Nashville singer/songwriter Todd Snider just released his latest album Agnostic Hymns & Stoner Fables on March 6, but he’s already got another full-length album on the way.

On Time As We Know It: The Songs of Jerry Jeff Walker, Snider is joined by producer Don Was and guests Kix Brooks, Elizabeth Cook, and Amy LaVere to pay tribute to his first music hero. The album is due for release April 24. Check out a few tracks here.

“I’ve always hoped I’d stay around long enough to get to make a record of Jerry Jeff Walker songs,” Snider says. “He’s the guy I saw at 19 and decided to try to be like. His are the first songs I learned.”

Snider is currently out on tour, and has a Ryman Auditorium date scheduled for June 2. Full dates here.

Track Listing:
1. Vince Triple-O Martin
2. Jaded Lover
3. Moon Child
4. Takin’ It As It Comes
5. Derby Day
6. Sangria Wine
7. Continuous Saga of the Bummer Or Is This My One Way Bus Ticket to Cleveland
8. Little Bird
9. Hill Country Rain
10. Railroad Lady
11. Laying My Life on the Line
12. Pissin’ in the Wind
13. Mr. Bojangles
14. Will There Be Any

ACM Lifting Lives has named a new Advisory Committee as well as announced the hiring of its new executive director, Lisa Huddleson.

This Advisory Committee is comprised of industry and non‐industry leaders who serve to make recommendations and/or provide key information and materials to the formal ACM Board of Directors. Advisory Committee members serve one‐year terms and are appointed by the ACM Lifting Lives officers. The new Advisory Committee includes:

•    Orly Adelson – dick clark productions
•    Erin Spahn Erenberg – Indiegogo
•    John Grady – Crush Management
•    Kerry Hansen – Big Enterprises
•    Steve Hauser – WME
•    Lorie Lytle – Community Volunteer
•    Eddie Montgomery – Montgomery Gentry
•    Kimberly Schlapman – Little Big Town
•    Leroy Shafer – Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo
•    James Stroud – R&J Records

Huddleson comes to the Academy from her position as the director of strategic philanthropy for the Walt Disney Company. She previously served as the executive director of the Dell Foundation and Dell Giving in Austin, Texas. In her new role, Huddleson will oversee grant management and strategic partnerships for the charity, while furthering the mission of the organization by improving lives through the power of music. The position is based out of the Academy’s headquarters in Encino, California and reports to the ACM Lifting Lives Board of Directors and Bob Romeo, CEO of the Academy of Country Music.  She can be reached at lisa.huddleson@acmcountry.com.

Lifting Lives is also partnering with Little Big Town and spotlighting Hunter Hayes’ personal passion for ending child hunger at this year’s ACM Awards on Sunday, April 1. During the Awards, Little Big Town will perform “Here’s Hope,” an original song co-written by Hayes. Hayes will introduce the powerhouse quartet, who will be joined onstage by the Clark County Children’s Choir.

“Lifting Lives is dedicated to improving lives through the power of music. By partnering with ConAgra Foods, Little Big Town, Hunter Hayes and consumers, we want to use a song in the telecast to raise awareness about how we can all help eradicate child hunger in the United States,” said Huddleson.

Ellie Lawson

“The simple but effective strategies that bands employ for customer-relationship management could serve as a lesson for brands,” says writer Rupal Parkeh in a Feb. 23,2012 Advertising Age article titled “What Brands Can Learn From Bands About Social Marketing.”

The article cites London-based folk/pop singer Ellie Lawson’s creation of a fan panel to evaluate her new material as it’s being created. For “the cost of three trips to Starbucks,” supporters can become part of this elite group which also insures a liner notes credit and copy of the finished album before it is released. “It’s a big experiment,” Lawson tells Ad Age. “I just love them engaging and getting back to me and telling me which bits of songs they like and which they don’t.”

Parkeh notes that, “The music business has flipped from a one-way, passive relationship with fans to a two-way collaborative dialogue.” He also applauds the entertainment industry for learning some of these valuable marketing lessons before many larger brands. In fact he advises the brands to pay attention and start experimenting in similar fashion.

New York-based Ryan Starr is another highlighted artist in the article who posts photos on Facebook from each city on his tour. He then asks fans to tag themselves in the photos. This not only engages fans, but the tags add a viral aspect to the experiment. Florence and the Machine searched for the band’s most influential fan. Friends and followers were asked to share the group’s new video. Those posts were measured for clicks and comments, points awarded and a winner chosen.

“What’s in it for the fan should always be top-of-mind,” says music industry vet Jeff Kempler now at agency SubRosa after spending time at Virgin and EMI Records. According to Kempler, artists need new tool sets to properly wield star power. “It began to matter whether they could also engage socially,” he states. “Do they update their Facebook page and populate content? Can they be as creative in the social-media space as they are in the studio?”

The T.J. Martell Foundation has revealed the presenters for its 2012 Honors Gala, an invitation-only event which will be held Monday, March 26 at the Hutton Hotel.

This year’s presenters include Dolly Parton, Kenny Chesney, Emmylou Harris, Frances Williams Preston, Vince Gill, Charlie Daniels, Lew Conner, Gov. Phil Bredesen, Nashville Chamber President Ralph Schulz and liver transplant recipient Julie Damon.

Singer/songwriter K.T. Oslin has also been added to the list of performers that includes Charlie Daniels, Ronnie Dunn, Emmylou Harris, Bruce Hornsby, Martina McBride and Vince Gill.

The gala recognizes individuals who have contributed to the two industries that have gained Nashville worldwide fame: entertainment and healthcare. Honorees include Joe Galante, Kris Kristofferson, Tom Cigarran and Dr. C. Wright Pinson.

The sold-out event begins at 5:30 pm with a cocktail reception and a premiere silent auction. The main program begins at 7 pm with dinner, the awards presentation, star-studded entertainment and a live auction.