Tag Archives: Dixie-Chicks

Watch Out! Dixie Chicks Cover Beyoncé “Daddy Lessons” – Manchester, UK 2016

Posted on by — 1 Comment ↓

Dixie Chicks - Beyoncé cover "Daddy Lessons" - U.K. 2016

Much fuss has been made about Beyoncé new release; Lemonade. My social feeds and phone texts have called my attention to one particular cut off the album, “Daddy’s Lessons,” a rootsy number detailing learnings of self-defense and pride any Texan will recognize.

The Dixie Chicks on their current DCX MMXVI tour showed their love for the fellow Texan by wonderfully covering the song live in Manchester, England on April 39th.

The Chicks stayed true to the original adding their beautiful harmonies and making it even more rootsy.

“It painted a country picture in our minds,” Kevin Cossum, the song’s co-writer told Billboard. “It sounded tough. ‘So my daddy said shoot.’ You see the whiskey on the table. You see the rifle. It just had that feel to it. It didn’t take the hip-hop element to make it tough, which I think is very cool especially for Beyonce. And it goes with her being from Texas. Her vibe to it just makes sense for how it all came together.”

The song is motivated by Beyonce’s childhood roots in Texas and the lessons she learned from her father, Matthew Knowles, who has been a driving force not just in Beyonce’s life but in her career—he managed her from the Girls Tyme days through Destiny’s Child and through her early solo career. However, Beyonce fired her father as her manager in March 2011.

Watch the performance below:

News Round-Up: Robert Earl Keen Is Ready For Confetti

Posted on by — No Comments ↓
  • On August 30th, Lost Highway will release Ready For Confetti, the new, and 16th overall, studio album from renowned Texas singer/songwriter Robert Earl Keen. Ready For Confetti was produced by Lloyd Maines (Dixie Chicks, Flatlanders), who also produced Keen’s critically acclaimed 2009 album The Rose Hotel (Lost Highway).
  • Special thanks to the extraordinarily gracious  Ms. Rosanne Cash (@rosannecash)  helping me with my 10,000th tweet contest! The 25th new follower and winner was @NKottawafor.
  • The amazing Elizabeth Cook continues her never-ending tour supporting Welder and the fine folks over at Sirius XM are cutting her a break and letting her sleep in a little later by moving her popular radio show “Apron Strings” to 10 am – 2 pm eastern time. Cook says, “I feel like I’m abandoning an old lover, leaving my early birds. But it is my sincerest wishes that with the 10-2 show, “Apron Strings” fans will find new ways to sneak and listen, and having more sleep, I will sneeze less on air.” Beginning on Wednesday, May 4, the Sirius XM Outlaw Country channel will move to channel 60 on both Sirius and XM radios, and Elizabeth Cook and her “Apron Strings” show will now be heard from 10 am to 2 pm ET, Monday through Friday. For more information about additional channel changes go to siriusxm.com. Elizabeth has some new items in her store for her Beautiful Outlaw listeners. Check out Moonshine (aka her Dad) telling you about the store.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFkVklYYmy8[/youtube]

Fathers Day Playlist

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

I know I haven’t been posting much lately. Besides the uptick in my  frequency of the Twang Nation twitter feed and preparing for a move (down the street) but I wanted to do a quick list for Fathers Day. Being a dad it’s close to my heart and there are some great songs out there. Please I saw Darrell Scott  is giving away a free download of his song, A Father’s Song for the occasion so It moved me to get something done. Here’s some of my favorites, got one of your own? Post it below. Thanks for reading.

The Drive By Truckers : Oufit – Jason Isbell shows Southern soul telling a tale of a  man giving sage advice to his son.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTKrtftHCv4[/youtube]

Drive-By Truckers: Daddy Needs A Drink – Yeah, I’m showing my DBT bias here, but great songs are where you find them. Patterson Hood embodys a man worn out by life and seeking liquid refuge.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v5OiZ9C8zU[/youtube]

Dixie Chicks: Godspeed (Sweet Dreams) – Sure Natalie Maines sings this beautiful song, written by Austin legend Radney Foster, but the sentiment of parental love is transcendent. Emmylou Harris ‘ vocals near the end seal the deal.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwfaTcBNtWo[/youtube]

Elton John: My Father’s Gun – From the excellent Americana classic Tumbleweed Connection. A boy inherits his father’s firearm as well as his hatred of the Yanks.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_p0lbEuKzk[/youtube]

Lee Canner: Distant Father – One of my twitter followers sent me this as an anti-Father’s Day song from the Victor Mourning’s Stephen Lee Canner. Chilling and lovely Gothic Americana.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlT8tZS1xyE&fmt=18[/youtube]

Michael Dean Damron: Father’s Day – Love this guy and this song from his latest.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imPLOdMQGe4[/youtube]

A Boy Names Sue – Johnny Cash sings Shel Silverstein’s wry tale about a father’s peculiar form of character development.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M89c3hWx3RQ[/youtube]

Stephen Lee Canner

Lost Highway to Release Willie Nelson Compilation

Posted on by — No Comments ↓
  • Chet Flippo over at CMT’s Nashville Skyline and Miss Leslie at the 9513.com are strolling down the mine-laden path of “What is country music?”
  • Classical Americana? Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas and Buddy Miller will be among the musicians who will perform with the Nashville Symphony on Sept. 12 during the inaugural Classical Americana concert at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center. The concert is one of the events leading up to 10th annual Americana Music Festival and Conference taking place Sept. 16-19 in Nashville.
  • Lost Highway Records will release a compilation of music Willie Nelson has made on their label. Willie Nelson’s Lost Highway will be released on Aug. 11 with three previously unreleased songs. The 17-track album features Grammy-winning duets with Ray Price (”Lost Highway”) and Lee Ann Womack . Other guests on the album include Elvis Costello, Diana Krall and Lucinda Williams.I;m not sure that the work Willie has done while on Lost Highway really warrents the compilation treatment but I will hold judgment until I hear it.
  • Bob Schneider teamed up with Dixie Chick Martie McGuire for a  sold-out show at the Paramount Theater in Oakland, CA. SPINearth.tv (SPIN Magazine’s new global music site) recently published an exclusive photo collection from the DVD taping of the show.

Buddy Miller Recovering After Heart Surgery

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

Buddy Miller, one of Nashville’s most prolific singers, songwriters, guitarists, recording artists and producers suffered a heart attack in Baltimore, Md., on Thursday, Feb. 19. He was on tour with Emmylou Harris, Patty Griffin and Shawn Colvin; the tour is dubbed “3 Girls And Their Buddy.”

Miller, 56, was taken to John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, and he underwent a triple-bypass heart surgery on Friday, Feb. 20. The surgery was successful, and Miller will likely be recovering in Baltimore for several weeks.

Named the “Artist of the Decade” by No Depression magazine, Miller has written songs that have been recorded by the Dixie Chicks, Lee Ann Womack, Brooks & Dunn and others. He is a veteran of Harris’ Spyboy band, and in the past year he has been touring as a featured instrumentalist in Robert Plant and Alison Krauss’ band. He has produced albums for Solomon Burke, Allison Moorer, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and others. Miller has lately been producing a new album for Patty Griffin. He has been called “the best country singer” alive by Steve Earle.

Miller is married to Nashville singer-songwriter Julie Miller, and the pair have a duo album coming out on New West Records on March 3. (source: tennessean.com) Update: Word is that Miller didn’t actually have a heart attack, but was experiencing chest pains when he was taken to the hospital.

Buddy Miller – Written in Chalk

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4b7ECl81uc[/youtube]

Country Music Hearts Obama!

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

I remember the comedian Chris Rock on a cable filmed stand-up special saying something like what is the world coming to when the top  rapper in the world is white (Eminem) and the top golfer in the world is black (Tiger Woods)?

I felt sort of like that the other night when Sen. Barack Obama’s historic speech at Mile High Stadium was capped off by  ”Only in America” by the NashVegas version of Hall and Oates, Brooks & Dunn. This is the same song George Bush used at the Republican Convention last election. One half of the duo, Ronnie Dunn is a staunch Republican but the song’s co-writer, Don Cook, is a founder of the Music Row Democrats so I guess it’s a Nashville pop-country equivalent of bi-partisanship.

Here’s a note to the DNC and Democratic candidates everywhere, there are great artists that make country music that actually LIKE you and stand for at least some of what you advocate. Ever hear of Steve Earle or the Dixie Chicks?

If that wasn’t enough I read that Mr.”Boot in the ass” Toby Keith has thrown his support behind Obama (though it seems it’s only because Obama is able to act white.) Keith states that he’s a life-long Democrat but he appears to be more like the right-wing Dixie-crats I remember when I was growing up in Dallas. Mr. Keith apparently gets peeved when people accuse him of being a GOP fan. I wonder where they might have gotten that idea?!

Thank goodness there’s some things you can still count on with Nashville pop-country music and uased as a backdrop for patiotic symbolism- John Rich. the shorter half of the insipid duo Big and Rich, and raging homophobic weasel, penned a love song to John McCain cleverly entitled “Raisin’ McCain,” The song will be featured at the GOP convention and it predictably sucks.

Toby Keith’s Pro-Obama Anthem (a parody)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsm-wI5PGBE[/youtube]

Dixie Chicks team up with The Eagles in L.A.

Posted on by — 2 Comments ↓

I’ve said in the past that I though the Dixie Chicks‘ “Taking The Long Way” was their move towards the soft-country rock of the Eagles. Seems the transformation may be coming to completion.

Dixie Chicks will be part of a special grand opening concert event this fall to open downtown Los Angeles’ new 7,100 seat state-of-the-art venue NOKIA Theater L.A. Live. Dixie Chicks will be teaming up with The Eagles to co-headline these special shows, and the Nokia Theater appearances will be both groups’ only concert performances in 2007. Tickets for October 18th and 20th concerts go on sale Monday, August 13th at 10:00 AM via ticketmaster.com, Ticketmaster charge-by-phone lines at (213) 480-3232 or (714) 740-2000, and at all Ticketmaster Ticket Centers. Additionally, tickets will be available at the STAPLES Center Box Office and the Box Office at TEAM LA at Universal CityWalk starting Tuesday, August 14th.

MySpace Showcase – Baskery

Posted on by — No Comments ↓

I love discovering roots/country music from across the world. Baskery does their thing in Stockholm, Sweden with such passion and fire that you could be forgiven for mistaking them for Tennesseans or Texans reared on equal parts Carter Family and Tanya Tucker.

Think a Swedish version of the Dixie Chicks…wait…what was I saying? Oh yeah…great arrangements and sweet harmonies make Baskery shine. Check ’em out.

Miranda Lambert In The New York Times

Posted on by — 5 Comments ↓

The New York Times has a cool write-up on Miranda Lambert. Lambert talks about the influences for her new album – “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” – gives credit to Gretchen Wilson for opening the career door for her and is compared to some mighty company:

Ms. Lambert, 23, cites the usual outlaw influences — Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard — as well as the well-regarded singer-songwriters Steve Earle, Buddy Miller, Jerry Jeff Walker and Guy Clark. In essence, Ms. Lambert is an alt-country singer operating covertly in the mainstream. “Dwight Yoakam, the Dixie Chicks — I think there’s a way to be really cool and mainstream, too,” she said.

CMT Music Awards Review – Still Blows

Posted on by — 4 Comments ↓

So I finally held my nose and watched my recording of the suck fest that is the Country Music Television Awards show (you can tell right there how objective this is going to be) and it as predictable and unpleasant as July heat in Dallas.

A Dixie Chicks and Stonewall Jackson slam already. Nice Foxworthy. You’re an ass.

There was a new category, the Wide open Country Video of the Year. It seems like it was a stab at irreverence. But with Jimmy Buffet and Sheryl Crow and Sting as nominees it was more like “Let’s see what we can get by with.” The Johnny Cash video for “God Going To Cut You Down.” Jack Ingram won. Not a great start for the new category.

Everyone that won robotically thanks CMT in their speeches. I mean what are the odds that every winning artist felt truly compelled to thank a network? Tools…

There was a moment of true grace and emotion on the program, but it had nothing to do with the three-ring pyrotechnic circus of bland performances by Toby Keith and Rascal Flatts. It was when Rosanne Cash presented Kris Kristofferson the Johnny Cash Visionary Award. Kritofferson was visibly moved, gracious and his amazing life and legacy was briefly detailed before he accepted. It was a brief moment of sincerity in an otherwise facile showcase of mediocrity.

Rascal Flatts stacks the deck on the Group Video of the Year with two nominations and beats out the crowd favorite The Dixie Chicks. Just joshin.

Foxwothy is giving the last 25% of morons that don’t see Iraq as a fiasco and people who worship a sky god a sloppy one. He’s like the reverse Natalie Maines with less talent.

There, that’s all I can stand. Another year, a lot of make-up and $200 denim and precious little country music.

Oh and Kenny Chesney is a girl.