Country music lost one of its finest instrumental talents when Johnny Gimble died on Saturday, May 9, in Dripping Springs, TX.
“Johnny Gimble is one of the greatest musicians that ever lived,” Willie Nelson once said. “I’m his biggest fan.”
The 88-year-old Gimble was considered one of the best fiddlers in history, and he was also accomplished on mandolin, tenor banjo and guitar. He was a member of Bob Wills’ famed Texas Playboys band, a renowned fiddle instructor, a prolific recording artist and a session musician who played on hits by everyone from Merle Haggard to George Strait.
He won five CMA Awards as Instrumentalist of the Year and nine ACM Awards as Fiddler of the Year. He was given a National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts in 1994. He won Grammy Awards in 1993 and 1995 for recordings with Asleep at the Wheel.
On Saturday’s Grand Ole Opry show, Connie Smith dedicated her 1971 hit “Where Is My Castle” to him, noting that Gimble had played on her original single of the song as well as on her 1972 hit “If It Ain’t Love.”
Gimble can also be heard on Strait’s swing hit “Right Or Wrong” (1984), Marty Robbins’ debut chart topper “I’ll Go On Alone” (1952), Haggard’s iconic “If We Make It Through December” (1973), the immortal Wills tune “Faded Love” (1950), Conway Twitty’s controversial “You’ve Never Been This Far Before” (1973) and hundreds of other well-known country records.
Johnny Gimble was born in Tyler, TX in 1926 and was performing on local radio with his brothers by his early teens. He was soon backing The Shelton Brothers and Jimmie Davis on KWKH in Shreveport, LA.
After Army service during World War II, he resumed his music career. He joined The Texas Playboys in 1949, and by the early 1950s, was performing on recording sessions in Dallas for Robbins, Lefty Frizzell and Ray Price.
He worked in construction and as a barber while maintaining music jobs. He joined the staff band at ABC-TV’s Five Star Jubilee in Springfield, MO in 1961. Gimble moved to Nashville in 1968. The next decade was his most prolific, since he appeared on more than 200 country-star albums.
He became a member of the Nashville Superpickers Band. Joan Baez, Paul McCartney, Boots Randolph, Porter Wagoner, Faron Young, Bobby Bare, Hank Snow, Dolly Parton, Jerry Jeff Walker, Doc Watson, Loretta Lynn, Waylon Jennings, Ronnie Milsap, Don Williams, Johnny Cash, Reba McEntire, Guy Clark, Vince Gill, Tracy Byrd, Chet Atkins, Randy Travis, Trace Adkins, The Manhattan Transfer, The Everly Brothers, Jimmy Buffett, Leon Russell, Carrie Underwood and more have all utilized his talent.
Smith was so enthralled with his wildly inventive playing on “If It Ain’t Love” that she sent a letter to disc jockeys to tell them who the fiddler on her record was.
Gimble moved back to Texas and joined Willie Nelson’s band in 1979. He then became an icon of the Lone Star State music scene. He worked with Asleep at the Wheel and many other Austin artists. He also formed the Texas Swing Band. The group made the country charts in 1983 with Ray Price singing lead.
He appeared in Nelson’s 1980 film Honeysuckle Rose and portrayed his former boss Bob Wills in 1982’s Honky Tonk Man, starring Clint Eastwood. Gimble was also a regular on TV’s Hee Haw, on NPR’s A Prairie Home Companion and on PBS’s Austin City Limits.
His albums include Fiddlin’ Around (1974), Texas Dance Party (1976), Honky Tonk Hits (1976), Still Swingin’ (1976), More Texas Dance Hall Favorites (1981), I Saw the Light (1981), Swingin’ the Standards (1981), The Texas Fiddle Connection (1981), My Kinda Music (1984), Still Fiddlin’ Around (1988), Under the X in Texas (1992), A Case of the Gimbles (2004) and Celebrating With Friends (2009).
Johnny Gimble suffered the first of a series of strokes in 1999. But he continued to teach and perform.
Funeral arrangements have not been announced.
NBC Announces Dolly Parton’s ‘Coat Of Many Colors’ Movie
/by Troy_StephensonPictured (L-R): Bob Greenblatt, Chairman, NBC Entertainment; Dolly Parton; Sam Haskell, President, Magnolia Hill Entertainment through Warner Brothers Television,; Danny Nozell, CTK Management.
NBC announced this morning (May 11) the first original movie under its development deal with Dolly Parton. Coat of Many Colors is named after her 1971 track and will be based on the singer’s childhood. The movie will be part of NBC’s event programming for next season.
NBC and Parton announced a deal in January that will produce a series of standalone TV movies based on Parton’s songs, stories and life.
Parton will serve as executive producer for Coat of Many Colors and will possibly appear in some future productions.
LifeNotes: Songwriter Herb McCullough Dies
/by Robert K OermannHerb McCollugh
Veteran Nashville songwriter Herb McCullough died at home in Florida on Tuesday, May 5, at age 70.
More than 100 albums contain his tunes. Among the stars who’ve recorded his songs are Diamond Rio, Josh Turner, Charley Pride, Highway 101, Wade Hayes, Rhett Akins, Hal Ketchum, Mel McDaniel, Mark Chesnutt, Joy Lynn White, T.G. Sheppard, Marie Osmond and John Schneider.
John Anderson made the country charts with McCullough’s cowritten “Down in the Orange Grove” in 1988. Although the songwriter never had a major hit, his songs were recorded steadily for more than 30 years.
He is particularly noted for bluegrass recordings. Among the genre’s stars who have recorded Herb McCullough songs are The Seldom Scene, The Lynn Morris Band, Valerie Smith & Liberty Pike, The Isaacs, Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time, Harley Allen, David Parmley and Mike Auldridge. Among McCullough’s best-known bluegrass tunes is “The Man with the Travelin’ Teardrop Blues,” as popularized by The Del McCoury Band in 2001.
He frequently collaborated with dulcimer virtuoso David Schnaufer (1952-2006) and with good friend Shawn Camp. Other Americana artists who recorded McCullough songs include Barry & Holly Tashian, Rattlesnake Annie, Hobo Jim, Toni Price and Jim Rooney.
Herb McCullough moved to Nashville from Winter Haven, Fla., in 1974 at age 30. He signed his first song-publishing contract in 1978, the year that Moe Bandy became the first of many artists to record his songs.
He retired to Apopka, Fla. several years ago. Herb McCullough is survived by his wife, Joann, daughter Christie Williams and son Sean McCullough. At his request, he will be cremated today, May 11, with a celebration of life to follow on May 16 at the Dunnellon, Fla., Funeral Home.
MusicRowLife: Tyler Farr Engaged
/by Jessica Nicholson“Yes I’m a sucker for heartbreak songs. But, with every heartache you learn, and that coincides with my music career; which all the times and trials led me to find my best friend, a woman that truly makes me a better person. And I am now so very blessed and proud to call her my fiancé,” Farr says. “Truly the best moment of my life! And I honestly couldn’t think of a better church than the mother church of country music.”
LifeNotes: Floyd Brown, Father of Sony’s Allen Brown
/by Sarah SkatesFloyd David Brown
Floyd David Brown, father of Sony Music Nashville Vice President, Media & Corporate Communications, Allen Brown, passed away on Friday, May 8.
He was 91 and a lifelong resident of Emmett, Idaho.
Known as “Brownie” to many, Floyd was born to Allen Albert Brown and Hazel Fern Wills Brown on October 30, 1923, in Emmett, a quaint town in a scenic valley near Boise.
Floyd married high school sweetheart Evelyn “Evie” Mae Walker on June 9, 1943. He then served in the Navy during World War II mainly in the Asiatic-Pacific area, where he acquired short-wave radio experience. Upon his return home, Floyd caught the “radio bug” that would stay with him throughout his career. In 1946, he opened an electronic sales and repair business and named it Brown’s Radio Shack (before the Tandy Corporation retail chain was established). Later, the business name was updated to Brown’s Radio & TV Shack, and services expanded to include TV, audio equipment, records, tapes and guitar sales and TV repairs. Floyd’s right hand and business partner was wife, Evelyn.
He fulfilled a lifelong dream and built KMFE-FM 101.7, which went live on-air in 1973. This 1,000 watt “Mom and Pop” business was the first FM station in the greater Boise area to program country music. Hosted by Floyd, KMFE’s “Comfy Barndance” was a popular live weekly radio show which showcased local vocalists and musicians. Through 1983, Floyd’s roles at KMFE included DJ, chief engineer and President of Emmett Valley Broadcasters, Inc. His wife Evelyn, son Allen, son-in-law Mel Gunter and nephew Ray Shaw, also worked a number of years at the station.
Floyd Brown was extensively involved in and acknowledged by the Emmett community, including the Lions Club, Gem County Chamber of Commerce, Walter Knox Memorial Hospital, Optimist Club, W.I.C.A.P. (Western Idaho Community Action Program), Gem Country Historical Society, Our Redeemer Lutheran Church and a local hospice volunteer. Since his service in the Navy, Floyd was an active member of the American Legion Post 49 and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
He was preceded in death by Evelyn, his wife of 67 years. Floyd is survived by his four children David Brown (Harpster, Idaho), Sue Brown Gunter married to Mel Gunter (Emmett), Allen Brown (Nashville, Tenn.) and Sherry Brown Doyle married to Michael Doyle (Canyon Lake, Texas); his three grandchildren and their spouses and six great grandchildren.
Viewing will be held on Friday, May 15, 2015, at The Potter Funeral Chapel, 228 East Main St., Emmett, Idaho 83617, from 3 to 8 p.m., with the family receiving friends from 6 to 8 p.m.
Services will be held on Saturday, May 16, 2015, with committal at the Emmett Cemetery, 1205 North Washington Ave., Emmett, Idaho 83617, at 1 p.m., followed by a memorial service at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, 401 South Hayes Ave., Emmett, Idaho 83617, at 2 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made in Floyd Brown’s name to any of the following charities or the charity of choice: Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, P.O. Box 457; Gem Lions Club, P.O. Box 902; Gem Country Historical Society, 501 East First St.—all charities are in Emmett, Idaho 83617.
“This is a photo I took Friday evening captioned, ‘As sundown approaches outside and inside the window of my dad’s room.’ Hope you enjoy this scenic view of the outskirts of my hometown, Emmett, Idaho, and sense both the peace and awe I felt when I experienced it like I never had before. Shortly after this sundown, my father left this world to be with the Lord and reunite with my mother.”– Allen Brown
LifeNotes: ‘Nashville Sound’ Pioneer Dottie Dillard Dies
/by Robert K OermannDorothy “Dottie” Dillard
Singer Dottie Dillard, one of the cornerstone figures of The Nashville Sound of the 1950s and 1960s, has died at age 91.
As a member of The Anita Kerr Quartet, Dillard won two Grammy Awards and sang back-up for a who’s-who of Nashville music, including Red Foley, Johnny Cash, Jim Reeves, Perry Como, Bob Dylan, Skeeter Davis, Ray Price, Eddy Arnold, Hank Snow, Webb Pierce, Brook Benton, Connie Frances and Jimmie Davis.
Among the hits featuring her vocals are Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (1958) and “I’m Sorry” (1960), Burl Ives’ “Holly, Jolly Christmas” (1964), Dottie West’s Grammy-winning “Here Comes My Baby” (1964), Bobby Bare’s Grammy-winning “Detroit City” (1963), Roy Orbison’s “Only the Lonely” (1960) and “Running Scared” (1961), Bobby Helms’ “Jingle Bell Rock” (1957) and “The Three Bells” by The Browns (1959), which was the first Nashville Sound record to hit No. 1 on the pop charts.
Dorothy Ann Dillard was born and raised in Springfield, Mo. She graduated from Drury College in 1945. She auditioned for WSM radio in Nashville that year and became a regular pop-music vocalist on the station.
In 1955, she formed The Anita Kerr Quartet as the alto vocalist alongside soprano Kerr, tenor Gil Wright and baritone/bass Louis Nunley. Producers Owen Bradley and Chet Atkins were soon using them as studio background singers.
The Anita Kerr Quartet and The Jordanaires helped to soften the country sound and make it possible for records to become pop as well as country hits. It is estimated that Dillard sang on one quarter of all the records made in Nashville in the 1960s.
The Quartet also gained fame under its own name. In 1956, the group commuted to New York and won on the nationally televised Arthur Godfrey Talent Scouts show. They subsequently became regularly featured vocalists on it.
Back in Nashville, the group had a string of releases on Decca and RCA Victor, including “Rockin’ Chair,” “Once in a While” and “You and the Night and Music.” Billed as “The Little Dippers,” they scored a top-10 pop hit with “Forever” in 1960. In 1962-63, the singers made the lower reaches of the pop hit charts with “Joey Baby” and “Waiting for the Evening Train.”
The Anita Kerr Quartet was part of the ground-breaking 1964 country package tour of Europe alongside Jim Reeves, Bobby Bare and Chet Atkins.
In 1965, the group’s LP We Dig Mancini won a pop Grammy Award and its collaboration with George Beverly Shea on Southland Gospel Favorites won a gospel Grammy.
Kerr left the group and moved to California around 1966, but Dillard, Nunley and Wright continued working in Nashville studios with substitute soprano vocalists.
After a 36-year career in Nashville, Dottie Dillard returned to Springfield in 1981 to care for her mother.
The singer died in Springfield on Wednesday, May 6. Her visitation and funeral are scheduled for today, May 11, at Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home, 1947 E. Seminole St., Springfield, MO 65804 (417-886-9994).
Dottie Dillard is survived by nieces Suzanne Dillard Burke and Sarah “Sally” Young, plus cousins George Dillard, Lynn Thompson, Karen Thompson, Patsy Thompson and Nancy White.
Memorial donations may be made to the Drury University Women’s Auxiliary Endowed Scholarship Fund, 900 N. Benton St., Springfield, MO 65802.
Country Radio Seminar Adds Eleven New Committee Members
/by Troy_StephensonEleven new members have been revealed as part of the 2015-2016 Country Radio Seminar agenda committee. Sam Alex (Townsquare Media), Ben Bennett (CMA), Katie Bright (Warner Music Nashville), Jay Cruze (WSCG), Carolyn Gilbert (NuVoodoo Media), Ed Green (Red Light), Christie Matthews (Saga Jonesboro), Jeff James (Signet Interactive), Stew Sawyers (Townsquare Media Longview), Jenny Sheilds (Premiere Radio) and J.R. Schumann (KSCS) have been named to the committee.
Along with 13 returning members, this group will plan agenda items and events for CRS 2016. This year’s agenda committee will be led by Tom Hanrahan (WDXB / iHeart) as Chairman and Greg Frey (Cumulus Media) and Judy Lakin (Cox Media Group) as Co-Vice Chairman.
CRB President Charlie Morgan adds, “As we move to our exciting new home at the Omni Nashville for 2016, we will want to insure the energy and relevance of our agenda matches the excitement of our new home and with this incredibly talented, dedicated and diverse group of industry thought leaders, we are sure to deliver!”
CRS 2016 will be held Feb. 8 – 10, 2016 at the Omni Hotel in Nashville.
Bringing Music Biz to Music City
/by Jessica NicholsonJames Donio
For the first time in its 50-plus year history, the Music Biz Association (formerly known as NARM) will hold its annual convention in Nashville. An estimated 1,000 attendees will attend the three-day conference, which commences tomorrow, May 12 and runs through Thursday, May 14 at the Nashville Sheraton Downtown.
Music Biz president James Donio says Nashville offers unique opportunities for the conference, which was held in Los Angeles for the past four years. “There was no question about Nashville being a great place for the convention,” Donio says. “It’s the first time that the convention has really been held in a city that is so much about music, where music is part of the complete fabric of the city. We are incorporating into the conference live music at the Wildhorse Saloon, and we’re taking people on tours of United Record Pressing to underscore the energy and growth around vinyl. We asked our members and affiliates who live in Nashville to identify their favorite restaurants, and we sent that our attendees. It’s been in the planning stages for us to come to Nashville for nearly two years.
“Interestingly, many of our attendees have indicated that they have not been to Nashville before,” he continues. “They are in the music business or work around the business, but their business hasn’t brought them to Nashville. That just adds to the anticipation for us.”
Several of Music City’s finest will be honored during the conference. Honorees this year include Scott Borchetta (Presidential Award for Outstanding Executive Achievement), Martina McBride (Harry Chapin Memorial Humanitarian Award), Meghan Trainor (Breakthrough Artist of the Year Award), Jack White (Music Biz’s inaugural Innovator Award), and the Doobie Brothers (Chairman’s Award for Sustained Creative Achievement).
A variety of panels will offer advice and insight from industry and city heavyweights including Nashville’s Mayor Karl Dean, U.S. Copyright Office’s Jacqueline Charlesworth, music producer/engineer Chuck Ainlay, Borman Entertainment’s Cameo Carlson, Vevo’s John Brauer, Pandora’s Tony Brooke, Ticketmaster’s Zeeshan Zaidi, Word Entertainment’s Rod Riley, YouTube’s Chris Potter, UMG’s Barak Moffitt, BMI’s Jim King, SESAC’s Scott Jungmichael, and more.
When Music Biz (formerly known as NARM) rebranded in 2013, the focus was broadened to integrate six sectors of the industry: physical, digital, knowledge, information technology, and two newer additions, legal and business affairs, and artist management and touring.
One of the 2015 convention’s highlights is a new town hall meeting revolving around issues relevant to artists and managers. Topics will include creating a development and marketing plan for music and live performances, employing new digital services to assist with direct-to-fan sales, and utilizing fan clubs and VIP packages to introduce new sources of revenue. Other town halls are available for songwriters and publishers, for metrics and sales analysis, as well as the entertainment and technology law conference.
Music Biz 2015 also delves into Nashville’s ever-deepening relationship between tech and music, offering panels to instruct music-related startups on ways to improve processes and increase music sales to fans. “It’s an interesting place and time for the entrepreneur community and tech startups to be working side by side with songwriters, managers and publishers,” Donio says. “You cannot look at the Music Business in 2015 and not look at how the creative, commercial and tech aspects work collaboratively.
“As a trade organization, we are a mirror and need to reflect what our members want,” he sums. “That’s the lifeblood of the event and that will never change. We look at our event as a triangle of commerce, creative and content all coming together.”
Though the conference is just gearing up for 2015, Donio says it’s not out of the question that the convention could repeat in Nashville in 2016. “I would say it’s a possibility. I can anticipate that we will look at the potential to return. We’re very excited that the city, Mayor Dean, Music City Music Council, our sister trade groups and unions and membership organizations in Nashville have all been so supportive and welcoming. We couldn’t feel more welcomed to be coming to Nashville.”
Instrumental Virtuoso Johnny Gimble Passes
/by Robert K Oermann“Johnny Gimble is one of the greatest musicians that ever lived,” Willie Nelson once said. “I’m his biggest fan.”
The 88-year-old Gimble was considered one of the best fiddlers in history, and he was also accomplished on mandolin, tenor banjo and guitar. He was a member of Bob Wills’ famed Texas Playboys band, a renowned fiddle instructor, a prolific recording artist and a session musician who played on hits by everyone from Merle Haggard to George Strait.
He won five CMA Awards as Instrumentalist of the Year and nine ACM Awards as Fiddler of the Year. He was given a National Heritage Fellowship by the National Endowment for the Arts in 1994. He won Grammy Awards in 1993 and 1995 for recordings with Asleep at the Wheel.
On Saturday’s Grand Ole Opry show, Connie Smith dedicated her 1971 hit “Where Is My Castle” to him, noting that Gimble had played on her original single of the song as well as on her 1972 hit “If It Ain’t Love.”
Gimble can also be heard on Strait’s swing hit “Right Or Wrong” (1984), Marty Robbins’ debut chart topper “I’ll Go On Alone” (1952), Haggard’s iconic “If We Make It Through December” (1973), the immortal Wills tune “Faded Love” (1950), Conway Twitty’s controversial “You’ve Never Been This Far Before” (1973) and hundreds of other well-known country records.
Johnny Gimble was born in Tyler, TX in 1926 and was performing on local radio with his brothers by his early teens. He was soon backing The Shelton Brothers and Jimmie Davis on KWKH in Shreveport, LA.
After Army service during World War II, he resumed his music career. He joined The Texas Playboys in 1949, and by the early 1950s, was performing on recording sessions in Dallas for Robbins, Lefty Frizzell and Ray Price.
He worked in construction and as a barber while maintaining music jobs. He joined the staff band at ABC-TV’s Five Star Jubilee in Springfield, MO in 1961. Gimble moved to Nashville in 1968. The next decade was his most prolific, since he appeared on more than 200 country-star albums.
Smith was so enthralled with his wildly inventive playing on “If It Ain’t Love” that she sent a letter to disc jockeys to tell them who the fiddler on her record was.
Gimble moved back to Texas and joined Willie Nelson’s band in 1979. He then became an icon of the Lone Star State music scene. He worked with Asleep at the Wheel and many other Austin artists. He also formed the Texas Swing Band. The group made the country charts in 1983 with Ray Price singing lead.
He appeared in Nelson’s 1980 film Honeysuckle Rose and portrayed his former boss Bob Wills in 1982’s Honky Tonk Man, starring Clint Eastwood. Gimble was also a regular on TV’s Hee Haw, on NPR’s A Prairie Home Companion and on PBS’s Austin City Limits.
His albums include Fiddlin’ Around (1974), Texas Dance Party (1976), Honky Tonk Hits (1976), Still Swingin’ (1976), More Texas Dance Hall Favorites (1981), I Saw the Light (1981), Swingin’ the Standards (1981), The Texas Fiddle Connection (1981), My Kinda Music (1984), Still Fiddlin’ Around (1988), Under the X in Texas (1992), A Case of the Gimbles (2004) and Celebrating With Friends (2009).
Johnny Gimble suffered the first of a series of strokes in 1999. But he continued to teach and perform.
Funeral arrangements have not been announced.
Little Big Town Adds Fall Run To ‘The Pain Killer Tour’
/by Jessica NicholsonLittle Big Town has added 17 shows to The Pain Killer Tour, including stops in Washington, North Carolina, South Carolina, Illinois, Florida, and more. The Pain Killer Tour‘s fall leg launches Oct. 8 in Bemidji, Minn.’s Sanford Center, and wraps Nov. 22 in Spokane, Wash.
Tickets for the fall run go on sale Friday, June 5 at 10 a.m. local time. The tour is produced by AEG Live/The Messina Group. For more information, visit littlebigtown.com.
THE PAIN KILLER TOUR – FALL 2015:
10/8 Bemidji, MN Sanford Center
10/9 Ames, IA Stephens Auditorium
10/10 Milwaukee, WI Riverside Theatre (On Sale Now)
10/15 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
10/16 Greenville, SC Bon Secours Wellness Arena
10/17 St. Augustine, FL St. Augustine Amphitheatre (On Sale Now)
10/22 Bismarck, ND Bismarck Events Center
10/23 Rapid City, SD Barnett Arena
10/24 Brookings, SD Swiftel Center
10/30 Bloomington, IL US Cellular Coliseum
11/12 Missoula, MT Adams Center (On Sale Now)
11/13 Boise, ID Taco Bell Arena
11/14 Portland, OR Keller Auditorium
11/17 Kelowna, BC Prospera Place (On Sale Noon 6/5)
11/19 Abbottsford, BC Abbottsford Centre
11/20 Seattle, WA Paramount Theater
11/21 Spokane, WA INB Performing Arts Center
Date Set For 2016 Grammys
/by Eric T. ParkerThe eligibility year for Music’s Biggest Night is Oct. 1, 2014, to Sept. 30, 2015.
Grammy Week — a weeklong series of cultural events culminating with Music’s Biggest Night — will again feature celebrations of music, education and philanthropy, including the Entertainment Law Initiative luncheon, the Producers & Engineers Wing event, the annual MusiCares Person of the Year tribute, the Special Merit Awards Ceremony & Nominees Reception, and Clive Davis and The Recording Academy’s Pre-Grammy Gala, among other events.
This year’s 57th Grammys drew 27 million viewers. A combined viewership of more than 40 million in the U.S. alone tuned in for the 57th telecast, A Very GRAMMY Christmas, and the star-studded Stevie Wonder: Songs In The Key Of Life — An All-Star Grammy Salute.