Recently in Country Category

Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley

On Wednesday ABC Television will air the 43rd annual CMA Awards. The event, once again hosted by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood, features live performances from, literally, the Who's Who of country music.

There are a dozen award categories that range from Artist of the Year to Musician of the Year, so needless to say, the CMAs have all the bases covered. Let's just jump right in and talk about the most popular of the categories for a minute, and who we think should win, shall we?

Country music went on a wild ride the past decade, a ride that took us to the honky-tonk, the Appalachian Mountains, where the blacktop ends, and to Small Town, U.S.A. The watered-down flavor of contemporary country music has been an issue for some time now, and for better or worse, a handful of young country artists have taken the genre more into the mainstream than ever.

In retrospect, it was a good 10 years for country music, where if nothing else, the viability of the format and the star power of its singers have never been stronger. We've tried our best to assemble the highlights, whether artistic or commercial. If we've overlooked your favorite, let us know in the comments box.

What a week for country music lovers. Rhapsody is bringing you brand-new music from some of today's hottest, most talked-about country stars a week before you'll hear it anywhere else. No kidding: we've got big names, bluegrass names and names you'll soon be acquainted with. So sit back, relax and let's listen to some music!

This morning Garth Brooks held a press conference at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville in which he announced he would dust off the ol ten-gallon and officially come out of retirement. Brooks, who retired at the top of his game in 2000 to spend more time with his three daughters, has only played a handful of shows in the past decade, most notably President Barack Obama's inauguration.

After the press conference this morning, Brooks and a handful of media boarded a plane heading to an "undisclosed" location. It is widely speculated that the group is headed to the Wynn casino hotel in Las Vegas, where he will announce a string of shows in 2010 at 3pm PST. The hotel's Encore Theater has not had a permanent headliner since the death of comedian Danny Gans, and coincidentally, the Wynn has said in a statement that it would be announcing a new music schedule soon.

But can Brooks, who has sold 113 million albums and is the best-selling solo musician in U.S. history, get back into a game that has changed dramatically in his absence? He responds, "I know this is a young industry, so I'm not sure I'll be welcomed back. But if the fans want me, I still want to pursue my music." Considering how quickly his five Los Angeles wildfire benefit dates in 2007 sold out, it's fair to say the demand for Garth Brooks hasn't diminished in his ten year hiatus.

Having sat on the sidelines for a decade, Brooks took advantage of the press conference to take the music industry to task, saying, "We need to take back the music." He added, "We don't realize how powerful we are. If the world goes silent for a day, we will realize how powerful we are. Athletics have got it right: until we unionize, we have no power."

To date, Brooks' digital catalog is available exclusively at WalMart. Hopefully his return signals a willingness to release his potent catalog to other digital outlets. However, he cautioned that his music would not be available digitally until the current music system, "gets it together."

One thing we know for certain, Garth Brooks will be the biggest thing to happen to Las Vegas since Elvis.

There's a lot of uncertainty out in the world today. Who knows exactly what is going to happen or when it's going to happen or who exactly it's going to happen to?

One thing's for sure, though. If Johnny Cash has recommended a list of essential songs, you sit down, you shut up and you start listening to those songs.

Back in 1973, the Man In Black gave his daughter, Rosanne Cash, a list of 100 songs that he thought she needed to know. Being a smart cookie, Rosanne listened to those songs and studied them over the years.


Now, Rosanne, a fine singer-songwriter in her own right, has whittled that list down to 12 songs and put out what is easily one of the best albums of 2009 -- The List. In her Rhapsody review, Linda Ryan, our country editor, writes, "It's difficult not to fall hard for the Springsteen-featured 'Sea of Heartbreak,' the gentle honky-tonk of 'Miss the Mississippi and You' and the Elvis Costello duet 'Heartaches by the Numbers.'"

One of the great things about Rhapsody is the depth of our catalog -- over 8 million songs strong -- that allows you to not only listen to the latest music, but also virtually any music from every period. Once you sign up for Rhapsody, it is at your fingertips.

And while you should definitely check out Rosanne's album, I went ahead and searched out 12 earlier versions of the songs on Rhapsody. These are tough, timeless songs with a sentimental streak, full of heartbreak, humor and resilience. The list includes rough, raw recordings as well as more polished, radio-ready hits of the past.

Listen in, take notes and either get reacquainted with some old friends or make some new ones. Johnny Cash was right: these are songs that you'll need at some point in your life. Rosanne Cash does the songs -- and her father -- proud.

Miranda Lambert: all the guys love her and all the girls want to be her.

Recently I had the opportunity to meet Miranda when she opened for Kenny Chesney. My legs were like jelly while I was waiting in the photo line, and I realized I would need to have something to say when my turn came. I mean, yikes! What does a girl say to Miranda Lambert? "Hi, I like your hair. What products do you use?" That might work on some of the blondes currently gracing the country chart, but I don't think it would work with Miranda.

What I would have liked to say was, "I love that you do benefits for animal charities," and then go on to talk forever about dogs and my time working at a veterinary clinic and the animals I adopted. And maybe I'd sneak in something about the Twitter war between her boyfriend, Blake Shelton, and PETA ... or not. Or I could ask her how she got to be the spokesperson for Cotton and say how envious I am of her closet! And of course I'd ask if she got a free wardrobe out of it, 'cause her closet is jam-packed with brightly colored, cool-looking clothes. Maybe I would tell her how cool it was that she and Blake came to Rhapsody's Music Fest party in Nashville to support her Texas homeboy, Jack Ingram. And maybe, if all of that went well, I would tell her how much I love her music and what a joy it is to hear her songs on the radio. But no, I didn't get to do any of that.

Instead I mumbled, "Hi, I'm Linda. I'm the country music editor at Rhapsody," and before I could say anything else, the photographer snapped our picture and I was ushered on. Sigh. But I did get a cool picture (above) out of it.

Ask much of the civilized world to name an album sequel with "blue" in its title, and the first thing out of their mouth is going to be Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3. Ask the Classic Rock Crate Digger, however, and it’s going to be John Fogerty's The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides Again, a new collection of vintage country and roots-rock covers that rivals Jigga’s new joint when it comes to pushing product based on the number of high-profile cameos. Check it: there’s the Boss; drummer extraordinaire and Mellencamp cohort Kenny Aronoff; media mogul/producer Lenny Waronker; Eagles Don Henley and Timothy B. Schmit; Americana heavyweight Buddy Miller; and Herb "I've Played with Just About Every Major Country Rocker and Bluegrass Heavyweight of the Last Four Decades" Pedersen.*

Country music fans were shocked recently when, after 20 years of making hits together, Brooks & Dunn announced they have decided to call it a day. Dates have yet to be announced for the 2010 farewell tour, dubbed The Last Rodeo, but the two have confirmed they will part ways at the end of it.

After struggling as solo artists, Louisiana-born Kix Brooks and Texas-born Ronnie Dunn joined forces in 1990 at the behest of music-label executive Tim DuBois. To everyone's surprise, the combination worked, and in 1991 Brooks & Dunn hit the charts for the first time with their debut album, Brand New Man. It didn't take long for the two to become the biggest-selling duo in country music history. According to Nielsen SoundScan, Brooks & Dunn have sold 22.3 million albums in the United States.

The twosome have topped the U.S. country singles chart 20 times with tunes such as "Only in America," which was famously used by both the 2008 Democratic and 2004 Republican campaigns; "My Maria," which was Billboard's No. 1 Country Music Single of the Year in 1996; and "The Long Goodbye," which was later covered by Irish pop star Ronan Keating.

Brooks & Dunn's phenomenal success has set a high bar in the world of country music, and they will be sorely missed. Their new two-disc set, #1s ... and Then Some, ensures Brooks & Dunn will go out in a blaze of glory as it includes a career-encompassing 23 No. 1 singles and fan favorites, as well as current radio hits "Indian Summer" and "Honky Tonk Stomp." This expansive collection will certainly cement the duo's place in music history -- as well in the hearts of country music fans.

We couldn't let the release of the dynamic duo's swan song pass without honoring them on Rhapsody: consider this playlist a tip of the ol' ten-gallon hat to Brooks & Dunn.

So what's there to celebrate this Labor Day, anyway? That the unemployment rate is still going up, just not quite as fast as it was going up a few months ago? The songs on the playlist below are split between how hard it can be to find work, and how demoralizing jobs can be once you finally find one. Maybe a few will even make you hope unions aren’t dead. But here's hoping they all help you enjoy your day off.

• The Silhouettes, "Get a Job" (1958): Philly gospel singers turned doo-woppers, with the most topical song of rock 'n' roll's first decade. Their girlfriends nag them and claim they're lying, but no gigs can be found in the want ads.

• Tennessee Ernie Ford, "Sixteen Tons" (1955): Country-boogie dirge about digging your way toward hell for the straw boss, only to die owing your soul to the company store.

• John Rich, "Shuttin' Detroit Down" (2009): A great city approaches the breaking point -- bosses collect bonuses, calloused assembly-liners lose pensions. The singer's confused politics come off as sincere for once.

• Bachman-Turner Overdrive, "Takin' Care of Business" (1974): Canuck buffalo rock about racing to catch the 8:15 into the daily grind again and wondering if self-employment is a way out.

• Martha & the Muffins, "Echo Beach" (1980): "My job is very boring, I'm an office clerk." So Martha takes a New Wave holiday, or at least dreams of one.

• Patti Smith, "Piss Factory" (1974): Another dirge (not to mention the artist's first and best single) about monotony and deadening heat and contemptible toothless co-workers telling you to slow down, when speeding up is the only way you know to escape.

• The Roches, "Mr. Sellack" (1979): The politics of groveling to get your crummy job back -- getting down on your hands and knees, literally, to scrub behind the steam table.

• Dolly Parton, "9 to 5" (1980): Karl Marx's favorite No. 1 single of the rock era. "It's a rich man's game, no matter what they call it, and you spend your life putting money in his wallet."

• Utah Phillips, "Joe Hill" (1984): A legendary labor organizer recites the Wobblies' union anthem, but first tells even better stories about his own life of work.

• Johnny Paycheck, "Take This Job and Shove It" (1977): A longhaired country outlaw walks out of the factory after 15 years, paycheck or no.

The other night I wandered out to the front porch. There, with a sixer of Bell’s Oberon at my feet, I cranked a little New Riders of the Purple Sage and watched the fireflies light up the trees late into the night. It was my own private send-off to John “Marmaduke” Dawson, who died from stomach cancer on July 21 in Mexico. Apparently, the former N.R.P.S. frontman had been living south of the border for quite some time. I always suspected Dawson was battling a serious illness. YouTube footage of a one-off appearance with the New Riders in 2001 shows a tiny man, frail and weak, who looked far older than 56.

Dawson, who co-wrote the American Beauty classic “Friend of the Devil,” was one of the elders of the Grateful Dead tribe. Jerry Garcia, Robert Hunter and he were pals in the mid-1960s, years before Haight-Ashbury and the whole acid rock/hippie thing. Back then, they all hung around Palo Alto and picked old folk music: jug-band tunes, bluegrass, country blues, etc. Another member of the inner circle was guitarist David Nelson, and after the Dead became a national act, Dawson and he began developing a new sound: psychedelic country rock, aka cosmic American music: a mix of hippie vibes, Bakersfield honky-tonk and vintage rockabilly.

Though it's Los Angeles legends like Gram Parsons, the Byrds, Gene Clark and the Flying Burrito Brothers who receive the bulk of the credit for pioneering cosmic American music, the New Riders’ contributions cannot be overlooked. Featuring Garcia on pedal steel and Mickey Hart on drums, 1971’s New Riders of the Purple Sage is every bit as seminal as The Gilded Palace of Sin, Sweetheart of the Rodeo and The Fantastic Expedition of Dillard & Clark. In fact, early tunes like “Dirty Business” and “Gypsy Cowboy” find the New Riders diving into the psychedelic void far deeper than their Southern California counterparts.

From Left: Jerry Douglas, Alison Krauss, Brad Paisley

On Tuesday, July 21, Brad Paisley, Alison Krauss and Charley Pride played to a very special audience. As part of the White House Summer Music series, the country music luminaries were in charge of serenading the First Lady and President Barack Obama. “I know folks think I’m a city boy, but I do appreciate listening to country music,” President Obama said as he introduced the concert. And what followed was a series of emotional performances from some of country’s biggest icons.

Believe it or not, the year hits the six-months-gone mark this week. And while there's no point in claiming these are the absolute best singles of the first half of 2009 (left "Boom Boom Pow" and "Poker Face" off, for instance, figuring you already know what they sound like), they're still 25 really good ones. Lots of rap, lots of country, lots of soul. Not a ton of "rock", though -- maybe because most of the non-rock rocks just fine.

Country music's reigning king and queen, Brad Paisley and Taylor Swift, have released new music this week, each adding another jewel to his or her individual crown.

Swift pulls off a cover of Tom Petty's FM classic anthem "American Girl" with aplomb. Gone is her little-girl voice, and in its place is a gritty, toughened sound that fits the tone of this classic remarkably well.

Paisley's eighth release, American Saturday Night, finds the singer at his most personal than ever. The country crooner sings about his children, marriage and family tree on songs such as "Anything Like Me," "She's Her Own Woman" and "Back to the Future." It's an intimate glimpse into his world, but don't expect Paisley to always play the straight man. Songs like "You Do the Math" and "Pants" will tickle your funny bone as well as your ears.

Check out both releases in the playlist below, and listen to more of this week's new country releases.

Since nearly all of Rhapsody descended upon Nashville for the CMA Music Festival and the CMT Music Video Awards, we decided to throw a helluva party -- and boy, did we ever. Young and old alike met down at the Rutledge and were treated to one special night in Nashville.

The doors opened at 8:15, and the line, which was down to the middle of the block, started moving to let people into the cool, air-conditioned comfort of the Rutledge. It didn't stay cool for long, because CMT's Can You Duet winners Caitlin & Will took the stage and treated the early crowd to a sizzling set. It's amazing how these two were more or less thrown together in the competition, and yet complement each other so well. And hey, is that a Dave Matthews Band tattoo Caitlin sports on her forearm? Why yes, it is! Highlights included the duo's radio hit, "Address in the Stars," and their cover of Keith Urban's "Stupid Boy."

Taylor Swift and Def Leppard Rock the CMT Awards

This year's CMT Music Awards was jam-packed with talent and plenty of surprises. Alongside performances by Dierks Bentley, Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban and some youngster named Taylor Swift, the show included appearances by Def Leppard, T-Pain and the B-52s.

Swift, who took home awards for Best Female Video and Video of the Year, opened the show with a pre-produced piece that had her chatting with host Bill Engvall as a series of her dreams were acted out: Taylor on the Starship Enterprise; Taylor rapping with T-Pain; Taylor fighting Engvall for hosting duties to the 2009 CMT Music Video Awards. And while that last dream proved to never come true, it didn't matter; the night still belonged to Ms. Swift.