Ashley Monroe (R) joined onstage by Jessi Alexander. Photo: Rick Diamond/Getty Images
It was a sizable night for Crush management’s
Ashley Monroe and young duo,
Striking Matches at Nashville’s 3rd & Lindsley, yesterday evening (Mar. 7). The 26-year-old Monroe performed with the confidence of a time-honored Opry veteran throughout her first Nashville show since Warner Nashville’s
Like A Rose release on Tuesday (March 5).
Before Monroe took the stage, talented duo, Striking Matches, warmed the crowd. The young couple displayed topnotch songwriting and instrumentals on titles including “Tell Me So” and “When the Right One Comes Along,” a track featured in ABC’s
Nashville.
All ears and eyes were to the stage when
John Grady introduced “the bell of the ball,” Monroe. The Warner recording artist stepped before the sold-out crowd like country music royalty, donning a nude asymmetrical flapper dress adorned with a shimmering necklace and heels, which she confessed belonged to her Pistol Annies’ bandmate
Miranda Lambert.
Bearing the torch for country music, Monroe sold the crowd from the first note. She continued to play through album tracks including the realistic “Two Weeks Late,” triumphant “Like A Rose,” mournful “Morning After” and hopeful “Used,” in addition to an updated old favorite, “Satisfied” and a rendition of Lambert’s No. 1 single, “Heart Like Mine,” which Monroe co-wrote.
With the backing of just four musicians, Monroe invited songwriting couple
Jessi Alexander and
Jon Randall to bolster background vocals on “You Got Me Now,” and “She’s Driving Me Out Of Your Mind.” Monroe’s Pistol Annies bandmate
Angaleena Presley joined her onstage for “Weed Instead of Roses.” The set’s closing number, “Monroe Suede,” had some in the audience dancing between aisles.
As expected, the illustrious concert was over all too soon, leaving the crowd longing for more of Monroe’s ornamental voice and heartbreaking lyrics. Perhaps some even wondered if it might not be too early for the old-soul to be inducted in the Hall of Fame.
Rising Women on the Row Breakfast To Feature Mary Ann McCready
/by Sarah SkatesMary Ann McCready
Mary Ann McCready, a founding principal and President of business management firm Flood, Bumstead, McCready & McCarthy, Inc., will be the special guest at MusicRow’s Rising Women on the Row ceremony. The second annual event will honor women who have made substantial contributions to the Nashville music industry early in their careers. This year’s honorees, Cyndi Forman, Beth Laird, Cindy Heath, Cindy Mabe, and Brandi Simms, will be feted at a sit-down breakfast and awards ceremony on Friday, March 22 at 8:30 a.m. at Maggiano’s. Read more about the honorees. Further information, including tickets for the event, can be found here.
McCready’s illustrious career includes being named one of Billboard’s top “Women In Music” in 2011 and 2012. She was the first female Vice President of National Sales and Marketing for a major record company and the first female recipient of the CMA’s Founding President’s Award. She is a Trustee for the Country Music Hall of Fame, Council Member for The W.O. Smith Community Music School and Audit Committee Member for MusiCares. McCready is the outgoing Chair of The Music City Music Council, and her other previous service positions include roles with Leadership Music, CMA, NARAS, the Better Business Bureau and Nashville Children’s Theatre. McCready also spearheaded the establishment of the CMA’s Horizon Award and The Irving Waugh Award of Excellence.
Crownover Blevins, P.C. Adds Paralegal To Staff
/by Jessica NicholsonMarie Gurgel
As they celebrate their move into the 54 Music Square East Building, music, media and business firm Crownover Blevins, P.C. welcomed Marie Gurgel to their firm as paralegal to lawyers Derek Crownover, Allen Blevins and Austen Adams.
Gurgel has over 12 years experience as a paralegal in estate planning, tax planning, probate, trust administration and corporate transactional work. Most recently, Gurgel worked at Kizer and Gammeltoft, a firm Blevins founded in Knoxville.
“We already knew that Marie was a star because she had previously worked with Allen Blevins at his estate and corporate practice in Knoxville, so we were delighted when she agreed to move to Nashville and join us,” said founding partner, Crownover.
“I am excited to have relocated to Nashville in order to have the opportunity to work with lawyers like Derek, Allen and Austen,” said Gurgel. “It’s a breath of fresh air to join a firm with such forward-thinking lawyers and staff. I am already enjoying the town, the clients and the work.”
Richey, Stevens, Griffin To Release Albums
/by Jessica NicholsonTracklisting for American Kid:
Go Wherever You Want To Go
Don’t Let Me Die In Florida
Ohio
Wild Old Dog
Mom & Dad’s Waltz
Faithful Son
Highway Son
That Kind of Lonely
Irish Boy
Get Ready Marie
Not A Bad Man
Gonna Miss You When You’re Gone
• • •
Tracklisting for Tate Stevens:
1. I Got This
Tate Stevens/Joe Diffie/Wade Kirby/Phil O’Donnell
2. Can’t Get Nothin’ Done
Tate Stevens/Ashley Gorley/Wade Kirby/Phil O’Donnell
3. Ride It Out
Tate Stevens/Shane Minor/David Lee Murphy
4. Power Of A Love Song
Jeremy Bussey/Bradley Gaskin/Marcus Franklin Johnson
5. Sweet
Kelly Garrett/Kendell Marvel/Tim Owens
6. That’s Where We Live
Carson Chamberlain/Wade Kirby/Phil O’Donnell
7. El Camino
Chris Hennessee/Donny Lowery
8. That’s How You Get The Girl
Dallas Davidson/Ben Hayslip/Rivers Rutherford
9. Ordinary Angels
Victoria Banks/Phil Barton/Emily Shackleton
10. The Last Thing I Do
David Lee Murphy/Kim Tribble
11. Holler If You’re With Me
Jeremy Bussey/Drew Davis
• • •
Richey, a former professional chef, got her first record deal at 37 and co-wrote two number one hits, including “Believe Me Baby I Lied” for Yearwood and “Nobody Wins” for Radney Foster. Other songwriting contributions include songs for Jim Lauderdale, Brooks & Dunn and Patty Loveless, Mary Chapin Carpenter and James Morrison. Her vocals also appear on albums by Yearwood, Carpenter, Gretchen Peters, Isbell, Rodney Crowell, William Shatner, Ryan Adams and Shawn Colvin.
LifeNotes: Claude King Dies
/by Jessica NicholsonCountry entertainer Claude King, an original member of the Louisiana Hayride, has died at age 90. King is best-known for his 1962 hit, “Wolverton Mountain,” (written by Merle Kilgore), which portrayed the fictional account of Clifton Clowers, a mountain man who closely guarded his daughter from potential admirers. King had additional country hits including 1961’s “Big River, Big Man” and “The Comancheros,” 1962’s “The Burning of Atlanta,” 1965’s “Tiger Woman” and 1969’s “All For The Love Of A Girl.”
King was a member of both ASCAP and the Screen Actors’ Guild (SAG). He appeared in the 1982 television miniseries The Blue and the Gray, and in several feature films.
Louisiana native King had celebrated his birthday and 67th wedding anniversary to wife, Barbara, just last month.
Ashley Monroe Displays Elegance, Heartbreak at Nashville Show
/by Eric T. ParkerAshley Monroe (R) joined onstage by Jessi Alexander. Photo: Rick Diamond/Getty Images
It was a sizable night for Crush management’s Ashley Monroe and young duo, Striking Matches at Nashville’s 3rd & Lindsley, yesterday evening (Mar. 7). The 26-year-old Monroe performed with the confidence of a time-honored Opry veteran throughout her first Nashville show since Warner Nashville’s Like A Rose release on Tuesday (March 5).
Before Monroe took the stage, talented duo, Striking Matches, warmed the crowd. The young couple displayed topnotch songwriting and instrumentals on titles including “Tell Me So” and “When the Right One Comes Along,” a track featured in ABC’s Nashville.
All ears and eyes were to the stage when John Grady introduced “the bell of the ball,” Monroe. The Warner recording artist stepped before the sold-out crowd like country music royalty, donning a nude asymmetrical flapper dress adorned with a shimmering necklace and heels, which she confessed belonged to her Pistol Annies’ bandmate Miranda Lambert.
Bearing the torch for country music, Monroe sold the crowd from the first note. She continued to play through album tracks including the realistic “Two Weeks Late,” triumphant “Like A Rose,” mournful “Morning After” and hopeful “Used,” in addition to an updated old favorite, “Satisfied” and a rendition of Lambert’s No. 1 single, “Heart Like Mine,” which Monroe co-wrote.
With the backing of just four musicians, Monroe invited songwriting couple Jessi Alexander and Jon Randall to bolster background vocals on “You Got Me Now,” and “She’s Driving Me Out Of Your Mind.” Monroe’s Pistol Annies bandmate Angaleena Presley joined her onstage for “Weed Instead of Roses.” The set’s closing number, “Monroe Suede,” had some in the audience dancing between aisles.
As expected, the illustrious concert was over all too soon, leaving the crowd longing for more of Monroe’s ornamental voice and heartbreaking lyrics. Perhaps some even wondered if it might not be too early for the old-soul to be inducted in the Hall of Fame.
Friday Snapshots
/by Sarah Skates• • • The 4th Annual Country Music is Love concert benefiting City of Hope was held Monday, Feb. 25 at 12th and Porter. The sold-out show featured acoustic performances by Greg Bates, Joel Crouse, Rose Falcon, The Henningsens, Chase Rice, Maggie Rose and Charlie Worsham. A songwriters round included Corey Crowder, Jillian Jacqueline, Carley Pearce and surprise guest Wade Bowen. Hosted by Miss Tennessee USA 2013 Brenna Mader, the event raised $3,200 for the fight against cancer and other life threatening diseases. Country Music Is Love is now hosting an eBay auction featuring items autographed by the artists. All proceeds will be donated to City of Hope.
Charlie Worsham performs at the Country Music Is Love Concert. Photo Credit: Claudia Kay Photos
• • • SOLID held its first (after)workshop of 2013 Tuesday night (March 5) at CMA. The radio promotion panel featured Wade Jessen, John Zarling, Jordan Petit, Neda Tobin and Anthony Allen.
Pictured (L-R): Sarah McGrady, SOLID President; Angela Lampton, Sunfire Entertainment, Moderator of the evening; John Zarling, Big Machine Label Group; Kent Wolfenbarger, SOLID Education Chair; Jordan Pettit, Warner Music Nashville; Neda Tobin, Southern Ground; Anthony Allen, WSIX; Wade Jessen, Billboard; and Brittany Adkins Schaffer, SOLID Education Co-chair
• • • CMA staffers surprised NHK World Country Programs producer and personality Takehisa Matsuda with the CMA International Country Broadcaster Award during a visit to the CMA offices on Tuesday, March 5. The award recognizes outstanding achievement by radio broadcasters outside the United States who have made important contributions for the development of Country Music in their country.
(L-R): CMA Board President-Elect Frank Bumstead, CMA Membership Committee Chairman Jeff Walker, CMA Director of Membership and Balloting Brandi Simms, Matsuda, CMA Board President Ed Hardy, and CMA Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications Sheri Warnke. Photo Credit: Christian Bottorff / CMA
MusicRow No. 1 Song
/by Eric T. ParkerWritten by Rodney Clawson, Jimmy Robbins, and Chris Tompkins, it is the lead single from his March 26 full-length studio album, Based on a True Story. His longtime producer Scott Hendricks helmed the release for Warner Music Nashville.
Shelton’s fans keep coming back for more. Not only did the reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year achieve stellar ratings for his 2012 primetime TV special, but he maintains a weekly relationship with fans as a coach on NBC’s The Voice. Last week (3/1) Shelton even made his acting debut on Reba’s Malibu Country on ABC.
Catch him while you can––it would be hard not to––as the singer prepares to co-host the 48th Annual ACM Awards for the third year before heading out on the Ten Times Crazier tour this summer.
BMG Names New Nashville Head
/by Sarah SkatesKos Weaver
Music publishing veteran Kos Weaver will join BMG as Executive Vice President to oversee the Nashville operations and continue to build and expand the company’s roster. Weaver will start the new role on March 15 and report directly to Laurent Hubert, President, Creative and Marketing at BMG Chrysalis North America.
Most recently, Weaver held the position of Vice President at Disney Music Publishing in Nashville and during his time there the office achieved eleven charting singles, with three No. 1’s, two Top 5’s and two Top 10’s. Prior to Disney, Weaver was Vice President of A&R at Warner/Chappell Music where he oversaw the creative staff.
Weaver joins BMG with nearly 30 years of experience in the music industry, beginning his career as a touring musician who later worked with and developed top songwriting and artist talent including Dave Berg, Jim Collins, Tim James, Wynn Varble, Brantley Gilbert (Valory Music Co.) and Canaan Smith (Mercury Records). Weaver also had publishing stops with Paul Overstreet and Reba McEntire’s Starstruck Writers Group.
Weaver commented, “I am very fortunate to join the BMG Chrysalis Nashville office in this position. Laurent Hubert and Hartwig Masuch are forward thinking music executives that I will certainly learn a great deal from. I look forward to working with the outstanding staff and writer roster that Darrell Franklin and Laurent have built.”
Laurent Hubert, President, Creative & Marketing, BMG Chrysalis North America added, “Kos has a distinguished track record of working with top music talent. I am confident his publishing expertise will further enhance our Nashville operations and will propel forward the careers of our extraordinary songwriters based there.”
Darrell Franklin has exited his role heading Nashville operations as Executive VP, but MusicRow’s Crystal Ball is flashing news of a possible joint venture between BMG and Franklin.
Charlie Cook On Air: The 10 Best Songs On Country Radio
/by contributorHere is a list of the 10 best songs on Country radio right now. Okay, according to me. What criteria did I use? If I turn up the radio when it comes on I give it points. If I sing along to it I give it more points. If I actually know the words that I am singing along to it gets even more points. That’s it. Oh, one more thing. I am going to list songs that are what radio programmers call recurrents along with what record companies refer to as currents.
10. “Sure Be Cool if You Did”—Blake Shelton (R. Clawson, C. Tompkins, J. Robbins). If you’re like most Country Music fans you look forward to Blake Shelton music. This one raced up the charts. Your Pretty Pink Lemonade Shooter. Come on wouldn’t you walk right up to a girl drinking that? A half ounce of Triple Sec, a half ounce of lemon vodka and 1 oz. of lemonade. That is a recipe for dancing on the bar, at minimum.
9. “I Drive Your Truck”—Lee Brice (J. Alexander, C. Harrington, J. Yeary). This one took me a couple of listens. About two minutes into the song you can begin to hear the pain in Lee’s voice. He really nails this song. You believe that this is real for him and his performance makes me stop and think about how I would respond in that situation. Driving the truck is a real salute.
8. “Merry Go ‘Round”—Kacey Musgraves (K. Musgraves, J. Osborne, S. McAnally). The best part of Country Music is that the writer’s use of the English language is unparalleled by other musical formats. This was not written in 15 minutes. Populating the Merry Go ‘Round with a number of Marys is not something that falls in your lap.
7. “Highway Don’t Care”—Tim McGraw/Taylor Swift (M. Irwin, J. Kear, B. Warren, B. Warren). In case you haven’t noticed, Scott Borchetta is a pretty smart guy.
6. “For You”—Keith Urban (K. Urban, M. Powell). Have you seen the video? Oh my gosh! If you aren’t absolutely moved by these lyrics go to 1:30 into the song and listen for the next 30 seconds.
5. “Fly Over States”—Jason Aldean (N. Thrasher, M. Dulaney). This took one listen. Growing up in the Midwest myself, and living in NY and LA I know what the coasters really think of the rest of the country. I also know that they are full of crap. I would have liked the song to be a little more biting on the topic but…
4. “Springsteen”—Eric Church (E. Church, J. Hyde, R. Tyndell). I will say right out, I am not a big Springsteen fan. I appreciate him but I went to one concert. At about 10 hours in, when I recognized only two songs, I knew that this wasn’t for me but I just insert Seger when Eric sings Springsteen and I am good to go.
3. “More Trucks than Cars”—Craig Morgan (C. Morgan, P. O’Donnell, C. Wiseman). Come on, I live in West Virginia. And have you been to a Wal-Mart parking lot recently? This is not just about Country Music fans. This is about ‘merica.
2. “Don’t Rush”—Kelly Clarkson/Vince Gill (B. Sanders, N. Hemby, L.D. Chapman). We now have a challenger for the best female voice on Country Music radio. Kelly wants to be part of the format but AC and Hot AC are not going to roll over. She is a VERY important part of those formats too. Honestly this became my favorite song from the first time I heard it. Kind of like love at first sight. Stopping every minute just because you’re in it is brilliant. I wish radio programmers would get on board more enthusiastically. I think many are missing what could be a song of the year candidate.
1. “She Cranks My Tractor”—Dustin Lynch (D. Lynch, B. Beavers, T. Nichols). I told you that being able to sing along was worth points. I am not too sure about 10 pounds of sugar in a five pound sack. That can easily get out of control. But seriously don’t you want a John Deere in the garage after hearing this song?
(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of MusicRow.)
No. 1 Party: Jake Owen's "The One That Got Away"
/by Jessica NicholsonPictured (back row, L-R): Sony/ATV Music Publishing’s Terry Wakefield, Sony Music Nashville Chairman and CEO Gary Overton, co-writer Jimmy Ritchey, Sony/ATV Music Publishing’s Tom Luteran, Jake Owen, BMI’s David Preston, co-writer Dallas Davidson and producers Joey Moi and Rodney Clawson; (front row, L-R): Universal Music Publishing’s Kent Earls, Morris Management’s Clint Higham and Universal Music Publishing’s Ron Stuve. Photo Credit: John Russell
Jake Owen celebrated his third consecutive No. 1 song, and his first No. 1 as a songwriter, during a celebration at BMI’s Nashville office yesterday (March 7). Hosted by BMI’s David Preston, the event honored Owen, along with “The One That Got Away” co-writers Dallas Davidson and Jimmy Ritchey, and the song’s producers Joey Moi and Rodney Clawson.
Presentations and awards were given by Morris Management’s Clint Higham, Sony/ATV Music Publishing’s Tom Luteran, Universal Music Publishing’s Kent Earls and Ron Stuve, CMA’s Brandi Simms, Country Radio Broadcaster’s Brad Hollingsworth and Avenue Bank’s Ron Cox, who donated funds on behalf of the songwriters to two organizations: Georgia Music Foundation and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
Owen gave ample credit to co-writer Ritchey, not only for co-writing “The One That Got Away,” but for Ritchey’s involvement in his career. “Jimmy believed in me,” said Owen, who brought his daughter Pearl with him onstage. “He brought me to BMI and introduced me to Keith Gale. He deserves a lot of credit. This is a town built upon people’s relationships and people helping people.” He also thanked his wife Lacey, along with Sony Music Nashville’s Chairman and CEO Gary Overton, and his radio promotion and management teams. He also asked the attendees to keep his father in their prayers; Owen’s father is currently in the Mayo clinic being treated for cancer.
Davidson was also quick to honor a plethora of people who have been there for him. “Thank God for all my blessings and letting me have this career. And for my wife Sarah, the one that didn’t get away,” he quipped. He also thanked Moi and Clawson, along with Owen’s management team, before thanking Ritchey. “Jimmy, I came to town and was a fan of yours. To be onstage and sharing this with you is a big deal to me.”