, but I am a patriot and I thought TK’s “angry american” was a great show of both class and character, and Ms Maines’ reaction to the song was a sign of a lack of both; the later Iraq war comments were just fuel on the fire. I’m a free speech advocate, but it’s in poor taste to say “we’re ashamed of the president” on foreign soil. I’m not a huge fan of our current POTUS, but I voted for him and I’m not ashamed of him.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:38 am
Especially, when they uttered the words overseas. Very cowardly and pandering to an audience. The country music fandom voted with their wallets and choose to boycott them, as is our right.
Plus, I cannot stand their “we are better than the country music fan base” attitudes and I swear that Natalie Maines tries to be the opposite of the typical Texan on purpose.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:41 am
So, just to be clear, you also don’t want Hank Jr. to tour or make new music either, right?
Also, Angry American was consciously classless and ignorant. It’s a portrait, by a lifelong Democrat, of a very specific reaction to the attacks. It empathizes with, and describes the “Kill them All” reaction, without condemning or endorsing it.
Natalie Maines didn’t (and has since proven that she shouldn’t) write her own music, so she didn’t get that…and Toby pointing that out is what started their ridiculous little “feud.”
Also, what have the Erwin sisters ever done to offend you, other than defend their bandmate’s right to free speech?
July 6, 2015 @ 10:48 am
Lester: I think Hank Jr. can be racist, ignorant, and misinformed. I’ve never been to see him, and he’s not high on my list of people I wish to see. I like his “America The Way I see It” but that’s because the songs are tongue in cheek and there are a lot of good points. “Why can’t everybody else leave everybody else alone?” “Give a damn about your job, take pride in anything that you sign your name too.” As someone with a job, and I take my job seriously and want to do it well, these are things I can stand behind. I’m fully aware that Keith is a democrat, that’s part of why I like the song.
I’m a flag-waving patriot, and I don’t condone the “kill them all” attitude.
The Erwin sisters defended their bandmates’ right to be “ashamed” of the President, and to talk about it overseas, at a concert, the focus of which is music, not politics. As I said before, love him or hate him, the President is the President and he deserves respect. I don’t think the current one is that great, but I voted for him and I’ll stand by my vote.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:53 am
Hank Jr. compared the sitting president to Adolf Hitler, on a nationally available television program.
Do you actively root for him to neither tour nor make any new music?
July 6, 2015 @ 10:57 am
Hank Jr is definitely guilty of a lot of things. The Adolf Hitler comparison was definitely way out of line. Honestly, if he never tours or makes more music it won’t bother me much. I have my Hank Jr. tapes, I’ll listen to them, but it won’t bother me if the dude doesn’t do more music. Have you heard Hank Jr’s “Mr. Lincoln?” If so, any thoughts?
July 6, 2015 @ 11:02 am
Hank Jr. didn’t directly compare Obama to Hitler. He used (a poor analogy) of “Come on. That’d be like Hitler playing golf with Netanyahu” to compare a golf teamup between Boehner and Obama.
It was stupid, but it wasn’t a direct comparison.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:20 am
Was calling him a Muslim that hates America also “a poor analogy”?
Oh, if only there was some way to explain why no one calls Hank Jr. mouthy or uppity, or tells him to shut up and sing…
Fuzzy, I just listened to Mr. Lincoln…it’s really dumb.
It’s like if American Ride was played straight, and thought it had something deep and meaningful to say rather than being self-consciously ridiculous and parodic.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:26 am
I personally do not condone the “shut up and sing” mentality, just like I do not condone Hank Jr’s behavior. I think “Mr Lincoln” is a statement song, it’s not earth-shattering or profound. It does touch on the issues of crime and corrupt legal system, but it ultimately ends up as a “it was better in the “good ole days” song. So, while I like it, I won’t argue with you.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:34 am
Oh, I know. We cool, haha. I like some of Junior’s other songs, and am more than happy to crank them up (I’ll still watch Cosby, too…I genuinely don’t care what artists do or say outside of their art), but this one rubs me the wrong way.
Mr. Lincoln is definitely well-sung, but to me it just reeks of the whole “isn’t it tragic that we can’t just lynch a boy before he has a chance to kill people these days?!” mentality.
Like, if a guy’s been sent to prison five times, it almost certainly started off with non-violent crimes, when he was very young. That man’s then proceeding to kill someone is a product of our criminal justice system’s habit of turning 19 year old boys into hardened criminals.
He simply doesn’t understand the systems he’s critiquing well enough to make a valid critique of them…because he’s a rich white guy who’s never made an effort to understand anything outside of his own experience.
But that might just be what I’m reading into it, haha.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:49 am
I didn’t agree with NM’s politics or her speaking out from the stage, but Home was a freaking masterpiece. I bought it the day it came out but lost it a couple of moves ago; not long ago I went and re-bought it and it’s just as great now as it was in 2002. I said it before elsewhere and will say it here: when you look at how mainstream country music has changed in the years since it was released, and think about how it would be received if it came out now versus how it was received when it did come out (two Top 2 hits on country radio, one No. 1, and 6 million-plus copies of the album sold), it”™s just downright depressing.
(For the record, I’m not a fan of artists of ANY political bent bringing their politics to the stage. I dig politically-oriented music a la Steve Earle and the like even when I don’t agree with it, but I just find general political commentary off-putting.)
July 6, 2015 @ 11:53 am
Yeah, Home is just so, so fucking good. I figure they’d get a Musgraves-esque reception these days, because they’re just not overtly poppy enough (even though their versions of Travelin Soldier and Landslide are better pop songs than anything Carrie or Miranda has recorded).
I’m also with you in terms of ignoring people who talk a lot off-stage. I go out of my way to remain unaware of anything and everything Kanye says and does, because I love his music too much to risk listening to him speak.
July 6, 2015 @ 6:17 pm
.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:27 am
Amen, Fuzzy.
I’m dreading the inevitable applause and cheers that the “martyred” band will receive. Their demise blessed with an inflated reputation.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:31 am
…go listen to Home. Then come back and pretend that their reputation is “inflated.”
July 6, 2015 @ 10:34 am
One song doesn’t make a band overrated or underrated.
I get it, you love the Dixie Chicks, but not everyone else has to agree that they are good.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:43 am
The fact that you think Home is a song makes your opinion on this matter utterly irrelevant.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:57 am
My apologizes, I accidentally wrote song instead of album. Either way, one album doesn’t make a band underrated or overrated,
July 6, 2015 @ 11:08 am
Good thing they have two other stone-cold classic albums, then!
I just picked Home since Trigger ranked it as the second best album by a female artist in the 2000s.
The only female artists with more albums on Trigger’s Top 100 from a couple of years ago are Emmylou and Dolly.
July 6, 2015 @ 4:45 pm
Do you want me to make the congratulations card to you or the Dixie Chicks?
July 6, 2015 @ 6:04 pm
Oh, you don’t need to say anything.
The idea is for you to stop talking about shit you’re entirely ignorant of.
July 6, 2015 @ 8:32 pm
So just because someone doesn’t like the same music you do they’re ignorant? I personally have never enjoyed their music and never saw what made it so amazing. Personally i think the majority of people liked the Dixie Chicks because they had a slight hint of a traditional sound to their music. But liking them for that reason is the same to me as liking Garth Brooks because he sounds more country now than anything else on the radio. This is the same way i feel about Kacey Musgraves. I like a select few of the Dixie Chicks songs but even those weren’t original or creative in anyway.
July 6, 2015 @ 8:40 pm
So ignorance is not liking the Dixie Chicks? Good to know. Shall I inform the dictionaries of the new definition or should you?
Shit? I don’t think a fan should refer to an artist’s work like that.
I never said that the Dixie Chicks were an abomination of country music, I merely disagree with their showers of accolades.
Well put, J.
July 7, 2015 @ 1:25 am
Oh, it’s not about not liking the Dixie Chicks. It’s about you not knowing anything about them, their music or their significance to the genre, but feeling the need to share your thoughts on the subject anyway.
I don’t categorize opinions as “right” or “wrong.” I categorize them as “informed” or “uninformed.” Throughout this discussion, you have consistently and thoroughly shown how wholly uninformed you are on the subject of the Dixie Chicks.
If, like J, you actually knew enough to have a civil conversation about their merits as artists, we’d have had that conversation…but you somehow didn’t even know that Home was an album until yesterday, and are clearly much more interested in bashing Natalie Maines for being a mouthy, uppity bitch than talking about the music.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:39 am
How does she have no taste or class? Is this political, or something else?
July 6, 2015 @ 10:42 am
No it’s an issue of personality. Maines especially gets chocolate all up in my peanut butter every time she opens her mouth. I think she’s a woman of poor character and personality. In another comment I called her immature and obnoxious, and I think the same adjectives apply here.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:44 am
From what I can understand, it’s that Maines is really mouthy and doesn’t understand that her place is to shut up and look pretty when she’s not singing.
Isn’t it bizarre that she seems to have a problem with the county radio audience, haha?
July 6, 2015 @ 10:49 am
Lester: I’m all for women in country music as more than eye candy, I’m not for people going on foreign soil, getting paid to play music, and then talking politics instead, it’s in poor taste.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:55 am
No one who had paid to see them had a problem with it, so is the problem that they exercised their right to free speech on foreign soil?
July 6, 2015 @ 10:59 am
No one said that women in country music shouldn’t talk. Stow that crap.
They had every right to speak those words, as did the country music fandom to not support or play them because of disagreement.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:01 am
I just feel that it was extremely inappropriate and unprofessional.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:13 am
Actually, lots of people have said that.
I know you like to pretend they didn’t
…and that Natalie Maines is an uppity bitch for taking more than 10 years to get over death threats in interviews
…and that a successful effort to blackball them by the corporations who run Nashville was a populist uprising.
But that doesn’t mean any of those things are true.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:17 am
I agree with Lester, CK, there is a lot of sexism in the music industry.
Death threats for any reason are inexcusable, period.
It wasn’t a populist uprising, it was a case of putting her foot too far in her mouth. Most of the people “country radio” appeals to were in Keith’s camp after 9/11, so when she put herself in opposition, it ruffled some feathers, and then the incident abroad and people got upset. No different that they did with the Confederate Flag or the Cosby Show.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:32 am
I’m embarrassed that this is the comment thread to lead off this discussion. PLEASE for the love of God can I post an article without it descending into a political discussion? Any further comments here will be deleted, and PLEASE let’s not have any more Confederate flag debates.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:52 pm
Sorry about that, Trigger. Not my intention.
July 6, 2015 @ 1:29 pm
That wasn’t for you.
July 6, 2015 @ 4:46 pm
I don’t believe I need to apologize for anything, but Trigger, I’m sorry for mucking the comments. Keep up the good work.
July 6, 2015 @ 5:10 pm
Amen to this! If Toby has hit any kind of rough patch, may he come back from it better than ever! I love his new song named “35 MPH Town”. (smiles)
God bless you and him always!!!
Holly in East Tennessee
January 16, 2021 @ 5:31 am
James a stein and Donna E stein
July 6, 2015 @ 9:29 am
I met him once in Scottsdale. Very smug and off-putting. I think some of his restaurants had a “No Motorcycle Apparel” dress code. That may have hurt his businesses.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:45 am
What is motorcycle apparel?
July 6, 2015 @ 9:49 am
Any item of clothing with Harley-Davidson, etc. Ball caps, bandanas, pins, shirts, jackets, vests.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:49 am
The rumors are true: Toby Keith is a prick.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:54 am
After the incident in that Waco restaurant, I don’t blame any establishment that bands biker colors.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:17 am
Biker colors are different from t-shirts and tank tops. Also, the Waco incident happened a year later.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:41 am
Whoa. I didn’t realize the Woodbridge, VA location closed. I live about 10 minutes from it and had lunch with my family right across from it not too long ago, maybe in April. I would check its live music schedule every once in a while on the off chance that there would be someone I’d want to see playing there and figured we’d make there for lunch or dinner some day. Guess not.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:51 am
One of the saddest parts is they are closing these stores without any notice, and this leaves employees in a big lurch. They show up one days and find the doors padlocked, and are out their livelihood.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:56 am
I may be wrong, but aren’t there laws that would force the company to compensate the employees for that? or some kind of government aid? (not that I’m advocating another program)
July 6, 2015 @ 10:08 am
The employees can try to sue, other than that, not much. We had someone build a Sonic in town a few years ago. Hired a bunch of people, advised them that their first paycheck wouldn’t come for a month for whatever reason. After 30 days the manager handed out the first paychecks on a Friday afternoon and every one of them bounced. Overnight someone padlocked the door and when people showed for work, there was no way in, no notice and all contact info they had for the franchisee was disconnected. Sonic refused to step up and pay those people, so basically, they worked for free for a month, then lost their jobs.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:35 am
When I was 17-years-old, I worked at a restaurant that was raided by the IRS. They pulled a semi-truck into the parking lot and seized everything, including our paychecks. They also timed the raid to be on payday, so the checking account would be flush with money when they seized it. Texas has a thing called the “Lost Labor Board.” They will deal with just about everything, but they refused to deal with IRS issues. I never got paid for that two weeks of work.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:47 am
Wow… that’s intense. my understanding of the law is that if someone has void title to a piece of property, then in selling the object, the buyer gets the void title, and therefore does not legally own it. If the restaurant did not legally have the money with which to pay you, then any money received would be void title, and therefore illegal anyway.
July 7, 2015 @ 8:24 am
I’m also pretty close to the Woodbridge, VA location. There was just a lot of weird stuff going on with that restaurant from the beginning. They didn’t open until over a year after the initial opening date. There were stories of the staff having little to no training when they finally did open. On top of that, the place got consistently poor reviews on the food and service. Other tenants in the upscale shopping center complained about rowdy patrons (and what did Roadside Development, the owner of the property, expect? 40-somethings in diamond-studded belt buckles sipping wine?!) As Trigger indicated, they closed up shop suddenly. Some employees were notified, some weren’t.
I thought perhaps it was just a poorly managed location, but it sounds like whole chain suffered from bad decision making.
I went there one time to check out a local artist who had posted a few traditional-leaning original cuts on his website. Total bait and switch for me, as his stage show consisted of nothing but lousy bro-country covers and he seemed to have this rare, unfortunate nervous condition that made him constantly point to his crotch during every song. Tried the fried bologna sandwich. Basically like something you’d whip up from cold cuts and Wonder bread at home. I guess for a restaurant that sold $25+ steak dinners I was expecting a little more.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:56 am
I smell a bankruptcy coming for the restaurant. That’s an awful lot of bad debt to have hanging over a company.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:57 am
Peoria, AZ just closed as well, June 22, I believe. We played the TK’s in Phoenix on June 19, 20th and ran into an artist (Nick Alligood) there who was on his way to Peoria for those two dates. The drummer told me that they had tried to change dates, and send US to Peoria instead (no sir, not happening) because Peoria was “always dead.” On Monday, I received an email from Boomtown stating that the Peoria Location was closed as of that morning, and that they’d have to do a bunch of calendar shifting as a result. Sadly, we lost September dates in Phoenix due to this.
I have my theories about what some of their problems may be, but they’d be just that – theories, and I won’t speak bad about them. I found it odd that they discouraged us from playing a number of big country standards (such as Family Tradition) simply because “our bar is a party bar, we don’t do slow songs.” There were some more choice words spoken to us about that music, but I won’t rehash any of it here.
For the gigging musician, it’s sad to see all the closings. TKs is a decent payday that can keep you on the road and fill holes in your schedule. Is the gig the type of gig that most artists want to be playing? Not really. We want to play our songs, a few covers that have inspired us, and maybe a standard or two..and then get off the stage. TK’s is a 4-hour night of mostly modern pop country covers. But like I said, it gives you a chance to be on stage, fill holes in your schedule, and get the band paid.
Something weird’s going on. I’m still listed on the September Calendar, and even though there are all of these closings, they show a number of locations as “coming soon”:
Anaheim, CA
Cleveland, OH
College Station, TX
Colorado Springs, CO
Greenville, SC
Pittsburgh, PA
San Antonio, TX
Also, there are a few franchises which are not associated with Boomtown Entertainment.
“restructuring” … I wonder what it all means.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:04 am
what kind of idiot thinks “family tradition” is a slow song? it’s maybe not a great tune from a musician standpoint but it’s very appropriate for parties. I’ve done bar work too, and we’ve always had our slow songs go over well.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:27 am
Sorry to hear about your lost gigs, Duke, but that “Family Tradition” anecdote is pretty funny. “Why do you drink?” “To get drunk!”
July 6, 2015 @ 11:38 am
Good account of how there is a human element to this story we all shouldn’t overlook. These are people’s livelihoods being affected.
July 6, 2015 @ 7:13 pm
I haven’t done any of the TK bars, but I had some friends who got a great start by using Toby Keith locations as anchors for a small tour, that really helped keep them going. Its too bad.
July 6, 2015 @ 1:59 pm
There’s been a franchise coming to Pittsburgh for years. This article is from October 2012: http://www.wtae.com/news/local/allegheny/Toby-Keith-s-I-Love-This-Bar-Grill-coming-to-Pittsburgh/17114514
July 7, 2015 @ 7:39 am
I play at the Boston area location once a month and like you said.. it’s a decent pay day for a working band that needs the money. And even though we are playing 90% covers our location on Fridays/Saturdays at least gets us in front of 1200 a night.. it’s always busy. I hope that’s enough to keep it open… I’ve got gigs on the calendar and would hate to show up to a padlocked door in the near future.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:59 am
Obviously the spring of 2015 has come and passed, and not only do we not have the new Toby Keith record, we don”™t even have a release date yet….Meanwhile the latest Toby Keith single “35 MPH Town” has completely stalled at radio, peaking at #51 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.
I would think the single flaming out at radio has to do with the release date delay, but then on the other hand I would hope a radio campaign isn’t that big a part of the album release strategy…
July 6, 2015 @ 10:00 am
As for ShowDog … I have a friend who was signed to that label for a while. She didn’t have the best things to report, but again without personal experience, I can’t speak to how they manage talent. I know I wouldn’t mind taking a meeting there, to be sure.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:11 am
It’s weird to see how quickly he’s become irrelevant on the radio. He was never a trad-guy, but he’s got a great voice and he wrote most of his own songs. It was always nice hearing him on the radio
Maybe Red Solo Cup destroyed his brand? Beers Ago and I Like Girls That Drink Beer both stalled out fairly early, despite being way better than “Made In America,” which charted very well, but maybe it’s just because he went full pop-country production with Drinks After Work and Drunk Americans, and neither did well at all, so radio stopped caring.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:16 am
I couldn’t think of five songs that he sings, and I’ve never intentionally listened to his music. Does he only write songs about drinking and ‘Merica? Are those actual song titles?
July 6, 2015 @ 10:50 am
Beers Ago is the best song about small town nostalgia to play on the radio in recent memory. I Like Girls That Drink Beer is the best breakup song I can think of from the last five years, too (it’s like Jim, Jack and Hank, but two minutes shorter and much funnier).
Drinks After Work and Drunk Americans were attempts to recapture the Red Solo Cup audience after the two aforementioned songs stalled, and they were terrible.
Also, five TK songs that I’m pretty sure all of us know, and have nothing to do with drinking or ‘Murica:
Should Have Been A Cowboy
Who’s That Man
Wish I Didn’t Know Now (What I Didn’t Know Then)
How Do You Like Me Now
Beer for my Horses (with Willie Nelson)
He’s really good, when he wants to be.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:55 am
I felt that “Beers Ago” was too derivative of Sheb Wooley/Ben Colder’s “15 beers ago.” The latter was a parody of “15 years” but the concept struck me as derived. I’ve included “How do you like me” in our live shows a couple times, but it’s a little far removed from our usual, more traditional fare.
The dude is well deserving of a Hall of Fame induction, heck I don’t mind “Solo Cup” since it’s a lot better than much of the bro-fare. The dude’s worst offense was “I wanna talk about me” and honestly that song isn’t a bad song as much as it is really really stupid.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:58 am
I actually really like Red Solo Cup. I think it’s self-consciously ridiculous, so I just find it hilarious rather than engaging in “OMG!!!!! IT’S THE END OF COUNTRY MUSIC” histrionics.
But yeah, Beers Ago isn’t great…it’s just better than the rest of the crap of that ilk that’s been filling up country radio over the last few years.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:04 am
Ridiculous is a good word for “Solo Cup.” It’s just a fun song that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense and the “you’re my friend” choked up ending was wacky and absurd.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:16 am
It’s, so, so much fun, haha.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:19 am
Not too long ago I had to travel by bus to go to a Holocaust Memorial, where I would read a piece I’d written for the event, (the piece is now on display in the museum, I believe) and the whole crew on the bus was just rocking out and singing and partying to “Solo Cup.”
July 6, 2015 @ 1:13 pm
I am a Toby Keith tribute artist and lookalike who has toured the country doing all of his songs. I needed to chime in regarding his catalogue. If I don’t do the red solo at every event, they would “get all the rope in Texas, and find a tall oak tree…”! His songs are fun,and tell a story.
For what ever the reason his Restraunts are closing, people need to understand Toby is not running (or lack there of) the businesses. 95% of the people I talk to think Toby is running the money to the bank every night or in the back frying up the baloney. Hopefully they straighten it out… Because I love what I do.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:48 pm
Beer for my Horses isn’t about drinking? The song has “beer” in the title.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:49 pm
“Beer For My Horses” isn’t about drinking.
Neither are “I Like Girls That Drink Beer” and “Beers Ago.”
July 6, 2015 @ 1:32 pm
you are right, he can be awesome when he wants to be. He fooled me twice into buying his albums off of just one song listen, the song bullets in the gun and the waylonesque honkytonk U. both albums were utter disappointments (at least to me) and I wound up only listening to one song off of each. They are two awesome songs, though.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:32 am
The same reason George and Alan are no longer played, he got old and unappealing to the younger generation.
“Drunk Americans” was his last stand to recapture radio success by combining his two favorite topics: Drinking and America. A high 20’s-low 30’s slot cannot rejuvenate a declining career.
July 6, 2015 @ 1:16 pm
“Beers Ago” was actually a top five hit.
July 6, 2015 @ 4:47 pm
At least in my area, it was never played like a top five hit.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:14 am
Wow, I was just at TK’s Orlando location last week (a week ago today to be exact). My family usually goes to Daytona-Orlando about every year for vacation and we saw where he had opened a restaurant on Int’l Drive. Since we’re all country music fans, we decided to try it out. It wasn’t really crowded (then again, I didn’t expect it to be on a Monday night) but the food was delicious and the service was top-notch. It was a really big, nice building too. Really shocking to hear of it closing so soon.
July 6, 2015 @ 10:33 am
That wrestling promotion he’s funding must be putting a hurting on his wallet lol
July 6, 2015 @ 10:38 am
Too bad. I thought TK could be – and still has a chance to be – a real “elder statesman” in the industry if he wanted to. When the money’s that good, though, it’s probably not easy to stay motivated and engaged.
I also think he exemplifies the “hits vs. standards” idea that today’s artists don’t heed. “Should’ve Been a Cowboy” still gets regular airplay and will likely continue to do so for years to come. The numerous and indistinguishable drinking songs, not so much.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:43 am
Here’s hoping. I usually really like his album cuts.
Through Hope On The Rocks, he did a great job of finding the balance between evolving to stay relevant and keeping the soul of the music intact.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:37 am
I’d be shocked if Toby Keith wasn’t already trying to figure out how to disassociate with the “I Love This Bar & Grill” namesake, at this point.
I don’t think he likes this bar (and grill) anymore. At all. 😉
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Yeah, you’d figure someone with his clout and influence would be able to simply drop a new album at any time, regardless of how little airplay he is garnering. So color me surprised his album is indefinitely shelved with no indication as to when it’ll see the light of day! =/
July 6, 2015 @ 11:40 am
The dude is in limbo, as far as popularity is concerned. At least that’s my assessment. He’s too old to be “in” with the bros, but he’s too current and too mainstream pop to fit in with Vince, or Alan, or Willie, and having a fanbase to move units of a new album without radio play. He’s in a state in between, where neither fan base claims him wholesale, and that’s a very dangerous position to be in as an entertainer.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:48 am
When I do choose to tune the radio dial in Portland, I only hear a whopping TWO Toby Keith songs still regularly receive any recognition on the playlist: “I Love This Bar” and “As Good As I Once Was”.
Besides that, you very seldom hear “Beer For My Horses” and “American Ride”.
That’s right: you don’t even hear massive hits of his like “Should’ve Been A Cowboy”, “How Do You Like Me Now?”, “I Wanna Talk About Me” and “American Soldier” anymore.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:49 am
We get HDYLMN, American Soldier and IWTAM all the time in Boston, more so that I Love This Bar.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:51 am
That’s a shame. Most of his pre-How Do You Like Me Now stuff was pretty good. I think he lost the plot after that and never really recovered, artistically speaking.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:56 am
I Like Girls That Drink Beer is my jam, personally, but yeah, I think he lost some of “it” after he struck that chord with “Angry American” and figured “Welp, I guess doing more songs like this will make me a shitload of money”
July 6, 2015 @ 12:21 pm
I think the last TK song I dug was “Honkytonk U.” It had a killer Waylon-esque vibe to it.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:52 am
Well, “Cowboy” references Gene and Roy, and most people don’t get the reference anymore… “Beer for my Horses” might be too controversial, and honestly, sometimes I think the fact that Willie’s on there might make radio execs say “oop, can’t play that, it has Willie Nelson, and he makes real country music.” Portland OR or Portland MI?
July 6, 2015 @ 11:54 am
If it’s Oregon, I’m surprised they play Beer for my Horses at all, haha.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:57 am
Portland, Oregon.
Ha! It may be because Willie Nelson is featured that they choose to play it anyway! 😉
July 6, 2015 @ 11:48 am
Yeah, that’s what I was talking about with Red Solo Cup earlier. I think he might have alienated the “I won’t listen to an artist who started recording in the 2000s!” (I mean people who won’t listen to Sturgilll and Isbell, so I’m not Darius Rucker-ing, haha) snobs with that one, so he lost the people who still actually buy albums along with the bro-country radio.
July 6, 2015 @ 11:56 am
Honestly, even if I picked 1975 as the year to cut off my record buying, there was so much great music recorded pre 1975 that I’d be a lifetime listening and never have to buy new music anyway. BUT I shouldn’t limit myself from experiencing all the great music that is produced new every year.
July 6, 2015 @ 2:12 pm
He also hung onto the “commercial” vibe/sound WAY too long. George and Alan were smart enough to see the writing on the wall and transition towards cutting more “critical” favored content. Alan with his bluegrass album and George with some of the deeper songs he has had on his albums in recent years.
You have to go back quite a ways to find a Toby Keith album that was almost universally critically acclaimed. Maybe Honkytonk U?
Dude kept cranking out the same type singles and albums that only had a few decent tracks and lots of filler on them and now it has bit him in his ass. One radio leaves you behind, you need to be able to count on your core fanbase to keep you relevant in the business and I think Toby’s lackluster recent efforts may have harmed him quite a bit on that regard. Only so many times you can put out mediocre to forgettable records to your fanbase before they just get bored and leave you as soon as radio does.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:00 pm
http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/country/6613283/toby-keith-country-rap-35-mph-town-drunk-americans
Uh, no. You did not invent it! 😉
July 6, 2015 @ 12:41 pm
Who did it in the mainstream before “Getcha Some” and “I Wanna Talk About Me,” thoughy?
July 6, 2015 @ 12:47 pm
Trigger provided some commentary previously as to the history of “talking” and “country rap” in country music.
I don’t have the linkbacks on hand at the moment.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:52 pm
Once And For All: SPOKEN WORD IS NOT RAP!
https://savingcountrymusic.com/once-and-for-all-spoken-word-is-not-rap
July 6, 2015 @ 1:11 pm
I don’t think Nadia was implying that they were the same thing. I would say that some of C.W. McCall’s stuff could be labelled “country rap” given the obvious rhythmic accentuation in the delivery, compared to the less rhythmic stylings of “Big Bad John” or “Look at them Beans.” And honestly? who cares if country has rap in it as long as it’s good, and respectful of tradition? I’d rather listen to Will.I.Am. than Chase Rice, because the dude is good at what he does.
July 6, 2015 @ 1:23 pm
That’s it!
Thanks! I’ll bookmark it this time! =)
No, I wasn’t implying they were one and the same. At any rate, Toby Keith didn’t invent either.
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will.i.am has demonstrated he has talent in the past, but his recent output has been absolutely insufferable (following “The E.N.D.”).
I think it has a large part to due with his growing ego, as well as dedicating more of his focus to entrepreneurial aspirations and corporate deal-making than the music itself. “The Beginning” was a painful Black Eyed Peas album that sounded completely hurried and forced. And don’t get me started on his #willpower album. That is a travesty to music between the absolutely laughably lazy lyrics, will.i.am’s sleepy, couldn’t-care-less delivery, blatant plagiarism on several tracks and ridiculous Auto-Tune.
Still, I won’t take for granted will.i.am has proven himself previously. The earlier Black Eyed Peas albums with Fergie are enjoyable, even if they aren’t meant to be taken seriously. And the ones preceding Fergie’s arrival show will.i.am with much more hunger in his delivery.
July 6, 2015 @ 2:26 pm
If I’m going for rap that’s more family-friendly than Hank3 (which is, admittedly, rare), I usually go Rakim (with or without Eric B.), A Tribe Called Quest or The DOC (I just discovered him…and am now heartbroken about his accident in 1989).
Usually I’m more about Nas/Wu-Tang (their solo stuff is on-point, too)/Pac/Biggie/NWA/Public Enemy/Kanye…and recently I’ve been huge on Chance the Rapper, who is absolutely awesome.
July 6, 2015 @ 3:00 pm
YES!!! to all of the acts you mentioned!
I’d add Aesop Rock, Sage Francis and Talib Kweli to the list of most important rappers in recent memory. Lupe Fiasco is damn solid too.
July 6, 2015 @ 3:08 pm
I’ll have to check out Sage Francis. I’ve heard At. Long. Last. A$AP. is fire, and I love Gutter Rainbows.
Kendrick and Run The Jewels obviously belong on the modern list, as well.
I’ve been going nuts on 80s hip hop recently (and 90s stuff that isn’t Pac/Nas/Biggie). BDP, Geto Boys and EPMD are just unreal, and Only Built 4 Cuban Linxx is up there with Illmatic.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:22 pm
the one in Minneapolis closed recently. even had it’s own sob story of some dim bulbs who put up a $100 deposit to have their wedding reception there, now they’re shit out of luck. lol. sucks about the employees though.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:24 pm
what a weird place for a wedding
July 6, 2015 @ 2:04 pm
Have you seen some of the people that attend Country concerts/Toby Keith shows? I get annoyed when people stereotype Country music and it’s fanbase, but I can also see where a lot of these stereotypes come from.
July 6, 2015 @ 12:48 pm
In a reply to the closings, Toby reportedly said, “I ain’t as good as I once was, I got a few years on me now, But there was a time…”
July 6, 2015 @ 1:33 pm
The Cincinnati location of I Love This Bar is right next to the Great American Ball Park, home of the Cincinnati Reds. Game days it’s probably the least crowded of the local watering holes surrounding GABP. The competition is strong. On previous trips I was not impressed with the food. In a few days, though, baseball fans from all over the country will be here for the All Star Game and other events. They should do a good business.
July 6, 2015 @ 2:25 pm
Show dog will go under within 3 months.
July 6, 2015 @ 3:51 pm
It has long been living on borrowed time, that’s for sure.
I have to add one point, however. I think one of the most overlooked stories of 2015, thus far, has been how much Big Machine Records has struggled all year when you take Taylor Swift (and, to a lesser extent, the Zac Brown Band) out of the picture.
I’m absolutely serious. 2015 has not been kind for Big Machine when you consider the following:
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1) Botching the rollout of Maddie & Tae’s debut full-length “Start Here”, in failing to release it while “Girl In A Country Song” was #1 and now seeing “Fly” struggling badly as the follow-up.
2) The catastrophically embarrassing rollout of Steven Tyler’s debut single “Love Is Your Name” bowing at #33, only to fall off the chart completely the following week and, since, flailing on life support for any sort of second wind.
3) Valory’s eyebrow-raising lack of focus surrounding Brantley Gilbert’s “One Hell Of An Amen” and its ridiculously lengthy chart run for an A-list star, not to mention the timing of the re-release of his hit album.
4) Completely squandering Justin Moore’s momentum with back-to-back head-scratching singles.
5) The Eli Young Band’s massive flop with “Turn It On”.
6) Having no idea what the hell to do with Danielle Bradbery, The Cadillac Three, Rascal Flatts, Waterloo Revival and Laura Bell Bundy.
7) RaeLynn failing to go anywhere despite their valiant attempts at shoving her down our throats.
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I’ve also been watching the charts per usual, and one thing I’ve noticed is that, more often than not, Big Machine struggle with finishing runs to #1 with their singles.
The way they gave “Diamond Rings & Old Barstools” a big final push during a week where it was quite obvious Tim McGraw had no chance of finishing at #1 was mind-boggling. And with Florida Georgia Line’s last four singles, it was odd to me how they just stalled those releases once they made the Top Five and gambled on hoping the songs above them on the chart would “take their turn” and then just squeak by without a major push to #1. For instance, with “Sun Daze”, Luke Bryan EASILY could have held onto the #1 slot with “I See You” if he wanted and thus rob “Sun Daze” of a #1. But……………….you know………………we’re living in a “Almost everybody who makes the Top Ten gets a #1 trophy!” era! (eye roll) =P
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I don’t know. I think 2015 has been a very abysmal year for Big Machine’s bottom line. It’s as though they have almost ALL the chips laid on the table for Taylor Swift and the Zac Brown Band…………..and maybe a modest blind for Florida Georgia Line. Otherwise, everyone else is on their own.
July 6, 2015 @ 5:12 pm
Add to that list that they haven’t been able to launch Drake White’s career and lost Craig Wayne Boyd almost immediately. There was a time when Big Machine seemed like it could do no wrong.
July 6, 2015 @ 5:27 pm
If I were to consider a winner in terms of labels and management this year, it would probably be Thirsty Tigers (though they still have a few years to go in establishing relationships with radio and finding breakthrough success in producing hit singles).
Mercury Nashville appears to be having a pretty good year as well. There’s not a lot of weak links in my eyes at the moment. Lauren Alaina has the short end of the stick, and both Scotty McCreery, Easton Corbin and Billy Currington are treading water to certain degrees, but none of these are surprising or outright disappointing. Currington is in the sunset phase of his mainstream career as is Easton Corbin, while Scotty McCreery will need to re-evaluate his image if he is going to have any remote hope at longevity and stand out among an already ridiculously competitive male field.
But Kacey Musgraves is doing great despite it being highly unlikely she’ll ever be a radio star. Same with Chris Stapleton. Shania Twain is idle, but she is still drawing large crowds in spite of the lack of new music yet. And Canaan Smith is off to a reasonably sound start (although I don’t see him having longevity). For what it’s worth, Mercury Nashville has had a pretty solid 2015 to date.
July 6, 2015 @ 6:04 pm
I am glad you pointed that out. I’ve also wondered what happened to Big Machine this year. I feel like they have botched a few of their artist’s careers. Brantley Gilbert had a huge year last year but they did nothing to build on that momentum. He stayed silent for the first 4 months and halfway into the year and he hasn’t even announced the 3rd keg of the Let it Ride Tour that he hinted at last year, which was rumored Craig Wayne Boyd was supposed to open. Justin Moore has a really good duet with Miranda Lambert on his album that i think woupd benefit both him and Miranda. Maddie and Tae, I honestly believe have a chance to replace Taylor Swift and they have great songs in their set list. Why they thought Fly would be a good choice when so many artists were trying to push out slow stuff is beyond me. It seems like instead of putting any effort into them Big Machine is just going full force with his Florida Georgia Line guys and Thomas Rhett.
July 6, 2015 @ 6:09 pm
I think it’s because some other up-n-comer released a song called Smoke, so they decided to delay the correct follow-up to GIACS until the other song fell out of rotation and release Fly instead.
July 6, 2015 @ 6:24 pm
Well, they could have released “Sierra”.
Or, if théy feared being pigeonholed as a semi-novelty duo, they at least could have had another singular cut with tempo waiting in thé wing while trying to finish “Start Here”.
July 6, 2015 @ 4:43 pm
I read that Toby Keith has a $500 million net worth.
Having his ill-advised restaurant chain die on the vine is embarassing (he obviously isn’t Jimmy Buffett), but it won’t affect his lifestyle.
But it will affect the lifestyle of the employees (and the landlords for that matter).
He can step up and make things right with employees (e.g. a modest severance package) and with landlords, even though I am sure he is protected by a corporation or LLC and isn’t personally liable.
Or he can drift off into the sunset, cut a few more crappy CDs, shut down his label and enjoy touring and being a family man.
But his name is on those places, he has the wherewithal to make things right, and he should do so.
It wil cost money (that he will never miss), but character is infinitely more valuable, and rare, than money.
July 6, 2015 @ 5:33 pm
I’m so angry that Josh Thompson never got to release “Change.” Every cut that leaked from that album was fantastic, and Comin’ Around is one of the best mainstream songs of the last 5 years.
Man, fuck the general music listener for having no clue what’s good and what isn’t.
July 7, 2015 @ 7:40 pm
How many of those songs were leaked and where do I find them? I’m interested in listening to them.
July 6, 2015 @ 6:10 pm
“The issues facing Toby Keith”™s restaurants seem somewhat symbolic of the ending of an era for one of country music”™s most successful franchises in recent memory. ”
Although the word ‘franchise ‘ is soooo appropriate when used to refer to the ” machine ” that puts an ‘artist’ on the map and keeps him/her there, I think it also indicates what’s so wrong with the biz right now . Many of these acts are , indeed , similar to a MacDonald’s ‘franchise’ in terms appealing to the undiscerning , ensuring a similarity in the product to service the ‘conditioned customers’ who keep coming back and yes, the word accurately defines the legions of people and jobs involved with an artist’s camp who would be severely impacted should that artist decide to do something ‘ outside the box’ and risk rocking the music boat that the entire camp relies on to stay afloat . I believe it was Jagger ( could be mistaken ) that once said ..” Sure we could retire or do something else …but shutting down the Stones would put thousands of people and their families out of work ” .
” Franchise ” is an Ok word when describing a pro sports team . The sweater is the franchise really ….the players are ,of course ,always interchangeable but the customer/fan always knows what he’s getting .” Franchise” in referring to a creative artist seems somehow inappropriate and far too business-like for my liking .
July 6, 2015 @ 6:56 pm
Hey, I don’t think any sane person would have expected Toby’s run of success to last forever. Obviously, it was going to wind down.
I don’t know how many people here remember the early ’90s country music landscape, but Keith was sort of a third-tier artist. Among the men, there were Garth and Clint and Strait and Alan and B&D and Travis Tritt–and then Tim and later Chesney, who were “superstars.” And there was a second tier of consistent radio hitmakers of Chesnutt and Diffie and Tracy Lawrence. Toby was maybe in the bottom of that group. Nobody would have predicted that Toby would be among the last ones standing from all of those.
The fact that Toby has outlasted all but a handful of those peers and made scores of millions of dollars is a testament to something—determination, I guess. To me, what’s remarkable about Keith isn’t that he’s fading. It’s that he’s still up there.
July 6, 2015 @ 7:01 pm
9/11 changed all of that. He sold more records in the 2000’s than anyone in country.
July 6, 2015 @ 7:10 pm
While it’s true that he really kicked into gear after 9/11 ‘How Do You Like Me Now?’ was a couple of years before that and he began cranking out hit after hit from that point on. And I still think ‘My List’ was one of the most thoughtful post 9/11 singles and was a huge hit that gets lost in the mix with his more arrogant songs.
July 7, 2015 @ 7:24 am
I get that. My point was just that Toby has overachieved by so much–blowing away artists like Travis Tritt and Clint Black who came up around the same time and were way above him, and Diffie, Chesnutt and Lawrence, who were perhaps equals. So whenever I see something about Toby being on the downside, my reaction is he’s light years ahead of where he was “supposed” to be.
Btw, did Toby really sell more records in the 2000s than McGraw, Chesney and Strait?
July 6, 2015 @ 7:05 pm
It can’t be overstated how big an impact ‘How Do You Like Me Now?’ had on his career. He was floundering and they had just pulled his previous single from radio after it peaked in the forties on the chart and then he had a hit that transformed his career.
Not often you see a semi veteran act explode to the top after several years of middling success.
But the time comes for everybody no matter how successful or talented you are and we have seen it a lot the last couple of years with Strait, Jackson and now Keith.
July 6, 2015 @ 8:37 pm
“But the time comes for everybody no matter how successful or talented you are and we have seen it a lot the last couple of years with Strait, Jackson and now Keith.”
Urban and Chesney are a couple of other artists that , to my mind, outlived their relevance WAYYY back . Considering neither of these artist had any serious country roots in their commercial careers and traded on looks perhaps more than music , I am surprised that they squeaked through the door in the first place much less kept it open this long . Urban’s music has been consistently pop-driven with little lyric substance , ( Cop Car ..?? ..man ..how desperate are we for a song idea that we have to turn to Sam Hunt to provide it ?? ) .
I think Toby was smart . He found what worked for him , toured a lot and played the patriotism card honestly as he did so many tours for the troops and vets etc. He also recorded a LOT of different kinds of lyric-driven songs..many with strong narrative . And let’s not forget ..the guy can actually sing ( check out some You Tube of Live stuff under optimum sound conditions ) unlike an awful lot of today’s wannabes who are doctored in the studio .
July 6, 2015 @ 8:51 pm
If we are to believe that mainstream country music is now targeted at the younger demo then Chesney, Urban and McGraw are all living on borrowed time as they are all late 40s.
I’m not sure I would say that Chesney traded on looks as much as some others and I would also say that he has had many good songs mixed in with the regrettable beach and beer songs especially in his early years. I think that in any career that lasts for decades some good (or at least less bad) stuff can be found.
Of course country has always had the pop driven stuff from the days of Sonny James in the 1960s and the difference now is that we no longer have the traditional stuff to balance things out.
July 7, 2015 @ 1:33 am
I think that the fact that “neither had any serious country roots in their commercial careers and traded on looks perhaps more than music” is why they’ve stayed big even after the shift to a pop format. It was much easier for them to adapt their sound, because they never really had a “sound.”
Scotty, it’s probably fair to say that Chesney had less help from his looks than Urban, but that’s just because Chesney’s nowhere near as good-looking, haha.
I think Urban’s got a much better voice, and he’s certainly a much better guitarist. He’s always been nakedly pop country, and has since shifted to pure pop, but the man’s got talent.
July 9, 2015 @ 4:55 am
Well said and agree.
July 6, 2015 @ 8:13 pm
Sweet Christ, Trigger. thank you for telling that Smooth Lester dude to shut the hell up at top of page. I wasted way too much time reading his stupid posts meant to instigate .
July 6, 2015 @ 8:44 pm
I only wish I had the chance to reply, without any new comment being deleted, that death threats are never right. As it stands now, my point that country fandom abandoned the Chicks appears that I agree with the absurd methods, a select few engaged in.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:10 pm
Death threats are always unacceptable. They are acts of cowardice and any individual who uses them should be publicly ostracized and prosecuted if possible.
Nonetheless, that really wasn’t the topic at hand, and we all need to try and make sure that the politically-based back and forths are kept to a minimum from now on. I want this to be a place where everyone feels free to share their opinion. But political back and forts junk up the comments, and bring the worst out in people. I appreciate everyone commenting here and it’s not my intention to run anyone off. Every single comment and commenter has value in my eyes. But we all need to be a little more understanding, and understand this is a music site, not a political site.
July 6, 2015 @ 8:56 pm
One of the great things about this site is that the comments are such a wide open exchange that often veer off topic but are still interesting and thought provoking but the recent trend to politicize EVERYTHING can get very boring.
Gets old fast and accomplishes little in my opinion.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:11 pm
I agree.
July 7, 2015 @ 8:50 am
Amen Scotty.
July 7, 2015 @ 1:37 am
Yeah, because I started that by saying that the Dixie Chicks made great music, regardless of whether you agreed with their politics.
Meanwhile, calling them mouthy bitches who deserved everything that happened to them, while displaying astonishing ignorance of their music, is totally the tone of discussion we should be striving for on this site!
Glad to see how strong your reading comprehension skills are!
July 7, 2015 @ 1:55 am
Lester, you remind me of myself back in 2012 when I first started commenting on SCM. I, too, found myself in some very antagonistic debates either defending artists that I loved or delving into political discussions. Here’s a lesson that I have learned from my time on the website: as rough and hostile as the other commenters may seem to you right now, they will eventually get used to you 😉
By the way, I totally agree with you on the Dixie Chicks.
July 7, 2015 @ 2:46 am
Haha, the issue may well be that I’m too willing to give as good as I get, and I assume everyone else is, too.
Where I’m from, anyone who gets genuinely upset about a discussion like the above is just told to stop being a baby, which is nice because we seem to get conversations like the one I had with Fuzzy, where we disagree but make an effort to understand where the other was coming from, more often than we freak out about anyone challenging our opinions.
(Also, we’re all snarky assholes, so people are used to my tone, haha)
July 7, 2015 @ 5:55 am
Where I”™m from, anyone who gets genuinely upset about a discussion like the above is just told to stop being a baby, which is nice because we seem to get conversations like the one I had with Fuzzy, where we disagree but make an effort to understand where the other was coming from, more often than we freak out about anyone challenging our opinions.
Well, I got annoyed by it because it had absolutely nothing to do with the subject of the article. Also, there have been so many politically contentious comment sections lately, INCLUDING one on the Dixie Chicks. That’s why I enjoyed the recent article on the Grateful Dead’s importance so much because it was a fun discussion on a interesting MUSIC topic. It was refreshing.
However, it wasn’t you who hijacked this comment section and took it in an ant-Maines/Chicks direction at the very beginning. That honor goes to Fuzzy and CountryKnight.
July 7, 2015 @ 8:56 am
Sorry if I, too, sounded like an A hole, Lester. I just don’t give a damn to debate politics let alone read about others who are debating politics. I do, however, really like reading others comments on music on this page and learn a lot from those who comment frequently. I don’t post often, so guess I was just a little annoyed that I found myself reading that whole thread about Dixie Chicks, Hank Jr, and politics. My own fault for continuing to read. That being said, keep up the music based comments as I do enjoy reading most of them.
July 7, 2015 @ 3:40 pm
No worries, Tim. Like I said, I’m used to it, and I totally get where you’re coming from in terms of not wanting to read a lengthy shitshow argument totally unrelated to the topic at hand.
I’m absolutely terrible at letting things lie. I’d say “I’m working on it,” but after this long, I may just have to accept that I’m a bit of a dick, haha.
July 7, 2015 @ 7:26 am
I’m the one who brought up Natalie Maines, so much of that thread was my doing. although I found Lester’s comments to be respectful and intriguing, and extremely well thought out.
July 7, 2015 @ 3:41 pm
Thanks, man. I enjoyed the talk, too.
July 6, 2015 @ 9:25 pm
In Native Run, Show Dog signed “top tier talent”, however with limited radio promotion and their planned LP in limbo, their ability to reach the ears of country music audiences is virtually non-existant at present…
July 6, 2015 @ 9:26 pm
I’m hoping that Toby Keith will bounce back to radio and be back on top of the country music charts again.
July 7, 2015 @ 3:52 am
Toby got the Jimmy Buffett fever, ya know, 1 song, 1 million ways to captialize on it. Bad Managment and Investor advice. He should go back to doing what He know’s. Write, Play and Sing, period. Do an occasional duet, write a song for somebody else, make some $$ off that, and be satisfied !!! Beisides, Did I or Did I not hear Him sing something about breaking His back and making a Million $$ He couldn’t take to His grave ????
July 7, 2015 @ 7:33 am
I normally don’t fault an artist for having a few turd songs. I can flush those away and be left with the good shit. But to me, Toby Keith’s catalog is 99% various consistencies of feces. Pee Yew.
It would take every bit of that $500 million to get me to perform ‘I Wanna Talk About Me’ even one time. Jesus tap-dancing Christ.
I would rather hear an 8-bit, 8 kHz, lossy-compressed MP3 file broadcast from a distant AM radio in a storm of the Dixie Chicks farting in the tub than TK perform at Carnegie Hall. And I’m not a DC fan.
July 7, 2015 @ 9:40 am
That picture of Toby Keith looks like he’s doing a commercial as The Least Interesting Man in the World…. or a character that was cut out of Lost…
July 7, 2015 @ 12:46 pm
Glad to hear. This guy hasn’t sang anything good since around 1997.
July 7, 2015 @ 5:19 pm
It’s weird hearing about so many restaurants of his shutting down. I was driving through town and saw they opening one here in Colorado Springs.
July 8, 2015 @ 12:38 am
It was great that GraysonRogers landed a Gig across town. Word traveled fast & they packed the place. Their Album, Too Loud is FREE now on Spotify.
July 9, 2015 @ 5:02 am
I say wait and see how this plays out. When Forbes released the big article several years ago I remember saying to myself “Toby has no idea how hard the restaurant business is”…… Not saying ‘I told you so’ but folks it’s a HARD business and massive operating cost drain. To try and expand that large, that quickly, and with big retail spaces is a massive cost. Not supporting the way the stores are closing but the investors probably decided to cut their losses and stop the bleeding.
As for the music, I agree with all above comments. I give Toby a lot of credit considering he was never a top-tier singer to begin with. The fact that he’s even been on this Forbes list this long is a testament. Any business sense would tell you he was going to struggle to maintain such status. I’ve personally never gotten into his music but let’s not act like even making such a Forbes top list isn’t a great achievement to begin with.
July 9, 2015 @ 12:41 pm
You nailed it with your recognition of “big retail spaces” being a problem. Industry-wide the average restaurant size has been getting smaller and smaller for years. Only a very few large concepts have been successful. Also, in most places, the days of your local Italian joint staying exactly the same, with the same menu and decor for 50 years, are over. Like almost everything else, people want new and different (not authentic, real, or good, necessarily.)
July 16, 2015 @ 2:44 pm
Another one bites the dust. As expected, Toby’s I Love this Bar and Grill closed today, 2 days after the All Star extravaganza. Lease default.
http://www.cincinnati.com/story/money/2015/07/16/toby-keiths-closes-banks/30239401/
March 24, 2019 @ 12:27 pm
Toby is not stupid. He has always done a great job and how I admire him…Garth Brooks?pppphhhhffffttttttt….If you knew the real story behind his marriage and that has been wife of his you might not admire him either. I sure don’t. Don’t listen to them, Toby…but then, I know you listen to yourself. God bless.
June 5, 2021 @ 3:23 pm
Toby Keith is the living embodiment of “I’d have enlisted, but I’d punch a drill sergeant in the face if he yelled at me!”
May 2, 2022 @ 9:06 am
Hope everything’s all right with Toby.Then again,I should have seen it coming because he’s be invisible recently. Beat your problems and start recording and touring again soon,T.K.!!!!!
December 31, 2024 @ 1:57 pm
The best, coolest country singer ever 😀