A memorial service for Nashville songwriting great Harley Allen will be held on Wednesday (4/6) at Christ Church, 15354 Old Hickory Blvd. (37211) — He died on March 30, of lung cancer at home in Nashville. The gifted and prolific Allen won BMI Awards for such songs as “Between the Devil and Me” (Alan Jackson, […]
Grand Ole Opry star Mel McDaniel passed away Thursday evening at age 68. He had been battling cancer for several years. The Oklahoma native has been an Opry cast member since Jan. 11, 1986. McDaniel is noted for such hits as “Gentle to Your Senses” (1977), “God Made Love” (1978), “Right in the Palm of […]
I live for listening sessions like this one. The best part of this job is the thrill of discovery. There is simply nothing like hearing a great new artist for the first time. Or watching young ones develop.
This week, we’re going from one extreme to the other. At one end of the sonic spectrum, we have the stone-country sound of Bradley Gaskin. He stopped the show with “Mr. Bartender” during the CRS Convention, and now his hardcore honky-tonk single of the same will leave you gasping for breath.
Steel guitar great Ralph Mooney, the co-writer of the country standard “Crazy Arms,” died Sunday, March 20, at his home in Arlington, Texas. Mooney was noted for his distinctive playing behind such superstars as Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings. He can be heard on such early 1960s Owens hits as “Under Your Spell […]
Aashid Himons, 68, one of Nashville’s leading world-music exponents, died Saturday morning at Vanderbilt Hospital following a long illness. Himons is perhaps best known as the leader of Afrikan Dreamland, a group that fused reggae, new age, blues, jazz and African musical styles. As that band’s leader as well as a solo artist, Himons recorded […]
The funeral for Ferlin Husky will be held this afternoon (3/21) in Hendersonville – the Country Music Hall of Fame member died on Thursday March 17 at age 85 following 30 years of heart problems. His funeral will be officiated by the Rev. Dallas Frazier. Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Frazier was a protégée […]
Bluegrass Hall of Fame member Carlton Haney, once dubbed “The P.T. Barnum of Country Music” died Wednesday afternoon at age 82. Haney inaugurated the first multi-day bluegrass festival – there are now more than 500 such events annually. He was the publisher of the national periodical Muleskinner News. He ran the New Dominion Barn Dance […]
This week, let’s do like the televised awards shows do. Our Female Vocalist of the Week is Amber Hayes. Her sophomore single is every bit as lively, fun and delightful as her debut. I remain a fan. The Male Vocalist of the Week is no stranger to DisClaimer honors. It’s Eric Church, who has won more prizes from this column than any other artist.
Can you be fabulously famous and a new face at the same time? If your name is Jennette McCurdy, you can. Known by millions of teens for her role as sassy “Sam” on the Nickelodeon TV comedy series iCarly, 18-year-old Jeanette can’t go out to a restaurant without being mobbed. But in country music, she is a newcomer.