Jett Williams photo courtesy of Webster & Associates.

Jett Williams, daughter of Hank Williams, will host the Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree radio show, the second longest running radio show in history, on January 1, 2012, the anniversary of her father’s 1953 death. Jett was born just five days after her father’s death and left as an orphan and a ward of the state of Alabama. She went by the name of Catherine Yvonne until she began researching her identity in the early 1980s.

In 1989, Jett started touring the world, originally playing with her father’s band, The Drifting Cowboys. She has gone on to play over 800 shows and shares an uncanny resemblance to her father when she sings. She will be joined for the radio show by David Frizzell (“I’m gonna Hire A Wino,” “You’re the Reason God Made Oklahoma”) and rising star Jeremy Parsons. Continue Reading

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Kid Rock photo courtesy of Webster & Assoc.

Kid Rock will help the famed Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge in Nashville celebrate its 51^st birthday. The Tootie’s Orchid Lounge 51st Birthday Bash will take place on November 23 at the Ryman Auditorium, just across the alley from Tootsie’s. Kid Rock will perform as part of his nationwide tour, giving money to and raising awareness for people in need.

“Every time I end up at Tootsie’s its a good night, and I don’t expect this night to be any different,” Kid Rock said. “It’s cool to be celebrating their birthday party with them; I like parties and seem to excel in that type of atmosphere.”

“We couldn’t be happier that Kid Rock is working with us to make the Tootsie’s Birthday Bash a ‘rockin’ good time for everyone in Nashville,” Steve Smith, owner of Tootsie’s, said. “Kid Rock is a part of Tootsie’s history.  It’s going to be a memorable night.” Continue Reading

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Alan Jackson at the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum on Thursday, July 28, 2011.

Bob Dylan’s label imprint, Egyptian Records, in partnership with the Country Music Hall of Fame  and Museum’s CMF Records and Columbia Records, will release The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams on October 4, 2011. The album is collection of previously unrecorded Hank Williams lyrics now put to music and performed by artists with ties to Hank Sr.

The album serves as an audio companion to the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museums Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy. The exhibition presents a behind the scenes look of one of America’s most famous musical families and is the largest and most popular temporary exhibit in the museum’s history. Family photographs and memorabilia from the Williams’ home such as a television and a liquor cabinet are on display. Opened in March of 2008, the exhibit will close on December 31, 2011.

The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams began with the idea of finding a well-known artist who was inspired and influenced by Hank. Bob Dylan was approached initially and from there, the album evolved to include several artists. Alan Jackson is featured on the album and he was on hand at the Country Music Hall of Fame last week to help announce the Museum’s expansion plans. He performed the song “You’ve Been Lonesome, Too” which was partially written by Hank Sr. and finished by Alan.

“One of the coolest things in my career was to get to write a song with Hank Williams, Sr.,” said Alan. “I never thought that would happen! We cut the track like Hank – we didn’t do drums and piano, just the basic stuff. We did it just like Hank [would’ve] done it back in 1949 – sparse, but cool.”

Other artists included on the album include Hank Sr.’s granddaughter, Holly Williams, Sheryl Crow, Merle Haggard, Patty Loveless and Vince Gill.

The Lost Notebooks of Hank Williams – tracklisting: Continue Reading

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Hank Williams

Fans of Hank Williams will be able to get their hands on rare Hank recordings when Time Life and the Estate of Hank Williams release Hank Williams: The Legend Begins. The 3-CD package of newly-discovered historic Hank recordings have been restored with state of the art technology to sound as they first did more than 60 years ago. The first CD includes the earliest recordings of Hank at age 15 and four songs from a home recording session in 1940. The other two CDs are from Hank’s syndicated radio show in 1949, The Health And Happiness Show.

“Talk about a discovery!” Hank’s daughter, Jett Williams, said. “The first recording of my dad when he was fifteen was given to me decades ago, and then the 1940 home recordings followed a few years later. My husband Keith and I finally got up the nerve to get with the best sound people in Nashville to see if we could salvage these extraordinary recordings. It worked! We did it! What a special treat for music lovers around the world to listen to the talent of an evolving genius. These recordings are a Godsend and very special to me and Hank’s fans.” Continue Reading

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Hank Williams photo courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum.

The Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum will present a special program honoring Hank Williams on April 16. Titled “I Saw the Light: Songwriters Salute Hank,” the program will feature Rodney Crowell, Ashley Monroe, The Secret Sisters and Steve Young. I Saw the Light, which is presented in conjunction with the Museum’s exhibition Family Tradition: The Williams Family Legacy, Presented by SunTrust, will begin at 1:30 p.m. in the Museum’s Ford Theater; it is included with Museum admission and is free to Museum members.

During the program, which will be hosted by Family Tradition co-curator Michael McCall, each artist will perform one or more of Hank’s classic songs, as well as some of their own compositions that were influenced or inspired by Williams. They will also discuss how Hank influenced their work. Continue Reading

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Troy Olsen photo by Jim Wright, courtesy of EMI Records Nashville.

When Troy Olsen made his Grand Ole Opry last August, it was a dream come true. But it didn’t happen overnight.

“When I first moved to Nashville, I made a little promise to myself that I wouldn’t go to the Opry until I was asked to play it,” Troy explained. “So I would watch it on TV or listen to it in my truck and as one year turned to two years, and two turned to five, it began to feel like a dumb idea because I had missed a lot of cool shows!”

Troy didn’t break his promise to himself, and his patience finally paid off. Continue Reading

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Waylon Jennings

In 1975 Waylon Jennings topped the charts with “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way” — an Outlaw’s response to critics saying his music was nothing like the traditional sound of Hank Williams, Sr. What’s funny is, today’s country artists are often criticized because their music is nothing like the traditional sound of Waylon Jennings.

With tomorrow’s premiere of GAC’s The Music Inside – Waylon Jennings: Breaking the Myth, we thought we’d post this classic clip of Waylon singing “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way.” You’ll notice Waylon’s sharing the stage with Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson and Kris Kristofferson. The legendary foursome toured and recorded off and on as The Highwaymen from 1985-1995.

When you’re finished watching Waylon’s original performance, click HERE to see Alabama honor him with their take on “Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way,” from the tribute album Waylon Jennings: The Music Inside. And don’t forget to tune in for The Music Inside – Waylon Jennings: Breaking the Myth, which premieres Saturday, Feb. 26 at 9/8c on GAC!  Continue Reading

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Loretta Lynn photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

It was quite a year for the Coal Miner’s Daughter — 2010 marked the 50th anniversary of Loretta Lynn’s emergence as a national star, and she was honored in a slew of ways, including parties, awards and a tribute album by some of today’s top artists.

Loretta was joined by several other legends as 2010 honorees, including Merle Haggard, Jimmy Dean and now Dolly Parton. The recognition paid to the genre’s pioneering acts represents the No. 10 entry in our countdown of country music’s dozen top stories of the year.

Loretta’s first single, “I’m A Honky Tonk Girl,” came out in 1960, and it seemed like every few months during 2010, the music business found some way to pay homage to her impact. Early in the year, she was accorded a Lifetime Achievement Grammy, though she was unable to attend the Los Angeles ceremony. “Coal Miner’s Daughter” was added to the National Recording Registry, she was saluted with an anniversary party at her Tennessee home, she was celebrated with a Reba McEntire-hosted Recording Academy Salute at the Ryman Auditorium, and a bunch of her classics were remade in the album Coal Miner’s Daughter: A Tribute To Loretta Lynn.

That latter project brought Loretta the opportunity to sing the title track with Miranda Lambert and Sheryl Crow on the Country Music Association Awards. The album also features Lee Ann Womack, Kid Rock, the White Stripes, Alan Jackson and Carrie Underwood, among others. Loretta hand-picked all of the contributors — appropriate, because she’s not one of those veteran stars who dislikes newer versions of country music.

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New Country Music Hall of Fame Members Jimmy Dean (l) and Don Williams.

Don Williams and Jimmy Dean, two vocalists who approached their public presence from very different angles, were officially inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame Sunday night in front of family, friends and a rather elite set of peers.

A singer, comic and television pioneer, Jimmy built his career as a multi-faceted entertainer. Don worked several detail-oriented jobs before his breakthrough — he was a co-partner in a furniture store and an office administrator — and he made his public mark in a workman-like manner, eschewing the party circuit and putting his efforts into finding and delivering well-constructed songs.

Neither singer was able to claim his medallion in person. Jimmy died in June, just a few months after he was told in a phone call that he would have a bronze plaque enshrined with his likeness in the Hall of Fame’s Rotunda alongside such fellow performers as Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton and Jimmy’s childhood idol, Gene Autry.

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Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

The building that houses country music’s family treasures just got a big infusion of cash.

Keith Urban and Vince Gill played hosts Tuesday night at All For The Hall, a multi-artist concert at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena that raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Country Music Hall of Fame. The arena and the hall share an intersection in Music City, and the artists who paraded across the Bridgestone stage shared a love for the district’s best-known genre.

Billy Currington threw judicious moments of vocal ferocity into his version of Kenny Rogers’ “Sweet Music Man,” Martina McBride emulated Reba McEntire well with a few well-placed trills at the close of “Is There Life Out There,” and Dolly Parton resurrected George Jones’ funereal “He Stopped Loving Her Today.”

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