Is there something in the Nashville water? It seems to me like more and more artists are canceling more and more shows due to voice troubles. LeAnn Rimes just postponed a couple of additional shows, Sugarland had to do so recently, as did Brooks & Dunn. Maybe it’s just me, but I can’t help wondering why so many throats are getting worn out. Are singers being forced to sing louder? Are the touring schedules packed too tight? Whatever the reason, I hope the artists will treat their voices like the intricately-crafted instruments that they are, even if it means shorter set lists and fewer tour stops.
Luke Laird has every right to act like a big shot. But since he co-wrote two of Carrie Underwood’s latest No. 1 hits, he’s indulged in just one luxury. “I paid off my truck,” he told me.
This is how brilliant songwriters stay brilliant, I think. They write songs that regular people relate to because they are regular people. Not pretentious or narcissistic. Laird is a seriously normal guy. Just one who has a catalog of about 500 songs under his belt. And one who stays cautiously optimistic. “You never know when you’re gonna get another hit,” he said about his reluctance to blow all his royalties. “If I ever had too much debt, that would really kill my creativity.”
You may not have heard of Armie Hammer, the young actor who portrays Billy Graham in Billy: The Early Years, but you’ve certainly heard of the country singers who contributed to the new film. Brooks & Dunn, Sara Evans, Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley and Josh Turner are spotlighted on the soundtrack, along with several contemporary Christian and bluegrass artists. And there’s no mistaking the octave-jumping voice of Roy Orbison, who was a longtime Nashville resident. The film doesn’t come out nationally until Friday, but already, Graham’s son, Franklin Graham, isn’t altogether satisfied with it.
I’ll go see the bluegrass band Blue Highway every chance I get - unless it’s after midnight. Not even once during IBMA’s World of Bluegrass week was I able to pull an all-nighter, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying a full week of music. I missed Blue Highway’s official showcase on Wednesday night, but I was pleased to hear them on Friday, just one day after “Though the Window of a Train” won an IBMA award for song of the year. I’m always impressed with their original songs and their musicianship. Can you believe they have kept the same lineup since winning their first IBMA award in 1996? In bluegrass, that’s almost unheard of.
Posted: September 11th, 2008 at 5:53 pm| By: Alison Bonaguro
First it was LeAnn Rimes. Now it’s Brooks & Dunn. Is there something in the Nashville water? Rimes had to pull out of a concert with Kenny Chesney because of tonsillitis. (Fortunately, Miranda Lambert made a more than adequate substitute.) And now Brooks & Dunn have canceled a show in York, Pa., and postponed shows near Pittsburgh and Chicago because of Ronnie Dunn’s severe respiratory condition. “I’m sitting here sick, pretty bummed out, with no voice,” was the message from Ronnie Dunn. I (and country fans everywhere) wish them both a speedy recovery.
Posted: September 5th, 2008 at 2:38 pm| By: Calvin Gilbert
No doubt, John Rich was delighted that John McCain and Sarah Palin used his original song, “Raisin’ McCain,” as the theme while the balloons dropped Thursday night (Sept. 4) following McCain’s acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention, but Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart weren’t nearly as pleased when the musical menu quickly switched to their 1977 rock hit, “Barracuda.” According to Entertainment Weekly, the Wilsons had already asked the Republicans to refrain from using their music as part of the campaign. In a written statement to EW, the sisters noted, “Sarah Palin’s views and values in NO WAY represent us as American women. We ask that our song, ‘Barracuda,’ no longer be used to promote her image.” They said the song was written “as a scathing rant against the soulless, corporate nature of the music business, particularly for women” — with the song title serving as a metaphor for the business. In the statement, they said, “While Heart did not and would not authorize the use of their song at the RNC, there’s irony in Republican strategists’ choice to make use of it there.”
It took an Alan Jackson video to remind me of why I feel a little uncomfortable when I watch the latest Brooks & Dunn video. Jackson’s “Good Time” is everything B&D’s “Put a Girl in It” is not. Jackson’s cast of thousands has variety, equality and reality, while B&D’s just has a whole bunch of the same kind of girls. Ronnie Dunn sings that if your world’s got something missing, you should put a girl in it. Watching the video, the underlying message seems to be that you should put a young, under 25ish girl with a bikini top, micro-mini and long hair in it. Oh, and throw some cowboy boots on her since it’s a country song.
Alan Jackson has written a melody to a poem written by Billy Graham’s wife, Ruth Graham, and recorded it for the soundtrack for the upcoming biopic, Billy: The Early Years. Jackson first saw the poem in Billy Graham’s autobiography and set it to music - but he’s not the one singing “Ruth’s Prayer” on the soundtrack. That honor goes to Patty Griffin, an estimable songwriter in her own right. And both of those musicians have other credits on the album, too.
Posted: August 29th, 2008 at 10:18 am| By: Calvin Gilbert
Editor’s note: Updated, Aug. 29, 2 p.m. ET
When Barack Obama finished his acceptance speech Thursday night (Aug. 28) at the Democratic National Convention, a lot of country fans were no doubt surprised — or downright shocked — that Brooks & Dunn’s “Only in America” provided the soundtrack to the festivities while the Obama family and vice presidential candidate Joe Biden walked among the spiraling confetti to celebrate. After all, George W. Bush had used that same song as one of his themes for his 2004 presidential campaign. And, as I recall, Bush had also used Brooks & Dunn’s “Hard Workin’ Man” during his initial election bid in 2000. Beyond using “Only in America” throughout his 2004 campaign, Bush was also joined by Brooks & Dunn and the Oak Ridge Boys onstage in Milwaukee on the eve of his re-election.
Is there something in the Nashville water? It seems to me like more and more artists are canceling more and more shows due to voice troubles. LeAnn Rimes just postponed a couple of additional shows, Sugarland had to do so recently, as did Brooks & Dunn. Maybe it’s just me, but I can’t help wondering why so many throats are getting worn out. Are singers being forced to sing louder? Are the touring schedules packed too tight? Whatever the reason, I hope the artists will treat their voices like the intricately-crafted instruments that they are, even if it means shorter set lists and fewer tour stops.
Luke Laird
You may not have heard of 
I’ll go see the bluegrass band 
First it was 
Back in March, I was pining for 
No doubt, 
Alan Jackson
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