Once again Garth is being Garth, which means ultimately he’s probably doing the right thing and making a good choice. He’s just doing it in the most self-gratifying of ways. His heart is 100% in the right place. But his ego won’t allow him to make an altruistic move without letting everyone else know what he’s doing.
In a recent interview, Willie Nelson said he has a Roger Miller tribute album on the way. He also told the story of how he once turned down recording “The Gambler.” Written by Don Schlitz, it became the signature song for Kenny Rogers when Kenny released it in 1978.
Due to COVID-19, and then the protests and riots after the George Floyd killing, the Saving Country Music snark machine has been pretty much powered down and collecting dust for the better part of 2020. But there has been as few instances of country music malfeasance so egregious, it would be unconscionable to not address them.
Don’t regard this as a slandering. Please don’t mistake this as a rebuke. I bow down to the magnificent power of country music megastar Garth Brooks, and his ability to hoodwink hundreds of thousands of people and make millions of dollars even amidst an unprecedented pandemic and economic disparity.
“We Belong To Each Other” is Garth making a pathetic attempt to interpret Doo-Wop for no other apparent reason than it gives him a good excuse to put a chorus of black backup singers behind him in the mix so he can claim claim diversity and inclusion, and then double damns the song by setting it in some weird island time vibe.
At this point, it’s just as much about the principal as it is the money. Garth’s latest studio album was put up for pre-order as part of his exclusive distribution deal with Amazon nearly two years ago now, on June 19th, 2018 to be exact. Garth said the new record would be released in the spring … the spring of 2019 that is.
Quite a few country fans were left angered and agog when they saw that Gwen Stefani would be receiving an Opry berth when many more deserving country artists—including some who could benefit from both performing during this period of hardship—are once again being passed over
Like someone with the Coronavirus coughing in your face, here come the 2020 ACM Awards nominations. With Maren Morris and Thomas Rhett leading the pack of nominees with five nominations each, Justin Bieber receiving three nominations, you might as well be getting news from the local doctor where you’re quarantine station is located.
But Dolly Parton doesn’t deserve to be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, at least not at the moment when there are so many other women and men waiting in the wings that are much more deserving, and could use the distinction to preserve a legacy that Dolly Parton already has secured for herself by many fold.
There are those highly-anticipated albums that are hinted at for years by artists or labels, yet it seems like it takes forever for them to ever see the light of day, or albums whose release dates keep getting pushed back. And then there’s the very curious case of Garth Brooks and his latest album simply entitled “Fun.”
Releasing a live record is seen as a rite of passage for many artists. And with the energy she brings to a live show, you would think Miranda Lambert would be a good candidate for one. Many fans have been requesting a live record, and now some 15+ years into her career, you would think she’s about due. But she says it’s not going to happen.
Eric Church sparked off a bit of controversy late last week when he took the stage at The Anthem in Washington D.C. on Friday and Saturday nights (11-15 & 11-16), and made some playful jabs at Garth Brooks after losing a bid for the CMA Entertainer of the Year trophy to Garth. Now Garth has responded.
We knew the release of the latest Luke Combs album ‘What You See Is What You Get’ would be big, and that’s exactly what it was, bringing in the biggest numbers for a country title all year, topping all the charts, and setting a new record in the country space. Luke Combs is now indisputably the biggest artist in country music.
Well well, it’s getting chippy out there after Eric Church and others lost the 2019 CMA Entertainer of the Year honor to Garth Brooks. At Eric Church’s show at The Anthem in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, November 16th, he was singing a rendition of “Are You Sure Hank Done It His Way” by Waylon Jennings, changing the lyrics to lash out at Garth.
As an addendum to all of the brewhaha last week surrounding Garth Brooks winning the 2019 CMA Entertainer of the Year over Carrie Underwood, a little context is perhaps needed. Though Stan armies love to war back and forth, behind the scenes things are often a lot more moderate and congenial.
The good news for good country music keeps coming, and this time it comes in the form of upsurging Texas country throwback artist Randall King signing to Warner Music Nashville, and readying the release of a debut major label album. As part of the resurgence of interest in 90’s country, Randall King fits the bill just about perfect.
On the day after the CMA Awards, it’s always important to take a deep breath, and remind yourself, “It’s just the CMA’s.” But it does feel important to address what turned out to be the biggest controversy Wednesday night, which was Garth Brooks winning Entertainer of the Year over Carrie Underwood.
Carrie Underwood will win the 2019 CMA Award for Entertainer of the Year when it is handed out on November 13th, 2019. Mark it down. She will beat out Chris Stapleton, Keith Urban, Garth Brooks, and Eric Church for the top prize of the night. This isn’t necessarily an endorsement, nor is it any kind of rebuke. It’s simply a prediction.
If you’re a country music fan and are disappointed that your favorite artist didn’t get enough screen time in the Ken Burns film on country music, well guess what, your favorite genre did, and by the most revered documentary filmmaker of our time, and before rock n’ roll, pop, the blues, soul music, or hip-hop.
On September 21st, a beloved guitar owned by Randall King was stolen right out of his gear trailer as he performed at the Tri-State Fairgrounds in Amarillo, TX. The Gibson Dove acoustic means more than the market value of the guitar to Randall, and he’s now offered a $2,500 reward for its return. “No questions asked…”
The name of the tour is definitely a little dubious for the venues Garth has selected to play so far. But those complaining about Garth’s efforts here are missing the bigger picture. “I think he recognizes the significant role that smaller venues play in keeping country music going.”
The first question many will have is just how honest and thorough a book like this can be with Randy Travis still rendered unable to speak due to his 2013 health problems, including a massive stroke. If you want the definitive and unabridged perspective into the life of Randy Travis—from the victories to the falls from grace—it’s all here.
Upcoming Garth Brooks concerts have raised the ire of performers and attendees of the 50-year-old Regina Folk Festival in the Saskatchewan Province of Canada after Brooks booked consecutive shows in the city the same week as the 2019 Folk Fest. Regina Folk Festival is one of Canada’s many long-standing and nonprofit folk festivals.
Adopting the sounds and modes of pop and hip-hop might make country music cool to some, but the genre’s most existential threat is not dying because nobody wants to listen to it, it’s going extinct as an art form because nobody can distinguishing it from anything else.