No Justice At The Rib Room

No Justice Rocks The Rib Room On Garrison Avenue! I had the great opportunity to have a sit down with the talented and humble band from Oklahoma, No Justice. Last Wednesday Steve Rice, lead vocals and guitar, Jerry Payne, electric guitar, Cody Patton, lead guitar and vocals, Joey Trevino, bass and vocals, and Armando Lopez, drums and myself all sat down for some good eatin’ at Neumeiers’ Rib Room in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Ribs, pulled pork, beans, slaw, and potatoes filled the table as we discussed music. They shared with me some of their favorite bands including Led Zeppelin; each member admitted they had some very eclectic and interesting playlists on their iPods. They told me quite a few stories from the road, all hilarious! One in particular included Lopez chasing a tire from their tour bus, something I would probably pay to see. The group of guys were all very easy going and made me feel right at home, which made the interview go very smoothly. Later that night, the show was kicked off with opener Willie Stradlin. When No Justice took the stage, fans ignored the heat and let loose! Everyone had an amazing time, singing and dancing along nonstop! Songs from their latest album, 2nd Avenue, were the focus of their show. “5 More Minutes“, “Going Nowhere“, “Just Get Goin“, “2nd Avenue“, and “Gone Ain’t Far Enough” were a few, but the best song of the night was the last one performed, “The Toast“. The song may not be new, but was shouted out many times by fans, leaving me to believe it is their most popular to date. Prior to the show and interview at the venue, I spoke with Rice over the phone. During this time he told me of an event that they were very passionate about, The Dwight Boeckman Music Festival. The 12th annual event will feature No Justice, along with Jason Boland and The Stragglers, Johnny Cooper, Red Dirt Rangers, Chad Sullins and The Last Call Coalition and the Jake Moffat Band with other acoustic performances as well. The festival will take place in Okeene, Ok on Saturday August, 8 at 3pm. Payne, who was a longtime friend to Boeckman, successfully organizes the festival every year. If you don’t already have it, pick up 2nd Avenue the next chance you get. Also be looking for some new music at the beginning of the year! The band is off this week, but will be hitting Texas strong starting July 20! Get out and watch one of their shows, you won’t be sorry!

Conway Twitty Is Forever

Conway Twitty And His Music Made An Impact That Lasts Forever! Conway Twitty is, and always will be one of my favorite artists, top 5 at least! The singer, songwriter, producer, and entertainer accomplished a lot in his life! Having 55 number 1 hits was just one goal that he reached that other artists will always strive to imitate. He was loved by his fans and he loved them just as much. Twitty was a straight shooter, never getting involved in drugs or alcohol and always working as hard as possible while doing what he loved! He had a great duet run with fellow country legend Loretta Lynn with songs like “Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man“, “As Soon As I Hang Up The Phone“, “Lead Me On“, and “After The Fire Is Gone“. Off the top of my head, some other favorites are “Hello Darlin’“, “Play Guitar Play“, “I’d Love To Lay You Down“, “Slow Hand“, “That’s My Job“, “It’s Only Make Believe“, “Rest Your Love On Me“, and “Don’t Take It Away“. I always knew the lyrics to his songs and wasn’t sure why, I was very young when he passed and didn’t hear him on the radio much. Later I found the reason for my word-for-word lyric shouting was that my mom was a fan and my dad could have quite possibly been the biggest fan ever! Every time I hear his voice I am immediately sent back in time with a gush of memories flowing through my mind. He IS country music and I would have been so lucky to see him in concert. To get some facts on the man and his life take a look at his official website, www.conwaytwitty.com. It is run by his children who are determined to keep his legacy alive. Here is a small task…help keep his smooth words playing on the radio by calling into your local station and requesting your favorite song, it is sure to put a smile on some faces! Until then here is a video of him performing another one of those number 1 hits (before he embraced the curls), “You’ve Never Been This Far Before”. [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V1fX-FvKW8]

Miranda Lambert Behind The Music

Miranda Lambert On VH1’s Hit Show “Behind The Music”! Miranda Lambert will be the focus of the latest episode of Behind The Music on VH1 this Wednesday at 10/9c! The sassy, country star will take us through the memories that are her life, from early childhood to Grammy winnings. We will hear about the ups and downs from the people closest to her including husband and fellow country star, Blake Shelton, and parents Rick and Bev Lambert. We will also hear from Nashville Star judge Tracy Gershon, former Sony Nashville head Joe Galante, country legend Loretta Lynn, and other artists and friends Kenny Chesney, Sheryl Crow, and Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum. Lambert is obviously an artist that country music and country music fans are very proud of and to see her on this show proves that she has touched people in all genres of music! Everyone be sure and watch tomorrow night and show VH1 what kind of ratings country fans can produce! Here is Lambert’s first single “Me And Charlie Talking“, it is always nice to see how an artists has grown over the years! [youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EGabHDMUN0]

JaneDear Girls at Kix on Beale

JaneDear Girls Perform in Memphis, TN at Kix on Beale. The JaneDear Girls will be performing tonight, Thursday, July 7th in Memphis, TN. The duo is featured in the annual summer concert series presented by local country radio station KIX106 on the iconic Beale Street. We just want to let ya’ll know that we’re headed out to Memphis right now to check out the country scene in Memphis and catch this great concert! Hopefully, we’ll get to some of you there. If you’re in the Memphis area tonight, get your boots on and get ready to have some fun!

Reba McEntire Announces Tour Dates

Reba Releases Dates for Fall 2011 Tour. Reba McEntire has announced the details for her Fall 2011 All the Woman I Am tour. The tour kicks off September 1st and runs through November 19th and will hit 31 cities total! Reba will be joined on tour by The Band Perry, Steel Magnolia and Eden’s Edge on select dates. See below for complete tour details!

Miranda Lambert Performs on GMA

Miranda Lambert Featured on Good Morning America Concert Series. Listen up, Miranda Lambert fans! Miranda will be performing on Good Morning America Friday, July 8th as part of the morning show’s Summer Concert Series. The concert will be held in Rumsey Playfield in Central Park and admission is free to the general public. If you can’t make it to the show in person, though, just set your DVR! The concert will be presented throughout the show between 7am and 9am (ET). Be sure to check local listings!

American Idol Live Kicks Off

American Idol Tour with Lauren Alaina and Scotty McCreery Kicks Off! The 2011 American Idol Live Tour featuring the Top 11 finalist from this season kicked off Wednesday, July 6th outside Salt Lake City. The tour, of course, will feature Lauren Alaina and Scotty McCreery. As previously reported, both Lauren and Scotty are actively pursing their careers within the country music industry, each having already released a single. All of you who voted Lauren and Scotty to the top, this is your chance to see them perform live for the first time! No doubt we will be seeing a lot of both of them after the tour wraps up on September 10th in Rochester, N.Y.

Taylor Swift Postpones More Shows

Recent Illness Causes Taylor Swift to Delay Performances. Taylor Swift is suffering from a bout a bronchitis, and unfortunately has had to postpone three more concerts as a result. In addition to one previously rescheduled performance in Louisville, KY, Swift, under doctor’s orders, has had to delay three additional shows in Charlotte, N.C. and Atlanta, G.A. Taylor has made the scheduling changes with a heavy heart. “I would never cancel if I thought I was physically able to perform these shows. I am so sorry to the fans, but I look forward to seeing you when we come back through your towns, which we will do.” -Taylor Swift Fans will have the opportunity to attend the concerts at a later date. The Louisville performance originally set for July 2 will be moved to October 11th. The Charlotte, N.C. concert will be moved from July 8th to November 16th. The Atlanta, G.A. concerts on July 9th and 10th will be reschedule for October 1st and 2nd. Taylor will resume her original tour schedule of July 14th in Montreal.

Hillary Scott of Lady Antebellum Engaged

Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott Engaged to Drummer! Congrats are in order for Lady Antebellum‘s Hillary Scott who has announced her engagement to drummer Chris Tyrell. The couple met while touring with Tim McGraw in 2010. Tyrell proposed to Scott over the 4th of July weekend in East Tennessee while the two were enjoying a much needed break with family. This relationship milestone marks yet another success for Scott who has had a roller coaster of year of award nominations, wins and hugely positive reception from fans and the country music industry. Congratulations to Hillary and Chris!

Dolly Parton Together You and I Video

Dolly Parton Releases New Video for Together You and I. Dolly Parton has debuted the video for the single “Together You and I” which is featured on her recently released album, A better Day. Parton has acknowledged that her new album is definitely different than her earlier work channeling a more modern vibe. The video for “Together You and I” also reflects this sentiment. The theme of this song and the imagery reflected in the video is definitely not the full on country fans are used, but it is a hybrid between country music and something else. It is almost a throwback to the hippie era of peace, love and happiness from the 60’s. The video features individuals clasping hands in a chain that begins in Nashville and continues all throughout the world from Washington D.C. to India. The individuals range from sick people to healthy people, from black to white, from young to old. The message is clear: together and with love anything is possible. Let me say, I really do like this song, and I am a huge Dolly Parton fan. However, there is something going on in country music right now that is different. Dolly is not the first country artist of late to present a song with such a message. Ronnie Dunn‘s “Bleed Red” has a similar globally minded, we-are-all-the-same theme. Newcomer Jennette McCurdy‘s “Generation Love” also encourages a positive world view focused on the power of love. These are good songs with admirable messages, but something about them does not sit right. The messages in these songs and their videos are recycling an older way of thinking from a time in American history where there was a wave of hope for change. Dolly and Ronnie lived during the 60’s, and it makes sense that they would revisit these themes. It seems though, the release of these songs are ill-timed. They simply do not take into account the past forty to fifty years of American history and all that encompasses. Country music is all about the hard times, getting the job done, dealing with life as it hits you. While Dolly’s (and Ronnie’s and Jennette’s) song is hopeful and lovely, I am not sure it is necessarily relateable for country fans. Yet, I might just be approaching Dolly’s new single and video from a too cynical angle. What do you think? You can check out the video here. Together You and I – Dolly Parton – Dolly Parton Videos