Tennessee State Museum: Late Autumn Newsletter

Photo Credit:  Bev Moser

MUSICROW MAGAZINE: In Pictures: American Country Countdown Awards

Kelsey Grady • December 16, 2014 • 

 

 

Reba McEntire with her Nash Icon honor. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Kix Brooks. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Luke Bryan rejoices in his win at the ACCAs. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Miranda Lambert. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Jason Aldean. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Carrie Underwood. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Kip Moore. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Lady Antebellum. Photo: Bev Moser/Moments By Moser

Brett Eldredge. Photo: Bev Moser, Moments By Moser

Cole Swindell. Photo: Bev Moser, Moments By Moser

CLICK HERE to see full list of winners.

MUSICROW Mgazine: Dawn Sears Event Raises $100k+ for Ingram Cancer Center

Eric T. Parker • December 4, 2014 • 

Pictured (L-R): Dr. Leora Horn, Dawn Sears, Dr. Pierre Massion, Reba McEntire. Photo: Bev Moser

The tallies are in for the Dawn Sears & Friends Benefit for Lung Cancer Research held on Nov. 30 at the Depot Square in Gallatin, Tenn.
Over $100,000 was raised for the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, where Sears is receiving treatment for the disease. Sears’ physician Dr. Leora Horn and Ingram Professor of Cancer Research Dr. Pierre Massion both took turns at the podium to talk about research while commenting on Sears’ own perseverance.
Performers included Reba McEntire, Riders In The Sky and The Time Jumpers, the band Sears is a part of alongside her husband Kenny Sears and country stalwart Vince Gill. Olympic gold-medalist Scott Hamilton emceed the event. Sears attended the show and also spoke on behalf of lung cancer research.

AristoMedia: DIGITAL RODEO HELD THIRD AND FINAL DRX MONTHLY SHOWCASE OF 2014

Online social network and country lifestyle portal Digital Rodeo closed out the year with their third showcase of the DRX Monthly Showcase Series on Tue. Nov. 11 at Nashville’s 3rd and Lindsley. To stream the showcase, click here.
The DRX monthly showcases highlight some of the platform’s most promising Country artists and help to promote some of Digital Rodeo’s featured unsigned acts. The November DRX showcase featured up-and-coming artists The Cheaters, Amber Hayes, Mitch Rossell, Phoenix Drive and Jason James, and was hosted by veteran Andy Griggs. To learn more about these artists, please visit their artist profiles on www.DigitalRodeo.com.
Each act performed two songs compacted into a one-hour show, which is backed by the 3rd and Lindsley house band, consisting of members Tim Horsley (drums), Robbie Emerson (bass, vocals), Erik Halbig (guitar), Mike Webb (keys), and Scotty Huff (guitar, vocals, music director). Previous showcases have featured hosts Linda Davis and Bryan White. The DRX monthly showcases are free and available to stream live through the Digital Rodeo website, here. The next DRX showcase is set for Jan. 20 2015 at 3rd and Lindsley.
“This was our 3rd show and we couldn’t be more pleased with not only the quality of the production but the growing interest that we are experiencing. Attendance was nearly triple that of our first show. We are in talks with several broadcast partners that will greatly expand both viewership and listenership adding value to the property for artists and sponsors alike. We are actively seeking sponsorships from interested parties who share our passion for independent artists,” commented Digital Rodeo President, John Pyne.
For sponsorship information and inquiries, please contact John Pyne at  john.pyne@digitalrodeo.com.
Pictured below L to R: Mitch Rossell, Phoenix Drive, Andy Griggs, Amber Hayes, The Cheaters, Jason James and DRX’s John Pyne.

COPD Foundation: Phil Everly Concert Benefit Featuring Paul Simon

Dear Nashville Community,

I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks for your generosity at our recent Phil Everly Concert Benefit featuring Paul Simon.  

With this being our first event within Nashville, we were overwhelmed with the outpouring of support from your community. Because of your contributions, the event raised $120,000, all of which will go towards the Foundation's mission of preventing and curing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and improving the lives of all people affected by COPD.

We would like to thank Patti Everly whose steadfast commitment to raising awareness of COPD and honoring the memory of her husband Phil provided the impetus for making this concert a reality.

The evening would not have been such a success without the exquisite performance by Paul Simon. Royce Risser and Mike Dungan lent their voices to a very profitable live auction with "Little Miss Dynamite" Brenda Lee adding an effervescence and playfulness to the entire event. Our sincere gratitude to Bill Mayne for everything he did to make this event a success.    

The benefit could not have occurred without Sylvia Roberts' generosity in donating her home for this exceptional event. 

Above all, thank you for supporting the COPD Foundation. We look forward to our continuing relationship with you.   

Sincerely,

 

John W. Walsh

President and Co-Founder, COPD Foundation

MUSICROW: Lee Brice Receives Gold, Platinum Honors From NMPA

Jessica Nicholson • November 6, 2014 • 

 

Lee Brice was honored recently for two of his hit singles, garnering with a platinum award for “I Don’t Dance” and a gold award for “Parking Lot Party,” during a meeting at NMPA’s Curb Publishing headquarters in Nashville. Brice’s publisher is Curb Music Publishing.
NMPA president/CEO David Israelite was on hand to present the honors to Brice.

Pictured (L-R): Drew Alexander, David Israelite, Lee Brice, Mike Curb. Photo: NMPA/Bev Moser.

Pictured (L-R): Lee Brice, David Israelite and Curb Publishing executives. Photo: NMPA/Bev Moser.

CMT NEWS: Paul Craft, Master Songwriter, Dies in Nashville

Hits Include "Dropkick Me, Jesus," "Brother Jukebox" and "Hank Williams, You Wrote My Life"

October 18, 2014; Written by CMT.com staff

Paul Craft (front row), Gretchen Peters, Tom Douglas and John Anderson

Photo Credit: Bev Moser

Paul Craft, a prolific songwriter whose hits include Bobby Bare's "Dropkick Me, Jesus" and Mark Chesnutt's "Brother Jukebox," died Saturday (Oct. 18) at a Nashville hospital following years of ill health. He was 76.

A native of Memphis, Tenn., Craft was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame on Oct. 5. According to The Tennessean, Nashville's daily newspaper, he showed up briefly at Nashville's Music City Center to have his photo taken with fellow inductees Gretchen Peters, Tom Douglas and John Anderson and was immediately taken to St. Thomas Hospital.

During the induction ceremony, his longtime friend Layng Martine Jr., a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member himself, noted Craft was not only a member of Mensa, the "genius" circle, but also a jokester who had composed single-handedly such weird hits as the outrageously metaphoric "Drop Kick Me, Jesus" and "It's Me Again, Margaret," Ray Stevens' hit about an unrepentant obscene phone caller. Bare told the crowd former President Bill Clinton once cited "Drop Kick Me, Jesus" as his favorite song.

Singer-songwriter Thomas Rhett paid tribute to Craft at the ceremony by performing a medley that included "Brother Jukebox" and "Hank Williams, You Wrote My Life," the latter a hit for Moe Bandy.

Craft, whose credits include T. Graham Brown's "Come as You Were" and Gail Davies' "Blue Heartache," also had more than 200 bluegrass cuts, including the Osborne Brothers' "Midnight Flyer" and the Seldom Scene's "Keep Me From Blowing Away." In 1974, the Eagles released "Midnight Flyer" on their On the Border album and Linda Ronstadt issued "Keep Me From Blowing Away" on her breakthrough album, Heart Like a Wheel.

A gifted guitarist and banjo player, Craft's instrumentals were recorded by the likes of Chet Atkins and Jerry Reed, and he also served a tenure as the banjo player in Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys. Atkins signed Craft to RCA Records in the '70s and produced several singles that had marginal chart success.