The perfect country song, according to David Allan Coe’s hilarious classic “You Never Even Called Me By My Name,” requires that you refer to trains, trucks, prison, gettin’ drunk and – of course – mama. By those standards, none of these songs are perfect, but they’re all at least very good at paying homage to Mom as we slide into Mother’s Day.

It’s probably not the definitive list – you could argue that others, such as Merle Haggard’s “Mama’s Hungry Eyes” – belong here, but it’s good enough to give you a full-bodied picture of your mom, my mom, somebody’s mom.

In no particular order, here are 20 country songs – and one bonus title – for moms everywhere:

“Mama’s Song,” Carrie Underwood (2010) – A rolling music bed and Carrie’s own romantic storyline with hockey player Mike Fisher form the backdrop for a song that shows a mother just what a great job she’s done. She parented a daughter who picks the right kind of partner.

“The Hand That Rocks The Cradle,” Glen Campbell with Steve Wariner (1987) – “There ought to be a hall of fame for mamas.” Well, there’s not, but there is this nifty little duet built around the psychologies of birth, breast feeding and teaching life lessons.

“Mama Don’t Forget To Pray For Me,” Diamond Rio (1991) – In many families, Mom is the one who provides the strongest moral compass. In this case, she gets a phone call from her adult son, looking for advice from his best-loved guidance counselor.

“So Much Like My Dad,” George Strait (1992) – “Mom, can we talk?” George is as good at anyone at delivering a song that’s essentially a conversation set to music. In this case, it’s a mother/son chat as he tries to figure out exactly why his own household is falling apart.

“Mama Tried,” Merle Haggard (1968) – Perhaps the hardest part of the job for mothers: You can do everything right, and the kid insists on messing up anyway. In this mostly autobiographical account, the adult Merle takes responsibility for ignoring Flossie Haggard’s wisdom and ending up in prison by age 21. Continue Reading

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Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox (l) and Marty Raybon at the 2010 Country Radio Seminar on February 24 in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Wendy Newcomer.

With the release of his new album, At His Best, Marty Raybon finds himself at a unique point in life. The CD, released Tuesday, is stocked with songs that grapple with the transitions one encounters as time moves ahead. On Saturday, he’ll travel back in time, a bit, when his old band Shenandoah performs together for the first time in a dozen years.

Much of the album adheres to the changing nature of life and the ways people try to cope. The first single, “Daddy Phone,” struggles with the realignment of a family after a divorce. Other songs recognize the maturing of a son into adulthood, the dreaded mid-life transition and the ultimate segue, the end of life.

Not that Marty intended for At His Best to have a transitional theme when he started working on it.

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Rascal Flatts' Gary LeVox (l) and Marty Raybon at the 2010 Country Radio Seminar on February 24 in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Wendy Newcomer.

A mass of performers descended on downtown Nashville last week during the Country Radio Seminar to thank programmers for playing their music — and to remind the radio folks that there’s more music on the way. One guy who benefited greatly from that opportunity was former Shenandoah vocalist Marty Raybon, who not only got a last-minute moment on a big stage but also picked up some unexpected appreciation in the room.

Marty’s got a new album, At His Best, slated for release this spring, so he showed up at the Renaissance Nashville Hotel to do interviews and greet people at the record company’s suite. But CRS also turned into a sort of old-home week as he ran into a bunch of executives that he worked with regularly when Shenandoah was on RCA in the 1990s. One of those execs, Dale Turner, told Marty that his buddies in Rascal Flatts were doing a tenth-anniversary show, and the wheels started turning.

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Rascal Flatts at the 2010 Country Radio Seminar on February 24 in Nashville, Tenn. Photo by Wendy Newcomer.

Traditionally, one might give a gift of aluminum and tin to celebrate a 10th wedding anniversary. But to celebrate the decade-long union between the multi-platinum Rascal Flatts and country radio, only a custom Rascal Flatts 10-year commemorative Les Paul guitar would do. Gary LeVox, Jay DeMarcus and Joe Don Rooney gathered in the Grand Ballroom of Nashville’s Renaissance Hotel during the Country Radio Seminar on Wednesday, Feb. 26, to relive the band’s favorite memories with country radio and thank them for their support.

“We have so many friends we’ve made over the last 10 years,” said Jay from the stage, “and it’s so humbling to be here 10 years later. We never dreamed we’d be able to experience some of the things we’ve experienced – and it’s all because of you guys. When we first came to your radio stations, we were so green and we had no idea what lay ahead. Ten years later, all we have to say is, ‘Thank you’ – sincerely, from the bottom of our hearts.”

The band followed up their heartfelt speeches with a humorous walk down memory lane, including a slide show of their early gigs. Both band and audience got a kick out of seeing photos of Rascal Flatts playing a mattress store opening and a joint called Bub’s Burgers.

After the group played their debut single, “Prayin’ For Daylight,” they said they wanted to play the first song they ever officially performed under the name Rascal Flatts — the Shenandoah 1989 No. 1, “Church On Cumberland Road.” Just before the song began, Shenandoah’s lead singer, Marty Raybon, walked onstage. Continue Reading

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Bridgette Tatum photo courtesy of Route Forty-Nine Records.

The Country Radio Seminar is a tough nut for a new artist to crack. Between the official performances, the unofficial side events and general hanging about by the genre’s stars, an attendee can catch the likes of Alan Jackson, John Rich, Rascal Flatts, Taylor Swift, Craig Morgan or Darius Rucker. How does an artist who hasn’t even released an album get some attention?

In the case of Bridgette Tatum, working her feisty single “(I Like My) Cowboys Dirty,” you rename the hotel’s Bridge Bar as the Bridgette Bar. You slap your video on the club’s screens, throw over-sized banners along the glass walls, set out Bridgette Tatum placards on all the tables and put the waitresses in “(I Like My) Cowboys Dirty” T-shirts — or, better put, dirty T-shirts. Not enough? It helps that your record company is owned in part by NASCAR driver Ryan Newman — bring him in to race in a video game with guests and promise attendees you have a special “Dirty” drink just for them.

Bridgette’s already started making a name for herself as a co-writer of the massive Jason Aldean power-chord special “She’s Country,” but even with those credentials, CRS is a tough sell. She wasn’t even the only artist in the Bridgette Bar on Wednesday night. You could spot former Shenandoah vocalist Marty Raybon, newcomer Katie Armiger and even much-publicized Mindy McCready. And Kix Brooks might well have been headed for the Bridgette Bar when he rolled into the lobby of the Renaissance Nashville Hotel around 11 p.m.

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