Fiddler Byron Berline lived many lives in one, and now it’s all come to a close, but not before leaving an impact that stretches from being a genuine Bill Monroe Bluegrass Boy, to being flown out to California to record with The Rolling Stones.
There are some items that are so important, so revered, they shouldn’t be possessed by any individual, but by us all. In country music, this includes a specific set of instruments tied to the music’s history so irrevocably, they comprise the very bedrock of the genre.
The national Memorial Day concert each year broadcast on PBS doesn’t always include notable names from the country music world. But in 2021, it included three of them, who each turned in marquee performances. Here are the performances of Vince Gill, Mickey Guyton, and Alan Jackson.
Some top country music talent has been tapped to perform at the National Memorial Day concert that broadcasts annually on PBS. Not always so inclusive of country performers, this year Alan Jackson is slated to be one of the centerpieces of the presentation as he gets ready to release a new album.
Welcome to Episode #5 of Country History X, which looks to tell the history of country music, one story at a time. This is story of the tragic life and death of Keith Whitley who died at the age of 34 due to alcohol abuse, and the conspiracy theories that surrounded it.
ohn Prine was the big winner posthumously from the 2021 Grammy Awards and the Premier Ceremony that takes place before the proper telecast. Taking home two Grammy Awards, both for his final recorded song, “I Remember Everything,” he became the most awarded artist from the roots.
The majority of the high-profile bellyaching about the Grammys is coming from self-absorbed millionaire entertainers whose livelihoods and legacies are secured. It’s selfish and shortsighted of them to criticize an organization that gives the majority of its awards to deserving artists.
90’s country is one of the hottest things right now as most anyone with a semblance of country taste is tired of hearing trap beats and tractor rapping in today’s country singles, and is looking for something that actually sounds country. What a concept, huh? So what better of a time for the 90’s country […]
The 2020 pandemic has exposed how essential many country music institutions are to society. The Grand Ole Opry beamed its signal into households to the tune of becoming the most successful streaming concern in music during the entirety of 2020.
You can try to imbibe your recordings with the influence of country royalty, or you can just invite them into the studio to record with you, which is what Amber Digby does on this new record, cutting duets with the likes of Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, the late great Johnny Bush, and Vince Gill among others.
One of the most curious, and maybe one of the most cool developments in music over the last couple of years has been Vince Gill becoming a late career member of The Eagles. It wasn’t a development that came with a lot of fanfare or explanation. With the passing of Glenn Frey in 2016, it just sort of happened.
A once-in-a-lifetime event happened on January 12th, 2019 when a wide-ranging assemblage of talent from country music and beyond came together at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville to pay tribute to Willie Nelson. Called ‘Willie: Life and Songs of an American Outlaw,’ it’s being released on CD and DVD.
Saturday, October 10th would have been John Prine’s 74th birthday. The revered songwriting legend passed away on April 7th due to COVID-19. But there will still be plenty of remembering and celebration to mark the occasion., including re-airing the popular “Picture Show: A Tribute Celebrating John Prine.”
The Grand Ole Opry will begin celebrating its 95th Anniversary on Saturday, October 3rd, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, gathering for the country music institution’s 4,944th consecutive Saturday night broadcast with Dierks Bentley, Vince Gill, Terri Clark, and Lorrie Morgan.
It was one of the coolest things in country music while it lasted. But one of the cool things about The Time Jumpers is nothing lasts forever aside from the band itself. Nashville’s Western Swing house band has been entertaining crowds with interchangeable players and keeping traditions alive since 1998.
When the COVID-19 shutdowns began in mid March, the Grand Ole Opry was one of the only live music institutions that endured, with the first non-audience show transpiring on March 14th with the evening’s regular scheduled slate of performers.
Reba McEntire at her finest is some of the best country music you can find. She proved that when she released her latest album, 2019’s ‘Stronger Than The Truth,’ which marked the redhead’s return to the more traditional-sounding country of her early career, and it turned out to be one of the best albums released all year.
Vince Gill has been one of the regulars during these quarantine Opry performances, appearing more than any other artist. Adding Emmylou Harris along with Rodney Crowell is just about the perfect combination, not just for the history the duo has together, but due to the history they both have with Vince Gill.
COVID-19 has caused a second wave of closures and cancellations throughout the country music heartland and sunbelt south, but the storied institution of the Grand Ole Opry endures on Saturday night as it has done since the very start of the pandemic, and for over 95 years. Vince Gill and Reba McEntire will take the stage Saturday night.
Country Music Hall of Famer and Southern rock icon Charlie Daniels passed away on Monday, July 6th at the Summit Medical Center in Hermitage, Tennessee after suffering a hemorrhagic stroke. He was 83-years-old. On Friday, July 10th, funeral services will be held at the World Outreach Church, and will be streamed online.
A virtual celebration of Prine’s life and legacy has been planned for Thursday, June 11th called Picture Show: A Tribute Celebrating John Prine to be streamed online. Also after the presentation will be the revealing of a new John Prine song, with more unheard music on the way.
Country music legend and long-time Grand Ole Opry star Jan Howard has passed away at the age of 91. Howard died on Saturday, March 28th peacefully in her sleep in Gallatin, Tennessee near Nashville. A Grand Ole Opry member for nearly 50 years, news broke of her passing as the storied country music institution was broadcasting.
For the third week in a row, the Grand Ole Opry will endure through the unprecedented shutdown in American life to offer entertainment to the masses by holding true to it’s tradition of broadcasting on Saturday night (3-28). And for the third week in a row, there will be no audience and no backing band, but Vince Gill and Amy Grant will perform.
The world has been shuttered and turned upside down by the Coronavirus. But the Opry will continue on, refusing to break its storied tradition with its 4,916th consecutive Saturday night broadcast. There will be no backup band and no audience obviously. But the Opry will bring out the stars.