Our Country RoadCountry Music news and reviews

For the fourth consecutive week the #1 song on the Billboard Hot Country Chart belongs to Miranda Lambert and “The House That Built Me”. Miranda doesn’t want to take credit for the beautiful song. “It’s the lyrics that deserve the credit,” Miranda says of the song, which was written by Allen Shamblin and Tom Douglas. “It’s an amazing song, and I am so honored to have recorded it.” Miranda is facing a lot of stiff competition on the chart for next week.

Coming in at #2 is Jason Aldean with his latest single, “Crazy Town”. Aldean is looking for his fourth consecutive #1 single as his career continues to work its way to superstardom. In the #3 spot this week is Brad Paisley with “Water“. Brad spent time in the UK this week promoting the release of his “American Saturday Night” album in the UK and putting on two sold out shows. The rest of the Top 5 is the same as last week with Luke Bryan and Clay Walker switching positions with their latest hit songs.

The only newcomer to the Top 10 this week is Zac Brown Band with their single, “Free”. ZBB is looking to notch their 4th #1 single from their debut album, “Foundation”. The only song to enter the Top 20 this week is from Lady Antebellum. “Our Kind of Love” jumped up to #17 this week and had the Most Audience Increase of the week.

Four new songs enter the chart this week:
#55 Randy Rogers Band – “Too Late For Goodbye”
#56 Bomshel – “Just Fine”
#57 Steel Magnolia – “Just By Being You (Halo and Wings)”#58 George Strait – “The Breath You Take”
Check out Bomshel’s latest single “Just Fine”.

Tonight, GAC is giving country music fans a chance to see how Brad Paisley was able to regroup following the horrific floods in Nashville. Most of Paisley’s gear was underwater and his “H2O Tour” was set to open in a week. Follow around Brad in the days leading up to the opening night of his blockbuster tour and see how it all came together amidst the terrible tragedy that befell Nashville and Tennessee. Check out a sneak peak at GACTV.com.

Air Times:
* June 21, 2010 10:00 PM ET
* June 22, 2010 2:00 AM ET
* June 22, 2010 10:30 AM ET
* June 22, 2010 5:30 PM ET
* June 22, 2010 9:30 PM ET

Texas has caught a lot of heat over education in their state lately. Their new social studies curriculum has been called a conservative plot and now Brad Paisley has drawn the ire of one Texas High School. Paisley’s “Time Well Wasted” album inspired the theme and title for the Plainview High School 2010 yearbook. The yearbook even features the signature melting clocks from the album cover.

Anyone familiar with Brad Paisley and his music is aware that he is known for his sarcasm, especially in the lyrics to his songs. Supposedly, the students who put the yearbook together were going for the same kind of humor. The teachers at the high school were not amused. The students who created the theme claim that the theme is simply a Paisley-inspired use of wordplay, truly meaning that their time in high school has been well spent, and that the angry teachers have taken the whole thing way too literally. Yearbook advisor Nicole Jackson resigned due to the fallout.

This is a great story. Brad Paisley’s sarcasm strikes again. Teachers taking themselves too seriously and students who think they are funnier then they are. Ah yes….high school drama!!!!

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Wow, what an amazing night in honor of the career of Brooks and Dunn. CBS and the Academy of Country Music did a great job of bringing all the stars out to salute the greatest duo in country music. The show was rocking from the get go and didn’t stop until Brooks and Dunn along with all their friends closed out the night with, “Play Something Country”.

If you chose to watch the series finale of “Lost” over the Brooks and Dunn Tribute Concert, you may have made a mistake, but you can get a look at the amazing performances below. Videos are from Carrie Underwood, Taylor Swift, Sugarland and Lady Antebellum. Sugarland’s rendition of “Red Dirt Road” is probably my favorite performance of the night. Just amazing. We will update them as we find them. Just found George Strait, Miranda Lambert, Brad Paisley and Faith Hill….don’t miss these great performances. What was your favorite performance of the night???

Forbes Magazine has a great article on the top earning country music stars. The article talks about the stability of the country music industry comparatively to the rest of the genres. It also talks about fan loyalty and dedication to artists that continue year after year. Kenny Chesney took the top earning spot followed by Toby Keith. Taylor Swift, with the help of her massive “Fearless Tour”, made a huge move this past year and finished #3. The only real surprise was Carrie Underwood coming in at #10. I would have expected her to be higher on the list. Here is an excerpt from the article. Fans should definitely head over to Forbes Magazine and read the entire piece.

“Unlike success on the coasts, fame in Nashville seems to come with an irrevocable ticket into the hearts and wallets of country fans who, like the heroes of a sad song, are in it for the long haul.”

“Their loyalty is one big reason why Nashville seems to be a time warp back to the days when the music industry was all-powerful and radio stations dictated who would become a star. Over the last year country has remained calm as the rest of the business continues to shed dollars and talent. Country album sales were down only 3% in 2009, compared with double-digit declines in rock, alternative and rap.”

Here is the Top 10 list of earners in country music. The exact monetary figure is an estimate. Check out a slide show of all of the Top 10 along with facts and figures on their earning at Forbes.com.

1. Kenny Chesney – $50 Million
2. Toby Keith – $48 Million
3. Taylor Swift – $45 Million
3. Rascal Flatts – $45 Million
5. Tim McGraw – $30 Million
6. Keith Urban – $28 Million
7. George Strait – $25 Million
8. Brad Paisley – $22 Million
9. Alan Jackson – $15 Million
10. Carrie Underwood – $13 Million

Friday, May 14th “Sing Me Back Home: A Journey Through Country Music” will re-open to the public as a permanent exhibit in the Country Music Hall of Fame. Among the many items added to the exhibit will be Carrie Underwood’s 2007 Grammy dress created by Badgley Mischka. Carrie’s dress is a jaw dropper but there are many other great items in the exhibit also. Other items include, Jamey Johnson’s 2004 Epiphone Masterbilt acoustic guitar, Brad Paisley’s Serratelli cowboy hat, Keith Urban’s 1954 Harmoney Stratotone electric guitar and Taylor Swift’s gown from the 2009 CMA Awards.

This will be a big weekend for the Hall of Fame. The curators of the exhibit will talk about their project on Friday. Then on Saturday, Naomi Judd and Joe Galante will be on hand to talk to fans at 1:30 pm. Check out all of the other great programs at the Country Music Hall of Fame.

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Laura Bell Bundy and Evan Farmer announced the final nominees for the CMT Music Awards on People.com today.

And here are the CMT Music Awards 2010 Nominees ….

Female Video of the Year:
* Miranda Lambert- “White Liar”
* Reba McEntire- “Consider Me Gone”
* Taylor Swift-”You Belong With Me”
* Carrie Underwood-”Cowboy Casanova”

Male Video of the Year:
* Jason Aldean-”The Truth”
* Billy Currington-”People Are Crazy”
* Toby Keith-”American Ride”
* Tim McGraw-”Southern Voice”
* Keith Urban-”Til Summer Comes Around”

Group Video of the Year:
* Gloriana-”How Far Do You Wanna Go”
* Lady Antebellum-”Need You Now”
* Rascal Flatts-”Here Comes Good Bye”
* Zac Brown Band-”Toes”

Duo Video of the Year:
* Brooks & Dunn: “Indian Summer”
* Steel Magnolia-”Keep on Lovin You”
* Sugarland-”Keep You”
* Sugarland-”Night Swimming/Joey”

USA WEEKEND BREAKTHROUGH VIDEO OF THE YEAR:
* Luke Bryan-”Do I”
* Easton Corbin-”A Little More Country than That”
* Steel Magnolia-”Keep on Lovin You”
* Laura Bell Bundy-”Giddy on Up”

Collaborative Video of the Year:
* Taylor Swift & Kellie Pickler-”Best Days of Your Life”
* Blake Shelton & Trace Adkins-”Hillbilly Bone”
* Jason Aldean & Bryan Adams-”Heaven”
* Kenny Chesney & Dave Matthews-”I’m Alive”

Video Director of the Year
*Deaton Flanigen (eligible videos include: Jason Aldean’s “The Truth” and Carrie Underwood’s “Temporary Home”)
*Chris Hicky (eligible videos include: Miranda Lambert’s “White Liar” and Justin Moore’s “Small Town USA”)
*Shaun Silva (eligible videos include: Kenny Chesney’s “Out Last Night” and Rascal Flatts’s “Summer Nights”)
*Roman White (eligible videos include: Taylor Swift’s “You Belong With Me” and Kellie Pickler’s “Best Days of Your Life”)

CMT Performance of the Year
*Lady Antebellum – “Lookin’ For A Good Time”
*Reba McEntire – “Consider Me Gone”
* Tim McGraw – “Southern Voice”
* Brad Paisley – “Then”
* Carrie Underwood – “Temporary Home”

Video of the Year:
* Toby Keith-”American Ride”
* Lady Antebellum-”Need You Now”
* Keith Urban-”Til Summer Comes Around”
* Jason Aldean-”The Truth”
* Miranda Lambert-”White Liar”
* Carrie Underwood-”Cowboy Casanova”
* Kenny Chesney-”Out Last Night”
* Zac Brown Band-”Toes”
* Brad Paisley-”Welcome to the Future”
* Taylor Swift-”You Belong with Me”

Fans can vote online at CMT.com through June 8 to determine the winners. The final nominees for Video of the Year will be announced at the beginning of the live show, and fans can then vote at CMT.com and via text message throughout the live broadcast (ET/CT only) to determine the night’s big winner.

Brad Paisley has shared his story about how this devastating Tennessee Flood has personally hit him. He has even taken a call from President Obama who wanted to talk to Paisley about the scene in Nashville. Paisley has lost most of his gear and equipment because of the damage that Soundcheck suffered in the flood. He recently shared more details in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. Here is an excerpt of the interview, but follow the link to read the rest of it.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How are you?
BRAD PAISLEY: I’m hanging in there. I’m all right. We were scheduled to start rehearsals Monday here, and obviously that’s pushed back. We were going to be in the [Bridgestone] arena, which ended up underwater. The top three places where we could set up our gear and rehearse and do it right were the arena, and the Municipal Auditorium, and somewhere else I’m trying to remember — and they all had water. It’s crazy. But they’re loading in today in another building. We’ve got about two-thirds of our gear. We can rent more of what we need. We’ll make it to the first gig. I don’t know if it’ll look exactly like I wanted it to, but it’ll be a show. We lost a lot of stuff over the weekend. My entire guitar rig that I take on the road — they’re all in the SoundCheck [storage] locker. We have yet to get in there but pretty much we know they’re done. [NOTE: Paisley has since posted photos of the swamped gear on his Twitter page.]

What’s SoundCheck, for those who don’t know?
It’s a rehearsal and storage facility for gear. But they also have rehearsal spaces, and there’s businesses in there — a casemaker, and a microphone company, and some other stuff. Everything that you see me play on a given night, other than my old ’60s Tele[caster] guitar — I’m talking effects rack, wireless unit, microphones, amps, speaker cabinet — everything was in there. So it’s all pretty much gone. This week, my guitar tech is spending money like a broker on the stock exchange floor, calling manufacturers. It’s an amazing amount of work.

The homestead is okay?
Yeah, we’re all right. There was a river going by my house all of a sudden. We don’t have any rivers out here. We’re up on a hill, thankfully. We lost trees. We have a pond that I’m in the middle of building that wasn’t ready to fill yet, but the dam was almost done. It was going to be four acres. It was dry as a bone on Friday night. By Saturday night, which was only halfway through the storm, it was full. It filled up a four acre pond. And then by Sunday it had been running over the entire night. In our garage, we had four inches of water, but it wasn’t any big deal.

Tickets for “Music City Keep on Playin’ –- A Benefit for Flood Relief,” will go on sale Monday, according to organizers. The lineup for the Nashville flood aid concert will include country music stars; Dierks Bentley, Kellie Pickler, Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley and Rodney Atkins.

The benefit will broadcast live next Sunday, May 16th, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. from the Ryman Auditorium on Great American Country Television (GAC). General admission tickets are $25. A limited number of gold circle tickets are $150, which include preferred seating and a commemorative Hatch Show event poster. There is a limit of four $25 tickets per person and two $150 tickets per person.

Tickets may be purchased online at www.ryman.com and www.opry.com, by phone at 1-800-SEE-OPRY (733-6779) or in person at the Ryman box office.

All money raised will go to the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, the organization processing and distributing the donations to middle Tennesseans in need. This event is being presented by GAC, the Nashville Convention and Visitors Bureau and Gaylord Entertainment.

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Country music stars continue to come out in support of their city. This time Brad Paisley talks to CNN’s Anderson Cooper about the flooding in Music City. Brad is one of the leaders of a May 16th benefit concert planned at the Ryman, which will be on GACTV.