CMT Blog: 2009 November

Watching the CNN Heroes special on Thanksgiving night (Nov. 26) was so moving. Not just because of all the heroes or because of Carrie Underwood's voice, but because of the song she chose to sing. When Anderson Cooper introduced her near the end of the show, he said "Change" was an inspirational anthem about how even the smallest gesture can make a huge difference. This song, about fools who believe they can change the world, was so fitting. That's what heroes are all about. They are people who, in the face of hopelessness, have hope. People like a bartender from North Carolina who brings clean water to Sudan, Cambodia and Peru. Or the veteran who helps as many of the 131,000 homeless vets as he can. Or Efren Peñaflorida who won the hero of the year award, for the pushcart classroom he created for Filipino children.

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It was Oprah Winfrey's first-ever holiday duet extravaganza today (Nov. 30). And I don't know that I'd go so far as to call it an "extravaganza," but I will say seeing Tim McGraw and Sugarland in their holiday finest and on a winter wonderland of a stage did make me feel all Christmas-y inside. McGraw sang "Happy Christmas" with Alicia Keys, complete with croons and growls in all the right places. And Sugarland did a quiet, acoustic "Silent Night" with Jennifer Hudson, giving it a twangy soulful sound. Even better, the stars sat around with Winfrey after their performances and talked about holiday traditions. McGraw makes pasta on Christmas Eve and gives money so he doesn't have to shop. Jennifer Nettles likes to throw soup parties with her pals, and Kristian Bush records Christmas songs for his mom. Not only did the show give you some beautiful Christmas music to get you in the mood, it gives you a glimpse into how the other half lives come the holiday season.

Joey & Rory always seem so willing to let fans into their home life. You get to know the couple better when they show off their farm in Overstock.com commercials or talk about Joey's other job baking at Marcy Jo's Meal House. Their video for "It's Christmas Time" sees them letting us in even further. They take a moment to do what many will do this holiday season -- look back through a Christmas photo album. And we get to take a look, too.

For Thanksgiving dinner this year, my responsibility was easy -- bring a few homemade side items. So I pulled down my Loretta Lynn cookbook, You're Cookin' It Country. Inside she wrote that Jack White told her that her yeast bread is the best bread he's ever eaten, so I decided to try it. (I also chose sweet potato casserole and patchwork quilt rice -- both were easy and delicious.) I didn't start the bread until Thanksgiving morning since that was the only time I had three consecutive hours to prepare it. About halfway through the process, you have to punch down the dough, which I did while singing "Fist City."

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You're damned if you do and damned if you don't. Had Glen Campbell canceled his recent show in New Zealand, the ticket buyers would have been royally pissed off. So he copped a show-must-go-on attitude and did his best to perform but had to stop singing when he lost his voice. (His daughters performed and he played, he just stopped singing.) But that made the crowd angry, too. I maintain that nobody's perfect, things happen and there's really no manual on how to handle the gray area in situations like this. Should the promoters have called off the show entirely and just issued refunds at the door, frustrating about half the crowd? Or should they have let some sort of show go on even with Campbell's singing shortcomings, frustrating the other half of the crowd? If you've ever been in a similar predicament, let us know in the comments section.

The holidays bring family together, and when said family is stuck in an only-old-country-is-good-country frame of mind, so am I. I'm not saying I believe that all the time, because God knows I love today's most mainstream stuff. But every once in a while (like twice a year when the Timeless Country Classics book of sheet music is dusted off and there is plenty of wine to go around), it's nice to hear some of the oldies so you remember where country is coming from.
"Okie From Muskogee," Merle Haggard
"Don't the Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time," Mickey Gilley
"San Antonio Stroll," Tanya Tucker
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Tomorrow (Nov. 26) will be all about counting your blessings. The obvious ones, like your family, health and God willing, your financial security. And the not-so-obvious ones, like how the Halloween candy is finally gone or that you recently discovered the Boob Tube. But if we were all holding hands and going around the table talking about our country music blessings, this is what I'd be most thankful for:

* The way I can hear Jennifer Nettles' tears on "Stay" and her smile on "The Very Last Country Song."

* The goosebumpy thrill I still get when Keith Urban and Darius Rucker take their guitars and voices out into the crowd at a concert.

* The very slightest remote possibility that the Dixie Chicks will follow in Garth Brooks' shoes and come out of retirement.

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It's always hard to know if someone who is popular in one country will be that popular in another country. But as you can imagine, Taylor Swift had no problem finding her way into the hearts of London. In a review of her recent show at Wembley Arena on Monday night (Nov. 23) for 12,500 fans, the story says, "her adoring audience scream for nigh on ten minutes" and that the "two-hour show is impressive, high-energy stuff -- full of costume changes, set pieces and dance routines." So it sounds just like a review from one of her many shows right here in America. The most insightful part of it, though, is when the writer calls Swift the very opposite of a diva: self-made, grateful, unpretentious and hardworking. "She's every young girl's best friend, and judging by the noise they're making tonight, Swift's got a fair few friends to her name." Swift heads to Australia in February for a string of seven tour dates, and I have a feeling the reviews will be just as good from Down Under.

Several country artists are spreading holiday joy this winter season and also helping out the Special Olympics on a new album, A Very Special Christmas 7. This compilation features a younger generation of artists including Miley Cyrus, Carrie Underwood, Kellie Pickler and Gloriana. Below is "Let It Snow" by the Carter Twins, and in this video, Josh and Zach don't let the snow ruin their fun with friends. It makes me want to make my own holiday memories this winter with friends and family.

The day after Thanksgiving is typically the day when smart shoppers start their holiday shopping. But if you have any country fans on your list (like, say, yourself), you may want to wait until Dec. 3. That's the day that Christie's is starting their country music sale, which they describe as the first sale dedicated to the creation, history and evolution of country music. And it's not like you need to be there, paddle in hand, to get the auction going. You can bid on musical instruments, stage outfits and handwritten lyrics from legendary artists like Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Waylon Jennings, Hank Snow, Hank Williams, Conway Twitty, Bill Monroe, Buddy Holly, Johnny and June Carter Cash, Luther Perkins and John Hartford. So if you want Johnny Cash's black Fender Malibu guitar with "I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die" hand-written on it, and frankly who doesn't, register to bid early and be ready to pay about $40,000 to $60,000. There's also an iconic Waylon Jennings Fender electric guitar (pictured), circa 1950, with a custom-made white and black, handtooled leather cover and a matching leather strap bearing the name Waylon. It's estimated bid is between $80,000 to $120,000. If you don't have that kind of cash, maybe the shirt Buck Owens wore on Hee Haw would be a better fit for around $300.

Photo credit: CHRISTIE'S IMAGES LTD. 2009