CMT Blog: 2007 September

I know what many of you may be thinking: “Jewel isn’t country.” However, the Alaskan poetic songstress has been writing folk music and yodeling since she was just a small girl. She played taverns with her father at the early age of 8, hitchhiked solo to Mexico during Spring break and wrote a smash hit, “Who Will Save Your Soul,” while standing on a street corner watching passersby. She even lived in her car at one point, until it was later stolen. She dates seven-time world champion bull rider Ty Murray. Who’s to say she isn’t country? She’s soulful. She’s poetic. She’s got spirit. And to me, she’s country.

Listen to her lyrics and listen to her message. In this video, “Hands,” she offers encouragement and hope. Indeed, all of us need a helping hand at some point in our lives, but often our strongest comfort is at the end of our own arm. Sometimes it takes hitting rock bottom or a terrible situation to remind us how strong we really are.

In the video, Jewel walks through wreckage where those around her are panicking and upset. Pushed to the breaking point, they all begin pitching in to help one another. Gathering strength both mentally and physically, they regain control of an awful situation. The viewer isn’t shown what the actual ruins are caused by, whether from a fire or bomb, because that’s beside the point. The point is in the lyrics: "Poverty stole your golden shoes/But it didn’t steal your laughter." They’ve all come together for the greater cause, to help one another. "'Cause where there’s a man who has no voice/There ours shall go singing."

Believing in oneself, relying on our morals, doing what we can to make each day a little brighter for ourselves and others -- this is her message. May we all put our own hands together and make today a little brighter.

Dolly Parton has always been one of my favorite artists and anytime I can talk to her, I jump at the chance! We recently went to Dollywood for her Barbeque and Bluegrass festival. She was decked out as usual and was just hilarious. I took my brother, Jason, along for the ride and he got to meet her and have his picture taken with her. What fun that was!

He is 6'5" and Dolly is probably not much over 5' tall. It made for a cute picture. He also got to ride all the roller coasters. He said that the Mystery Mine was the best by far. In case you're wondering, I didn't ride any. I am way too scared to go on a roller coaster! Dollywood is so fun. If you've never been, you should make time to visit.

I mentioned that we have some great CMT Insider Special Editions coming soon. In addition to Faith Hill September 29, we have a show with Sara Evans October 6. Sara has a Greatest Hits album coming out. We had a great talk about all the past hits and the new songs on the album. Following a stressful year, she seems as focused as ever on her music. She looks great and was in great spirits. As I said, that special is coming up in October, so check it out.

The biggest tour in the world is coming to Nashville. The dinosaurs are on their way. And I don’t mean The Eagles. I mean Walking with Dinosaurs: the Live Experience. Just after Bob Dylan/Elvis Costello at the Ryman, this is the show I have most looked forward to.

This is truly an epic-size tour. Fifteen life-size walking and bellowing animatronic dinosaurs will stalk through Nashville’s Sommet Center. The biggest of them is the 50-foot-tall Brachiosaurus. The Tyrannosaurus Rex is 45 feet long. The tour uses 27 tractor-trailer trucks and employs a crew of 68 people. The tour began in January in Sydney, played Australian dates through March and then began in North America.

This came about from the 1999 BBC-TV series, Walking with Dinosaurs, which was itself groundbreaking and watched by millions of people. Those dinosaurs were computer-generated, a process which was enormously expensive and complicated.

An Australian company decided to try building realistic, life-size dinosaurs and taking them on the road for an arena tour. The life-size creatures were built and “dinosaur drivers” learned how to operate them. Consider the cost. The movie Jurassic Park had about nine minutes of dinosaurs in it. The tour production of Walking with Dinosaurs runs around three hours. It’ll be in Nashville Oct. 17-21. The big screen videos I’ve seen of it and the accounts I’ve heard from friends who have seen this show tell me it’s well worth seeing. The script traces dinosaur development throughout the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous Periods of the Mesozoic Era. And there’s one epic dinosaur battle.

I’ll tell you what. This is really about getting back to the roots.

Jeezy Creezy, what happened to Taylor Swift, the girl next door? Someone has abducted her and replaced her with Taylor Swift, the blonde Barbie doll. Is that Paris Hilton painting her toe-nails and yakking on the phone? Oh no, that's Taylor Swift. Is that Mena Suvari laying in a bed of rose petals? Nope, Taylor again! I'll take the awkward but charming Taylor in an apron and lab glasses any day, but then again, I guess I'm not exactly the target demographic here :) On a positive note, I really liked the clips showing her rocking out with her band. Rock on, Taylor, just don't lose that girlish charm!

We had a short run east this week where we first stopped in Dover, N.H., and visited WOKQ. We joined them for the morning show. We had a blast as we played, talked and joked for about 1-½ hours. They had contest winners there as well and they got to hang out and watch the show. We made some great friends and can't wait to go back.

On Saturday (Sept. 22), we headed for Boston where we played the Tweeter Center that night. We had a great reception from the crowd, and after the show, we played a post party show sponsored by WKLB. They had over a hundred contest winners that got to attend the show. We played an acoustic set and were joined by some of the other players on the tour. Scotty, Keith and Aden from Miranda's band joined us for a few songs, then Dave, Joey and Rich from the Easy Money Band joined in for an awesome jam session. It was a great time for the audience and I think an even greater time for all of us.

This week's behind-the-scenes person is Suzanne Durham. Suzanne works for the record label, Show Dog, as the Northeast regional and, like all the regionals, works hard to get us introduced to the world. She sets up all of the pre- and post-party shows, interviews, meet and greets and much more. She has worked tirelessly to promote Flynnville Train and is very creative and brilliant in the way she does. The belief she has in us inspires us to keep pushing forward, even when we might be tired. I don't think it's possible to show her our gratitude, but for what it's worth, thank you, Suz.

Next week, we will wrap up the tour in Texas. I've been hearing rumors about all the pranks that get pulled on the last night of the tour. I'm sure next weeks post will be interesting.

Until then, Tommy Bales

His apparent suicide this week probably means we’ll never know all of the exact causes behind his recent financial and legal woes, but Bob McLean sure seemed like country music’s guardian angel. In 2004 and 2005, he made two extraordinary donations to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum that can only be described as genuinely iconic musical instruments -- the 1923 Gibson F-5 mandolin that Bill Monroe used during most of his career and 1928 Gibson L-5 guitar that Maybelle Carter played throughout her life, including early recordings with the Carter Family. The mandolin and guitar had been on the market with a collective price tag of more than $1.5 million, although it’s hard to attach a dollar figure to instruments that launched bluegrass and country music as we know it today.

With private collectors acquiring and hoarding vintage American-built instruments to keep locked up in their mansions overseas, McLean made sure the Monroe mandolin and Carter guitar would be on public display in Nashville. The elite of the country music community responded accordingly by inviting him to various parties and industry gatherings. (While it may be true that money can’t necessarily buy love or friendship, there’s no denying that it gets people’s attention.)

McLean, a philanthropist and former stockbroker who lived in Murfreesboro, Tenn., had donated millions to various institutions, including Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro and the new Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville, but rumors circulated earlier this year after he was hit by a series of lawsuits from investors who alleged he had fraudulently taken their money. By early September, they claimed he owed them a total of $20 million. The day before he was to attend a bankruptcy hearing, McLean’s body was found Tuesday (Sept. 25) near a church in Shelbyville, Tenn. Police say the cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

One of the lingering questions about McLean’s legal troubles is whether the Hall of Fame is in any danger of having to relinquish the Monroe mandolin and Carter guitar to the bankruptcy court or the IRS. I spoke to a museum spokesperson who emphasized that both instruments are owned by the Hall of Fame, adding that confidentiality agreements prohibited additional explanation.

I once sat at a table with McLean during BMI’s country awards banquet and he seemed like an extremely nice guy. It was easy to tell that he was wealthy but I also sensed that he donated the Monroe mandolin and Carter guitar to the Hall of Fame simply because he felt like that’s where they belong. If he was a con artist, I certainly didn’t detect it, although it could be argued that being a great actor is an essential part of a con artist’s job description. In any event, I still prefer to think he was just another person who somehow lost his way and got in over his head financially.

It’s a good thing Faith Hill didn’t marry Steven Tyler. If she had, she’d have spent Monday night (Sept. 24) following him up and down the catwalk, chastising Aerosmith fans in Chicago for groping his crotch. She’d have to give hundreds of people the “somebody needs to teach you some class, my friend” lecture every night of the tour. Even Tyler himself could use good talking-to. Not only does he put his stuff out there for fans, he touches himself suggestively and repeatedly. A few times, he even reached inside his tight (I think they were a size 6X) purple tie-dyed jeans to emphasize a lyric or two.

And this is why I love country. I mean, yes, someone reached out to touch Tim’s McGraws. But look at the drama that ensued. That shows you how wholesome country has remained in a world consumed with sex. It takes a brave genre not to fall prey to that sin-is-in mentality. Country music is not completely sexless. We have guys who allude to their XXL parts. And ones who lament those parts that don’t work as good as they once did. But after taking in two hours of Steven Tyler’s mic-stand erotica, I now realize how tame country really is.

I’m well aware that Tyler’s rock star status buys him some leeway sexually. But you could argue that a guy like Tim McGraw is a bit of a rock star too. So we should all be grateful that he’s more guarded during his shows. It’s not that McGraw doesn’t have balls. He just keeps them to himself.

Since most country fans aren’t likely to check out an Aerosmith show, and most Aerosmith fans wouldn’t be caught dead at a country show, there’s only one way to demonstrate my point. What we need is a CMT Crossroads with Tim McGraw & Stephen Tyler. Maybe some of McGraw’s modesty would rub off on Tyler. And if that doesn’t work, we could always bring Faith in.

I was in the middle of writing my blog entry for this week when I discovered that fellow scribe Whitney Self had already beaten me to the subject. It turns out that both of us are swept away by Sugarland singer Jennifer Nettles’ masterful video performance in “Stay.” Because her acting is so good in a role so unlike the one we’ve come to expect from her, I predict the video will win her a legion of new fans.

Until I saw her in “Stay” (she also wrote the song), I viewed Nettles as little more than a cute, feisty, take-charge type who clicked around the stage on high heels like a delegate at a dominatrix convention. Sure, her voice was always forceful and her posturings eye-catching, but I kept wondering if she had anything arresting to say. It’s obvious now that she does.

Sometimes an artist’s first video establishes his or her ideal image, one that instantly conveys the desired identity and stature. That’s what happened to Billy Ray Cyrus with “Achy Breaky Heart.” It presented him right out of the box as a sexy, fully realized rock star, a concept that still serves him well. It was different with Garth Brooks. His first video, “If Tomorrow Never Comes,” introduced him simply as a sensitive family man. While that was an important part of his persona -- and still is -- it wasn’t the element that rocketed him toward superstardom. That came with “The Dance,” his second video. It portrayed him as a sort of cowboy philosopher who concluded -- after mulling over the tragedies that befell Martin Luther King Jr., John Wayne, John F. Kennedy, the Challenger spacecraft crew, Keith Whitley and rodeo star Lane Frost -- that taking risks is essential to living a meaningful life. From that point on, young fans embraced Brooks as the man who had something important to say about the nature of existence, a concern that hits especially hard during the adolescent years.

“Stay,” of course, is aimed at a different and older audience. But it’s a vast one: women who’ve been badly used by men who supposedly love them. Such women will now see in Nettles a sympathetic sister instead of the encroaching femme fatale she has heretofore represented. Men who’ve watched as one affair after another escalates from no-strings recreation to a state of desperate possessiveness will be wise to avoid the video altogether. It stings.

We've been so busy lately! It's that time of year for lots of new releases. I think I have done a few of my favorite interviews ever just in the last few weeks. I had a nice long sit-down with Rascal Flatts. Those boys are too funny. I swear they should have their own television show. I know how excited fans are about their new CD, and the music is very Eagles sounding. This CD will be a huge seller!

Kenny Chesney has a great new CD, too. I had a nice sit-down with him in New York recently and he seemed to be in a great place. He looks so healthy and seems very relaxed and happy. He has made an amazing CD and it too will be a huge seller.

We have some great CMT Insider Special Editions coming out soon. Hopefully by now you have had a chance to catch our Reba special about her new Duets album. She is always so fun to talk to and what a great lineup of artists she has on this album! She is truly an inspiration.

We also talked to Faith Hill recently. She was so open about everything that has been happening in her life in the last few years. We talked about her passion for music and the ups and downs she has had at radio. One thing is very clear: she really appreciates the fans that have stood by her through all of this. We discussed the awful CMA incident, when her joke was turned into something much more serious and how disappointed she felt by people's reaction. Although she admits that when she saw the footage back, she undertands how people could misunderstand her actions. She is a lovely person and I hope people will give her a break in the future. Look for that special to air very soon.

I guess I'm feeling the need to explain what I'm talking about in the blog I'm fixin’ to write, because questions about where I'm from come up in almost every interview I do. I'm from Texas and live here still. But, in any interview that I do, whether it's with a magazine, a TV station or whatever, this question comes up: "So, what do YOU think about the Nashville music scene vs. the Texas music scene?" I don't know if they are asking me that question just to ask me (because of the obvious geographical differences), or if they are aware of the differences and want me to put my stamp on the answer.

Nashville music and Texas music are, in fact, very different. I love both places to pieces. I live in Texas now, but I'm not saying that someday I won't move to Tennessee. Nashville has been overly spectacularly wonderful to me. They have nice green trees and tons of talented people and meat-and-threes. If you don't know what a meat-and-three is, look it up or ask your favorite Nashvillian and they can tell you.

Well, anyway, here's my answer:

You can ask any Texas girl, but I think we are brought up with a little extra sass down here. I think they put extra sass in the chicken or milk or something, because most all of us have it. It's gotten me in trouble my whole life, but doing this for a living allows me to let it out more than I could if I worked some other type of job. I don't know what it is, and I can't pinpoint it, but if we are staying true to ourselves, like we are taught, then that sass will come across in our music. It may come across more in-your-face than you'd expected, or it might be downright not your style, but once you listen, you are kinda drawn to it, because it's tough, come-and-get-it, raw emotion.

When someone asks me about Nashville music, I say, "Shawn Camp, Jim Lauderdale, Monty Holmes, Radney Foster, Darrell Scott, Thom Schuyler, John Scott Sherrill, Billy Yates, Leslie Satcher, and the list goes on." These are some of my favorite writers behind the hits that the artists are singing. I mean, they live in Nashville, so wouldn't that be classified as Nashville music? These writers have written tons of hit songs for the likes of Josh Turner, the Dixie Chicks, Lee Ann Womack, Sara Evans, George Jones, Faith Hill, Lacy J. Dalton, Martina McBride, and the list I'm sure goes on.

All I'm saying is, check out the behind-the-scenes on the CD booklets. We make those so we can give people the proper credit. I often find myself listening to the original writers’ versions because those are the most raw and in-your-face. I mean, a lot of times, writers are that -- WRITERS. But in this case, all the ones I listed above are singers and performers and musicians as well. They all write what they know and that comes across. Check some of those folks out and let me know what you think. Better yet, try to find some of their live shows. That will get you hooked.