News Roundup for July 11, 2011

• This past Friday night, the Oak Ridge Boys were invited to become the newest members of the Grand Ole Opry in fine Little Jimmy Dickens fashion. After the Oak Ridge Boys performed “Y’All Come Back Saloon,” Dickens walked out onstage dressed as a sub-five-foot William Lee Golden with long beard and sunglasses. “All my life I’ve wanted to be a little bitty Oak Ridge Boy,” Dickens announced to laughter in the Opry House. “On August 6th, I will become the newest member of the Oak Ridge Boys, and at that time, you will become the newest members of the Grand Ole Opry!

• Check out Peter Cooper’s new column over at The Tennessean. An excerpt, directed to most of the male country singers on the radio: “I’d rather be hit by a can of your favorite domestic beer than hear you name-check that beer one more time when you’re singing about the party in the woods that you know darn well the three people who wrote the song in a metropolitan Nashville office absolutely, for sure, did not attend.” Preach on, brother.

• Renowned bluegrass fiddle player Kenny Baker, a 25-year member of Bill Monroe’s band The Bluegrass Boys, passed away on July 8 at the age of 85. He was named to the International Bluegrass Hall of Fame in 1999.

• American Idol Season Five 9^th place finisher Mandisa wants to cut a country record. “I’m a fan of country music, which was new to me because I didn’t think that I ever would be. Let’s be honest, I’m a black girl,” she laughingly tells CMT, “so you don’t see that a lot.”

• Miranda Lambert has not one, but two new projects coming out this fall. Not to be outdone by her husband’s several gigs, she’ll be releasing her girl-group Pistol Annies album, Hell on Heels, with Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley on 8/23 followed by her solo album, titled Four the Record, November 1. Four The Record has so many meanings,” she said. “I love the play on words and my records always have a little crime in them and this is the fourth record of my career. This album pushes the limits for me in many ways and I collaborate with friends and heroes. It builds on my previous albums with a whole new flair.”

• Gary LeVox, Cletus T. Judd, and Jimmy Yeary wrote a song about Caylee Anthony.

• Georgette Jones has written a memoir about her relationship with her parents George Jones and Tammy Wynette.

• Buddy Jewell, winner of Nashville Star’s debut season, releases his latest album I Surrender All this month. His new single “Jesus, Elvis and Me” is shipping to Country, Gospel and Christian Country stations this month.

• The Nitty Gritty Dirty Band also releases new music this month with the release of a new live EP called Under the Big Top Vol. 1. It is available digitally on iTunes and physical copies can be purchased through their website.

• Terri Clark has enlisted the help of former Sugarland singer Kristen Hall and Alison Krauss on her new album Roots and Wings that will arrive digitally on July 26 and in stores September 13. “I chose the album’s title after much deliberation about naming it after one of the song titles,” the multi-platinum selling singer said in a statement. “The past year and a half was full of bitter and sweet and while it was tough, I feel it’s times like that when our minds grow the most so it definitely inspired me to write many of these songs.”

• The new Abrams Brothers album Northern Redemption reminds one of the Byrds.

• In a blatant attempt to kiss up to our editor early in Engine 145’s life, Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel listens to country music.

• Country Music Hall of Fame members Rabon and Alton Delmore, known as The Delmore Brothers, have been named the 2011 Trailblazer Award winners for the 34th annual Uncle Dave Macon Days Festival.

• Mandolin wizard Sam Bushwill host the 22nd Annual International Bluegrass Music Awards on Thursday, September 29.

• Blake Shelton is the most interesting man in the world.

• Nearly three years in the making, Glen Campbell’s final album, Ghost On The Canvas, has just been given artwork and a release date of August 30. It features collaborations with Jakob Dylan, Billy Corgan, and Chris Isaak. Campbell was recently diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease and is out on his final music tour this year.

• British rock magazine NME made a list of the 100 Greatest Music Videos of All Time and Johnny Cash’s “Hurt” was named numero uno.

• Speaking of Johnny Cash, author and poet Tony Tost has an interesting column titled “The last days of Johnny Cash” that deserves a read.

• As if you needed another reason to love Lee Ann Womack, she performed a benefit concert with Pat Green and Stoney LaRue this past Saturday to raise funds to replace volunteer firefighter equipment lost in large blazes in April and May. Tickets were $100 but firefighters got in free.

• Remember the fuss that the Bellamy Brothers caused by saying Britney Spears ripped off their song, “If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body Would You Hold It against Me?” Um, yeah, that didn’t work out like they planned.

• Megan Mullins has gone through record deals with Broken Bow and Stoney Creek and although the incredibly talented fiddle player charted two singles, neither label released an album. She’s now back with her brother Marcus Mullins and husband John Bohlinger in a band called the Tennessee Hot Damns. They call themselves “Cornbread Country Gypsy Grass.”

• Curb Records artists Bomshel have a brand new single that’s being unleashed to the world called “Halleluyall.” You can hear the studio version of the song on their website or watch them perform a live version here.

• Slaid Cleaves is releasing his very first live album, a double-disc release called Sorrow & Smoke: Live at the Horseshoe Lounge, on September 6.

• The former owners of fire-gutted The Little Nashville Opry will not be getting a three million dollar insurance payout after it was discovered that they received a $10,500 insurance payment in 2006 to repair frozen pipes, but instead disconnected pipes to the whole sprinkler system.

• Kenny Loggins has started a new country music group called the Blue Sky Riders with award-winning country songwriters Gary Burr and Georgia Middleman. “Dream” will be the first single off a new album coming out in the fall.

 

• New music videos:

Country (?) rapper Colt Ford has a new music video called “Waste Some Time.” Too. Many. Jokes.

Former lead singer of the Southern rock band Last November Luke Pilgrim has a new video called “Sweet Tea.”

Husband and wife duo Thompson Square’s new video for “I Got You.”

The Wagons —“I Blew It”

15-year-old YouTube sensation Peyton Rae’s new “I’m Not Your Cinderella.”