Brooks & Dunn photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

When they first came to national attention with “Brand New Man” in 1991, Brooks & Dunn were an unlikely combo — a couple of guys who moved to Nashville with dreams of becoming solo performers who were sort of glued together by a Music Row executive.

By the time Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn wound it down with the Last Rodeo Tour in 2010, they had become the most commercially successful duo in country music history — better known than Country Music Hall of Famers the Louvin Brothers with more hits than Hall of Famers the Everly Brothers.

The Brooks & Dunn breakup ranks No. 5 as GAC counts down the dozen top stories of the past year.

B&D have won more awards from the Academy of Country Music than any other act in history, and they’re No. 2 on the Country Music Association’s career list, trailing only George Strait. How did they make such a huge impact? In part it was the way they’re constructed — there aren’t a whole lot of duos, and Kix and Ronnie beat all the competition for many of the years they were eligible for awards.

But the awards aren’t the whole story. Whether they had been classified as a duo, a group or something else, the fact is they simply did a lot of really good work. Ronnie owns one of the most soulful voices in the business, and Kix is one of the most energetic stage performers in country music. They managed to build on those talents with a string of top-notch, sing-along hits, including “Only In America,” “My Maria,” “Red Dirt Road,” “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” and “You Can’t Take The Honky Tonk Out Of The Girl.”

Their impact was such that the Rolling Stones asked them to open a show in Omaha on the Bigger Bang Tour in 2006 — a rare opportunity for a country act. Kix attended a Stones show in Memphis a few months earlier, and less than a quarter of the seats were filled for the lead-in band, Los Lobos. Kix warned Ronnie not to expect much when Brooks & Dunn took their turn as openers.

“Sure enough, we got out there and the place was full, and they’re singin’ ‘Neon Moon’ just like ‘Sympathy For The Devil,’” Kix recalls. “We get done, and actually Mick Jagger, all of ‘em came back and gave us a little time in the green room. [He] said, ‘Hey, mate. We’re really impressed. We haven’t seen that type of turn out for any of our opening acts for the entire tour. And they were singing along with your songs.’ [I] said, ‘Yeah, no disrespect, Mr. Jagger, but we played Omaha a lot more than you did.’”

Gary Allan and Jason Aldean split time among the opening acts for Brooks & Dunn’s farewell tour, and Tyler Dickerson played all of the Last Rodeo shows, joining Ronnie for a duet in the final concert at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. Reba McEntire also showed up that night to sing “Cowgirls Don’t Cry” as the dynamic duo brought a historic career to a close.

Not that either of them are done. Kix hosts the national radio show “American Country Countdown” and has a role in an upcoming movie, Thrift Store Cowboy. Ronnie’s been working on a solo album, and he remade Gary Stewart’s 1970s classic “She’s Actin’ Single (I’m Drinkin’ Doubles)” for the soundtrack to the movie Country Strong.

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Marty Stuart photo courtesy of The GreenRoom.

When Marty Stuart set out to record his latest album, Ghost Train: The Studio B Sessions, at a historic Nashville studio, he was the perfect guy to do it.

RCA Studio B was the breeding ground for a ton of country hits by the likes of Dolly Parton, Elvis Presley, the Everly Brothers and Jim Reeves. It’s currently owned by the Country Music Hall of Fame and serves more as a tourist attraction these days than a working studio, but it was a great location for Marty, who has an avowed appreciation for country’s past.

The RCA studio had a personal connection, because it was the site of Marty’s very first recording session, when he worked as a sideman for Country Music Hall of Fame member Lester Flatt. Since then, Marty’s gone on to have some important final moments with several other Hall of Famers. He was the producer of Porter Wagoner’s very last album, Wagonmaster. And Marty co-wrote the last song that Johnny Cash authored. Both Porter and Johnny are recalled on Ghost Train — Marty wrote a recitation called “Porter Wagoner’s Grave,” and he recorded the song that he and Johnny wrote together, “Hangman.”

“He was my next-door neighbor, and I went over there and had that song started, and it didn’t take 10 minutes to finish it,” Marty told American Songwriter. “As I left, I said, ‘Well I’ve got to go to Washington, and I’ll see you in about four days.’ I said, ‘You feeling good?’ And he said, ‘I’m feeling good.’ And I said, ‘How’s your spirit?’ ‘It’s good.’ ‘You got plenty of rope left?’ And he said, ‘Yup.’ And I said, ‘I’ll see you when I get home.’”

Of course, he did not see Johnny. The Man in Black died while Marty was out of town in September 2003. Marty is working to keep the the spirit of classic country alive, and it becomes tougher every day as contemporary country sounds overtake the old stuff. Many members of the country-music community — and some fans — are frustrated or angry about that development. But Marty has no ill will about it.

“I absolutely encourage modern country music, trust me,” he said. “There aren’t a lot of people out there that think the way I do about some things, but we need modern country music as much as we need traditional country music. It’s a balance, and we need bluegrass, and folk music. We need all those divisions of country music, firing on all cylinders. That’s what makes country music so cool to me.”

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Vince Gill performs with Albert Lee at Eric Clapton's 2010 Crossroads Guitar Festival. Photo courtesy of Erin Morris.

Brooks & Dunn, Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Paul McCartney: several halls of fame are bursting with news about their programs or their members.

The Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame have new inductees on the way, the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum has a couple of fundraisers on the docket in Nashville and Los Angeles, and one Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member invoked the names of two Country Hall of Famers when he played next door to Nashville’s best-known museum.

Here’s a bundle of Hall of Fame-related music news:

• Country Music Hall of Fame member Vince Gill took part in Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival just a month ago. Now he’s being featured in a two-hour film version of the event, which will appear in 475 theaters around the U.S. on Tuesday. Go here to find a full lineup of theaters.

• Mirroring similar donations by Eddy Arnold and songwriter Cindy Walker, Brenda Lee has given all of her career memorabilia to the Country Music Hall of Fame. The collection includes stage costumes, awards, personal correspondence and a Brenda Lee comic book.

• The second All For The Hall benefit concert in Los Angeles will feature Emmylou Harris, Kris Kristofferson and Taylor Swift Sept. 23 at Club Nokia. Proceeds will benefit the Country Hall of Fame. A mystery guest is promised as a fourth member of the all-star lineup.

• Viva ELVIS: The Album will be released in November, with reimagined musical settings providing a new aural backdrop for Elvis Presley, a member of both the Country Music and Rock & Roll Halls of Fame. A Cirque de Soleil production, Viva Elvis, debuted in Las Vegas earlier this year. The album will feature updated versions of “Burning Love,” “Suspicious Minds,” “Blue Suede Shoes” and “It’s Now or Never,” among others.

• Grand Ole Opry member Jean Shepard will enter the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in November, according to the Associated Press. She’ll be inducted alongside Jamie Oldaker, the drummer for “Baby Likes To Rock It” band the Tractors.

• Three late contributors will take their place in the Georgia Music Hall of Fame this fall. Singer-songwriter Paul Davis was a vocal partner on the Marie Osmond hit “You’re Still New To Me” and Tanya Tucker’s “I Won’t Take Less Than Your Love.” Steel guitarist Pete Drake played on such landmark singles as Charlie Rich’s “Behind Closed Doors” and Tammy Wynette’s “Stand By Your Man.” And songwriter John Jarrard’s credits include John Anderson’s “Money In The Bank” and Tracy Lawrence’s “Is That A Tear.”

• Songwriters Casey Kelly and Tony Haselden were recently added to the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. Casey’s credits include George Strait’s “The Cowboy Rides Away” and T.G. Sheppard’s “Somewhere Down The Line”; Tony penned Collin Raye’s “That’s My Story” and Keith Whitley’s “It Ain’t Nothin’.”

• Country Music Hall of Famer Charlie Louvin is recuperating well from surgery last Thursday for pancreatic cancer. He’s expected to leave the hospital this week.

• Some VIP packages are still available for Brooks & Dunn’s final concert Sept. 2 at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena. Proceeds are slated for the Country Music Hall of Fame. Go here to learn more about VIP seating.

• Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Paul McCartney played Bridgestone Monday night. The venue is just a few blocks from Printer’s Alley, a club-filled street that he put into the lyrics of his mid-‘70s single “Sally G.” The Bridgestone also shares an intersection in downtown Nashville with the Country Hall of Fame. So when Paul sang “Let ‘Em In,” it was easy to think of Hall of Fame members the Everly Brothers, who were immortalized in that song’s “Phil and Don” reference.

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Marty Stuart photo courtesy of The GreenRoom.

It’s a small, old-timey spot on Music Row, a boxy building that’s easily overlooked if you’re just driving by. But there’s a treasure trove of history at RCA Studio B in Nashville, and Marty Stuart used the joint on Wednesday to preview his Ghost Train album for a select group of media.

Studio B practically rings with history. The Everly Brothers, Skeeter Davis, Dolly Parton and Elvis Presley all recorded there. Marty’s first session, in October 1972, took place in the studio when he was a 13-year-old member of Lester Flatt’s band. And Marty’s wife, Connie Smith — who was among the guests Wednesday — recorded her first hit in the same place in 1964.

Marty stood in the back of the room — in the same general area where Elvis stood when he recorded “It’s Now Or Never” and “A Big Hunk O’ Love” — as he previewed the new CD, which required Marty to give a little extra effort to get the facility sounding right.

“Studio B is now a part of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Belmont University,” Marty noted, “so it’s really not a functional studio except for students.”

Marty corralled a few friends — including the Oak Ridge Boys’ Duane Allen and Studio B manager Luke Gilfeather — to figure out some of the old recording techniques and make it workable for Ghost Train, inspired in part by steel guitarist Ralph Mooney. The results are impressive — with slappy drum licks, reedy stand-up bass and judicious tremolo guitar — as Marty captures the stark sound of a previous era’s commercial country radio with a real energy. He draws on “Mama Tried”-era Merle Haggard and Outlaw-era Waylon Jennings in the opening “Branded,” remakes Warner Mack’s “The Bridge Washed Out” with lots of subtle rhythms and gets a crisp sound on Ralph Mooney’s instrumental version of Ray Price’s classic “Crazy Arms,” a song Ralph co-wrote.

Marty duets nicely with Connie on “I Run To You,” and pays homage elsewhere to a couple of Country Music Hall of Famers who contributed to his own resume. “Hangman” is a dramatic number about a man haunted by dark memories of the lives he’s snuffed out in a Death Row government job. It’s also the last song Marty wrote with Johnny Cash — penned literally days before the Man in Black’s death. Marty likewise invokes the memory of another lost legend in “Porter Wagoner’s Grave,” a recitation about a cemetery visit from a rhinestone-clad ghost with a message of hope and spirituality.

Marty produced Porter’s final album, Wagonmaster, which he had initially hoped to record at Studio B.

“It didn’t quite line up, but I didn’t take my eye off of this place,” Marty noted. “I love the sound of it, I love the feel of it, and this is a real studio. It’s a special room, an amazing cathedral — especially for country music, because so much of country music’s history was forged here.”

Ghost Train will be released Aug. 24. In the meantime, Marty was set to hit another place he worked with Lester Flatt last night. He hosted his annual Late Night Jam at the Ryman Auditorium with proceeds slated for MusiCares’ Nashville Flood Relief program. Announced guests included Keith Urban, songwriters Dallas Frazier and Cowboy Jack Clement, Ronnie Milsap, Ralph Mooney, Connie Smith and the Tennessee Mafia Jug Band.

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Country Music Hall of Fame member Chet Atkins.

When Ferlin Husky and producer Billy Sherrill were inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday, CMA Chairman Steve Moore called Hall membership “the highest honor in country music.” But the rewards don’t stop coming just because you’ve reached the pinnacle.

In fact, several members of the Hall of Fame — including Hank Williams, Willie Nelson and Chet Atkins — continue to be remembered for their impact on American culture.

Among the the latest developments for the esteemed inductees:

• Chet Atkins is ranked No. 8 among the Top 50 Guitarists of All-Time in a poll by Gibson Guitars. Often referred to as “Mr. Guitar,” he’s hailed in part for his work as a session player on numerous recordings by other Hall of Famers, including Elvis Presley, Hank Williams and the Everly Brothers.

• Willie, who made tons of headlines this week for cutting his hair, will receive more permanent recognition in the area where he lives. According to The Austin American-Statesman, the city council passed a resolution designating a portion of Second Street as Willie Nelson Boulevard. A non-profit agency is also working to erect a statue of Willie on that roadway.

• Jimmie Rodgers, who was one of the first three people inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1961, will also be the first artist commemorated in the Mississippi Country Music Trail. On Tuesday, he’ll be celebrated with a marker at the Oak Grove Baptist Church Cemetery in Meridian, The Hattiesburg American reported. Among at least 30 others who will be honored as the trail unfolds: Marty Stuart, Charley Pride, Faith Hill and Conway Twitty.

• Jett Williams went to Columbia University in New York on Monday to to accept a Pulitzer Prize citation recognizing her father, Hank Williams. In his honor, the last music played at the end of the event was his classic “Hey, Good Lookin’.”

• Hall of Fame member Webb Pierce got recognized in The Tallahassee Democrat, but not necessarily in a good way. Webb was one of country’s biggest stars in the 1950s, but it wasn’t until 2001 — 10 years after his death — that he finally received a bronze plaque at the Hall. Mel Tillis, who was added to the Hall in 2007, told the paper Webb was shut out for years because he was a jerk. “Webb Pierce drank,” Mel said. “He was a nice drunk. He was mean when he was sober. That was the problem.”

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Steve Wariner at the Nashville Chapter of the Recording Academy® Grammy Nominee party. Photo courtesy of The Recording Academy® 2009 & Rubin Media. Photograph by Rick Diamond/WireImage.com.

Four country acts that launched a series of hits in the 1980s and ‘90s — Steve Wariner, Patty Loveless, John Michael Montgomery and the late Keith Whitley — are set to enter the Kentucky Music Hall of Fame when it holds its next induction ceremony in April 2011 in Lexington.

They’ll be joined as new members by bluegrass duo the Goins Brothers; gospel singer Larnelle Harris; and Molly O’Day, a country vocalist who left a critically acclaimed body of work in a short five-year recording period in the late 1940s.

Robert Lawson, executive director of the Hall of Fame, called the new class “some of the most recognizable music artists in the world.”

Patty, Steve and John Michael continue to make relevant recordings. Each has released an album of new material in the last year that was greeted with some level of commercial success. Steve, in particular, won a Grammy award for “Producer’s Medley,” a track from an album that paid homage to his mentor, Chet Atkins.

Keith died in 1989 of alcohol poisoning just as he’d hit his stride as a hitmaker. He was honored in 1994 with Keith Whitley: A Tribute Album, featuring remakes of his music by such acts as Alison Krauss + Union Station, Alan Jackson, Joe Diffie and Diamond Rio. Campaigns bubble up on occasion to have Keith inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.

The 2011 Kentucky Music Hall of Fame class is the fifth group of performers inducted into the Bluegrass State’s shrine. Among the previous inductees are Dwight Yoakam, Tom T. Hall, Crystal Gayle, Loretta Lynn, Bill Monroe, the Judds and the Everly Brothers.

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Zac Brown Band photo courtesy of Atlantic Records.

Four-time winner Taylor Swift might have been country music’s most-honored figure at Sunday’s Grammy Awards, but she was hardly the only person in the genre to have a big time. The Zac Brown Band took the Recording Academy’s Best New Artist trophy during the three-and-a-half hour show, and Steve Wariner, Keith Urban, Lady Antebellum, Carrie Underwood and Randy Travis were among the acts singled out during a streamed pre-telecast ceremony, where the bulk of the 109 victors were announced.

“It’s such a honor to be on stage and to be sharin’ in this big amalgam of music,” Zac told the star-studded Staples Center crowd. “We’re so honored and blessed to be here. We’re looking forward to playing for y’all.”

Play they did. The band whipped through a medley of songs with guest keyboard player Leon Russell, on stage less than three weeks after undergoing surgery to repair the leakage of brain fluid. The set ended with a wicked-paced instrumental after the last verse and chorus of “Chicken Fried.”

Zac and crew join only a handful of country acts who’ve taken Best New Artist. The most recent, Carrie Underwood, was also on hand for her own performance with Celine Dion, Usher, Smokey Robinson and Jennifer Hudson on Michael Jackson’s “Earth Song,” featuring a 3-D video. The production had an eerie quality to it; just seven months ago, Michael was celebrated at the same venue in a globally telecast memorial that included his two children. The kids, Prince and Paris, were back at the Grammys, with Prince pledging to “help the world.”

Carrie was not on hand at the lengthy pre-telecast, though she did get honored during that event with Best Country Collaboration, honoring her duet with Randy Travis on “I Told You So.” Keith Urban likewise was not around to claim his award: Best Male Country Vocal, for “Sweet Thing.” Lady Antebellum also won in absentia as “I Run To You” took Best Country Duo or Group. The band did pop up during the telecast to play its recent No. 1 single, “Need You Now.”

Steve Wariner picked up Best Country Instrumental with “Producer’s Medley,” a guitar weave of several former hits that were produced by Chet Atkins: Perry Como’s “And I Love You So,” Jim Reeves’ “Welcome to My World,” the Browns’ “The Three Bells,” Don Gibson’s “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” Al Hirt’s “Java,” the Everly Brothers’ “Let It Be Me,” Skeeter Davis’ “End of the World” and Jerry Reed’s “When You’re Hot You’re Hot.”

“I wouldn’t be here today if it was not for the great Chet Atkins,” Steve said. “He gave me my career, gave me my start.”

Steve Martin’s The Crow: New Songs For The Five-String Banjo took Best Bluegrass Album. The comedian was a no-show, though producer John McEuen, of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, made it to the venue.

“He really wanted me to tell you people he really wanted to be here, but he had a massage appointment,” John joked. “This is a very wonderful thing. I’d like to thank my wife for putting up with more banjo than any one person should.”

There were other awards and moments from the pre-telecast in which country and its sister genres played a part:
• Former New Grass Revival banjo player Bela Fleck collected two trophies: Best World Music Album, for Throw Down Your Heart; and Best Pop Instrumental, for the album’s title track.

• Asleep At The Wheel’s Ray Benson, Jim Lauderdale, Michael Martin Murphey, banjo player Alison Brown and guitarist Bryan Sutton turned in a version of the bluegrass standard “Sittin’ On Top Of The World.”

• Levon Helm’s Electric Dirt took the inaugural award for Best Americana Album.

• Loudon Wainwright III earned Best Traditional Folk Album for High Wide & Handsome: The Charlie Poole Project. The CD celebrates the music of a North Carolina-born country pioneer who made records for a scant five years in the late 1920s before dying at age 39. Loudon referred to Charlie as “a banjo player and a wonderful singer and a drunk and a… just great.” Loudon also paid homage to ex-wife Kate McGarrigle who, he said, “taught me how to frail the banjo 40 years ago.” Kate died Jan. 18.

• Steve Earle took Best Contemporary Folk Album with Townes, a tribute to late singer-songwriter Townes Van Zandt.

• Folk artist Ramblin’ Jack Elliott won Best Traditional Blues Album for A Stranger Here.

• Ken Levitan, who manages Trace Adkins and Dierks Bentley, was one of the producers honored with Best Traditional Gospel Album for the multi-act compilation O Happy Day, featuring such acts as Jon Bon Jovi, Patty Griffin, Michael McDonald and Al Green. Ken also manages Kings Of Leon, the Nashville-based rock act which won two trophies — including Record of the Year — for “Use Somebody.”

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John Fogerty photo courtesy of Shore Fire Media.

He’s a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but that doesn’t mean John Fogerty doesn’t know a little somethin’ about country music.

His latest album, The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again, is dominated by classic country songs, including John Denver’s “Back Home Again,” the Kendalls’ “Heaven’s Just A Sin Away,” Ray Price’s “I’ll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)” and Buck Owens’ “I Don’t Care (Just As Long As You Love Me).” He enlisted a band that includes Americana stalwart Buddy Miller and standup bass player Dennis Crouch, and it actually leans closer to pure country than a lot of the material that’s now accepted as commercial country.

“It’s been a part of me since I was a baby,” John notes. “I daresay I certainly heard country music before I ever heard rock ‘n’ roll because rock ‘n’ roll didn’t exist yet. [I liked] the sound of the instruments, first of all, and then — I’m goin’ way, way back, I’m thinkin’ into the ‘50s — I liked the style. I liked the attitude and the presentation.”

A couple Blue Ridge tracks fold in guest appearances from some of John’s Rock & Roll Hall of Fame comrades. Don Henley and Timothy B. Schmit provide backing vocals on a cover of Rick Nelson’s “Garden Party,” and Bruce Springsteen adds his voice to a version of “When Will I Be Loved,” a song originated by the Everly Brothers and made a hit again in the ’70s by Linda Ronstadt.

It’s an appropriate link of the two genres. The Eagles, Linda and Rick all had a hand in the rise of country/rock in the early 1970s. And Bruce’s songs have such a heartland thread in them that they’ve been covered by the likes of Johnny Cash, Kenny Chesney and Emmylou Harris.

It was the artists who had their feet in both genres — country and early rock music — who particularly appealed to John.

“So many of them were what we now call crossover artists and basically they were just doin’ what they did,” John says. “Carl Perkins sang ‘Blue Suede Shoes.’ Rock ‘n’ rollers loved that, but Carl himself, I think, thought of himself as rock ‘n’ roll, but everything he knew up to that point was sort of blues and country. Elvis Presley was in the same boat. So many of those guys were just doin’ what they did, and it ended up being this new thing that was country and rock ‘n’ roll at the same time.”

The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again is a long-overdue sequel to a 1973 album that marked John’s first solo project after leaving Creedence Clearwater Revival. On The Blue Ridge Rangers, he played every instrument and covered some of the most important acts in country music history, including Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, George Jones and Jimmie Rodgers.

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Jamey Johnson photo courtesy of UMG Nashville.

Weddings, funerals, parties, parades — country music stars do more than just sing in public. Jamey Johnson, Taylor Swift, Hank Williams Jr. and John Rich have been spotted — or will be soon — in locations from a New Jersey golf course to a California hockey arena and other points in between.

Country’s celebrity sightings include:

• Jamey Johnson was among the attendees at Ivanka Trump’s wedding on Sunday to Jared Kushner, according to The New York Post. The event, held at a Bedminster, N.J., golf course owned by Donald Trump, also attracted Barbara Walters, Rudy Giuliani, actress Emmy Rossum and Counting Crows vocalist Adam Duritz, among others.
• Taylor Swift appeared at two high-profile locations over the weekend in California. She attended the 25th birthday party for “I Kissed A Girl” pop singer Katy Perry on Saturday, aceshowbiz.com reported. The following day, Taylor went to the Los Angeles Kings hockey game against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Staples Center with Taylor Lautner, according to celebuzz.com. The two Taylors co-star in the movie Valentine’s Day, currently slated for release Feb. 12, according to IMDb.com.
• Hank Williams Jr. joined East Tennessee residents Saturday at a funeral for moonshiner Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton, Knoxville’s WBIR-TV reported. Bocephus never met Popcorn, but he did sample his liquor.
• Chet Atkins’ widow, Leona Atkins, was buried Saturday in Nashville. Her pallbearers, according to The Cincinnati Enquirer, included Vince Gill, Ray Stevens and the Everly Brothers.
• Soon to be seen: John Rich at the Nashville Christmas Parade. The Big & Rich singer is slated to be grand marshal, he tweeted, come Dec. 4.

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