Rory Bourke
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Rory Bourke has died at age 84.
Bourke is noted for co-writing such country standards as Charlie Rich’s “The Most Beautiful Girl,” George Strait’s “You Look So Good in Love” and Anne Murray’s “A Little Good News.” Between 1972 and 2015, there were 61 charted versions of his songs, 42 of which became top-20 successes. Also among those songs were 29 top-10 hits and 10 No. 1 smashes.
Rory Michael Bourke was born in Cleveland, Ohio. As a youngster, he was fascinated by movie musicals, which led him to imagine a career in the music industry. Following college, he headed for Nashville in 1964.
He entered the country-music business as a promotion executive at Mercury Records on Music Row. But he yearned to become part of Nashville’s songwriting community. He met Eddie Rabbitt (1941-1998), who was also an aspiring songwriter at the time. They co-wrote “Patch It Up,” which Elvis Presley recorded in 1970 and “Captured,” which later became a 1974 Terry Stafford single.
Bourke quit his dependable job and decided to plunge into songwriting full-time. He was determined to succeed, no matter what. “There was no Plan B,” he recalled. Publishers Don Gant and Henry Hurt encouraged him, and the latter signed him to Chappell Music as a staff songwriter in 1971. The following year, Mel Tillis sang Bourke’s co-written “Neon Rose,” and it became the fledgling songwriter’s first top-10 success.
Bourke teamed up with songwriter Norro Wilson and producer Billy Sherrill to craft “The Most Beautiful Girl,’ which became a No. 1 smash for Charlie Rich in 1973. The ballad sold a million; topped the pop, country and easy-listening charts; and became an international hit on German, Irish, French, Canadian, Dutch, Belgian, Australian, and Norwegian charts.
Although chiefly known as a songwriting collaborator, Bourke wrote solo songs that became chart entries for Bobby Borchers, Johnny Carver, Ronnie Prophet, Kim Charles and Lynn Anderson during his early songwriting years.
Teaming with others, he was responsible for top-10 hits by Billy “Crash” Craddock, Mickey Gilley, and Cristy Lane during the 1970s.
Rory Bourke’s most successful and prolific songwriting collaborator was fellow Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Charlie Black (1949-2021). In 1979, the new team had a No. 1 hit when Anne Murray recorded their “Shadows In the Moonlight.”
The Black/Bourke partnership continued to find success in the 1980s. Sometimes as a songwriting duo and sometimes with added collaborators, they provided Murray with “Lucky Me” (1980), “Blessed Are the Believers” (1981), “Another Sleepless Night” (1982), and “A Little Good News” (1983). The last named won the CMA Single of the Year and earned Murray a country-vocal Grammy Award. Bourke and Black were also credited on “I Know a Heartache When I See One” (Jennifer Warnes, 1979) and “Do You Love As Good As You Look” (The Bellamy Brothers, 1981).
Rory Bourke was noted for mentoring up-and-coming tunesmiths. When singer-songwriter K.T. Oslin (1942-2020) arrived on the Nashville scene, Bourke collaborated with her on “Round the Clock Lovin’” (Gail Davies, 1982) and “Lonely But Only for You” (Sissy Spacek, 1983), as well as on Oslin’s own singles “Two Hearts” (1990) and the chart-topping “Come Next Monday” (1990).
Mike Reid was another of Bourke’s frequent collaborators. They co-wrote Ronnie Milsap’s No. 1 hit “Where Do the Nights Go” (1987), Tanya Tucker’s “It’s Only Over for You” (1987), Don Williams’s “I Wouldn’t Be a Man” (1987), Gene Watson’s “Back in the Fire” (1989), and Lorrie Morgan’s “He Talks to Me” (1990).
Working with a variety of other cowriters during the 1980s, Bourke’s credits also included such major hits as “You Look So Good In Love” (George Strait, 1983), “Baby I Lied” (Deborah Allen, 1983), “Let’s Stop Talkin’ About It” (Janie Fricke, 1984), and “Too Good to Stop Now” (Mickey Gilley, 1984).
In recognition of his outstanding song catalog, Rory Michael Bourke was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1989.
His songwriting success continued into the 1990s. Bourke’s co-written hits in the decade included “I Couldn’t See You Leaving” (Conway Twitty, 1991), “Tender Moment” (Lee Roy Parnell, 1993), “Little Red Rodeo” (Collin Raye, 1997), and “Bye-Bye” (Jo Dee Messina, 1998).
Rory Bourke and Phil Vassar co-wrote “Carlene” (2000), which became Bourke’s last top-10 songwriting hit to date. In 2010, Josh Turner revived Bourke’s co-written “I Wouldn’t Be a Man.” In 2014, The Voice TV-competition winner Craig Wayne Boyd revived “You Look So Good In Love.” Others who have recorded his cowritten songs include Gary Stewart, Jeanne Pruett, Con Hunley, Louise Mandrell, Johnny Rodriguez, Crystal Gayle, Tommy Overstreet, and Shelby Lynne, among others.
During his hit-studded career, Bourke was named ASCAP’s Country Songwriter of the Year in 1975, 1979, and 1983. He earned 11 BMI Awards and 45 ASCAP performance awards.
Rory Michael Bourke passed away on Saturday, Oct. 10. Visitation will take place at 10:30 a.m. – 12 p.m., immediately followed by a memorial service at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Nashville.
Rocketship AI Platform Opens To The Public
/by Lauryn SinkRocketship, the first AI platform designed to identify a song’s potential audience before release, has opened to the public.
Launched by music executive Maxwell Zotz and tech entrepreneur Billy Rodgers, the platform has undergone four months of beta testing and gathering feedback from more than 100 music industry professionals across labels, management, publishing, distribution, catalog and artist tools. Rocketship uses proprietary AI to analyze more than 80 audio, lyric and contextual parameters of an artist’s song. The platform correlates that information against millions of data points and decades of music history to deliver a comprehensive profile of the song’s potential audience. New users can submit one song to the platform for free.
Rocketship can also build full end-to-end marketing campaigns, create social content through video content uploaded by users or AI-curated clips within the platform and more.
“Artists make their most expensive decisions – which single, which audience and where to spend – before they have a single data point on how a song will land,” shares Zotz. “Rocketship gives them a real starting point. It doesn’t replace taste or instinct. It means they’re not guessing alone.”
Rocketship’s patent-pending methodology was developed with copyright compliance as a foundational requirement and reviewed in coordination with Loeb & Loeb.
Parker McCollum Releases New Acoustic Project ‘Live From Sound City’
/by Lorie HollabaughParker McCollum has released a new acoustic album, Live From Sound City, via MCA.
The collection revisits 15 fan-favorite and chart-topping songs from McCollum’s catalog that strip back the production and highlight his voice and songwriting. Among the tracks on the project are “One Less Mouth,” “Handle On You,” “To Be Loved By You,” “Diamonds and Gasoline,” “Jet Plane to GA,” and many more.
Later this month, McCollum will be making his first-ever trip to the UK and Ireland as support for Cody Johnson at some of the country’s biggest venues including AO Arena, The O2, Utilita Arena, OVO Hydro, SSE Arena Belfast and The 3Arena. The 2026 CMA Award Album of the Year nominee will be also joining fellow Texas hitmaker Koe Wetzel for the return of their “Naughty or Nice Tour” this December.
Live From Sound City Track List:
“One Less Mouth (Acoustic)”
“Far, Far Away (Acoustic)”
“To Be Loved By You (Acoustic)”
“Handle On You (Acoustic)”
“‘Til the End (Acoustic)”
“Solid Country Gold (Acoustic)”
“Things Are Looking Up (Acoustic)”
“Diamonds and Gasoline (Acoustic)”
“Hope That I’m Enough (Acoustic)”
“Better Alone (Acoustic)”
“Kill Me Now (Acoustic)”
“Ellis Unit One (Acoustic)”
“Jet Plane to GA (Acoustic)”
“Permanent Headphones (Acoustic)”
“South of the City Lights (Acoustic)”
Industry Ink: Luke Bryan, SiriusXM, ‘Ten Year Town,’ The Listening Room
/by Lauryn SinkLuke Bryan Wraps ‘Word On The Street Tour’
Luke Bryan.
Luke Bryan has wrapped his “Word On The Street Tour” after more than 35 stops. Openers included Drew Baldridge, Karley Scott Collins, Lanie Gardner, Randall King, Zach John King, Shane Profitt, Raelynn, Lauren Watkins, Jake Worthington and DJ Rock.
In September, he also wrapped this year’s Farm Tour. Since the tour began in 2009, Bryan has granted 97 college scholarships to students from farming families attending local colleges or universities near tour stops and has provided more than 11 million meals through the presenting sponsor Bayer’s #HerestotheFarmer campaign.
Bryan will co-headline his final show of the year with Jason Aldean on Dec. 11 in Las Vegas.
SiriusXM The Highway Celebrates Ten Years Of Music Row Happy Hour
Photo: Elisabeth Donaldson/Courtesy of SiriusXM
SiriusXM’s The Highway celebrated ten years of Music Row Happy Hour on Friday (Oct. 9) with a special live show hosted by Buzz Brainard. The show featured performances from Charles Esten, Chris Young, Mitchell Tenpenny and Dylan Scott.
Music Row Happy Hour takes place each Friday on Broadway with surprise performances and interviews.
Troy Cartwright’s ‘Ten Year Town’ Podcast To Host Live Taping With Jessie Jo Dillon
Troy Cartwright will host the first-ever live taping of his podcast, Ten Year Town, featuring Grammy-nominated songwriter Jessie Jo Dillon on Oct. 19 at Analog in the Hutton Hotel. Tickets are available here.
“I’m excited to take Ten Year Town out of the studio and into a room full of people who love songs and the stories behind them,” shares Cartwright. “I can’t wait to sit down with Jessie Jo at the Analog.”
Since launching in June 2023, the podcast has released more than 170 episodes released to date featuring Parker McCollum, HARDY, Little Big Town, Shane McAnally, Stephen Wilson Jr., Tom Douglas, Ben Rector and many more.
The Listening Room Launches ‘ROSTER READY Series’
The Listening Room is launching a new ROSTER READY Series, celebrating unsigned artists and songwriters. The series kicks off Oct. 23 featuring Joe Noto, Jake Hughes, Joanna Serenko and Caleb Mitchell. Tickets are available now.
“We’re incredibly excited to launch this new series and shine a spotlight on some of the most talented unsigned artists and songwriters we’ve welcomed to our stage this year. It’s an honor to provide these emerging voices with a platform to share their music,” says Chris Blair, TLR Founder and Owner.
The War And Treaty To Receive Inaugural Origins Vanguard Award
/by Lorie HollabaughThe War and Treaty
The War & Treaty will be the first recipients of the Origins Vanguard Award at the upcoming third annual Origins Impact Awards on Nov. 19 at Nashville’s historic Woolworth Theatre.
The Origins Vanguard Award recognizes artists whose artistry, influence and impact have helped shape country music’s evolving landscape while opening doors and creating greater possibilities for others. The War and Treaty’s husband-and-wife duo, Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Trotter, have built a celebrated career spanning country, Americana, soul and roots music. They are Emmy award winners, two-time Grammy nominees, and CMA Awards nominees, and have earned national recognition for their musicianship, storytelling and unmistakable vocal chemistry.
The evening will recognize artists, songwriters, producers, executives, creators, DJs and community leaders helping shape the evolving landscape of country music, and finalists include Breland, Blanco Brown, K. Michelle, Nappy Roots, Pynk Beard, The Boykinz, Gustavo Mioto, RVSHVD, Shy Carter, Kashus Culpepper, Kirk Jay, The Kentucky Gentlemen, MŌRIAH, Angie K, Dalton Dover and many more.
“What makes the Origins Impact Awards special is that we aren’t asking artists to fit into one narrow definition of what country music is supposed to look or sound like,” says Corey Jones, CEO and co-founder of Origins Music Group. “These finalists represent the depth of talent that exists across country music today. They are building audiences, creating communities and showing just how expansive this music and its culture can be.”
Songwriter Rory Bourke Passes
/by Robert K OermannRory Bourke
Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Rory Bourke has died at age 84.
Bourke is noted for co-writing such country standards as Charlie Rich’s “The Most Beautiful Girl,” George Strait’s “You Look So Good in Love” and Anne Murray’s “A Little Good News.” Between 1972 and 2015, there were 61 charted versions of his songs, 42 of which became top-20 successes. Also among those songs were 29 top-10 hits and 10 No. 1 smashes.
Rory Michael Bourke was born in Cleveland, Ohio. As a youngster, he was fascinated by movie musicals, which led him to imagine a career in the music industry. Following college, he headed for Nashville in 1964.
He entered the country-music business as a promotion executive at Mercury Records on Music Row. But he yearned to become part of Nashville’s songwriting community. He met Eddie Rabbitt (1941-1998), who was also an aspiring songwriter at the time. They co-wrote “Patch It Up,” which Elvis Presley recorded in 1970 and “Captured,” which later became a 1974 Terry Stafford single.
Bourke quit his dependable job and decided to plunge into songwriting full-time. He was determined to succeed, no matter what. “There was no Plan B,” he recalled. Publishers Don Gant and Henry Hurt encouraged him, and the latter signed him to Chappell Music as a staff songwriter in 1971. The following year, Mel Tillis sang Bourke’s co-written “Neon Rose,” and it became the fledgling songwriter’s first top-10 success.
Bourke teamed up with songwriter Norro Wilson and producer Billy Sherrill to craft “The Most Beautiful Girl,’ which became a No. 1 smash for Charlie Rich in 1973. The ballad sold a million; topped the pop, country and easy-listening charts; and became an international hit on German, Irish, French, Canadian, Dutch, Belgian, Australian, and Norwegian charts.
Although chiefly known as a songwriting collaborator, Bourke wrote solo songs that became chart entries for Bobby Borchers, Johnny Carver, Ronnie Prophet, Kim Charles and Lynn Anderson during his early songwriting years.
Teaming with others, he was responsible for top-10 hits by Billy “Crash” Craddock, Mickey Gilley, and Cristy Lane during the 1970s.
Rory Bourke’s most successful and prolific songwriting collaborator was fellow Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member Charlie Black (1949-2021). In 1979, the new team had a No. 1 hit when Anne Murray recorded their “Shadows In the Moonlight.”
The Black/Bourke partnership continued to find success in the 1980s. Sometimes as a songwriting duo and sometimes with added collaborators, they provided Murray with “Lucky Me” (1980), “Blessed Are the Believers” (1981), “Another Sleepless Night” (1982), and “A Little Good News” (1983). The last named won the CMA Single of the Year and earned Murray a country-vocal Grammy Award. Bourke and Black were also credited on “I Know a Heartache When I See One” (Jennifer Warnes, 1979) and “Do You Love As Good As You Look” (The Bellamy Brothers, 1981).
Rory Bourke was noted for mentoring up-and-coming tunesmiths. When singer-songwriter K.T. Oslin (1942-2020) arrived on the Nashville scene, Bourke collaborated with her on “Round the Clock Lovin’” (Gail Davies, 1982) and “Lonely But Only for You” (Sissy Spacek, 1983), as well as on Oslin’s own singles “Two Hearts” (1990) and the chart-topping “Come Next Monday” (1990).
Mike Reid was another of Bourke’s frequent collaborators. They co-wrote Ronnie Milsap’s No. 1 hit “Where Do the Nights Go” (1987), Tanya Tucker’s “It’s Only Over for You” (1987), Don Williams’s “I Wouldn’t Be a Man” (1987), Gene Watson’s “Back in the Fire” (1989), and Lorrie Morgan’s “He Talks to Me” (1990).
Working with a variety of other cowriters during the 1980s, Bourke’s credits also included such major hits as “You Look So Good In Love” (George Strait, 1983), “Baby I Lied” (Deborah Allen, 1983), “Let’s Stop Talkin’ About It” (Janie Fricke, 1984), and “Too Good to Stop Now” (Mickey Gilley, 1984).
In recognition of his outstanding song catalog, Rory Michael Bourke was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1989.
His songwriting success continued into the 1990s. Bourke’s co-written hits in the decade included “I Couldn’t See You Leaving” (Conway Twitty, 1991), “Tender Moment” (Lee Roy Parnell, 1993), “Little Red Rodeo” (Collin Raye, 1997), and “Bye-Bye” (Jo Dee Messina, 1998).
Rory Bourke and Phil Vassar co-wrote “Carlene” (2000), which became Bourke’s last top-10 songwriting hit to date. In 2010, Josh Turner revived Bourke’s co-written “I Wouldn’t Be a Man.” In 2014, The Voice TV-competition winner Craig Wayne Boyd revived “You Look So Good In Love.” Others who have recorded his cowritten songs include Gary Stewart, Jeanne Pruett, Con Hunley, Louise Mandrell, Johnny Rodriguez, Crystal Gayle, Tommy Overstreet, and Shelby Lynne, among others.
During his hit-studded career, Bourke was named ASCAP’s Country Songwriter of the Year in 1975, 1979, and 1983. He earned 11 BMI Awards and 45 ASCAP performance awards.
Rory Michael Bourke passed away on Saturday, Oct. 10. Visitation will take place at 10:30 a.m. – 12 p.m., immediately followed by a memorial service at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Nashville.
Lady A, Tyler Hubbard, More Featured On ‘Songs Inspired By The Chosen’ Album
/by Lauryn SinkLady A, Tyler Hubbard and more will be featured on the upcoming Songs Inspired by The Chosen: Seasons 1–5 album, due Oct. 30 via 5&2 Studios and Capitol Christian Music Group.
The project arrives just ahead of The Chosen season six, premiering Nov. 15 on Prime Video.
Today, LOST & FOUND released “My Everything,” the fourth single from the project.
“‘My Everything’ is a song about approaching your relationship with God with childlike faith. It’s a reminder to let go of control, surrender your fears, and trust the Lord completely,” shares LOST & FOUND. “Just as the children in The Chosen simply delighted in being with Jesus, we’re invited to come before Him with the same innocence and dependence, knowing He is our source of strength, peace, healing, and joy. When we stop striving and rest in His presence, we discover that His love is enough. Our prayer is that this song encourages people to step into the fullness of His love and allow Him to truly become their everything.”
Songs Inspired by The Chosen: Seasons 1–5 Track List:
1. “SOS (Don’t Let Me Go)” — Phil Wickham
2. “Roots” — Jamie MacDonald
3. “I Love The One” — Lady A and Boyz II Men
4. “My Everything” — LOST & FOUND
5. “All I Need Is You” — Tyler Hubbard
6. “Even This” — Anne Wilson
7. “Exile” — Stephen Stanley
8. “Open the Well” — Madison Ryann Ward
9. “Broken Me” — Blessing Offor
10. “Beautiful Faith” — Franni Cash
11. “Follow Me” — Jac Ross
Matt Jenkins Enters Top 20 On MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart
/by Madison HahnenMatt Jenkins
Matt Jenkins has moved into the top 20 on the MusicRow Top Songwriter chart. Kenny Chesney’s “Carry On” pushes the songwriter to No. 19 this week.
Ella Langley remains at No. 1 with “Be Her,” “Choosin’ Texas,” “I Can’t Love You Anymore,” “Jaded” and “Loving Life Again.” Jordan M. Schmidt moves up to No. 2 with “Be Her,” “Jaded,” “Kid Myself” and “Who Told You That.”
Chase McGill (No. 3), Jessi Alexander (No. 4) and ERNEST (No. 5) round out this week’s top five.
The weekly MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart uses algorithms based upon song activity according to airplay, digital download track sales and streams. This unique and exclusive addition to the MusicRow portfolio is the only songwriter chart of its kind.
Click here to view the full MusicRow Top Songwriter Chart.
John Morgan Lands Second No. 1 As An Artist & Seventh As A Songwriter With ‘Kid Myself’
/by Lorie HollabaughJohn Morgan. Photo: Matthew Berinato
Broken Bow Records artist John Morgan has tallied his second No. 1 and seventh as a songwriter with his latest single, “Kid Myself.”
The single hit No. 1 on the Country Aircheck/Mediabase & Billboard charts, and is also the first single for Morgan to hit No. 1 as a solo artist. Penned by Morgan, Tyler Hubbard and Jordan Schmidt, “Kid Myself” travels back to a regretful decision to cut a relationship short, and examines the tough but mature truth behind the past.
“Watching this song climb the charts has been very special,” says Morgan. “It’s hard to do it once and even harder to follow up back to back. I couldn’t be more grateful to everyone for all the support over the last year to help get us here. ‘Kid Myself’ came off my debut album, Carolina Blue, and I’m proud to have written something that resonated with so many people around the country!”
Morgan’s prior No. 1 as an artist was a collaboration with Jason Aldean on “Friends Like That.” He is currently on tour this fall with upcoming dates in Youngtown, Cincinnati, Toledo, Biloxi, Myrtle Beach, and more.
Kameron Marlowe Slates ‘Take You Down With Me Tour’ For February
/by Lorie HollabaughKameron Marlowe. Photo: Ben Dartnell
Kameron Marlowe is kicking off his new “Take You Down With Me Tour” across the U.S. this winter beginning in February.
The 12-city tour will launch just two weeks after the release of Marlowe’s upcoming self-titled album, due out Jan. 22, and will include stops in Chattanooga, Atlanta, Raleigh, and more. Pre-sale for tickets begins tomorrow (Oct. 13) with general on-sale starting Oct. 16 here.
On his upcoming third studio album co-produced by Austin Goodloe, Marlowe draws from influences including The War on Drugs, Kings of Leon, Gary Clark Jr. and John Mayer across songs exploring redemption and rebirth, moving freely between country, soul, and rock. The rising artist has already racked up over 1.9 billion global streams, and achieved multiple RIAA Gold and Platinum certifications.
Kameron Marlowe’s “Take You Down With Me Tour” Dates:
2/4/27: Chattanooga, TN – The Signal
2/5/27: Cincinnati, OH – Bogart’s
2/6/27: Milwaukee, WI – The Rave
2/12/27: Raleigh, NC – The Ritz
2/13/27: Atlanta, GA – Tabernacle
2/19/27: Columbia, SC – The Senate
2/20/27: Knoxville, TN – The Mill & Mine
2/26/27: Orlando, FL – House of Blues Orlando
2/27/27: Charleston, SC – The Refinery Charleston
3/4/27: Louisville, KY – Mercury Ballroom
3/5/27: Cleveland, OH – Globe Iron
3/6/27: Royal Oak, MI – Royal Oak Music Theatre
Miranda Lambert’s Amazon Music ‘Songline Live’ Debuts
/by Lorie HollabaughMiranda Lambert. Photo: Brayln Kelly Smith
Amazon Music debuted Miranda Lambert’s Songline Live, a special broadcast of Lambert’s recent intimate performance filmed at The Truth in Nashville, last week.
Accompanied by a 12-piece string section, Lambert performed some tracks from her latest album, Crisco, alongside reimagined versions of her catalog hits for the broadcast, which streamed on the Amazon Music app, Prime Video, and Twitch as part of Country Music Month. The career-spanning set opened with “Kerosene” and featured favorites including “Only Prettier,” “Fastest Girl in Town,” and “White Liar,” as well as newer songs such as “Snakeskin Boots,” “Sunset Marquis,” and the title track from Crisco. The string arrangements brought a fresh dimension to “Bluebird,” “Vice,” “The House That Built Me,” and “Tin Man,” and Chris Stapleton joined Lambert for “A Song to Sing,” before she closed the show with “Gunpowder & Lead.”
A new Songline album featuring music from Lambert’s Songline Live broadcast is set for release Nov. 6, followed by a Songline film on Nov. 13, which pairs performances from the broadcast with exclusive interviews in which Lambert reflects on her songs and career.
The recently announced Country Music Month celebration from Amazon Music also features new Amazon Music Originals, Country Heat Weekly Podcast episodes with artists including Kenny Chesney, Riley Green, and Elizabeth Nichols, and the announcement of Stella Lefty as the newest Amazon Music Breakthrough Artist. The month’s programming also includes Lainey Wilson’s Amazon Music Live performance on Oct. 15 and a new Shaboozey Songline film debuting Oct. 23.