CMT Blog: Country Music

The last time I saw Willie Nelson perform "Pistol Packin' Mama," it was in the middle of a show comprised almost entirely of classic songs -- but none of them were Nelson's. It was at the Ryman Auditorium and I figured that Nelson just needed a break from the usual list of fan favorites. As it turns out, tough, he was previewing songs from his upcoming album, Country Music. In this performance from PBS Soundstage, we get a sense of what that project will be like when it's released on April 20. Like the rest of the songs on Country Music, "Pistol Packin' Mama" has a little bluegrass flavor, adding one more musical style to Nelson's ever-expanding bag of tricks.

Miley Cyrus has some choice words to say about country music in a new Parade magazine interview. On the topic of why she's staying away from the country music scene, she says, "It scares me, that's why. It feels contrived on so many levels. Unless you're wearing a cowboy hat and cowboy boots and singing and whining about your girlfriend or boyfriend leaving you it's not going to sell. I think that's why my dad finally got out of it. You have to wear those cowboy boots and be sweet as pie. It makes me nervous, the politics of it all." In the interview, she praises Dolly Parton (as well as RuPaul and Lady Gaga) but says she struggles with relating to teen girls because she doesn't watch television. Considering her career up to this point, it's hard to fathom that she'd have anything negative to say about country music, teenage girls and television audiences, especially all at the same time, but read the interview and see for yourself.

Yesterday, I wrote my 1,000th blog. You can see that big fat number right next to my name on CMT.com's blog page. So I spent a completely inordinate amount of time sifting through those 1,000 blogs trying to find some kind of rhyme or reason or pattern in the way people respond. I gave up around midnight when all I had determined was that sometimes you just strike a nerve. And sometimes you don't.

I could pour out my heart about a new album. Rave about lyrics. Rant about haters. Or I could try to put into words my devotion to Garth Brooks' music. I could talk nonstop about concerts and awards shows and the battles of the blondes. But in a way, this blog is a bit like the music business it's intended to cover, because it's really all about timing. If I wrote something particularly controversial, it could very well fall on deaf ears if, say, Taylor Swift had a new single out that day or Kenny Chesney broke his foot.

Still, you can't help but notice when the comments for a particular blog start to rack up higher numbers than others. So I give you the top blogs, if comments matter as much as I think they do:

Mark Chesnutt made some remarks about Taylor Swift's music.

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After too many years of too many of the same New Year's resolutions, I've grown completely bored with my own list. Probably because it always sounds just like everybody else's litany of self-improvement. Eat less. Jog more. Stop cussing like a sailor. Be more charitable. Never pay retail. It's like a broken record. Just one I never really seem to listen to.

This year will be different, I swear. Because this year, I looked to country music for inspiration for my resolutions. And it's not just a live-like-you-were-dying kind of thing. It's more of a wish list for living life a little more country. So in 2009, I promise to:

Go "Fishin' in the Dark."

"Start a Band," perhaps with a "Band of Brothers," and always "Play Something Country."

"Pray About Everything" and consider being baptized in that "Muddy Water."

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People who aren't into country music are pretty quick to classify it as "music for soccer moms." As if that's a bad thing. Like soccer moms have no taste, thereby making the music they have chosen to play in their minivans less cool than whatever alt-emo-pop music other folks are listening to. And those folks are partially right. Middle-aged suburban moms do make up a big portion of country radio listeners and are responsible for a lot of what's left of retail CD sales. But those folks are wrong about moms not having enough smarts to recognize good music. Read more...

The Young Hollywood Awards were a little sweeter this Sunday, thanks to Taylor Swift, who was there to pick up her Superstar of Tomorrow award.

Record Making for Dummies? Nashville record producer Steve Fishell has founded the Music Producers Institute to teach students how to track, record, mix and master.

Whew! Almost 31,000 people ran 26 miles in Nashville's Country Music Marathon.

The grass is always greener on Dierks Bentley's side of the fence. So why not win your own private backyard party with him on May 12?