Buddy Miller Is Hall of Fame’s Artist in Residence

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Acclaimed singer/songwriter/guitarist Buddy Miller will bring his guitar, his songs and some of his favorite collaborators when he takes the Ford Theater stage as the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum’s 2010 Artist-in-Residence. Miller will serve as host and curator for the intimate evening performances, which are slated for August 10, 17 and 24 at 7:00 PM.

Miller’s residency marks the official re-opening of the Museum’s Ford Theater, which was damaged in the catastrophic flood that hit Nashville in May. And, for the first time, attendees will have a choice of ticket options for each performance, including exclusive packages that provide dinner, reserved parking and a commemorative Hatch Show Print poster. In addition, the Museum’s galleries will be open to all ticket holders prior to each performance beginning at 5:15 PM. Miller is featured in the Museum’s newly expanded core exhibit, “Sing Me Back Home: A Journey Through Country Music.”

Established in 2003, the Museum’s residency program annually honors a musical master who can be credited with contributing a large and significant body of work to the canon of American popular music. Honorees are given a blank canvas – the Museum’s acoustically pristine, 213-seat Ford Theater – to deliver an up-close-and-personal musical experience. Previous honorees include Cowboy Jack Clement, Earl Scruggs, Tom T. Hall, Guy Clark, Kris Kristofferson, Jerry Douglas and Vince Gill.

“Buddy Miller is a one of those rare, gifted musicians who has not only built an impressive resume of relevant, multilayered compositions and recordings that document the pain, joy and triumph of the human experience, but who also possesses a genuine passion for facilitating the visions of others through producing, songwriting and musical accompaniment,” said Museum Director Kyle Young. “His unflinching dedication to his craft, along with his collaborative spirit, makes him a perfect fit for the Museum’s artist-in-residence series.”

Buddy Miller residency event tickets can be purchased exclusively by Museum members for $40 beginning Friday, July 16, at 9:00 AM by visiting the Museum’s website (a one-year Museum membership is $35, and ticket buyers must purchase membership prior to the on-sale date). Tickets will go on sale for $45 to the general public at 9:00 AM Tuesday, July 20, and should be purchased via the museum’s website. There is a four-ticket limit, per show, to each order. For more information, call (615) 416-2001 or visit the museum’s website.

Gokey’s Latest Single “Most Added”

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19 Recordings/RCA Nashville artist Danny Gokey has this week’s most added single at country radio, with the poignant “I Will Not Say Goodbye” topping the most-added lists.

It’s an exciting week all around for Gokey, who’ll celebrate the 4th of July with a return to his Milwaukee hometown and a headlining performance on the final night of Summerfest. Billed as “The World’s Largest Music Festival,” the 11-day, multi-stage festival will feature Gokey headlining the Briggs & Stratton Big Backyard Stage with an opening act close to his heart.

Milwaukee central-city school students participating in the after-school Sophia’s Heart Music & Arts Program – part of Gokey’s Sophia’s Heart Foundation – will showcase their talents, with the Sophia’s Heart Children’s Community Choir featuring 7th and 8th grade students, led by Music Director Jeff Krumbein, and the Sophia’s Heart Children’s Dance Team, led by Dance Instructor Val Young.

The Sophia’s Heart Music & Arts Program works to encourage students to live their dreams and provides a safe place for children to strive toward attaining their dreams through setting goals, discipline, and practice. For more on the good work of Sophia’s Heart, visit them online at www.sophiasheart.org.

Gokey’s “I Will Not Say Goodbye,” a song the New York Times calls “devastating,” is the newest single from his debut album, My Best Days, which also features his recent hit, “My Best Days Are Ahead of Me.”

Buffett Reschedules Gulf Coast Concert

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UPDATED CMT AIRTIME SCHEDULE: Due to the uncertainty of the weather surrounding tropical storm Alex, Jimmy Buffett has postponed his Jimmy Buffett & Friends concert. Originally scheduled for Thursday, July 1 in Gulf Shores, Alabama, the concert, with scheduled guests Kenny Chesney, Zac Brown Band, Allen Toussaint, Sonny Landreth and Jesse Winchester, has been rescheduled for July 11.

Although the storm is not expected to directly impact the area, potential threats to the stability of the stage due to heavy surf conditions on the beach forced the cancellation.

“This is a disappointment,”  said Gulf Shores Mayor Robert Craft, “But Jimmy Buffett is still coming to the Gulf Coast on July 11, and tickets will be honored at that time,”

“Nobody hates this more than I do, but I guess, as the song says, it’s hard to reason with hurricane season,” Buffett said. “For those going anyway, thank you. … For the rest of you, we will see you July 11.”

CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends: Live From the Gulf Coast, originally scheduled for July 1, has also been rescheduled to air live and commercial-free on July 11 at 6:00 PM/CT on CMT. Performances will be simulcast live on Radio Margaritaville, available on Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio, and streamed live on www.CMT.com.

CMT Presents Jimmy Buffett & Friends: Live From the Gulf Coast will encore Wednesday, July 14 at 10:30 PM; Saturday, July 17 at 9:30 AM; and Sunday, July 18 at 2:00 PM. Excerpts and artist interviews will be available at www.CMT.com.

Universal Ups Forman to Sr. Creative Dir.

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Cyndi Forman

Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) today announced the promotion of Cyndi Forman to Senior Creative Director, Nashville. Forman was previously Creative Director.

Reporting directly to Pat Higdon, President, UMPG Nashville, Forman will focus on furthering artist and writer development and finding key opportunities for UMPG writers both past and present. Forman has secured many cuts and was responsible for the recent signing of 18 year old artist Hunter Hayes. The writers she works with include recent Nashville Songwriter Hall of Fame inductee Matraca Berg, Jimmy Melton, and Andrew Dorff.

“We are very pleased to have the opportunity to offer Cyndi this well deserved promotion,” commented Higdon. She is one of Nashville’s most respected songpluggers and has definitely earned the respect of her peers.”

After obtaining her Music Business degree from Belmont University, Forman became Creative Director at Balmur Entertainment. In 2002, she joined Almo Irving Music which became part of UMPG in 2003 where she assumed the role of Creative Director.

UMPG Nashville continually delivers hits for country music’s most elite artists including Reba McEntire, Brad Paisley, Gretchen Wilson, Trace Adkins, Lee Ann Womack, Keith Urban, Taylor Swift, Tim McGraw, Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts, and many more.

DISClaimer Single Reviews (6/30/10)

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I don’t really have a Song of the Day category, but maybe I should.

Dave Gibson’s “King Me,” Donna Beasley’s “Under the Rushes” and Flynnville Train’s “Preachin’ to the Choir” are all excellent examples of song craftsmanship. So is “You Take Yourself with You,” which wins Bo Bice his first Disc of the Day award.

There’s a youngster down in Texas named Nick Verzosa who has an EP called The Smoking Gun. It contains a fine little single titled “Back When Love Was Easy” which earns him our DisCovery Award. Call the always delightful Gerrie McDowell for more info.

BRAD HINES/Please Don’t Push Me Down
Writer: Brad Hines; Producer: Walt Wilkins & Greg White; Publisher: Brad Hines, ASCAP; Blue Boot (www.bradhinesmusic.com)
—The track is okay, but his singing is somewhat colorless, and the song is as dull as dirt.

JIMMIE VANZANT/Too Much Town, Not Enough Ground
Writer: Charlie Craig/Mel Besher ; Producer: Charlie Craig; Publisher: Sock and Roll/Songmachine/Callie Cat, BMI; EPS (CDX) (www.jimmievanzant.net)
—Solidly country, with plenty of twang, drawl and more than a little “outlaw.” Very cool sounding. Jimmie is the cousin of Ronnie, Johnny and Donnie, famed for their work in Lynyrd Skynyrd and .38 Special. (As “Van Zant” Johnny and Donnie have also sung country music.)

STEVEN L. SMITH/I Stole The Bible
Writer: Steven L. Smith; Producer: Steven L. Smith; Publisher: none listed, ASCAP; Vinyl (track) (www.slsmith.info)
—Bellowing and blustery, with a southern-rock vibe.

DAVE GIBSON/King Me
Writer: Dave Gibson/Craig Monday; Producer: Dave Gibson; Publisher: Savannah’s House/Songs of Bud Dog/Music of Windswept Pacific, BMI/ASCAP; Savannah (www.savannahmusicgroup.com)
—I love a good story song, and this one is a dandy. He sits down to play checkers with an old man, and they share yarns, lies and truths. Sung with heart, produced with taste and written with class.

PHILIP DAIN POWELL/Save Me A Place At The Table
Writer: Philip Dain Powell/Keith Lambert/Corky Holbrook/Barton Stevens/Josh Kitchen/Traci Ann Stanley; Producer: none listed; Publisher: Billy Ray Crittendon/Circle of Life/Gregory K. Swint/Sixteen Stars/Chuck Jones/Music of Three, BMI; PDP (www.pdpmusic.biz)
—There’s just a little too much vibrato in this vocal. But it does add emotional impact to the lyric about dying.

BO BICE/You Take Yourself With You
Writer: Bo Bice/D. Scott Miller; Producer: Bo Bice & D. Scott Miller; Publisher: Sugarmoney, BMI; Saguaro Road (track) (www.bobice.com)
—He competed as a rocker on American Idol, but this Nashvillian’s new single will fit any country playlist like a glove. The soaring, highly melodic choruses and advice-from-daddy lyric are both just terrific. Bo rules on this majestic outing.

NICK VERZOSA/Back When Love Was Easy
Writer: N. Verzosa; Producer: Walt Wilkins; Publisher: Tiyaga, BMI; Indie Extreme/Fontana (track) (www.nickverzosa.com)
—Highly listenable and loaded with hooks. The tempo chugs right along, guitars punctuate his phrasing and the production is crystal clear.

FLYNNVILLE TRAIN/Preachin’ To The Choir
Writer: Justin Wilson/Adam Wheeler; Producer: David Barrick & Flynnville Train; Publisher: Music of Stage Three/Noble Vision, BMI/ASCAP; Next Evolution (track) (www.flynnvilletrain.com)
—It is a rousing, working-man’s anthem about how messed up everything is. Well penned and performed. The soul-sister gospel harmonies are a plus.

PATTY LOVELESS/Drive
Writer: Patty Loveless/Emory Gordy Jr.; Producer: Emory Gordy Jr.; Publisher: Clay Root/Jahazah, BMI; Jahazah (CDX) (615-478-0391)
—The song is accompanied by a public service announcement about the lung condition COPD (which Patty’s sister Dottie died of), so the lyric about “breathe deep and drive” is extra special. Emory’s snappy, punchy, rocking production is perfect, and Patty’s fiery vocal is, as usual, a country lover’s delight.

DONNA BEASLEY/Under The Rushes
Writer: Donna Beasley; Producer: Tom Spaulding & Donna Beasley; Publisher: Bless Her Heart, ASCAP; Strange Magic (track) (www.donnabeasley.com)
—Ms. Beasley’s CD has a cast that’s a who’s-who of the Music City alt-country scene, including Chuck Mead, Elizabeth Cook, Kenny Vaughan, Tim Carroll and Bob Britt. On its title tune, her languid vocal spins a tale of small-town romance, pregnancy and betrayal. Highly recommended.

Artist Roster To Add Categories

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The first round of listing updates for the 2010 Artist Roster went out via e-mail, earlier this week, to labels, managers, publicists and talent agents who were included in last year’s edition. The new edition is scheduled to hit streets on August 25.

This year’s offering will also include free listings for promotion companies, web developers, online marketing firms and image consultants. Companies that want to be included can take advantage of the free listings by going to (https://musicrow.com/artist-roster).

Ad sales for the issue are also underway. To reserve space, e-mail [email protected] or call 615-349-2171.

The Artist Roster contains company appendices complete with client rosters. Included artists are drawn from the ranks of Nashville’s major, mid-size and indie country record labels. Inclusion in the company appendices requires that a business be Nashville-based and/or have significant Nashville clients.

Craig Morgan’s “All Access” Reality Show

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BNA Records artist Craig Morgan will debut his own reality-based show this weekend when Craig Morgan: All Access Outdoors comes to the Outdoor Channel on July 3 at 10 AM/CT. 

Morgan will take viewers along with him on tour, at home and on his outdoors adventures.

Whether he’s bungee jumping in New Zealand or playing jokes on his band and crew, viewers will get an all access pass to enjoy the thrills, suspense and laughs. Ride along with the singer as he  motocross races, feels the rush of screaming fans at sold-out shows or heads off into the great outdoors.

On Craig Morgan: All Access Outdoors, Morgan’s life is captured in a cutting-edge visual presentation. This new reality show gives viewers an all-access, backstage pass to the singer’s travels, as he and his crew pursue big thrills and big laughs worldwide in a quest for the ultimate adventures.

Morgan’s fellow country artists, as well as professional athletes and motocross celebrities, join him each week.

View the trailer at www.craigmorgan.com and click here to find Outdoor Channel in your area.

DeMarcus Family Expecting

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Rascal Flatts bassist Jay DeMarcus and his wife, former Miss Tennessee and CMT personality, Allison, are anticipating the birth of their first child in January of 2011.

“Allison and I are thrilled about becoming parents, DeMarcus said. “I am confident Ali will be a wonderful mother because she has done an incredible job raising me over the past six years.

“Jay and I are thrilled to let everyone know we are going to be parents,” adds Allison. “We can’t wait and are ecstatic to share our news.”

The couple was married on May 15, 2004 in Nashville.

Kobalt Music Upgrades Digital Services

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Nashville songwriters and content owners will soon be able to take advantage of Kobalt Music Group’s latest advancement in transparent copyright administration.

This week Kobalt is officially rolling out its next version of its online tools – Next Generation Portal Digital 3.0 – which offer clients unprecedented access to detailed information on collections in digital music sales and performance royalties and other digital revenue streams. Additionally, the system offers expanded access to data on products tracked and audio visual performance royalties collected from licensed content in global film and TV productions.

In making the announcement Willard Ahdritz, CEO and Founder of Kobalt, said: “Kobalt has developed the most unique digital collection platform available which will give clients complete transparency and access to a breakdown of revenue detail from nearly all digital sales outlets available in each territory, as well as extended synch licensing and performance revenue detail listed by licensee and by territory.”

Kobalt’s collected data will include full transparency in tracking per licensee for digital performance rights and downloads, ringtones, and streaming. In addition to digital collections data, clients will also be able to view specifics not only on the status and amount of every synch license, but also the status of receipt of film and TV performance revenues listed by licensee and by territory.

Kobalt’s online system, which was first launched in 2002, is being used by more than 900 clients in a wide spectrum of content owners including music publishers, rights licensors, songwriter/producers and management companies.

Americana Festival Announces Performers

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Texas singer/songwriter Hayes Carll, punk legend Exene Cervenka, country music icon Charlie Louvin and former Mavericks frontman Raul Malo are among the first artists selected to perform at the Americana Music Association’s upcoming 2010 Americana Music Festival, slated for Wednesday, September 8 through Saturday, September 11. The event will feature nearly 100 different musical performances over four days at five of Nashville’s live music venues.

The nighttime festival is open to the general public. Advance wristbands are $50 and can be purchased at americanamusic.org, or by calling the AMA office at 615-386-6936. Wristbands are good for admission to all venues during the four-day event. Music industry professionals and those interested in the business of music can purchase Full Day Festival and Conference Registrations at the reduced rate of $300 for Americana Music Association members and $400 for non-members through Wednesday, June 30. Rates will go up on July 1.

Showcase artists confirmed so far include:

18 South
Black Lillies
Cadillac Sky
Hayes Carll
Peter Case
Exene Cervenka
Chapmans
Cherryholmes
Elizabeth Cook
Susan Cowsill
Kevin Gordon
Will Kimbrough
Randy Kohrs Band
Jon Langford & Skull Orchard
Charlie Louvin
Raul Malo
Chuck Mead
Micky and the Motorcars
Over the Rhine
Dex Romweber Duo
Stone River Boys
Abigail Washburn

The 2010 Americana Music Festival is part of the 11th annual Americana Music Festival & Conference, slated for September 8-11. The conference offers seminars, panels and networking opportunities at the Downtown Nashville Sheraton Hotel by day, and showcases each evening. Friends of Americana can learn more about the discounted hotel room rates here.

Full Festival and Conference registrants receive entrance to all sanctioned daytime conference music, panels and parties, plus priority access to all evening showcase performances.  The registration also includes a ticket to the critically acclaimed Americana Honors & Awards show, presented by the Gibson Foundation, on Thursday, September 9 at the Ryman Auditorium.