Country Music Blog: Kix Brooks

In the hours after Eddy Arnold's death early Thursday morning, country music stars and everyday working class people from Nashville have been sharing their stories of the Country Music Hall of Fame member. And if there's one underlying theme, it's the kindness and decency he showed to everyone he had contact with long after he had anything to prove or anyone to impress.

He was a superstar long before anyone ever coined the expression, but he didn't act like a superstar and you certainly wouldn't pick him out of a crowd as being a multi-millionaire. Up until a few months ago, he could be seen most weekdays having lunch at a modest meat-and-three restaurant south of downtown Nashville. Read more...

Kix Brooks gives the Tennessean his position on volunteering his services for the CMA Music Festival: He's against it. He says it forces big artists to give up better money-making opportunities.

Has Marsha Brady really Gone Country? Read a wrap-up of Maureen McCormick's interview with Matt Lauer, where she revealed she actually recorded a country album 13 years ago.

While Rascal Flatts was forced to postpone a show because of illness,  Gary Levox is well enough to offer some comfort to rock star Pink, who recently announced she's splitting from her husband of two years.

A Boston cop is suing a state trooper after some traffic trouble outside a Tim & Faith concert. May the best law enforcement officer win.

The latest trend in maternity wear is to show off that bump. But a burgeoning Nicole Kidman took it a little too far in this see-through number at a "Golden Compass" event in Japan.

Australia's Herald Sun reports that Keith Urban is in the midst of a collaboration with another woman. Urban and pop sensation Nelly Furtado are recording a duet together.

If you're going to be in New York City during Super Bowl XLII, and you like country music, consider joining Kix Brooks and some of Nashville's hottest songwriters at one of the hottest eateries.

It seems rehab is the new spot for country artists to start starting over. Joe Nichols is the latest to leave an Arizona facility with a renewed commitment to country.

Is Darius Rucker, front man of frat-rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, finally ready to unveil his country sound? You'll have to hit Nashville's Bluebird on Friday night to hear for yourself.

Last week I was cooking dinner at my friend Hunter's new condo and we decided the most tedious thing about moving is unpacking CDs. Especially in this digital age, there's just no point in keeping a disc for one or two songs. You probably won't regret selling it, or giving it away. Speaking of that, Hunter said he'd just put a playlist together of his favorite "songs of regret." By then we were feeling warm after a few glasses of wine from Kix Brooks' winery, so I thought maybe something a little more upbeat would have been better, but my unspoken rule is -- his house, his music. (If you come to my house for dinner, be prepared to listen to a lot of 80s country, and you better like it.)

First was Alabama's "Lady Down on Love," about a woman who's unfortunately back in the single life. In today's country music, she would grab her girlfriends and they'd burn up his trailer or go to Tunica or something, but back in the day, heartbroken people drowned their sorrows (and regrets) in the bars. From there, we said "Awwww" over the first few notes of "I Told You So" by Randy Travis, "Always on My Mind" by Willie Nelson (which is not romantic, people!) and a few chestnuts by Mark Chesnutt. I've always been a fan of Mark Chesnutt's early stuff, and when you listen closely, you'll see that "I Just Wanted You to Know" and "I'll Think of Something" fit perfectly in this list.

The only new song was Sugarland's "Stay," and I think the reason it's resonating with country fans is because almost no current country songs offer any sort of conflict, and conflict is the key to any interesting story, whether it's a novel or a song. I particularly hate songs about how someone is from the country, and that they also like the country. Give me something devastating, like George Jones' "Choices" or Patty Loveless' "Here I Am." Some of these regretful songs I haven't heard in ages, like Vern Gosdin's "Do You Believe Me Now" or Sawyer Brown's "All These Years." But I still knew the words.

Being a traditional country fan, I feel lost in my generation sometimes because I don't know the difference between Radiohead and Oasis, and never bought Nevermind. That's OK. I don't have regrets. Well, actually, thanks to my friend's playlist, I do.