Hello - and welcome to the latest
“onlinecountryuk” newsletter, an irregular, irreverent,
sometimes irresponsible, even irritating, collection of
country music news views and reviews, an Internet version of
the British Country Music Association’s “BCMA
Bulletin”, with the emphasis on “real” country music.
New names are constantly being added to the
mailing list, but if you’re unhappy about it cluttering up
your In-Box, just email me back at onlinecountryuk@yahoo.co.uk and
I’ll delete your name right away.
If there’s something about the world of
country music that you’re itching to get off your chest,
please contact me and, if it’s not slanderous, I’ll
endeavour to include it in a future newsletter, along with
any items of country music news you’d like me to pass on,
or records you‘d like top have mentioned or reviewed. My
address is 3 Chester Terrace, Brighton BN1 6GB, UK.
Thanks for looking and for the many
encouraging emails, by the way. They’re always welcome and
very much appreciated!
As usual, I’ve included some interesting
musical links from YouTube and No Depression. You can access
the links to the various websites (listed in blue) by just
clicking on them. Simple as that!
Jim Marshall - October 2011
WEMBLEY’S BACK!
The International Festival of Country Music
will return to London’s Wembley Arena on Sunday, February
26th, 2012. The stellar line-up features country,
roots and bluegrass music.
Reba McEntire will headline the all day
festival and she’ll be joined by Ricky Skaggs, Lonestar,
George Hamilton IV, Little Big Town, Narvel Felts, Jo-El
Sonnier, George Ducas, Will Banister, Raymond Froggatt and
John McNicholl.
“I’m bringing the International Festival
of Country Music back after over twenty years due to popular
demand,” says International Festival of Country Music
founder and CEO of MM Events Ltd., Mervyn Conn. “The
regard for Country Music has grown significantly in the UK
since the first year I promoted this event and I believe
that now is the time to reintroduce this once hugely popular
event to converted fans of country music and to a new and
emerging group of country music lovers.”
After the Wembley date, the festival will
travel to Belfast: Odyssey Arena – 29/02/12; Zurich:
Hallenstadion – 02/03/12 and Mannheim: SAP Arena –
04/03/12
GILLIAN WELCH NOVEMBER UK TOUR
Gillian Welch and David Rawlings will embark
on a UK tour in November in support of their current CD,
“The Harrow & The Harvest”. These will be the first
Gillian Welch UK dates since 2004, with dates as follows:
Sat Nov 12 Brighton Dome
Sun Nov 13 Warwick Arts Centre
Fri Nov 18 Belfast Waterfront Auditorium
Sun Nov 20 Glasgow Clyde Auditorium
Mon Nov 21 Manchester Apollo
Wed Nov 23 London Hammersmith Apollo
My first batch of great musical
items:
James McMurtry
Robert Ellis
Buck Owens
Keith Richards, Willie Nelson, Ryan Adams and
Hank Williams III
Glen Campbell
Shooter Jennings
“CMA COUNTRY CHRISTMAS"
For the second consecutive year, Jennifer
Nettles of Sugarland will host "CMA Country
Christmas", a television special, which is produced by
CMA, and featuring many of today's top Country artists. It
will air on the ABC Television Network later this year.
NANCI GRIFFITH HERE IN 2012
Nanci Griffith will be back in Ireland and
the UK next year, with special guests The Kennedys.
Dates so far announced are:
February 27th Drogheda,
Ireland, TLT Theatre
28th Navan, Ireland, Solstice Arts Centre
29th Ennis, Ireland, Glor
March 2nd Galway, Ireland, Town Hall Theatre
3rd Kilkenny, Ireland, Watergate Theatre
4th Cork, Ireland, Everyman Palace
6th Wexford, Ireland, Opera House
7th Waterford, Ireland, Theatre Royal
8th Dublin, Ireland, The Helix
10th Glasgow, Royal Concert Hall
11th Salford, The Lowry
12th Birmingham, Town Hall
14th London, Shepherds Bush Empire
15th Bristol, Colston Hall
16th Milton Keynes, Stables
18th Swansea, Grand Theatre
19th Bexhill-on-Sea, De La Warr Pavilion
21st Scunthorpe, Baths Hall
22nd Gateshead, The Sage
23rd York, Barbican
More country videos for your viewing
delight:
AMERICANA
If, like me, you’re annoyed at the number
of wishy-washy so-called country singers electing to call
their music “Americana”, you’ll no doubt be interested
to read the definition of the term in the latest edition of
the respected and reliable Merriam-Webster dictionary
published in the States. According to them, Americana is
“a genre of American music with roots in early folk and
country music", so now you know! Beware of imitations!
NOT FOR THOSE OF A NERVOUS
DISPOSITION!
Click on the following link if you want to
see how country music is progressing.
GIBSON GUITAR RAID
Gibson guitar plants in Nashville and Memphis
were raided recently by federal agents. Law enforcement is
not giving any details in the case, but The Tennessean
reports that U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and U.S.
Customs and Border Protection agents were executing search
warrants at the offices.
The searches could be related to past
investigations about using endangered wood in Gibson’s
instrument manufacturing. In November 2009, Gibson was
charged with illegal importation of Madagascar wood.
SANDY HARSCH - INTERNATIONAL
BROADCASTER OF THE YEAR
Backstage at the Olympia Theatre in Dublin,
Brad Paisley surprised RTE broadcaster Sandy Harsch by
revealing that she had been named CMA International
Broadcaster of the Year.
“I never could figure out why people cried
when they won awards, but now I know,” Harsch said. “The
CMA International Broadcaster Award is certainly the biggest
thing that has ever happened to me, other than having my two
children. And – does anyone really deserve getting an
award for doing something they absolutely love?”
Sandy Harsch moved to Ireland from the US in
1960, working as a freelance photo journalist and then as
chief photographer, reviewer and interviewer for Hot Press
magazine. She started in radio at RTE as a guest critic on
“Outside Track,” before moving on to Century Radio in
1989. She rejoined RTE in 1996, and has been presenting
“Country Time” ever since.
DEVON COUNTRY DANCE PARTY 2012
Allways Music is presenting an all-inclusive
'Devon Country Dance Party' at the Sefton Hotel, Babbacombe
Downs Road, Torquay over the weekend of Friday March 16th to
Monday March 19th 2012.
There’ll be live music from C'est La Vie,
Capricorn, The Thrillbillies, Hombre and Dave Whitmore, with
host DJ Strollin' Steve.
The price is £167 per person for three
nights half-board (there is a £6 supplement for sea-view
rooms). For booking forms and details on this and other
Allways Music promotions, www.strollinsteve.co.uk
Yet more videos:
The Ebony Hillbillies
John Hiatt & Lyle Lovett
Ian & Sylvia
Richard Buckner
Merle Haggard 1978
Emmylou Harris 2000
A SKAGGS FAMILY CHRISTMAS VOLUME TWO
Following the success of the first volume,
back in 2005, Ricky Skaggs and his family released a
follow-up at the end of September. The new disc comes with a
bonus DVD containing 26 performances of traditional seasonal
favourites and new compositions that are sure to become
holiday treasures.
Ricky, his wife Sharon and their children
(Luke and Molly) are joined by Buck and Cheryl White, and
Cheryl's daughter, Rachel Leftwich, part of the Skaggs'
extended family and members of a celebrated musical clan in
their own right. Also featured are world-renowned Kentucky
Thunder and The Nashville Strings.
The DVD features the family's holiday
concert, recorded live in Nashville at the Ryman Auditorium.
The three generations have taken this special show on the
road for the last eight years, and the tradition continues
this year, with the troupe performing at a variety of venues
in the USA throughout the holiday season, ending up at the
Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville on December 22nd.
www.skaggsfamilyrecords.com
NOTHING TO BRAG ABOUT
On the face of it, the fact that the CMA
Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock averaged 7 million
viewers and finished as the most watched TV programme on the
night it was aired by ABC in the USA, according to The
Nielsen Co.’s ratings, seems impressive.
The show featured performances from Rascal
Flatts, Brad Paisley and Jason Aldean, among others, and was
the network’s largest summertime entertainment audience in
the time period in almost five years.
“We are thrilled that CMA Music Festival:
Country’s Night to Rock was so successful with television
viewers last night,” said Steve Moore, CMA chief executive
officer. “We want to thank the fantastic artists who
participate in CMA Music Festival each year, and the amazing
fans who come to Nashville from around the world to enjoy
their talents. The success of the special demonstrates what
we already knew: Country music is America’s music.”
However, although 7 million viewers sounds a
lot, in the UK, which has a population of roughly one fifth
that of the USA, the Monday night BBC detective series,
“New Tricks”, regularly attracts over 9 million viewers
and the ITV soap, “Coronation Street”, although recently
reported to be losing viewers, still regularly has over 8
million tuning in.
RURAL TV IN THE UK
Following the departure of Rural TV from TV
in the UK, John Cowling emailed to say that he contacted SKY
TV a few months back asking for a reason why. Getting no
reply, he wrote again and this prompted a phone call from
Sky explaining that Rural TV had not kept to their side of
the contract with them, so Sky removed them!
SAM MILLAR - NEW SINGLE
British singer-songwriter, Sam Millar, has a
new single just out “Same Roots, Different Fruits”, in
advance of his album of the same name which is due out in
2012. It’s loosely based of the career of DJ, singer and
Mayor Of Bath, Bryan Chalker.
BILLY GRAMMER
The country singer Billy Grammer died on
August 10th, 18 days short of his 86th birthday in his home
town’s Benton Hospital, where he was being treated for a
long-term illness exacerbated by a heart attach he had
suffered this past January.
His million selling 1959 pop and country
crossover hit “Gotta Travel On” was far and away his
biggest single and his only other Top 20 single, 1963’s
“I Wanna Go Home,” was the first version of the Mel
Tillis song which went on to become better known as
“Detroit City” when Bobby Bare recorded it that same
year. Grammer had great success designing and manufacturing
the Grammer guitar from 1965 to 1970. A Grammer guitar owned
by Johnny Cash once sold for more than $100,000 at a
Sotheby’s auction.
MOE BANDY TOUR DATES
Here are the full details of Moe Bandy’s
forthcoming short UK tour:
Friday November 25th Leeds Irish Centre,
York Road, Leeds
Saturday 26th Moss Bank Labour Club, St
Helens, Merseyside
Sunday 27th Queens Hall, Watton, Norfolk
Monday 28th Regal Theatre, Stowmarket,
Suffolk
AN URBAN WHIFF
Great news! Soon you, too, can smell like
Keith Urban who is set to debut Phoenix, his first men’s
fragrance, this autumn. Phoenix is described in a press
release as an “expression of (Urban’s) spirit” with
top notes of blackberries, cognac and plum.
The Aussie singer, now a Nashville resident
is quoted as saying “I’ve always loved the feeling that
comes from finding the right scent and the way it can say so
much about a person.”
MAGUIRE & ENNIS - NEW SINGLE
Thomas Maguire and Fhiona Ennis have a brand
new CD single, “An Always And Forever Kind Of Love”,
released on Nell Records. You can catch their video version
on www.thomasmaguire.com
MARSHALL GRANT - May 5, 1928 -
August 7, 2011
Marshall Grant, an original member of Johnny
Cash’s Tennessee Two band and the "boom" in
Cash’s famed “boom- chicka-boom” sound, died on August
7th in in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
He was an integral part of most of Cash’s
most famous recordings, including “Ring of Fire,” “I
Walk The Line,” “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” “Man
in Black” and Cash’s live albums recorded at Folsom and
San Quentin prisons. He was a key component in Cash’s
sound from 1954 to 1980 and one of Cash’s most trusted
friends serving as road manager for a quarter-century,
keeping his boss safe during Cash’s wild years in the
1960s and ’70s.
Marshall Grant also managed until their 2004
retirement and played bass on the Statlers’ 1965 debut
smash, “Flowers On The Wall.”
Marshall Grant video
MICK FLAVIN SINGLE
Irish country singer, Mick Flavin, has a new
single out. It’s "She Don't Look That Lonely To
Me", written by Jon Philibert and featuring Brent Mason
on guitar.
Even more great videos
BLUE JEANS ON FACEBOOK
It seems everybody is on Facebook but me!
Carole Newman emails to let you know that
both "Forever In Blue Jeans" and "Voice Of
The Heart- Karen Carpenter" now have their own Facebook
pages where fans can see tour dates, pictures - both past
and present (formal and informal !!), reviews, TV
appearances etc plus they can send messages to the cast too.
BATH AMERICANA FESTIVAL 2012
Following the success of May's Bath Americana
Festival, those in charge of Bath’s Leisure & Tourism
Department have decided to repeat the exercise in 2012 but
for ten days (instead of five), incorporating the Bath Banjo
Festival, increased folk strands and if Artistic Director
Cllr. Bryan Chalker - currently the Mayor of Bath - gets his
way, an element of Cajun music to add more razzmatazz to the
general conviviality of the proceedings.
"We poked our heads above the parapet
for May's flagship event", said Chalker, "but
everything we tried, including open-air Appalachian
clog-dancing, schools hosting fiddling events and using a
church as a bluegrass venue, worked beautifully and left
people asking for more. 'More' is what they'll get in
2012 and we hope to kick off the major event on 4 July at
the city's fabulous American Museum. Actually it was
my head that went above the parapet but I had no doubt in my
mind that the acoustic elements of country music would work
if the publicity was tastefully designed and we avoided the
tired old 'yee-haar, thigh-slapping' clichés that often
give the genre such a bad image".
More videos:
TOM RUSSELL 2012 UK DATES
Regular visitor to the UK, Tom Russell, will
be returning in the New Year with dates as follows:
Thursday January 12: Bristol, The Thunderbolt
Friday 13 and Saturday 14: Farncombe Music
Club at St. John's Church
Sunday 15: London, Cecil Sharp House
Tuesday 17: Cardiff St David's Hall
Wednesday 18: Norwich Arts Centre
Thursday 19: Pocklington Arts Centre
Friday 20: Gateshead, Town Hall
Saturday 21: Bury, The Met
Sunday 22: Glasgow, The Tron Theatre - Celtic
Connections
Wednesday Jan 25: Belfast, The Errigle Inn
The Real Music Club
Thursday 26: Portstewart, The Flowerfield
Arts Centre
JOAN BAEZ BACK IN FEBRUARY
Joan Baez, accompanied by
multi-instrumentalist Dirk Powell, will feature a repertoire
spanning her five-decade career on her new UK tour which
starts in February. Dates as follows:
February 23: Tunbridge Wells Assembly Hall
24: Cambridge, Corn Exchange
26: York, Barbican
28: Gateshead, The Sage
29: Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
March 2: Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
4: Manchester, The Bridgewater Hall
5: Sheffield City Hall
7: Bristol, Colston Hall
9: Salisbury City Hall
10: Basingstoke, Anvil
12: Ipswich, Regent
13: Birmingham, Symphony Hall
16 & 17: London, Royal Festival Hall
19: Oxford, New Theatre
20: Nottingham, Royal Concert Hall
22: Cardiff, Wales Millennium Centre
23: Plymouth, Pavilions
25: Poole, Lighthouse
26: Brighton, Dome
THE JAYHAWKS
The Jayhawks have a brief UK tour in March
next year, dates as follows:
Thursday March 8: London, Barbican
Saturday: Edinburgh, Picturehouse
Sunday March 11: Liverpool, Academy
Monday: Bristol, 02 Academy
BLUEGRASS AWARDS
At the recent International Bluegrass Music
Awards ceremony at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, the
main winners were:
Entertainer of the year: Steve Martin &
The Steep Canyon Rangers
Vocal group of the year: The Gibson Brothers
Instrumental group of the year: The Boxcars
Male vocalist of the year: Russell Moore
Female vocalist of the year: Dale Ann Bradley
Emerging artist of the year: The Boxcars
Instrumental performers of the year:
Banjo: Kristin Scott Benson and Ron Stewart
(tie)
Bass: Marshall Wilborn
Fiddle: Michael Cleveland
Dobro: Rob Ickes
Guitar: Bryan Sutton
Mandolin: Adam Steffey
Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame inductees:
Del McCoury
George Shuffler
COUNTRY JOHNNY MATHIS (September 28,
1930 - September 27, 2011)
“Country” Johnny Mathis, not to be
confused with the popular singer of the same name, was a
singer and songwriter whose compositions were recorded by
the likes of George Jones, George Hamilton IV, Ray Price and
Charley Pride. He died on the eve of his 81st birthday
having suffered a stroke in 1999 which left him
incapacitated.
He recorded for various labels including
Chess, Columbia, Mercury, Decca, United Artists, Little
Darlin’ and Hilltop and appeared on both the Louisiana
Hayride and the Grand Ole Opry amongst many other programmes.
CAHALEN MORRISON & ELI WEST
TOURING THE UK
Cahalen Morrison and Eli West perform what
they describe as “old-time music styled for the 21st
century”, and they‘ll be touring in the UK shortly, with
dates as follows:
Fri 4th Nov The Green Note, Camden,
London
Sun 6th Nov Upper Sheringham Village
Hall, Norfolk
Mon 7th Nov Recording session for Bob
Harris in London
Tue 8th Nov The Prince Albert, Brighton
Thu 10th Nov Centre Stage, Bournemouth
Fri 11th Nov The Anvil, Basingstoke
Sun 13th Nov Llys Meddyg, Newport,
Pembrokeshire
Tue 15th Nov Theatre Mwldan, Cardigan
Wed 16th Nov No 5, The Beach, Clevedon
Thu 17th Nov The Cluny, Newcastle
Fri 18th Nov The Source, Carlisle
Sat 19th Nov Crofthead Hall, Neilston,
Renfrewshire
Sun 20th Nov The Blue Lamp, Aberdeen
Tue 22nd Nov The Old Library, Kilbarchan
Wed 23rd Nov Douglas Robertson’s Studio,
Edinburgh
Thu 24th Nov Acoustic Music Club, Kirkcaldy
Fri 25th Nov Bogbain Music Night, Inshes,
Inverness
Sat 26th Nov An Lanntair, Stornoway, Isle of
Lewis
Tue 29th Nov The Tin Hut, Gartly,
Aberdeenshire
Check ‘em out on Youtube:
DON WILLIAMS - HE’S COMING BACK!
After six years, Don Williams returns to the
UK for a short tour in the Spring of 2012 when he’ll
be performing many of the songs that have made him so
popular with British audiences - titles like "I Believe
In You", "You’re My Best Friend",
"Good Ole Boys Like Me", "Tulsa Time"
and many more.
Don will be recording an album of new
material on Sugarhill Records which will be released to tie
in with the tour, the dates of which are as follows:
April 24: LIVERPOOL, PHILHARMONIC HALL
April 25: BRISTOL, COLSTON HALL
April 27: GATESHEAD, THE SAGE
April 28: GLASGOW, CLYDE AUDITORIUM
April 29: MANCHESTER, BRIDGEWATER HALL
May 1: BIRMINGHAM, SYMPHONY
HALL
May 2: NOTTINGHAM, ROYAL CONCERT HALL
May 3: IPSWICH, REGENT
May 4: LONDON, HMV
HAMMERSMITH APOLLO
May 5: BOURNEMOUTH,
BIC
May 6: SOUTHEND, CLIFFS
PAVILION
When ASCAP holds its 49th annual Country
Music Awards on Sunday Nov. 6, Don Williams will walk away
with one of the performing rights organization’s most
prestigious prizes: the Golden Note Award.
The award goes to songwriters, composers, and
artists who have achieved extraordinary career milestones.
Williams has had 45 Top 10 hits and 17 No. 1 songs including
“Some Broken Hearts Never Mend,” “I Believe in You,”
and “Lord, I Hope This Day is Good.”
Past winners include Garth Brooks, Alan
Jackson and Reba McEntire among others.
BAKERSFIELD SOUND FOR HALL OF FAME
The Country Music Hall of Fame’s major new
exhibition, “The Bakersfield Sound: Buck Owens, Merle
Haggard, and California Country“, opens March 24, 2012,
for a near two-year run. Narrated by Dwight Yoakam, the
exhibit will explore the roots, its heyday and impact of the
Bakersfield Sound, closely identified with the careers of
both Buck Owens and Merle Haggard.
The story also includes Bill Woods, widely
regarded as “The Father of the Bakersfield Sound,” and
the city’s other musical architects: “Cousin” Herb
Henson, Billy Mize, Fuzzy Owen, Bonnie Owens, Red Simpson,
Lewis Talley and others.
JOHNNIE WRIGHT May 13, 1914 -
September 27, 2011
Johnnie Wright, who made significant
contributions as a solo artist, a member of the duo Johnnie
& Jack (with Jack Anglin) and as the lifelong partner to
Queen of Country Music Kitty Wells, died on September 27th
at his home in Madison, Tennessee. He was 97.
With Johnnie & Jack, he scored hits
“Ashes of Love,” “Poison Love” and “(Oh Baby Mine)
I Get So Lonely” and, as a solo artiste, he had a No. 1
hit with the Tom T. Hall-penned “Hello Vietnam.”
Some more great music videos:
Dale Watson
James McMurtry
Burrito Brothers
Skaggs & Monroe
WESTERN SWING, COUNTRY &
ROCKABILLY FROM BEAR FAMILY
Once again Bear Family Records bring
attention to country music that otherwise might never be
heard – this time with previously unreleased western swing
recordings and two CDs comprising music from the archives of
Mississippi’s Delta Records.
“You Oughta See My Fanny Dance”
(Previously Unissued Western Swing: 1935-42) (Bear Family
BCD16532 AR) features Bob Wills, Adolph Horner, Al Dexter,
Slim Harbert, Roy Newman and others.
When it seemed that there’s now very little
western swing left to reissue, Bear Family comes up with
this 31 tracker compilation, spanning the years 1935-42.
With a running time of 84 minutes, it comes
with in-depth notes by Kevin Coffey.
“Stickbuddy Jamboree” and “Diddy
Wah Diddy … Ain’t A Town, Ain’t A City” are both
aimed at collectors of recordings on little known,
independent record labels. “Stickbuddy Jamboree”
presents hillbilly, rockabilly, boogie and country tracks
and “Diddy Wah Diddy” concentrates on rockabilly and
rock ‘n’ roll.
The “Stickbuddy” release comprises 30
tracks from 14 different artists (plus four unidentified
items) on the Delta label, covering the period from 1953
through to the late 1960s, with almost half of these
recordings being previously unissued.
Each CD comes with a detailed booklet with
notes by Martin Hawkins each providing detailed biographies
on the artists and on Delta’s founder Jimmie Ammons along
with rare photographs and discographies.
GEORGE HAXELL
George Haxell, the founding father of British
country magazines, passed away on 28th July. He was in his
early eighties. He may be an unfamiliar name to many of
today's collectors, but it was back in the mid-1950s that
George had the idea of contacting other collectors (who were
then few and far between) with a view to swap tracks and
discuss the music they all had in common. The first magazine
that George published was entitled "The Hillbilly Folk
Record Collectors Club", co-editing it with fellow
collector George Tye, and with Burl Ives as President. It
was George Haxell who physically produced the magazine
spending all his spare time, often late into the night,
churning out pages on an old fashioned duplicating machine,
stapling the pages together and even individually hand-colouring
an illustration on the front cover. It really was a labour
of love.
After a few years the title was changed to
"Country & Western Express" and continued
spasmodically into the mid-sixties. Eventually it merged
with Dave Barnes' (of The British Archive Of Country Music)
magazine and Dave and George alternated responsibility for
its production.
George was instrumental in obtaining British
releases of American product through his good friend Don
Pierce at Starday Records. He could also count Ken Nelson of
Capitol Records as a friend, and these contacts were very
helpful in providing authoritative material for his
magazine. He stayed in close contact with both of them for
many years. George also put two albums together for Philips,
entitled Country & Western Express Vols 1 & 2, for
which he chose the tracks and wrote the sleeve notes.
George once told me that his introduction to
Country Music was while on leave from the navy. With a pal
he heard a Wilf Carter record playing on a gramophone coming
from the next door garden. He was so impressed that he asked
the folks on the other side of the hedge to play it again
and again: he was hooked.
George will be sadly missed by not only his
family but also his many friends from those early and
exciting days when as individuals many of us thought we were
the only ones who had an passion for this kind of music.
(My thanks to Brian Golbey for
this appraisal of the life and works of a man who, more than
anyone else, deserves a place in any British Country Music
Hall of Fame.)
CARL STORY BOX SET
“Carl Story & The Rambling
Mountaineers: A Life In Rural Music”, is the title of a
newly released box-set from Bear Family (BCD 16839 DK)
This four CD set not only includes all Carl
Story’s commercially released tracks – many of them had
disappeared along with 78s and 45s, and others not heard
since the LP era – but also 25 hitherto unissued
recordings alongside ultra-rare radio and home recordings
from 1942. Accompanying the 134 tracks is a 112 page
hardcover book, with detailed biography and recording
information authored by Colin Escott and complimented by
Neil Rosenberg and Eddie Stubbs’ comprehensive
discography. It’s profusely illustrated with photographs,
song book sheets, record labels and LP covers.
For more information on this and other Bear
Family releases, please contact Yvonne Saunders at
Rollercoaster Records, Rock House, London Road, St. Mary's,
Stroud, Glos GL6 8PU. von@rollercoasterrecords.com
CHARLIE LANDSBOROUGH
Charlie Landsborough is currently involved in
a lengthy UK tour. Here are the remaining dates:
Tuesday October 18: Torquay, Princess Theatre
Wednesday 19: Worthing, Pavilion Theatre
Thursday 20: Aldershot, Princes Hall
Friday 21: Shrewsbury, Theatre Severn
Saturday 22: Rhyl, Pavilion
Sunday 23: Liverpool, Philharmonic
Wednesday 26: Salisbury, City Hall
Thursday 27: Barnstaple, Queens Theatre
Saturday 29: Truro, Hall for Cornwall
Sunday 30: Weston-Super-Mare, Playhouse
Wednesday November 2: Aberdeen, Music Halls
Thursday 3: Motherwell, Concert Hall
Saturday 5: Glenrothes, Rothes Hall
Sunday 6: Billingham, Forum Theatre
Tuesday 8: Blackpool, Opera House
Wednesday 9: Stockport Plaza Theatre
Thursday 10: Dunstable, Grove Theatre
Friday 11: Chatham, Central Theatre
Saturday 12: Peterborough, The Cresset
WILMA LEE COOPER - February 7th 1921
- September 13th 2011
Wilma Lee Cooper, who teamed with husband
Stoney Cooper as a top country duo for some three decades
and earned the title “The First Lady of Bluegrass,” died
of natural causes at her home in Sweetwater, Tennessee, on
September 13th, at the age of 90.
She and her husband Stoney Cooper began
recording in the late 1940s, then performed regularly on the
Opry from 1957 until his death in 1977. She continued as a
solo singer on the show until 2001.
As a duo, they had hits with “Cheated
Too”, “There’s a Big Wheel”, “Big Midnight
Special”, “Wreck On The Highway” and “Come Walk With
Me”.
Wilma Lee Cooper is survived by her daughter,
Grand Ole Opry member and singer, Carol Lee Cooper.
NORTHERN NASHVILLE COUNTRY MUSIC
FESTIVAL 2012
Next year’s Northern Nashville Country
Music Festival in Caithness, Scotland, will be on 6th, 7th,
8th, April 2012.
Amongst the names already announced as
appearing are Moe Bandy, Joey & Rory, Johnny
Rodriguez, Moore & Moore, Jerry Kilgore, Ashville, the
Lisa McHugh Band, Mary B & Family Band,
C'est La Vie and others yet to be confirmed.
Early bird tickets at £75
WADE MAINER - April 21st 1907 -
September 12th 2011
America’s oldest country star, Wade Mainer,
died aged 104 on Monday, September 12, at his home in Flint
Township, Michigan. As a member of Mainer’s Mountaineers,
in 1935, he recorded “Maple on the Hill” which became
one of the biggest country hits of the Great Depression.
In 1941 Wade Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt
at the White House in 1941 and, in 1943, Alan Lomax recorded
him for BBC radio alongside Woody Guthrie, Burl Ives, The
Coon Creek Girls and others.
Wade Mainer made his debut on the Grand Ole
Opry in 1995 and, in 1997, he and his wife Julia were
featured guests at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in
Washington, D.C. President Reagan conferred a National
Heritage Fellowship on him on that occasion.
He was considered to be the last survivor of
country music’s “golden age,” the days of Jimmie
Rodgers, The Carter Family and Uncle Dave Macon. He is
survived by his wife, Julia, whom he married in 1937 and
often performed with him. They had four sons and one
daughter as well as two grandchildren, and three
great-grandchildren. One son died in 1985.
DON WAYNE - May 30th 1933 - September
12th 2011
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Don
Wayne has died at the age of 78.
In 1953, Wayne had his first major-label song
writing success when George Morgan recorded his “Lonesome
Waltz” for Columbia. He signed with Tree Publishing in
1963 and the following year, Lefty Frizzell took his
“Saginaw, Michigan” to the top of the country charts.
Wayne went through a somewhat fallow spell as a songwriter,
then bounced back with “Country Bumpkin” in 1974, as
recorded by Cal Smith.
Faron Young had a 1965 hit with Wayne’s
“Walk Tall” which had similar success in the UK when it
was recorded by Val Doonican.
T-BIRD AMERICANA UK RELEASES
UK record company, Cherry Red, have recently
released a number of fine country albums on their T-Bird
label. These include:
“Overnight Sensation: Country Hits
1974-1984” - Mickey Gilley
“What Mattered Most / Living In A Moment”
- Ty Herndon
“80s Ladies / This Woman” - K.T. Oslin
“Rose Garden : Country Hits 1970-1979” -
Lynn Anderson
“Columbia & Monument Country Hits” -
Sonny James
“Country Sunshine” - Dottie West
“The Hurtin’s all Over” - Connie Smith
“Tattoos & Scars/Carrying On” -
Montgomery Gentry
“Let The Picture Paint Itself/Jewel Of The
South” - Rodney Crowell
“Life Of A Poor Boy” - Stonewall
Jackson
The last one listed is mysteriously described
as “RCA Country Hits 1958-1972” when Stonewall never
recorded for that label. We assume it’s his Columbia hits!
“DON’T FORGET THIS SONG” - The
Carter Family - Comic Book Version
Click on this link
More video goodies:
Kelly Willis & Bruce Robison
ALBERT LEE ON TOUR
Ace guitarist, Albert Lee, will be touring
the UK in December. The following dates have been announced:
December 6th Great Torrington - Plough Arts
Centre
8th Newport I O W - Medina Theatre
9th Wimborne - Tivoli Theatre
10th Birkenhead - Pacific Road Arts Centre
11th Gateshead - Sage
14th Worcester - Huntingdon Hall
16th Dartford - Mick Jagger Centre
JIM LAUDERDALE RETURNS
Jim Lauderdale will be back in the UK next
month, playing the following dates:
November 13 - Glasgow - Oran Mor
14 Liverpool - Eric's Live
15 Anglesey - Victoria Hotel
16 Leicester - Musician
18 Tingewick - Village Hall
19 London - Borderline
21 Bristol - St Bonaventure's
ITALIAN BLUEGRASS
Stefano Santangelo emails to say that he is
mandolin player of the Mideando String Quintet from Italy,
www.mideando.it, and they’re looking to find some European
gigs in 2012.
The Mideando String Quintet has won “The #1
Prize as Best Bluegrass Band of the year 2006/07” at the
European World of Bluegrass festival. And they played at the
IBMA festival in Nashville, Tennessee in 2007.
Their music has been defined as Acoustic
World Music. The music they play is a fusion of Pop with
some influences of Bluegrass and Jazz, and the instruments
they use are acoustic guitar, mandolin, octave mandolin,
violin, mandocello and electric bass.
If any club or festival organisers are
interested, please email Stefano at mideando@gmail.com
Stefano Santangelo
Via P. Vergerio n.6
35126 Padova - Italy
Tel: +39 049 8021556
MARK TWAIN CD
“Mark Twain: Words & Music” is a new
double-CD with a 40-page booklet of liner notes, written and
produced especially for the Mark Twain Boyhood Home &
Museum in Hannibal, Missouri.
Produced by and featuring Carl Jackson, it
tells Twain's life in spoken word and song and the
star-studded cast includes Jimmy Buffett; Garrison Keillor;
Clint Eastwood; Emmylou Harris; Doyle Lawson &
Quicksilver; Rhonda Vincent; Bradley Walker; Carl Jackson;
The Church Sisters; Sheryl Crow; Brad Paisley; Marty
Raybon; Vince Gill; Ricky Skaggs.
TAZ DIGREGORIO
Joel ‘Taz’ DiGregorio, long-time keyboard
player and vocalist for The Charlie Daniels Band, died on
October 13th as a result of injuries he sustained in a
single car accident in Cheatham County, TN, while driving to
meet the band’s tour bus. The accident occurred on I-40
West of Nashville. The band was scheduled to depart
for Cumming, Georgia, for a concert appearance at the
Cumming Country Fair and Festival on Oct. 13th.
Taz had been with the Charlie Daniels Band
for over 40 years and was a co-writer on many CDB songs,
including "The Devil Went Down To Georgia."
“I am in shock now, Taz was one of my best
friends,” says Charlie Daniels. “The CDB family has lost
a great friend and musician. We travelled many miles
together and shared so many nights on the road. We’re
going to miss you buddy. You were one of a kind and will
never be forgotten.”
MAVERICK MAGAZINE RETURNS TO THE
NEWSSTANDS
In recent times, Maverick magazine has only
been available as an internet digital download, but it now
has a new owner and is set to re-launch back into print.
Maverick will be a full colour ninety-six
page print publication, hitting the newsstands throughout
the UK in November. Alan Cackett will continue as editor of
Maverick and the now bi-monthly magazine will keep its focus
on CD reviews, tour dates and current news, alongside
detailed features and editorial.
COUNTRY SOUNDS OF THE '50s
Bear Family Records have just released two
more albums of country music from the 50s.
“Dans La Louisianne” is by Vin Bruce who
might not be a familiar name but he played a major role in
Cajun recording history and earned the name “King of Cajun
Music”. He was the first Cajun to be marketed to a mass
public having been signed to a major label, Columbia
Records, and the first to record with Nashville session
musicians.
This 20 track collection brings together all
of Vin Bruce’s Columbia recordings, including a couple of
unreleased items, whilst Michael Hunt provides a detailed
biography in the accompanying booklet’s 34 pages, along
with rare photographs and a discography.
“Baby Squeeze Me” is by Warner Mack.
Although best known for a couple of dozen country hits in
the 1960s and ‘70s - headlined by such as “The Bridge
Washed Out” and “Sittin’ On A Rock (Crying In A
Creek)” – he began recording in the ‘50s with his aim
set firmly towards rockabilly. Now that early stage of his
career is brought together in this 38 track collection
comprising recordings made for Delta, Decca, Scarlet and Top
Rank alongside a couple of other rarities.
Also featured on this CD are advertising
spots for the Mary Carter paint company and a live radio
recording of Honky Tonk Song in which Warner Mack shares
vocal credits with Dale Potter. It all comes with a 42 page
booklet by Martin Hawkins, complete rare photographs and a
discography.
PEE WEE ROGERS
Yet another of country music’s unsung
heroes, steel guitarist, George “Pee Wee” Rogers, has
died at the age of 76. He was diagnosed with cancer several
months ago, and passed away on October 11th.
Pee Wee played steel guitar for Little Jimmy
Dickens for 29 years and also worked with Porter Wagoner,
David Houston and Jack Greene.
COUNTRY MEETS ROCK ‘N’ ROLL IN
DEVON
Allways Music presents... 'Country Meets Rock
and Roll at the Royal Hotel overlooking the village of
Woolacombe in North Devon over the weekend of Friday April
20th to Monday April 23rd 2012
Music will be provided by The KingCats, Henry
Smith Band and the Smokey Mountain Boys. The event will be
hosted by DJ Strollin' Steve.
CD OVERLOAD!
All of a sudden I appear to be up to my eyes
in new, and rather good, CD releases, so my most of my
comments this time are shorter than usual - and apologies
for not yet getting around to listening to every one that
dropped through my letterbox!
VARIOUS ARTISTES “Transatlantic
Sessions - Second Series” DVD (Whirlie 05)
Thirteen years after it was originally shown
on BBC TV, the second series of
this brilliant show, for complicated
copyright reasons, only now gets a DVD release. The wait was
worth it, though, if only to see and hear again Maura
O’Connell’s spellbinding version of “Blue Train”.
There are equally wonderful contributions
from Nanci Griffith, Ricky Skaggs, Roseanne Cash, Paul
Brady, Sharon Shannon, Aly Bain, Sharon White, Radney
Foster, Michael Doucet, Russ Barenberg and a host of others,
including a youthful-looking Jerry Douglas. A fifth series
is scheduled for next year. Hopefully the DVD version of
that won’t take so long to appear!
VARIOUS ARTISTES - “Country Music
On The Apollo Label” (BACM CD D 352)
A fascinating collection of recordings from
the mid to late 1940s, made for a label perhaps better-known
for its Rhythm & Blues than for Country.
Some of the names will be familiar to
old-time collectors, people like Eddie Hill, Ray Whitley,
Smiley Wilson and Tommy Sosebee but I’d like to bet that
most won’t mean a thing. That’s regrettable for there
are some really good performances here, from a time when
country music was beginning to make its mark with audiences
in the USA.
GEORGE STRAIT “Here For A Good
Time” (HumpHead HUMP 116)
Faded memory tells me that George Strait’s
early albums were always crammed full of great highly
memorable songs, but that wasn’t really the case at all.
True, most contained one or two tracks which went on to
become Strait classics but almost every one of his
chart-topping LPs or CDs had its fair share of makeweight
tracks - and that also goes for this latest release from
George.
Don’t get me wrong - as ever he’s come up
with highly listenable album, full of great vocals and
spot-on musicianship, but most of the song are OK, rather
than great. That still didn’t stop it entering the
Billboard Country Charts at No. 1, but by week five it was
down to No. 7.
TOM RUSSELL “Mesabi” (Proper
PRPCD088)
If I had to pick only one of this time’s
CDs to take to that proverbial desert island, this would be
it. In my book Tom Russell has never made a bad album, but
this latest effort is more than superb. He’s in very much
a sad, melancholic mood most of the time, recalling memories
of his childhood, of Richie Valens, Bobby Driscoll, James
Dean, Elizabeth Taylor, Sterling Hayden, Ukulele Ike and
others, but the overall result is anything but depressing.
This is what real “Americana” is all
about. Brilliant!
JEANNE BLACK “He’ll Have To
Stay” (BACM CD D 354)
I reckon a few feathers will have been
ruffled when regular purchasers of albums on the BACM label
spied this listed as a new release, but it does qualify as
being pretty ancient. The title track, her one and only hit,
was released in 1960 as an answer to Jim Reeves’
“He’ll Have To Go”, but, despite a string of other
recordings, some with her sister Janie, she soon faded from
public gaze.
The material here sounds pretty dated, but I
remember buying “He’ll Have To Stay” on a shiny
Capitol 45 at the time of its release.
CONNIE SMITH “Long Line Of
Heartaches” (Sugar Hill SUG-CD-4072)
Sadly neglected by record companies for far
too long, the country music treasure that is Connie Smith,
triumphantly returns with an album simply overflowing with
quality. Produced by Marty Stuart and featuring some of the
best musicians Nashville has on offer, this album reassures
us that Music Row can still deliver the goods when it wants
to.
VARIOUS ARTISTES “Dark River”
(Blue Corn BCM 1103)
Described on the cover as “Songs of the
Civil War Era interpreted by Austin’s finest musicians -
that perfectly sums up the contents of this vastly enjoyable
CD, recorded in the Texas capital.
The songs and tunes include “The Streets Of
Laredo”, “Red River Valley”, “I Ride An Old
Paint”, “Jack Of Diamonds”, “Lorena”, “Hard
Times”, The Yellow Rose Of Texas”, “Home Sweet Home”
and “She Moved Through The Fair” amongst others, and,
although some of the performers - Slaid Cleaves, Jimmy
LaFave, Eliza Gilkyson and James McMurtry - will be familiar
to many, others are less well-known, but no less talented.
Recommended!
LEON PAYNE “The Lang Worth
Transcriptions Vol. 2” (BACM CD D 355)
Leon Payne will be best remembered as the
writer of “Lost Highway” and “I Love You Because”,
but, on this second volume of tracks taken from radio
transcriptions, he mainly tackles songs written and made
popular by other performers. These include “Carl
Butler’s “If Teardrops Were Pennies”, Lefty
Frizzell’s “Always Late”, Hank Williams’ “I
Can’t Help It If I’m Still In Love With You” and many
more familiar titles.
ROBERT EARL KEEN “Ready For
Confetti” (HumpHead HUMP 114)
Can’t believe that it’s 27 years since
his impressive first album, “No Kinda Dancer” was
released by Sugar Hill. He’s with Lost Highway Records in
the USA now and he’s still turning out great story songs,
with clever lyrics and memorable melodies. These days he
tends to use more musicians than before, but the overall
feeling is that of a solo performer, thanks to the tasteful
production by the ever-reliable Lloyd Maines. Perfect!
VARIOUS ARTISTES “4 Star Roundup
Vol. 2” (BACM CD D 357)
4 Star Records was the record label which
recorded many eventually famous country music acts in the
1950s. The label was originally home to singers such as Hank
Locklin, the Maddox Brothers and Rose, Patsy Cline, Rose
Maddox, Webb Pierce and T. Texas Tyler.
This second compilation from BACM features,
in the main, some of the lesser-known names who recorded for
the label, with songs you’ve probably never heard before,
but don’t let that put you off. There’s some great stuff
here and I thoroughly enjoyed every track.
VARIOUS ARTISTES “The Lost
Notebooks Of Hank Williams” (Columbia)
Not initially sure that it was such a good
idea to get a bunch of today’s singer/songwriters to add
tunes to, and perform, long-lost words by Hank Williams, but
now that I’ve heard the CD, I’ve been completely won
over.
Alan Jackson, Bob Dylan, Merle Haggard, Patty
Loveless, Norah Jones, Vince Gill, Rodney Crowell, Lucinda
Williams and Levon Helm are among those who’ve contributed
and, for the most part, they’ve created something of which
I’m sure ol’ Hank would have approved.
LUKE BRYAN “Tailgates &
Tanlines” (HumpHead HHEAD 016)
This is another album which, on its US
release, went straight to No. 1 in the Billboard Country
Charts and it’s easy to see why. With his handsome looks
and gleaming white teeth, he’s obviously being aimed at a
female market - and it’s working!
I have to admit that, although the overall
sound is fine, I found most of the songs completely
tuneless. Sorry!
SWEET VIOLET BOYS “Jim’s Windy
Mule” (BACM CD D 353)
Oh dear, what would Mrs. Whitehouse have
said? A selection of risqué songs recorded by the Prairie
Ramblers in the 30s and early 40s, masquerading as the Sweet
Violet Boys, apparently, initially, to protect their good
name, although it seems word soon got out that the two
groups were one and the same.
Of course, in these enlightened days it all
sounds rather fun, but somewhat dated.
AND FINALLY…
Here are some links which you might find
interesting and useful: www.ebma.org (The European Bluegrass
Music Association)
All the above kindly supplied by Richard
Thompson, Features Editor of British Bluegrass News
BLUEGRASS AND MORE is a regular Internet
newsletter packed full of news on the worldwide Bluegrass
scene. To receive it, just email them at secretary@scottishbluegrass.com
with the words "ADD Bluegrass & More" in the
subject space.
Rick Townend operates a regular information
site with news of Bluegrass events mainly in the south of
England. Email him if you’d like to be added to his
mailing list: rick@ricktownend.co.uk
or check out his website which is www.ricktownend.co.uk
Check out www.cmib.co.uk
the site for all things country in the UK, with loads of
links to the rest of the world
The British Archive of Country Music is
devoted to promoting and preserving the country music
heritage for future generations. Write for full details and
a list of all BACM CD releases plus special discount offers
to: BACM, Greenacres, 451 Folkestone Road, Dover CT17 9JX,
United Kingdom. Email: dave@bacountrymusic.fsnet.co.uk or
check out the website http://bacm.users.btopenworld.com
Please note that
information in this newsletter comes from numerous,
hopefully reliable, sources, but 100% accuracy cannot be
guaranteed.
SOUTHERN
