Tanya Tucker photo courtesy of SKH Music.

Tanya Tucker has released her take on the Christmas classic “Merry Christmas Wherever You Are” for digital download.  She recorded the song with those who won’t be with their families for the holidays in mind.

“With so many troops deployed overseas and with the economy being such that people are having to relocate to find work, recording this track was a very personal and emotional experience,” Tanya said. “Also, when I recorded that vocal, I was thinking of all the parents who had missing children and all the children who no longer had a parent to share this very special time.” Continue Reading

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Charlie Daniels photo courtesy of Webster PR.

The Grand Ole Opry will throw a 75th birthday party for Opry member Charlie Daniels during its two shows on October 29. Besides Charlie, Clint Black, The Grascals, Lee Greenwood, Tanya Tucker and more are on tap to take part in the celebration.

Charlie, whose birthday is October 28, became an Opry member in 2008. During his more than 50-year career, he has had hits on rock, country, pop and Christian charts and received numerous awards, including a GRAMMY. His signature song, “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” topped both the country and pop charts and brought him to fame internationally. He is also well known for his dedication to American troops. Continue Reading

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Martina McBride on the Grand Ole Opry. Photo by Chris Hollo, courtesy of Schmidt Relations.

The Grand Ole Opry will celebrate its 86th birthday the whole month of October with a list of all-star artists and special shows and events, many of which will be aired on GAC during episodes of Opry Live.

The party kicks off October 4 when the Opry honors Randy Travis for 25 years in country music and as an Opry member. Carrie Underwood, Connie Smith and Josh Turner are just a few of the artists scheduled to be on hand to honor Randy. Several performances from the night will be part of an episode of Opry Live to air on GAC October 15 at 9/8 CT.

The Opry’s Official 86th Birthday Bash Weekend will be held October 7 and 8 and feature performances from Charley Pride, Rascal Flatts and the solo Opry debut of Ronnie Dunn. Other events scheduled for the weekend are a Saturday afternoon birthday concert featuring Mel Tillis and a free Opry Plaza Birthday Party. GAC will broadcast the birthday party live on Opry Live at 9/8 CT.

Chris Young, Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, LeAnn Rimes, Montgomery Gentry, Sara Evans, Scotty McCreery and Trace Adkins are all scheduled to appear on the Opry October 11. The night will also include a live broadcast of Opry Live at 8/7 CT. Other performances from the night will be filmed for a an episode of Opry Live to air October 29 at 9/8 CT. Continue Reading

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Garth Brooks photo by Mark Tucker, courtesy of Pearl Records.

Some 20 years ago, Garth Brooks had the No. 1 country album in the nation with No Fences, which would go on to sell 17 million copies and win Album of the Year from both the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.

The opening song on that CD was “The Thunder Rolls,” which Garth performed Sunday for a select crowd of music-industry insiders when his co-writer, Pat Alger, was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

“I can’t imagine my career without this song,” Garth said.

Then he looked directly at Pat’s table and added, “I can’t imagine my career without you, Pat.”

Even harder to imagine is the actual writing session for “The Thunder Rolls.” When “the lightning flashes in her eyes” in the song’s lyrics, it could well be a reflection of Pat’s pent-up anger the day they composed it because — to hear Garth tell it — he’s not an easy guy to work with.

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Garth Brooks photo by Mark Tucker, courtesy of Pearl Records.

The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame added four new people to its rolls Sunday night. They’re four people whose names are more likely to be in parentheses in an album’s liner notes than on a marquee. But without writers such as Paul Davis, Pat Alger, Steve Cropper and Stephen Foster to come up with the words and the melodies, many of the folks with a microphone in their hands would have nothing to sing.

And the artists know it. That’s why Tanya Tucker, Jimmy Wayne, T. Graham Brown and Garth Brooks were among the acts who took part in Sunday’s induction ceremony at the Nashville Renaissance Hotel.

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Don Henley photo by Andrew Macpherson.

The Eagles have long been hailed as an influence on modern country music, a fact that’s never been lost on drummer Don Henley. Now it appears Don is aiming to release an album that plays on that history.

He’s been working on an album of country songs — some originals, some covers. He’s in good company in the process. He’s been putting the project together with Stan Lynch, who used to be the drummer with Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers.

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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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Vince Gill performs with Albert Lee at Eric Clapton's 2010 Crossroads Guitar Festival. Photo courtesy of Erin Morris.

Brooks & Dunn, Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Paul McCartney: several halls of fame are bursting with news about their programs or their members.

The Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame and the Georgia Music Hall of Fame have new inductees on the way, the Country Music Hall of Fame & Museum has a couple of fundraisers on the docket in Nashville and Los Angeles, and one Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member invoked the names of two Country Hall of Famers when he played next door to Nashville’s best-known museum.

Here’s a bundle of Hall of Fame-related music news:

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Merle Haggard has been called the Poet of the Common Man, and his ability to capture the hopes and fears of real people with his songwriting — not to mention his expressiveness as a singer — helped him lock up a spot in the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Now he’s got a place in another hall of honor: the California Hall of Fame, housed at the California Museum, just one block from the State Capitol in Sacramento. Merle’s induction was announced Wednesday by the state’s First Lady, Maria Shriver, among a class of 14 new members. The class includes Barbra Streisand, Betty White, former Governor Pat Brown, jeans maker Levi Strauss and director James Cameron.

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Alan Jackson photo courtesy of SonyBMG Nashville.

Alan Jackson’s current “Hard Hat And A Hammer” demonstrates that the lanky singer is still in touch with his working-class roots, but the price tag on his recent real-estate transaction shows just how much his career has moved his own circumstances into another economic reality.

Alan and Denise Jackson sold their Sweetbriar home outside of Nashville for a whopping $28 million, according to The Tennessean. The sale cuts $10 million off the asking price they affixed to the property when they put the 135-acre estate on the market in June a year ago.

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