Hank Williams Jr., Jessi Colter, Shooter Jennings, Jamey Johnson, and Josh Thompson will all be a part of radio special set to air on SiriusXM’s Outlaw Country (Channel 60). Filmed in front of a live audience at the SiriusXM Music City Theatre in Nashville, the special features music from WAYLON: The Music Inside, a three-volume collection dedicated to Waylon Jenning’s music.

Read our review of The Music Inside: A Collaboration Dedicated to Waylon Jennings, Volume II >>

Hosted by Outlaw Country’s Hillbilly Jim, the artists share stories and songs from the stage, accompanied by guitar legend Reggie Young and his wife Jenny on cello. Audience members include Billy Joe Shaver, Cowboy Jack Clement, and Waylon’s longtime drummer/producer, Richie Albright.

Watch a preview of Hank Jr. performing “Waymore’s Blues.”

Continue Reading

ShareThis

Country music stars sure love Twitter! This week, Hank Williams Jr. shares one of his favorite photos, Blake Shelton reveals a bittersweet lesson he learned, Chris Young celebrates his ACM nominations, Martina McBride resists a household chore and Sarah Darling takes cover. Here are our picks for the Top 10 Country Tweets Of The Week.

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/hankjr.

Hank Williams Jr. – HankJr: Just came across this pic, such an honor to be on stage with these ol’ boys

Blake Shelton – BlakeShelton: There’s one thing I’ve learned this week… The only thing that’s stronger than a broken heart is opening your heart. I love you dad…

Chris Young – ChrisYoungMusic: Holy crap!!!!! 2 ACM nom’s?!?! Are you freaking kidding me!! #thisisagreatmorning

Photo courtesy of Twitter.com/kelliepickler.

Kellie Pickler – KelliePickler: Me & my gang! #NYwillneverbethesame Continue Reading

ShareThis

The second in a series of three tributes to the outlaw country legend, The Music Inside: A Collaboration Dedicated to Waylon Jennings, Volume II brings together a diverse, all-star cast to honor one of music’s great icons. Spearheaded by Waylon’s widow Jessi Colter, son Shooter Jennings and guitarist Reggie Young, The Music Inside is a hard country, rough-around-the-edges collection celebrating the freedom of Waylon’s music.

It’s like Montgomery Gentry’s Eddie Montgomery sings toward the end of the duo’s spirited cover of the classic “Good ‘Ol Boys (Dukes of Hazzard Theme Song).” Just havin’ fun, mama, he muses over a thick rhythm section, honky tonk piano and pedal steel. On this song, and really everywhere on the record, that fun-loving sentiment is easily heard.

Be it Dierks Bentley, Hank Jr. or Justin Moore, the performances here are ignited by a love for Waylon’s enduring legacy and free spirit. Dierks opens the record with a swampy, thumping version of “Lonesome, Onry and Mean,” calling out the anthem with a smoldering intensity as the band’s obvious joy is heard through their own instrumental voices filling out the rest of the track. Hank Jr. couldn’t be more in his element than on the chuggin’ “Waymore’s Blues,” letting loose with the lines, Well, I woke up this mornin’ it was drizzlin’ rain / around the curb came a passenger train, over the song’s infectious shake. And Texan Pat Green, whose raspy voice gives the beautiful “Rainy Day Woman” a rugged edge, deftly navigates multiple tempo shifts before an around-the-horn solo handoff from pedal steel to fiddle and later electric guitar.

The majority of The Music Inside is uptempo, bordering on anthem. However, artists like country/hip-hop-infused Colt Ford and folk-inspired Jewel offer their takes on Waylon classics that serve to slow things down just a bit. On “Only Daddy That Will Walk The Line,” Colt dials down the original tempo, rhythmically speaking the verses before a searing slide guitar solo. Jewel, the only other woman on the album besides Jessi Colter, adds a bittersweet touch to Continue Reading

ShareThis

Pictured L-R: Jamey Johnson, Ken Levitan, Hank Williams Jr., Jessi Colter, Shooter Jennings, Carolyn Tate, Michael McCall, Pamela Johnson, Hilary Williams, Holly Williams and Kirt Webster. Photo courtesy of Webster & Assoc.

Hank Williams Jr. helped bring the four-year run of the exhibit Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy to a close with a powerful solo acoustic performance at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. The sold-out December 6th concert raised $75,000 for the Museum. The exhibit will officially close on December 31, but Hank plans to leave several of the artifacts in the Museum’s archives. “I’m going to work with them and leave quite a few of these items here—where they should be,” he said.

Hank performed for 90 minutes and played hits like “A Country Boy Can Survive,” “Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound” and was joined by his son Sam on “The Blues Man.” He also played some of his father’s material and songs by his heroes, notably Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings. Special guests in the audience included Jessi Colter, her son Shooter Jennings and Jamey Johnson. Hank’s wife, Mary Jane,  and daughters Hilary and Holly as well as son Sam were also in the audience. Continue Reading

ShareThis

Taylor Swift accepts award for Entertainer of the Year at the 45th annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on November 9, 2011 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images)

The 45^th Annual CMA Awards is in the books and it was another year to remember. Two artists took home their first CMA honors, a living legend was honored by three of country music’s biggest stars and another superstar made her return to the CMA stage for the first time in five years, just to name a few of the highlights. In no particular order, here are our Top 10 Moments from this year’s CMA Awards:

Taylor Swift – Taylor took home the biggest prize of the night when her name was called for Entertainer of The Year for the second time. “I am so happy right now!” Taylor exclaimed after accepting her award from Reba McEntire. Taylor thanked the artists who joined her for special appearances during her tour, reading each of their names from a list on her arm. She also thanked her fans for filling arenas and stadiums across the country night after night. “I’m so happy we had so many to play for this year,” she said. “You have made my year. Thank you so much!” Taylor also debuted new music during the show, performing “Ours” acoustically.

The Band Perry – It was a big night for The Band Perry, who won their first  CMA awards, taking home three trophies by the end of the night.  The sibling trio won Single of the Year for their hit “If I Die Young” and Kimberly Perry was honored as the track’s songwriter  with the Song of the Year award. “Thank you to the beautiful fans of country music,” Kimberly said while accepting the Single of the Year trophy. “It is the joy of our whole lives to sing this song night after night.”

The trio also won the CMA for New Artist of the Year. “We just wanted to thank everybody so much for the last few years that you’ve given my brothers and me,” Kimberly said with her brothers, Neil and Reid Perry, by her side. “We promise to keep working hard every day out on the road and here at home in Nashville to continue to earn this award. Thank you so much for the honor of tonight.”

Jason Aldean – Always a nominee but never a winner, Jason finally heard his name called. Jason took home two awards, one for Musical Event of the Year for “Don’t You Wanna Stay,” his duet with Kelly Clarkson, as well as the coveted Album of the Year award for his triple platinum My Kinda Party. A visibly-moved Jason thanked his wife Jessica for “putting up with my schedule and everything that’s been going on over the past few years” while accepting his Album of the Year trophy. He also thanked his producer, Michael Knox, and gave a shout out to his daughters, saying he hoped they were in bed soon.

“I definitely think Album of the Year is a big one,” Jason said backstage. “From the guys who play on every song to the producer to the management to the label. It’s kind of a group win. To me, it’s big. Hopefully this album will be around long after I’m gone.”

See photos from this year’s CMA Awards Red Carpet! >>

Glen Campbell Tribute –Vince Gill, Keith Urban and Brad Paisley teamed up for a moving tribute to country music legend Glen Campbell. The three performed a medley of Glen’s hits “By the Time I Get To Oklahoma,” “Wichita Lineman” and “Galveston” with Jimmy Webb, the man who penned the songs, joining in on piano. Glen, who announced earlier this year he’s been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease and embarked on his farewell tour, sang along in the audience before joining the group onstage. “It was awesome, it really was,” Glen said backstage after the performance. “The whole thing was just wonderful.” Continue Reading

ShareThis

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum opened a new spotlight exhibit dedicated to legendary fashion designer Nudie Cohn on October 28. The “Silver Threads and Golden Needles: Nudie’s Rodeo Tailors” exhibit will run through November 2012. The exhibit traces Nudie’s journey across America from designing burlesque costumes in New York to opening his shop in North Hollywood. Gene Autry, Elton John, Gram Parsons, Elvis Presley, Roy Rogers and Hank Williams are among the  artists who wore Nudie’s designs.

Born Nutya Kotlyrenko in Kiev, Ukraine, in 1902, Nudie immigrated to the United States when he was 11. He became ‘Nudie’ when immigration officials mistranslated his first name. His first job was shining shoes in Brooklyn and in 1918, he headed to California where he worked as a movie extra and film cutter before returning east. On his way back, he met Bobbie Kruger, whom he would later marry. The couple moved to New York, where Nudie found work designing burlesque costumes with his brother.

The Cohns returned to the west coast in the 1940s where they ran a small tailoring shop out of their Los Angeles-area garage for seven years. In 1947, Tex Williams commissioned ten outfits for his band from Nudie. With Tex’s endorsement, business started rolling in and Nudie opened his famous Nudie’s Rodeo Tailors. His slogan was ‘Everything for the Horse and Rider,’ though he began to cater to country artists and stars of western movies.

Nudie found his niche in the industry with the creation of a rhinestone-accented suit for Lefty Frizzell and began creating custom outfits for performers. He designed wagon-wheel suits for Porter Wagoner, Native-American motifs for Ray Price and a railroad-themed suit for Hank Snow inspired by Hank’s hit “The Golden Rocket.”

Working with embroidery specialist Rose Clements and fashion designer and one-time son-in-law Manuel, Nudie also designed instruments, cars, rugs and other items. Nudie was as much a celebrity as any of his clients and was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone in 1969. He passed away of kidney failure in 1984. Continue Reading

ShareThis

Hunter Hayes photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Nashville.

Hunter Hayes has been performing more than half his life – and he’s only 20 years old. A multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, recording artist and producer, Hunter’s 17-year career will be chronicled through photos, performance video and interviews with his family, musical mentors and industry associates  in GAC’s latest special, Introducing: Hunter Hayes. The special premieres November 1 at 10/9 CT.

Hunter grew up in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana with a tight knit group of family and friends. His parents began taking him to a nearby Cajun restaurant when he was two and a half years old. By the time he was four, he was sitting in with the band. He was too young to read, so the set list contained hand drawn pictures to remind him of the song titles.

“When I was young my parents noticed me taking a liking to music, “ Hunter said. “Music was my soccer game, it was just what I did.  I think I started so young, I didn’t know what nervous was.” By the time he was six years old, he was regularly sitting in with bands and gaining a following. Continue Reading

ShareThis

Hank Williams, Jr. photo courtesy of Webster & Associates.

In the latest chapter — and perhaps the final one — of the Hank Williams Jr./Monday Night Football controversy, ESPN announced today that Hank’s iconic theme song will not return to Monday Night Football. The decision comes after Hank used an analogy involving Adolf Hitler and President Barack Obama to make a political point on the Fox News Channel.

On his own website, Hank said he was the one who made the decision to leave ESPN.

“After reading hundreds of e-mails, I have made MY decision. By pulling my opening Oct 3rd, You (ESPN) stepped on the Toes of The First Amendment Freedom of Speech, so therefore Me, My Song, and All My Rowdy Friends are OUT OF HERE. It’s been a great run.” — Hank Williams Jr

Hank’s manager, Ken Levitan, defended his client in an interview with Billboard.com on Tuesday. ”I think it was blown out of proportion,” he said. “What Hank meant was directed toward the extreme differences between the parties. I think he explained that in the statements he made afterwards. He’s a passionate guy. Obviously, he’s not an Obama fan. But I think he was talking about the two of them getting together were polar opposites. That’s what he was trying to get across.”

He added, “Did he use an extreme way of saying that? Yes. Was it potentially the wrong choice of words? I guess to the public, Continue Reading

ShareThis

Hank Williams Jr. photo courtesy of Webster & Associates.

If you watched Monday Night Football last night, you saw the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Indianapolis Colts. What you didn’t see was the familiar ”Are You Ready For Some Football?” opening, sung by Hank Williams Jr. ESPN pulled the song from the broadcast after comments Hank made about President Barack Obama.

Yesterday morning while a guest on Fox News’ Fox & Friends, Hank referred to a June golf game with Obama and House Speaker John Boehner on the same team, against Vice President Joe Biden and Ohio Gov. John Kasich, as “one of the biggest political mistakes ever,” reports CNN.

Asked what he didn’t like about it, Hank said, “Come on. That’d be like (Adolf) Hitler playing golf with (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu. Not hardly.”

In a statement Monday, ESPN said that while Williams “is not an ESPN employee, we recognize that he is closely linked to our company through the open to “Monday Night Football.” We are extremely disappointed with his comments and as a result we have decided to pull the open from tonight’s telecast.”

In a statement issued through a representative, Hank acknowledged his analogy was “extreme — but it was to make a point.”

“Some of us have strong opinions and are often misunderstood,” he said. “I was simply trying to explain how stupid it seemed to me — how ludicrous that pairing was. They’re polar opposites, and it made no sense. They don’t see eye-to-eye and never will.”

Here’s a clip of Hank’s Fox & Friends interview: Continue Reading

ShareThis

Hank Williams, Jr. photo courtesy of Curb Records.

Football, cooking and benefits are on the agenda for the month of September at the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum.

On September 9, the new Hank Williams Jr. Monday Night Football Spotlight Exhibit opened. Each year, Hank Jr. records a new version of his Monday Night Football theme song and stars in the accompanying video shown on ESPN at the start of each weekly broadcast. The shirt and vest he wore in this year’s video, designed by Nashville-based designer Manuel, will both be on display in the Museum’s second floor gallery.

The Museum’s All for the Hall fundraiser returns to Los Angeles for a third year on September 13 with performances by Vince Gill, Sheryl Crow, Zac Brown and more. You can visit  http://countrymusichalloffame.org/afthla/ for more information and to purchase tickets. There is also an online auction of country music memorabilia and experiences to benefit All for the Hall. To view items up for auction and place your bids, visit www.biddingforgood.com/allforthehall. Continue Reading

ShareThis