Author Archives: HaleighT

About HaleighT

HaleighT grew up in rural Sallisaw, Oklahoma, completely immersed in the country music lifestyle. She works with CMNB as our field assignment journalist, gathering concert reviews and exclusive interviews from every artist she can. When she's not out on the road, she's in our web studio filming "Takin' a Break With HaleighT" a short weekly opinion and news segment that launched in 2011.

Alan Jackson: Music For Mineral

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Alan Jackson Takes His Show To A High School Parking Lot! Alan Jackson will take his show to the small town of Mineral, VA – population 490 – on Sunday, May 20 at 8:00pm in the parking lot of Louisiana County High School. In an effort to help raise funds for the Louisiana Education Foundation (LEF) tickets for Alan Jackson: Music For Mineral live concert event went on sale April 4 at 10:00 am ET. The concert/fundraising event is being presented by Smithfield Packing. Money raised by the event will be used to assist the county public schools in their rebuilding efforts as a result of an August 2011 earthquake. The Louisiana County High School is currently condemned after earthquake damage. In addition to the concert, The Alan Jackson Charity Golf Classic will be held at The Royal Virginian Golf Course on the morning of Saturday, May 19. For details on registering as a player or team, please visit www.theroyalvirginian.com. All proceeds will go to the LEF. Jackson’s concert is the culmination of a national campaign. Fans across the country had two months last fall to vote, with the winning city receiving a concert from Jackson. The little town of Mineral collected over 31,000 votes and won the opportunity to host the concert. Mineral continues to repair and rebuild after they were the epicenter of a rare East Coast earthquake that hit on August, 23 2011.

Trace Adkins Smoked Sausage

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Local Owned Family Business Introduces Trace Adkins Hightower’s Smoked Sausage. Trace Adkins has partnered with a Louisiana based, family-run business, Hightower Enterprises LLC to bring Trace Adkins Hightower’s Country Smoked Sausage exclusively to Brookshire Grocery Store. “When you think about home cooking, you think about family and tradition. The Hightower’s family business was a part of my family’s meals growing up. I’m happy to join them as they expand beyond Louisiana to all the families served by Brookshire Grocery Company stores.” -Adkins Hightower’s outstanding taste comes from their long-term commitment to a secret, traditional recipe that calls for no add water, a great balance of spices and the true flavor of high quality USA meat. Brookshire Grocery Company is the product launch exclusive retailer for Trace Adkins Hightower’s Smoked Sausage

Happy Birthday Merle Haggard

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WE WANT TO WISH A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE LEGEND, MERLE HAGGARD! Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear Merle Haggard, Happy Birthday to you!!!! From all of us here at CMNB, we want to wish the “one and only rebel child” a very special Happy Birthday! Here’s to The Hag! Cheers!! In honor of this special occasion…here is a classic of his…”Working Man Blues!” ENJOY!

Jason Boland Speaks Of Rancho Alto Album

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Last week I was very fortunate to have a conversation with Jason Boland about his album Rancho Alto, among other things. Rancho Alto is Jason Boland’s 6th studio album and will definitely not be his last! Boland is a writer who stays true to himself when creating music. You will never find him playing a song for the sake of making a dollar, he plays what he feels. Many of his songs have a deeper meaning than one might think. “Mary Ellen’s Greenhouse” is a song dedicated to the mother of a couple of his life long friends. She would let them practice and find their way with music whenever they wanted and this song is a “tribute to her and the people who encourage and believe in young musicians.” “Down Here In the Hole” touches on the fact that we still have people getting trapped in mining holes…real problems. “Farmer’s Luck” gives us a bit of Oklahoma history and “Obsessed” is just a damn good song! The album as a whole is definitely not the kind of material that is on the CMT or GAC country countdowns today, but that is what makes this worth listening to! Jason Boland & The Straggler’s use of pedal steel, telecaster, fiddle, mandolin and their all together twang isn’t an act by any means. They play in this style because it is what they grew up on and more important it is what they enjoy! If you were to take a look back at some of Boland’s previous albums, you would be sure to find some very raw, authentic lyrics. “Proud Souls,” “Somewhere Down In Texas” and “Comal County Blues” are just a small number of songs that have hit home with so many of his fans. A week ago today, Boland took the stage at George’s Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville and wowed the crowd with every strum of his guitar! Whether he was playing newer tracks from Rancho Alto or taking people down memory lane with “Tennessee Whiskey” and “Pearl Snaps,” the man had the room buzzing with energy! One very exciting moment of the night was when Boland played new, brand new, songs that will be a part of his next album. “Electricville,” will be one of the tracks on the next project that could be available next spring. He said as of right now, the album looks like it is going to have a kind of folk-groove to it! For those of you who have experienced one of his live shows, you’re in luck, because he will be at a venue near you soon! For those of you haven’t, well do yourself a favor and check him out! Tonight he will be in Lubbock, tomorrow in Amarillo and Saturday he will hit the stage at Billy Bob’s in Ft. Worth, Texas! With spring here and summer just around the corner, Boland will be attending many festivals, rodeos and more! Rancho Alto Track Listing 1. Down Here In the Hole 2. Continue reading Jason Boland Speaks Of Rancho Alto Album→

Jack Ingram To Be At 4th Annual Celebrity Softball Jam

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Jack Ingram Adds To The List Of Participants Playing In The 4th Annual Celebrity Softball Jam! Texas based singer/songwriter Jack Ingram joins a long list of musicians, athletes and celebrities who have signed on to play ball in Reckless Kelly’s 4th Annual Celebrity Softball Jam. The game will be held in Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas on April 22. Joining Ingram at CSJ this year will be fellow musicians Kevin Fowler, Los Lonely Boys, Hayes Carll, Wade Bowen, Micky & The Motorcars, Charlie Robison, Bruce Robison, Kelly Willis, Cody Canada & The Departed, Bo Bice and many more! A number of former professional baseball and basketball players will also be involved including Kevin Millar, Brett Boone, Richie Sexon and former San Antonio Spur Bruce Bowen! Proceeds from the event will benefit Little League Baseball in the Austin area, as well as The Miracle League. Everyone is encouraged to go out and enjoy what is to be the best CSJ yet!

Reckless Kelly To Sing National Anthem On Opening Day

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Reckless Kelly Will Be Singing The National Anthem At The Ballpark In Arlington On Opening Day! Friday, April 6, Reckless Kelly will have the honor of singing the National Anthem to open the 2012 Major League Baseball season for the Texas Rangers at The Ballpark in Arlington. The game, which begins at 1:05 pm CT, will be played versus the Chicago White Sox. Check your local listings for availability and be sure to watch the Texas Rangers start the season!

Lionel Richie’s Tuskegee Debuts At No. 1

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Lionel Richie’s Tuskegee Debuts At No. 1 On The Billboard Country Albums Chart And Becomes His Highest-Charting Album In 26 Years! Lionel Richie’s Tuskegee debuts at No. 1 this week on the Billboard Country albums chart and is his highest-charting album since 1986. With sales of over 198,892, it is also the best-selling debut album by any country artist this year. Tuskegee is a collection of 13 of his international hits performed as duets with today’s country stars! The album debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Top 200, only behind Madonna. “I am ecstatic! These songs are like my children, so I am overwhelmed that they are being embraced by several generations of music lovers. I am so grateful to all of my duet partners for bringing their own distinctive styles and personalities to this album and interpreting these songs in a fresh new way.” -Richie His duet partners on this album include Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton, Shania Twain, Willie Nelson, Billy Currington, Darius Rucker, Jimmy Buffett, Little Big Town, Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, Kenny Rogers, Rascal Flatts and Jennifer Nettles. “I haven’t had this much fun in the studio since the Commodores. I will treasure the memories of working with these country stars for the rest of my life. I’ve made so many brand-new old friends from this album.” -Richie Richie and Billy Currington performed “Just For You” on Jimmy Kimmel Live last night and will perform TODAY on The Talk on CBS! Here is the clip of the performance from last night!

Criag Morgan On Conan

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Craig Morgan Makes His Debut On Conan! As Craig Morgan’s single, “This Ole Boy,” climbs the charts, he is preparing to make his debut appearance on the late night talk show Conan. The episode will air on Wednesday, April 11 at 11 pm ET/10 CT on TBS. In recent weeks Morgan has made his scripted acting debut on Lifetime’s hit drama Army Wives and dominated at the NRA Country/ ACM Celebrity Shoot! This Ole Boy, Morgan’s first album in three years, has been given much praise by some of country music’s toughest critics! Be listening for “This Ole Boy” on your local radio stations!

ACM Concert – Salute To The Military

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The ACM Concert – Salute To The Military Raised A Large Amount of Money To Support Our Military! The ACM Concert – Salute to the Military, presented by NRA was a huge success! Some of country music’s hottest stars came out to perform for a great cause. The free, open-to-the-public celebration for military families and country music fans was part of THE ACM EXPERIENCE that took place on Saturday, March 31 at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. Military ID holders were invited to a reserved section at the concert, which included a very special onstage moment as three worthy military-inspired charitable organizations received donations from NRA Country Cares and ACM Lifting Lives. Folds of Honor Foundation accepted $20,000, Wounded Warrior Project received $20,000 and Nellis Air Force Base Youth Programs was presented with $10,000. The memorable evening featured performances by ACM Song of the Year winner Lee Brice, Larry Gatlin and The Gatlin Brothers, Bradley Gaskin, JT Hodges, Kip Moore, Craig Morgan, John Rich, ACM Vocal Duo of the Year winner Thompson Square. The show was hosted by Robin Meade, singer and anchor of HLN’s “Morning Express with Robin Meade.” THE ACM EXPERIENCE was the first-ever, free, open-to-the-public country music lifestyle event created for fans during The Week Vegas Goes Country. The fan-focused three-day event included the ACM BBQ Throwdown, ACM EXPO, the Ram Ride and Drive and more!

Storme Warren NRA Country Artist Of the Month

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“This Is NRA Country” Announces Storme Warren As Artist Of The Month! Nationally recognized TV and satellite radio personality Storme Warren has been selected as the NRA Country Artist of the Month for April. He started the month off by serving as the emcee at the 2nd Annual NRA Country/ACM Celebrity Shoot held last week in Las Vegas. Storme joins some of country music’s biggest stars including Craig Morgan, Justin Moore, Lee Brice, Montgomery Gentry, Sunny Sweeney and Trace Adkins. All have teamed up with NRA Country to celebrate their support for our brave men and women in uniform, appreciation for the great outdoors and love of family. Storme’s love of the great outdoors makes him a perfect fit for the NRA Country Artist of the Month promotion. “There is nothing better than soaking up the great outdoors. I spend most of my free time either by a river with my fly rod or hiking the trails with my kids and mutts.” -Storme As part of the April promotion, fans can register to win an autographed Headline Country t-shirt. To do so visit nracountry.com from now through the end of April to register! Storme is a co-executive producer and host of the television network Great American Country’s (GAC) entertainment news show “Headline Country,” host of “The Music Row Happy Hour” on Sirius XM’s “The Highway,” and a regular personality on GAC. During the summer months, Storme can be found emceeing music festivals from coast to coast and around the globe. In addition to his love of music, Storme is an avid outdoorsman and adventure-seeker. He is a certified scuba diver, an Eagle Scout, a habitual fly-fisherman and an amateur meteorologist. Catch Storme and country music’s biggest stars on Headline Country on GAC, with brand new episodes premiering each Thursday at 9pm EST.