Kellie Pickler Releases New Album, ParamountSong X-Writer/Vocalist Has Cut No. One
January 20th, 2012
It’s always nice to see talent move up in this business, and we are pleased to see Don Poythress, who used to co-write and sing on demos for ParamountSong, credited with co-writing one of the songs on Kelly Picklers upcoming album release. It’s like we always say, some of the best up and coming talent in Nashville works to turn out the demos we record for songwriters and lyricists around the world.
These days, Don writes for peermusic (they don’t capitalize it either), one of America’s largest independent music publishers. He co-writes with some of the best on a wide variety of songs including Country and Christian. The artists who’ve recorded his songs could be listed as a who’s who of Country and Christian music. For the Pickler album, he co-wrote a tune called “Where’s Tammy Wynette.” Talk about an idea! How many of us would have thought of that? The song is the first cut on the album.
Release date for the work is January 24. Our congratulations to Don, and may he have many more!
The song’s the thing: Female songwriters Swift, Perry lead charge of country girls at CMAs
November 10th, 2011
News of last night’s CMA Awards is being carried by media far and wide, as it should be, since it’s one of TV’s major events–right up there with the Grammys and the Oscars. The Washington Post went with the angle of women winning so many major awards. To wit:
Though still largely the domain of men, triumphs by Taylor Swift and The Band Perry at the Country Music Association Awards show that the young women of country music are finding their voices and shoving the boys out of the way.
Swift won the CMA’s entertainer of the year for the second time Wednesday night, Kimberly Perry of sibling act The Band Perry took home song of the year and two other awards with her brothers, Neil and Reid. Add in wins by Miranda Lambert, Lady Antebellum and Sugarland, and the songwriting strength of today’s country girls is undeniable.
Songwriters of the Year Honored at BMI Awards
November 9th, 2011
CMA awards week in Nashville continued last night with the third of the PRO awards sessions, all leading up to tonight’s CMA Awards celebration.
Broadcast Music, Inc. BMI celebrated the songwriters and publishers behind country music’s most-performed songs of the past year during last night’s 11/8 59th annual BMI Country Awards, staged at the organization’s Nashville offices.
Rhett Akins and Dallas Davidson shared the Songwriter of the Year crown. The frequent collaborators co-wrote four of the year’s most-performed songs: “All About Tonight” Blake Shelton, “All Over Me” Josh Turner, “Gimmie That Girl” Joe Nichols and “The Shape I’m In” Joe Nichols. Individually, Akins’ “Farmer’s Daughter” Rodney Atkins and Davidson’s “Rain Is a Good Thing” Luke Bryan also made the list.
Songwriter Ben Hayslip takes top ASCAP 2011 songwriting honors
November 7th, 2011
Songwriter Ben Hayslip was the night’s top winner, collecting his first ASCAP Songwriter of the Year Award on Sunday night during the performing rights organization’s 49th annual country awards.
Hayslip had a hand in writing five of ASCAP’s most-performed songs in the last year: “All About Tonight” (Blake Shelton), “All Over Me” (Josh Turner); “Farmer’s Daughter” (Rodney Atkins), “Gimme That Girl” (Josh Nichols) and “The Shape I’m In” (Joe Nichols).
“It’s unbelievable, it really is,” Hayslip says of landing five hits in one year. “I dreamed of being a lot of things in my life, from an NFL quarterback to a songwriter, but I don’t think I ever dreamed of having five hit songs in a year. Maybe I didn’t think it was possible.”
Legendary Songwriter Denny Randell Nominated for the Songwriters Hall of Fame
October 28th, 2011
LOS ANGELES, CA, Oct 27, 2011 MARKETWIRE via COMTEX — Veteran songwriter and GI Jams R co-founder Denny Randell is a 2012 nominee for induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Randell has collaborated with many songwriting partners, including co-nominee Sandy Linzer and with Bob Crewe. Randells catalogue with Linzer includes “A Lovers Concerto,” “Working My Way Back To You,” “Lets Hang On,” “Opus 17 Dont Worry Bout Me,” “Native New Yorker” and “Cant Get Enough Of You Baby.”
In Randells early career he wrote and produced a regional hit catching the attention of a top NY music publisher, who hired him as a staff songwriter and arranger. His work there led to his relationship with The Four Seasons, as an arranger/conductor and then a writer of some of their classic hits, including three in the Tony-winning Broadway show Jersey Boys.