This is the story of Waylon’s notorious relationship with cocaine told through the improbable tale of a police officer and lawyer turned drug smuggler from Kentucky, and a cocaine-eating bear. Country History X, which looks to tell the history of country music, one story at a time.
“Set In Stone” feels like a really solid and inspired mid career selection from Tritt, well-produced by Cobb, with some great instrumental performances, and no signs of rust or heavy wear from the time away. Undoubtedly though, this is a Boomer record, and in more ways than one.
In 1975 when Charlie Rich whipped out his lighter, and burned the card announcing John Denver as the 1975 CMA Entertainer of the Year, it was considered to be one of the greatest moments of protest in country music history. But was it truly his intent to protest John Denver’s win?
Over the last couple of weeks there’s been a big fight in Nashville over the fate of the iconic venue called the Exit/In. Opened in 1971, and named for the fact that the entrance was in the back, it’s one of those venues that’s housed so many memories and iconic moments.
Of course you usually say nice things upon someone’s passing. But when Dolly Parton said, “I wouldn’t be here if he hadn’t been there” as she eulogized Uncle Bill after his passing on Wednesday, April 7th at the age of 85, you known it’s the honest truth.
“Well, I’m taking this one,” Richie Albright told to Waylon Jennings, meaning he was willing to be the fall guy for the cocaine package. Waylon recalled in his autobiography, “Sometimes I thought Richie would’ve leapt in front of a freight train for me.” But Waylon wouldn’t allow it this time.
Richie Albright was the most important drummer in country music history, and one of the most influential side players in the genre ever, and did it from an instrument traditionally frown upon in country music for stepping out, if even being present. “There’s another way of doing things, and that’s rock ‘n roll,” is the quote.
There are many legendary country songs, and many legendary country songwriters. But few songs are as synonymous with country music to the point where they’re so well-recognized and can be recited by those well outside the country fold like “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys.”
The second night of a two-night residency at the The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville—a.k.a the “Mother Church of Country Music”—Waylon Jennings held court with a now legendary band, and numerous special guests. It did constitute a proper final bow.
“She said Jimmy Rabbitt turned her on to my last album” is the line from David Allan Coe’s infamous song “Longhaired Redneck” where many got clued into this man’s importance. But his legacy goes much deeper as both a DJ and a performer.
Billy Joe Shaver wasn’t just a musical legend and icon, or an “Outlaw” as we like to call the artists who work outside of the Nashville system. He was a hero, in both music, and in life. What is a hero? A hero is someone who illustrates a level of bravery well beyond what most would be willing to.
The heart and soul of the songs and words of the American country music Outlaw movement has passed on. Billy Joe Shaver, with only three fingers on his right hand and an 8th grade education left an indelible mark on country music that will never be worn down.
Songwriter, performer, producer, and record label owner Ray Pennington was killed Wednesday, October 7th in a house fire in Sumner County in a rural part of Hendersonville, just north and east of Nashville. He’s known for writing “I’m a Ramblin’ Man” for Waylon Jennings.
It’s worth noting that Rolling Stone’s new updated version of their “500 Best Albums of All Time” significantly diminishes iconic titles from the classic country canon. Not only were some titles downgraded, some were eliminated entirely.
Let’s be honest. Do we really need yet even more new versions of old country songs? But the wildcard here, and what makes this record worth turning your attention to is that you have the once-in-a-lifetime voice of the great Josh Turner gracing these classic songs.
Already a much-deserved nominee for the Americana Music Association’s Instrumentalist of the Year in 2018 (the kid can downright blaze Tele licks), and having played some 2,000 shows, don’t let the fresh face fool you. Daniel Donato’s more seasoned than some 40-year-olds.
Waylon Payne is the name you turn to when you need a ringer of a song to really anchor a record, and that is what names like Miranda Lambert, Lee Ann Womack, Wade Bowen, Charlie Robison, Pam Tillis, and many more have been doing for a while. But those who know Waylon Payne know he’s just as fit to be a performer.
The legendary performance of Waylon Jennings at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville on August 12th, 1978 was finally reissued to the public on May 15th in DVD form. Now it has also finally been made available On Demand on Amazon via Eagle Rock Entertainment.
Those that know Waylon Jennings know that one of the primary contributions he brought to country music was importing a little bit of across-the-tracks rock ‘n’ roll influence into the genre. Unlike many modern country performers, Waylon did it with a respect for the original roots of country music, but he undoubtedly did it.
Hold My Beer Vol. 2 is like a love letter to classic country from a Texas perspective. In many respects, it’s a country music album about country music. Along the way though, Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen don’t forget to have some fun. After all, that’s the underlying reason for this project.
Any hardcore Waylon Jennings fan worth their salt knows all about what’s been affectionately coined over the years as “The Outlaw Performance” where Waylon Jennings held court at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville in 1978. However obtaining a full copy of the concert has been difficult.
“Nashville.” Oh how people love to wag a dirty finger in its direction as this monolithic homogenized reprehensible blob-like entity looming on the horizon, responsible for all the current ills in country music and some of the cultural filth beyond.
For many in the Texas and Red Dirt realm, Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen are their #1 and #1A favorite performers. And when they combine their efforts, that appeal is amplified. Though neither imbibes in really strong traditional country in their respective primary projects, when they get together, the fiddle and steel guitar comes to the top.
It’s the job of a drummer to be heard and not seen. Naming the “greatest” of anything is always a subjective exercise. But this isn’t just a skills competition. Influence, importance to culture, and intangibles beyond drumming all factored into the selection of the below names, and why they should be regarded as the greatest.