Born on this day in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1936: Roger Miller the singer, songwriter, musician and actor, best known for his honky tonk-influenced novelty songs. His best known songs included the chart-topping country/pop hits “King of the Road”, “Dang Me” and “England Swings”, all from the mid-1960s. A lifelong cigarette smoker Miller died on October 25, 1992 of lung and throat cancer at the age of 56.
Carrie Underwood has hosted her last CMA Awards (for now). The singer announced on social media that after 12 years she is giving up the gig.
“One of the highlights of 2019 and of my entire career so far was being on stage with the legends that are Reba and Dolly Parton,” Carrie shared on Instagram. “I’m so proud that we could celebrate the incredible female artists that are part of the legacy of country music, past, present and future, and I’m thankful for the huge audiences all over the world that tuned in to see it.”
She adds, “It’s hard to believe that it was my 12th year hosting and I will always treasure every show,” noting, “It’s hard to imagine topping what we have accomplished together, so I’ve decided that it’s time to pass the hosting torch (at least for now!) to others that will cherish it and honor it as much as I do.”
Finally, Carrie, who hosted the show for 11 years with Brad Paisley ahead of he 2019 show, shares, “I’ve got so many exciting things coming in the new year and beyond, and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for all of us.”
Today in 2002, Big Kenny (of Big & Rich) already $140,000 in debt, lost most of his last $200 while playing black jack in a Las Vegas casino. He gave the dealer a $20 tip, which left himself with just one buck. This event inspired him to write a future Tim McGraw hit, “Last Dollar (Fly Away).”
Eli Young Band’s Mike Eli isn’t one for making New Year’s resolutions, noting he’s “not a big fan” of them.
“I feel as if, like they all happen all at once and all these changes come in and everything needs to be all this new, new, new come January,” he says. “And I feel like, it’s just like setting up for failure and so I have a really hard time with that.”
Not that Mike doesn’t like to make changes each year, either it’s “changing the set lists, or moving around the shows, or coming up with new ideas,” although he says he tries to make sure that happens before the first of the year.
Today in 2001, Neal McCoy joined Wayne Newton and comedian Drew Carey to entertain American troops at the Kandahar Airport in Afghanistan as a part of the USO’s Deliver America Tour.
Eric Church has written the forward of the novel “The DeVine Devils,” which was written by his good friend, Jeremy Spillman, who’s a songwriter who co-wrote the title track to 2006 debut album “Sinners Like Me.”
“Writing songs with someone is a creatively intimate process. You get to know someone at an inspirationally cellular level — what their fears are, their hopes, shortcomings, failures, triumphs, and dreams. The most important thing you get a glimpse at, though, is a person’s imaginative soul,” Eric writes. “I’ve written amazing songs with Jeremy Spillman — some you’ve heard, some you haven’t — but all were equally unique and special in their own way,” adding, “That’s just the kind of writer Jeremy is.”
Eric admits that he’s what you’d call a “book snob,” but says of the book, “I very simply loved it,” adding, “I’m thankful Jeremy wrote it, and I’m thankful he shared it with me and with the world. We are all better off for it.”
Source: CMT
Today in 1977, Dolly Parton earned the first gold album of her career with, “Here You Come Again.”
Here You Come Again is the nineteenth solo studio album by Dolly Parton. It was released on October 3, 1977, by RCA Victor. It was Parton’s first album to be certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipping a million copies.
The album peaked at No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot Country LPs chart and No. 20 on the US Billboard 200 chart. In Canada, the album peaked at No. 12 on the RPM Canadian Albums chart.
The album’s first single, “Here You Come Again”, was released in October 1977 and peaked at No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles chart, No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 2 on the US Billboard Easy Listening chart. In Canada, the single peaked at No. 1 on the RPM Canadian Country Singles chart, No. 7 on the RPM Canadian Singles chart and No. 1 on the RPM Canadian Easy Listening chart. In Australia, the single peaked at No. 10 on the ARIA Top 100 Singles chart. The single also peaked a No. 75 on the OCC UK Singles Chart.
In February 1978, “Two Doors Down” and “It’s All Wrong, But It’s All Right” were issued as a double A-side single, aimed at the pop and country charts respectively. The version of “Two Doors Down” issued on the single was recorded by Parton in January 1978 and features a more pop sound than the album version. It would replace the original album version on all subsequent pressings of the album. “Two Doors Down” peaked at No. 19 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 12 on the US Billboard Easy Listening chart. In Canada, the single peaked at No. 26 on the RPM Canadian Singles chart and No. 7 on the RPM Canadian Easy Listening chart. “It’s All Wrong, But It’s All Right” peaked at No. 1 on both the US Billboard Hot Country Singles chart and the RPM Canadian Country Singles chart.
In April 1980, “Me and Little Andy” was released as a single in the UK and it did not chart.
Source: Wikipedia
Today in 1970, Lynn Anderson’s single, “Rose Garden,” began a dozen week sweep as the #1 song on the country charts. It also made it to #3 on the Top 40 charts. It was written by Joe Smith, who had been inspired by the book, “I Never Promised You A Rose Garden,” by Joanne Greenberg. The song became a movie in 1977.
Willie Nelson, has teamed with sons Micah and Lukas, plus Jakob Dylan, Dhani Harrison and Amos Lee for a new cover of a Tom Petty song, with proceeds going to a good cause.
The all-star lineup has recorded their take on “For Real,” a Petty song that was originally recorded in 2000, but wasn’t released until after the singer’s death. appearing on the retrospective, “The Best of Everything.”
Proceeds from the song will benefit Midnight Mission, a Los Angeles homeless shelter and homeless services provider Petty supported.
“When I first was sent this song asking if I wanted to record it, I was quite frankly dumbfounded,” Lukas shared. “It was the whole manifesto of our band [Promise of the Real] in a song. It just shows how connected artists who have integrity are with others who share the same passion and fire for being honest with their soul. Fearless and real.” Check out the song to the right.
Source: Rolling Stone
“USA Today” has come out with their picks for the Best Albums of 2019, based on ballots by the paper’s contributors, as well as contributors from papers from such cities as Nashville and Memphis; Asbury Park, New Jersey; and Palm Springs, California.
Several country artists made the list with The Highwomen’s self-titled debut ranking highest at eight, followed by Sturgill Simpson’s “Sound & Fury” at ten.
Other country artists recognized include: Tanya Tucker’s “While I’m Livin’” (14); Maren Morris’ “GIRL” (16), Luke Combs’ “What You See Is What You Get” (24) and Miranda Lambert’s “Wildcard” (35).
Source: USA Today
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