Woody Paul photo by Jim McGuire, courtesy of Webster & Associates.

Woody Paul, lead singer/musician of Riders In The Sky, has been selected as one of the 2012 inductees into the National Fiddler Hall of Fame. The Induction gala will take place on Saturday, April 14 at Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Riders In The Sky will perform as headliners during the celebration.

Known as “King of the Cowboy Fiddlers,” Woody is honored to be inducted. “It’s amazing… and I’ve never practiced for it!” he said. Other inductees in the class of 2012 include Herman Johnson, Kenny Baker and Keith Coleman.  Continue Reading

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Rascal Flatts is invited to join the Opry by member Vince Gill. Photo by Chris Hollo, courtesy of Schmidt Relations.

Rascal Flatts will officially become members of the Grand Ole Opry during an induction ceremony on Saturday night. It has been just over a week since Vince Gill surprised the trio with the invitation and the band’s Jay DeMarcus tells Billboard they are still in disbelief.

“It’s pretty overwhelming,” Jay said. “It’s been over a week, and we still can’t believe it. I remember going to the Opry with my family growing up all the time. We sat up in the nosebleeds looking down on that little circle, and would just imagine being out there and singing out there. For it to all come full circle like it has is so emotionally overwhelming.”

By joining the Opry, Rascal Flatts becomes part of a family that includes artists such as Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton and Trace Adkins as well as legendary artists such as Roy Acuff and Hank Williams. It is a humbling honor for the band. Continue Reading

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Johnnie Wright & Kitty Wells

GAC extends condolences to the family, friends and fans of Johnnie Wright, who passed away at his home in Madison, Tennessee on Tuesday morning, reports the Tennessean. Johnnie was known as both a solo artist and as a member of the innovative duo Johnnie & Jack. He was married to country music legend Kitty Wells for 74 years. He was 97.

As a member of Johnnie & Jack, Johnnie introduced Latin rhythms into country music with hits like “Ashes of Love,” “Poison Love” and “(Oh Baby Mine) I Get So Lonely.” As a solo artist, he was known as ‘Johnny Wright’ and had a No. 1 hit with “Hello Vietnam,” written by Tom T. Hall.

When Johnnie married 18-year-old Muriel Deason in 1937, he was already an integral part of her career. He gave her the stage name of ‘Kitty Wells’ and brought the hit “It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels” that launched her career. He also offered her headline status when females were routinely regulated to supporting acts.

Johnnie grew up in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee listening to the Grand Ole Opry on WSM. As a child, he would often see Opry star Uncle Jimmy Thompson put on impromptu performances at a Mt. Juliet feed store. He met Kitty when his sister Bessie married and moved in next to Kitty’s family. The pair bonded over their love of music – and the fact that Johnnie had a car. Continue Reading

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Blake Shelton on the Grand Ole Opry stage. Photo courtesy of the Grand Ole Opry.

Fans touring the Grand Ole Opry will now have Opry member Blake Shelton along as a video guide. While a tour guide will be accompanying visitors during their look behind the scenes of the Opry, Blake will join the group via video at the Opry’s backstage entrance, in Studio A and in the Opry Green Room. He will be providing fans with both historic information and personal stories of his Opry experiences.

In the backstage check-in area and Opry Member Gallery, Blake will appear to recall the night he was asked to join the Opry family. There will also be highlights of Opry invitations and inductions featuring Trace Adkins, Craig Morgan, Josh Turner, and Carrie Underwood. “Opry membership is a thrill that never gets old,” Blake says during the video. Continue Reading

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Brad Paisley and Little Jimmy Dickens perform on the newly-refurbished circle of wood at the Grand Ole Opry on August 25, 2010. Photo courtesy of the Grand Ole Opry.

He’s the oldest current member of the Grand Ole Opry, someone the other members look up to — even if they have to look down to do it. Little Jimmy Dickens, all 4’-11” of him, turns 90 on Sunday, and some of his music industry friends have a party cooked up for him this weekend to celebrate.

And he’s got plenty of friends. Randy Houser was thrilled to make the introductory speech last month when the Music City Walk of Fame inducted “Tater,” a nickname Jimmy picked up from Hank Williams for his first hit, “Take An Old Cold ‘Tater (And Wait).” Fellow West Virginian Brad Paisley has repeatedly employed Little Jimmy in his videos and plopped him onto his albums in comedic tracks. And that’s just a start on the list.

But Little Jimmy’s always been a friend of his fellow Opry members. He used to walk across the alley between the Ryman Auditorium and Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge with Hank. And he got his shot at the Opry and his first recording contract when he was championed by Roy Acuff, who was considered the King of Country Music.

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Merle Haggard got his due this weekend. Already a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, he received a Kennedy Center Honor alongside Oprah Winfrey, Sir Paul McCartney, choreographer Bill T. Jones and Broadway lyricist Jerry Herman.

It’s a bit ironic — Merle was the first country artist to perform at the Kennedy Center just six days after it opened in September 1971. Still, he’s not the first country artist to receive one of the Honors named after the venue. He’s been preceded by George Jones, Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, Roy Acuff and Willie Nelson.

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Little Jimmy Dickens and Brad Paisley at the Grand Ole Opry House on Tuesday, September 28, 2010. © 2010 Grand Ole Opry® Hollo Photographics

Five months after a flood left the hallowed stage of Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry House submerged under 46 inches of water, the venue reoped Tuesday as the Opry held a three-hour event — two hours airing as a GAC special, Country Comes Home: An Opry Live Celebration.

The flood’s assault on the Opry House has been the biggest story in country music this year, so it’s only appropriate that the evening was heavy on music from 2010: Jason Aldean’s “My Kinda Party,” Blake Shelton’s “All About Tonight,” Brad Paisley’s “Anything Like Me” and Keith Urban’s “I’m In,” among them.

But the night also included performances that offered a smattering of country music history — of which, the Opry has been central. Dierks Bentley and Del McCoury injected bluegrass into the proceedings with a cover of Bill Monroe’s “Roll On, Buddy, Roll On.” Martina McBride and Connie Smith traded lines in the 1964 classic “Once A Day.” Charlie Daniels teamed with Montgomery Gentry on a sizzling version of “The Devil Went Down To Georgia.” And Josh Turner and Lorrie Morgan turned in a stunning version of the George Jones & Tammy Wynette hit “Golden Ring.” (Lorrie, incidentally, wore a leopard-patterned dress — not something in red…)

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Keith Urban photo by Danny Clinch, courtesy of Capitol Nashville.

A year ago, Keith Urban raised $500,000 for the Country Music Hall of Fame when he threw an all-star All For The Hall concert at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.

This year, he’s pitching in again, but it’s not the only thing going on in country music with hall of fame overtones. Hall of Famer Loretta Lynn will be celebrated with a tribute album, fellow Hall of Famer Merle Haggard will receive another rare honor, and five composers — including a former Beatle — are being added to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Here’s a rundown of the hall of fame-related events of note:

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Grand Ole Opry members Brad Paisley (l) and Little Jimmy Dickens (r) unveil the refurbished 6-foot circle of wood (taken from the historic Ryman Auditorium when the show moved to the Grand Ole Opry House in 1974) that was damaged in the May 2010 Nashville flood. Photo courtesy of the Grand Ole Opry.

It’s a six-foot piece of circular wood, scuffed and nicked and grooved, but it’s a monumental symbol. Brad Paisley and Little Jimmy Dickens joined four construction workers Wednesday in installing a major piece of oak into the center of the stage at the Grand Ole Opry House.

The moment was captured by a herd of reporters and photographers as Nashville continues its recovery from a devastating flood in early May. At that time, water from the Cumberland River swamped the historic venue, piling 46 inches of liquid on top of the stage. The waters were so significant that mud was hurled onto the ceiling and Opry VP and general manager Pete Fisher literally floated a kayak through the house.

Dirt and construction dust still litter the grounds around the Opry House, but the placement of the circle back onto the stage was a hardy symbol for the restoration of the Opry and its history. The circle was cut from the floor of the Ryman Auditorium and installed at the Opry House when it opened in 1974, providing a physical link between current generations of Opry members and some of the late performers who stood behind the mic stand on that same wood — people like Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Roy Acuff and Marty Robbins. It was damaged during May’s floods, but not so much that it couldn’t be repaired. Its resilience embodies as well as ever the durability of the Opry and its legend.

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The Grand Ole Opry House stage, photographed on May 11, 2010. 2010 Copyright Grand Ole Opry. Photo by Chris Hollo.

If you’ve been wondering how cleanup and restoration is going at the Grand Ole Opry, here’s the latest update from the Opry folks:

The Grand Ole Opry Entertainment Complex, flooded early last week in the worst Middle Tennessee floods in more than 100 years, has since been the site of an around-the clock remediation process aimed at ensuring the well-being of Opry archives and collections affected by the flooding. “The Opry is the heart of country music,” said Grand Ole Opry President Steve Buchanan, “so it is not at all surprising that since the flood, people from around the world have been interested in the safety of some of our most treasured items. Next to the safety of our staff, nothing has been more important to us in our work over the last ten days than taking care of these treasures.”

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