Troy Shondell
Pop-country performer and former Music Row song publisher Troy Shondell has died at age 76.
Best known for his 1961 torchy teen ballad “This Time (We’re Really Breaking Up),” Shondell passed away on Jan. 7 at a nursing facility in Picayune, Mississippi. The Associated Press reports that he died of complications related to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
The singer was born Gary Wayne Schelton and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana. His father was a professional musician. Shondell was playing trumpet by age 4 and eventually became proficient on piano, organ and saxophone, as well.
He began writing songs at age 14. One of his early tunes, “A Prayer and a Juke Box” was a pop single by Little Anthony & The Imperials in 1959. At his peak, Troy Shondell was said to have written 400 songs a year.
His recording career began in 1958 with “My Hero,” released as by “Gary Shelton.” Singles such as “The Trance” and “Goodbye Little Darlin’” ensued under his better-known billing. He had a regional hit in the Midwest with the rockabilly tune “Kissin’ at the Drive-In” in 1960.
Written by Chips Moman, “This Time (We’re Really Breaking Up)” was a 1961 hit in both the U.S. and the U.K. and sold a million copies.
Shondell’s follow-up pop singles in 1961-62 included “Tears From an Angel,” written by Jackie DeShannon, his self-penned “Island in the Sky” and the Phil Spector-produced “Na-Ne-No.” His final pop single of note was 1969’s “Let’s Go All the Way.”
Shondell wrote “Still Loving You” in the wake of his father’s premature 1960 death from a heart attack. The song was recorded by country star Bob Luman and became a Top 10 country hit in 1973, earning Troy Shondell a BMI Award.
By then, the singer-songwriter had moved to Nashville and switched to country music. He signed with Acuff-Rose, then formed his own song publishing company. His debut Nashville single was 1969’s “Something’s Wrong in Indiana.” Also in 1969, he was hired as an assistant regional director in the Nashville office of ASCAP.
Returning to recording, he released the self-produced LP An Ordinary Man in 1978. Shondell made the country charts with his own version of “Still Loving You” (1979), plus John Sebastian’s “(Sittin’ Here) Lovin’ You” (1980) and his own “(I’m Looking For Some) New Blue Jeans” (1988).
In 1992, his song “The Wall” was chosen to represent the 10th anniversary of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. and was featured on Good Morning America.
In recent years, Troy Shondell had toured on the oldies circuit. In 2001, he formed a nostalgia package show with his peers Jimmy Clanton, Ronnie Dove and Ray Peterson, billed as The Masters of Rock ‘n’ Roll.
Randy Houser Plans 17-Track Album Featuring Top Songwriters
/by Eric T. ParkerRandy Houser has planned his sophomore Stoney Creek Records album, Fired Up, to be released Friday, March 11.
Houser’s fourth studio album will include 17 tracks, produced by Derek George. Houser co-wrote four tracks on the album, which also features A-list Nashville writers including Chris Stapleton, Chris Janson, Trevor Rosen, Jeffrey Steele, Dallas Davidson, Rhett Akins, Ben Hayslip, Craig Wiseman, Tony Martin, and Ashley Gorley.
“I’m very excited to finally get some new music out there,” said Houser. “Three years is a bit longer than I expected in between How Country Feels and this record, and so much has happened in that time. I wrote a handful of songs on Fired Up, but there are songs like ‘A Little Bit Older’ that I knew I had to record the moment I heard them.”
Full track listing for Fired Up:
1. “Back” (Jeffrey Steele, Bridgette Tatum)
2. “We Went” (Justin Wilson, Matt Rogers, John King)
3. “Chasing Down a Good Time” (Randy Houser, Steele, Anthony Smith)
4. “Senior Year” (Houser, Rob Hatch)
5. “Mine Tonight” (Dallas Davidson, Rhett Akins, Ben Hayslip)
6. “Lucky Me” (Houser, Davidson, Craig Wiseman)
7. “Song Number 7” (Wilson, Hayslip, Chris Janson)
8. “Before Midnight” (Houser, Shane Minor, Derek George)
9. “True” (Houser, Rob Hatch)
10. “Yesterday’s Whiskey” (Brice Long, Kylie Sackley)
11. “Fired Up” (Hatch, Davidson)
12. “A Little Bit Older” (Neil Thrasher, Michael Dulaney, Tony Martin)
13. “Gotta Get You Home” (Davidson, Ashley Gorley, Kelley Lovelace)
14. “Hot Beer and Cold Women” (Brett Warren, Brad Warren, Travis Meadows)
15. “Same Ole Saturday Night” (Davidson, Hayslip, Martin Johnson)
16. “One Way” (Chris Stapleton, Lee Miller)
17. “Whiskeysippi River” (Josh Jenkins, Matt Jenkins, Trevor Rosen)
Don Williams Announces Tour Dates For 2016
/by Troy_StephensonDon Williams
Country Music Hall of Famer and CMA/ACM award winner Don Williams has announced a tour of 21 venues across the country.
His 75-minute sets will include hits such as “Good Ole Boys Like Me,” “Tulsa Time,” “Back in my Younger Days,” “Louisiana Saturday Night,” “You’re My Best Friend,” “Come Early Morning,” “Lord, I Hope This Day is Good,” “Some Broken Hearts Never Mend” and many more.
DON WILLIAMS ON TOUR
Feb. 17 Florida Theatre – Jacksonville, Florida.
Feb. 18 Pensacola Saenger Theatre – Pensacola, Florida
Feb. 19 Tivoli Theatre – Chattanooga, Tennessee
Feb. 20 Tennessee Theatre – Knoxville, Tennessee
Feb. 23 Harvester Performance Center – Rocky Mount, Virginia
Feb. 24 The Beacon Theatre – Hopewell, Virginia
Feb. 25 Mountain Arts Center – Prestonsburg, Kentucky
Feb. 26 Peace Concert Hall – Greenville, South Carolina
Feb. 27 Lyric Fine Arts Theatre – Birmingham, Alabama
March 10 The Joint At Hard Rock & Hotel – Tulsa, Oklahoma
March 11 Walton Arts Center – Fayetteville, Arkansas
March 12 Baton Rouge River Center Theater – Baton Rouge, Louisiana
March 15 Hudiburg Center – Rose State College, Midwest City, Oklahoma
March 16 Gillioz Theatre – Springfield, Missouri
March 18 Golden Nugget – Grand Event Center – Lake Charles, Louisiana
March 19 IP Casino Resort – Studio A, Biloxi, Mississippi
April 6 American Music Theater – Lancaster, Pennsylvania
April 8 Renfro Valley Entertainment Center – Renfro Valley, Kentucky
April 9 Renfro Valley Entertainment Center – Renfro Valley, Kentucky
April 12 Liberty Hall – Lawrence, Kansas
April 14 The Arcada Theatre – St Charles, Kansas
April 16 Little River Casino Resort – Manistee, Michigan
Weekly Register: Chris Stapleton Remains No. 1 On Country Albums Chart
/by Craig_ShelburneTwo months after winning big at the CMA Awards, Chris Stapleton is still going strong. He remains at No. 1 on this week’s country albums chart with Traveller. With 33K sold this week, his overall figures jump to 718K.
The remaining Top 5 albums on the country chart are Luke Bryan’s Kill the Lights (14K), Sam Hunt’s Montevallo (10.5K), Carrie Underwood’s Storyteller (9K), and Thomas Rhett’s Tangled Up (7.5K).
Thomas Rhett
Rhett’s “Die a Happy Man” has enjoyed a sturdy run atop the country digital sales chart. He sold 60K singles last week, landing at No. 13 on the overall chart and surpassing the 883K mark. That’s followed by Hunt’s “Break Up in a Small Town” (44K), Cam’s “Burning House” (35K) and Luke Bryan and Karen Fairchild’s “Home Alone Tonight” (29K). Stapleton rounds out the Top 5 with “Tennessee Whiskey” (23K).
Adele’s 25 holds steady at No. 1 on the overall chart with 164K albums sold, with total activity (including song sales and streams) of 194K. She has sold more than 7 million copies of the album in the United States and an estimated 15 million worldwide.
Round Hill Music, Baby Needs New Shoes Ink Co-Pub Deal with Jimmy Robbins
/by Jessica NicholsonSeated (L-R): Josh Saxe, Associate Director, A&R, Round Hill Music; LeAnn Phelan, Sea Gayle Management; Jimmy Robbins; Mark Brown, VP/GM, Nashville, Round Hill Music.
Standing: Jordan Keller, attorney; Matthew Beckett, attorney.
Round Hill Music and Baby Needs New Shoes have entered into a co-publishing agreement with songwriter/producer Jimmy Robbins. In addition, Round Hill Music acquired a portion of Jimmy Robbins’ existing catalogue of songs from Baby Needs New Shoes. Singer-songwriter Keith Urban is a partner in publishing outfit Baby Needs New Shoes.
With over one hundred cuts in just over three years, Robbins has notched five No. 1 songs, including Blake Shelton’s “Sure Be Cool If You Did,” “It Goes Like This” from Thomas Rhett, Keith Urban/Miranda Lambert’s duet “We Were Us,” “Whatever She’s Got” by David Nail, and “Beachin’” by Jake Owen. Robbins currently has a top ten on the country charts with Tim McGraw’s “Top of the World,” and most recently celebrated a No. 2 single with Chase Rice’s song “Gonna Wanna Tonight.”
“It is a real privilege to be able to work with a writer like Jimmy Robbins,” said Round Hill Music VP/GM Mark Brown. “Jimmy has a rare combination of abilities that make him so exceedingly talented. We welcome our new partners Joe Fisher and Keith Urban to the RHM family as well. We at Round Hill couldn’t be more excited about this collaboration.”
Robbins is a 2014 ASCAP Song of the Year award winner for “It Goes Like This” as the most performed song of 2014. He earned a 2014 CMA Triple Play award and was 2014 ASCAP Breakout Writer as one of 10 writers worldwide to be recognized.
Robbins received the special honor of being the sole opening act for President Barack Obama at the 2015 National League of Cities Convention in Washington D.C.
As a co-producer, Robbins earned a No. 1 with Canaan Smith’s “Love You Like That.” He also has co-production credits on Big Machine’s RaeLynn, as well as Thomas Rhett. Robbins is currently in the studio working with Valory Music Co. artist Levi Hummon.
Seated (L-R): Keith Urban, Baby Needs New Shoes, LLC; Joe Fisher, Baby Needs New Shoes; Mark Brown, VP & GM, Nashville, Round Hill Music. Standing: Mike Milom, attorney, Baby Needs New Shoes; Matthew Beckett, attorney, Round Hill Music
LifeNotes: Hit Writer And Singer Troy Shondell Passes
/by Robert K OermannTroy Shondell
Pop-country performer and former Music Row song publisher Troy Shondell has died at age 76.
Best known for his 1961 torchy teen ballad “This Time (We’re Really Breaking Up),” Shondell passed away on Jan. 7 at a nursing facility in Picayune, Mississippi. The Associated Press reports that he died of complications related to Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
The singer was born Gary Wayne Schelton and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana. His father was a professional musician. Shondell was playing trumpet by age 4 and eventually became proficient on piano, organ and saxophone, as well.
He began writing songs at age 14. One of his early tunes, “A Prayer and a Juke Box” was a pop single by Little Anthony & The Imperials in 1959. At his peak, Troy Shondell was said to have written 400 songs a year.
His recording career began in 1958 with “My Hero,” released as by “Gary Shelton.” Singles such as “The Trance” and “Goodbye Little Darlin’” ensued under his better-known billing. He had a regional hit in the Midwest with the rockabilly tune “Kissin’ at the Drive-In” in 1960.
Written by Chips Moman, “This Time (We’re Really Breaking Up)” was a 1961 hit in both the U.S. and the U.K. and sold a million copies.
Shondell’s follow-up pop singles in 1961-62 included “Tears From an Angel,” written by Jackie DeShannon, his self-penned “Island in the Sky” and the Phil Spector-produced “Na-Ne-No.” His final pop single of note was 1969’s “Let’s Go All the Way.”
Shondell wrote “Still Loving You” in the wake of his father’s premature 1960 death from a heart attack. The song was recorded by country star Bob Luman and became a Top 10 country hit in 1973, earning Troy Shondell a BMI Award.
Returning to recording, he released the self-produced LP An Ordinary Man in 1978. Shondell made the country charts with his own version of “Still Loving You” (1979), plus John Sebastian’s “(Sittin’ Here) Lovin’ You” (1980) and his own “(I’m Looking For Some) New Blue Jeans” (1988).
In 1992, his song “The Wall” was chosen to represent the 10th anniversary of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, D.C. and was featured on Good Morning America.
In recent years, Troy Shondell had toured on the oldies circuit. In 2001, he formed a nostalgia package show with his peers Jimmy Clanton, Ronnie Dove and Ray Peterson, billed as The Masters of Rock ‘n’ Roll.
Dierks Bentley Prepping Eighth Studio Album, ‘Black’
/by Jessica NicholsonDierks Bentley aims to dig even deeper on his upcoming eighth album, Black, set for release in early 2016.
“It’s a relationship album,” says Bentley. “And to do it right, I had to dig deep as a writer, dig into the Nashville songwriting community, and record songs that explore the shadows and edges of the heart. The songs on Black range from the lonesomeness of an impossible relationship to ones that describe the feeling of finding that person that makes you forget the one that broke your heart.”
The album reunites the production team from his 2014 project, Riser, including producer Ross Copperman and executive producer Arturo Buenahora Jr. The lead single is set to release in the coming weeks.
“There’s a realness to the concept, the songs, the process and the production,” says Bentley. “And the title…Black is mysterious and sexy and has an edge that describes the sounds we were going for. A lot of it happens after dark, in the black of night. It’s personal too…Black is my wife’s maiden name.”
Today (Jan. 11) at 6:30 p.m. CT, Bentley will host a Twitter chat with fans who can participate by following @DierksBentley. For more information on upcoming events and new music, visit dierks.com.
Last week, it was announced that the singer/songwriter’s chain of country bars, Whiskey Row, will launch a Nashville outpost next year.
Watch a teaser video for Black below.
RodeoHouston Reveals 2016 Lineup
/by Craig_ShelburneJason Aldean, Luke Bryan and Kenny Chesney are among the confirmed headliners for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in March.
The Band Perry will be the first performer of the annual concert series, which will launch on March 1. Keith Urban’s set will wrap the series on March 20. Other country artists on the lineup include Billy Currington, Brett Eldredge, Florida Georgia Line, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Jake Owen, Brad Paisley, Darius Rucker, Cole Swindell, and Chris Young.
Tickets go on sale Saturday (Jan. 16) at 10 a.m. Rodeo ticket prices range from $10 to $86, plus applicable fees. Season ticket options start as low as $336 per seat, plus handling.
“The variety in this year’s entertainer lineup makes it one of the most exciting in RodeoHouston history! These stars, as a group, have won everything from Teen Choice and Latin Grammy awards to all of the country music honors,” said Joel Cowley, president and CEO of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. “And with our family friendly ticket pricing, our fans can enjoy the full spectrum of entertainment at our legendary event.”
The RodeoHouston Lineup is below:
March 1: The Band Perry
March 2: Chris Young
March 3: Jason Aldean
March 4: Jason Derulo
March 5: Cole Swindell
March 6: Shawn Mendes
March 7: Miranda Lambert
March 8: Pitbull
March 9: Brett Eldredge
March 10: Luke Bryan
March 11: Darius Rucker
March 12: Billy Currington
March 13: Los Huracanes Del Norte/Banda Los Recoditos
March 14: Kenny Chesney
March 15: Kid Rock
March 16: Jake Owen
March 17: Florida Georgia Line
March 18: Little Big Town
March 19: Brad Paisley
March 20: Keith Urban
Nashville Student Tristan McIntosh Impresses Judges At ‘American Idol’ Auditions
/by Jessica NicholsonTristan McIntosh. Photo: americanidol.com
One of the highlights from Thursday night’s (Jan. 7) American Idol auditions came courtesy of a talented Nashville teenager. Tristan McIntosh, a 10th grader at Nashville School of the Arts, impressed the judges with her earnest, soulful rendition of Mickey Guyton’s “Why Baby Why,” accompanying herself on piano (McIntosh also plays guitar). The audition became emotional after Idol judge Harry Connick Jr. read an email from McIntosh’s mother, who has been stationed overseas in the military.
McIntosh expressed how she missed her mother, who then appeared from behind a curtain to surprise her daughter. The judges praised McIntosh’s voice and artistry, and let her mother do the honors of inviting the teen to the Hollywood audition rounds.
The video has garnered more than 21 million views on American Idol‘s official Facebook page.
Guyton also offered her support for McIntosh via a Facebook post, sharing, “TRISTAN! amazing to hear you sing #WhyBabyWhy on American Idol & be reunited with your mom!! You’re amazing, my love ❤ #IdolPremiere”
Watch the emotional audition below.
Memorial Service Set For Backroad Anthem Singer Craig Strickland
/by Jessica NicholsonPhoto: Helen Strickland, Instagram.
A memorial service has been set for 29-year-old Craig Strickland, a singer for country group Backroad Anthem. The service will take place Tuesday, Jan. 12, at the Cross Church Pinnacle Hills Campus in Rogers, Arkansas, beginning at 6 p.m. CT.
The service will also stream online at the Cross Church website.
The Backroad Anthem singer was found dead on Monday, Jan. 4, one week after he and friend Chase Morland were reported missing following a duck hunting trip during a winter storm. According to the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, Strickland’s body was discovered in the Kaw Lake region north of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Morland was found dead on Dec. 28.
Warner Music Nashville Signs The Last Bandoleros
/by Jessica NicholsonDuring a show at Nashville’s 3rd & Lindsley on Thursday night (Jan. 7), Warner Music Nashville introduced its new band, The Last Bandoleros. The band includes Derek James (guitar/vocals), Diego Navaira (bass/vocals), and Jerry Fuentes (guitar/vocals). The Last Bandoleros are managed by Cherrytree Management’s Martin Kierszenbaum.
Navaira’s father is Grammy-winning Conjunto artist Emilio Navaira Sr., who recorded for Capitol Nashville as Emilio in the 1990s.
Pictured, (L-R): Kevin Herring, SVP Promotion; Scott Hendricks, EVP A&R; Zach Jones, drummer; Derek James, guitar/vocals, The Last Bandoleros; John Esposito, President & CEO, WMN; Diego Navaira, bass/vocals, The Last Bandoleros; Jerry Fuentes, guitar/vocals, The Last Bandoleros; Peter Strickland, EVP & GM, WMN; Lisa Ray, VP Brand Management; Chris Palmer, VP Promotion.
The Last Bandoleros perform for a standing-room-only crowd of invited industry members last night, Jan. 7, 2016, at 3rd & Lindsley. Warner Music nashville label head John Esposito and Producer/Exec. VP Scott Hendricks unveiled the company’s newest artist signing, calling the band “one of the most exciting artists we’ve ever had the privilege of working with” and touting their music as “unlike anything else.”