Marty Stuart photo courtesy of the Greenroom PR.

Marty Stuart was barely 14 when he took part in a recording session for the first time, and he revisited his past rather appropriately in cutting the 14th studio album of his career, Ghost Train (The Studio B Sessions).

Due Aug. 24, the project combined Marty’s love for traditional country music with his appreciation of historic pieces of the genre’s past. He’s noted for his collection of old stage outfits and instruments, and RCA Studio B is one of the ultimate historic locations in Nashville. It was not only the site of Marty’s first session, with Country Music Hall of Famer Lester Flatt, but it also spawned such hits as Bobby Bare’s “Detroit City,” Dolly Parton’s “Coat Of Many Colors,” Skeeter Davis’ “The End Of The World” and Elvis Presley’s “Are You Lonesome To-night?”

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Alan Jackson's beach-themed birdhouse. Photo courtesy of The Birdhouse Thing.

Now’s your chance to own a home designed by your favorite country star! Disclaimer: you can’t actually live in this home unless you are a bird. GAC and The Grand Ole Opry have partnered with The Birdhouse Thing organization to offer you the opportunity to bid on one-of-a-kind, autographed birdhouses designed by country superstars including Rascal Flatts, Tim McGraw, Sara Evans, Alan Jackson, LeAnn Rimes and many more. Proceeds benefit The W.O. Smith Music School. Hurry and get your bids in now — the auction closes on March 23. Continue Reading

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Keith Urban photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

Keith Urban, the Zac Brown Band, Brad Paisley and Martina McBride are among the first round of acts who’ve been revealed for the annual CMA Music Festival June 10-13, a weekend that promises to bring plenty of tourism to Tennessee.

The Nashville-centered festival — which also promises Carrie Underwood, Jason Aldean, Reba McEntire, Rascal Flatts, Lady Antebellum and Darius Rucker — occurs the same weekend as the ninth annual Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival 65 miles away in Manchester. That event is a multi-genre draw, though country music plays a role, too. The Zac Brown Band is booked, as it was last year, for both festivals. Bonnaroo also lists Miranda Lambert, Jamey Johnson, Kris Kristofferson and the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band among this year’s attractions.

The CMA Festival is particularly beneficial to country artists. Some of the money raised by the event is donated to Nashville music education programs — last year’s festival generated more than $1 million for schools. In addition, highlights from the festival’s stadium concerts have for several years formed the backbone for an ABC special in the late summer or early fall.

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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.

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John Fogerty photo courtesy of Shore Fire Media.

Thanks to his role as the primary singer and songwriter for Creedence Clearwater Revival, John Fogerty’s name is permanently etched in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. But his first post-CCR project, 1973’s Blue Ridge Rangers album, put him on the pop charts with a cover of Hank Williams’ “Jambalaya (On The Bayou).” John went back to the country well in 2009 with a sequel, The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again.

As with the original Rangers release, John covers a series of country music classics: Buck Owens’ “I Don’t Care (Just As Long As You Love Me),” the Kendalls’ “Heaven’s Just A Sin Away,” John Denver’s “Back Home Again” and Ray Price’s “I’ll Be There (If You Ever Want Me),” to name a few.

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Billy Dean photo courtesy of billydean.com.

When Billy Dean first appeared in country music in 1990, he made his mark with an easy delivery and a handsome visage on his way to winning a pair of trophies at the Academy of Country Music Awards. He was, in essence, country’s version of the boy next door, but he’s now decided to put on a black suit and spiff up his sound a bit.

He quietly released an album this year titled Billy Dean Sings Richard Leigh, and it endeavored to add supper-club sophistication to Billy’s act through the invention of “Hank Sinatra.” Billy brings a big band to Florida for a New Year’s Eve show this week, and it marks only the second time he’s appeared in the Sinatra format, according to The Tallahassee Democrat.

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Rosanne Cash photo courtesy of myspace.com/rosannecash.

When Rosanne Cash’s album The List is released on Tuesday, it will unveil only a portion of a much larger treasure.

When she was a teenager, Rosanne went on tour with her father, Country Music Hall of Fame member Johnny Cash, and he wrote out a list of the 100 most important country songs for her to learn if she intended to become an artist.

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Hank Williams Sr. and Ray Price. Photo: courtesy of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

By Deborah Evans Price

© 2009 CMA Close Up® News Service / Country Music Association®, Inc.

Ray Price could relax and look back on an incredible career. Instead, the Country Music Hall of Fame member is looking ahead. He’s starting his own record label, recording new music and performing for his enthusiastic fans.

But doesn’t he ever think about taking it easy, maybe doing a little fishing? “I’d be wondering why the hell I ain’t out there singing — that’s what I’d be doing on a fishing boat,” he said. “I love making music. It’s my life. I was born for it, I guess. I want to do it better and better and better and better. I’m not satisfied. I don’t think anybody should be.” Continue Reading

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