Dumb Rules Eliminate Top Artists/Writers From Oscars
January 25th, 2012
It’s unimaginable how the artists people really want to see and hear have been eliminated from the Academy Awards this year. If a major audience is any part of the show’s goals, then this is a major shot in the foot. As the LA Times puts it,
“The consolation for Elton John, Lady Gaga, Mary J. Blige, Elvis Costello, Willie Nelson, Brad Paisley, Chris Cornell, Zooey Deschanel and other superstar pop, rock and country musicians who got snubbed in the best song Academy Award nominations announced Tuesday is that they’re in pretty stellar company.
With just two songs earning nominations —“Man or Muppet” from “The Muppets” and “Real in Rio” from “Rio” — the list of also-rans includes a bounty of heavyweight performers and songwriters.
via Elton John, Lady Gaga among pop stars snubbed in Oscar best song category – latimes.com.
Michael Sigman: Songwriters Hall Of Fame Finds a Home
October 25th, 2010
Most songwriters, even successful ones, toil alone or with a single collaborator. To call them unsung would be oxymoronic, but with a few exceptions they remain unknown to the lovers of their music. You think Barry Manilow wrote “I Write The Songs”? Think again: that tune was penned by former Beach Boy Bruce Johnston.
more via Michael Sigman: Songwriters Hall Of Fame Finds a Home.
Kristofferson, Nelson and Foster honored at gala
August 30th, 2010
Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson and visionary record mogul Fred Foster were honored with the Leadership Music Dale Franklin Award Sunday night at a gala awards dinner heavily attended by Music Row players.
Foster was the first to sign artists, including Dolly Parton and Kristofferson, and his label, Monument Records, was home to other music greats, including Roy Orbison, Tony Joe White and Billy Swan.
Swan and Parton were part of Foster’s awards presentation. Parton sang her first hit, “Dumb Blonde,” and said Foster deserved “anything to do with leadership and anything to do with music.”
via Kristofferson, Nelson and Foster honored at gala | tennessean.com | The Tennessean.
Country Composer, Performer Hank Cochran Dies – ABC News
July 16th, 2010
NASHVILLE , Tennessee Reuters – Hank Cochran, who wrote a cascade of country music hits, died on Thursday at his home near Nashville, according to his family. He was 74.The cause of death was pancreatic cancer, his family said.
Cochran gave Willie Nelson his first break in Nashville, persuading his employer, Pamper Music, to hire Nelson. When Cochran was offered a recording deal by Liberty Records, he successfully lobbied for Nelson to be signed too.
Cochran turned out hits for Eddy Arnold including “Make the World Go Away,” Patsy Cline’s “I Fall to Pieces,” and George Jones’s; “You Comb Her Hair.”
Cochran also wrote Loretta Lynn’s “Why Can’t He Be You?” and Merle Haggard’s “It’s Not Love,” as well as songs for Grammy-winner Burl Ives.
via Country Composer, Performer Hank Cochran Dies – ABC News.
Mark Chesnutt breaks out with Outlaw | Entertainment | Chron.com – Houston Chronicle
June 29th, 2010
Mark Chesnutt was a teenager in the 1970s when country music rebelled against its patriarchal past. The hickory-voiced country singer didn’t get his start until years after Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings had their breakthrough successes. But their music left an impression. One of Chesnutt’s three children is named Waylon Nelson.
More via Mark Chesnutt breaks out with Outlaw | Entertainment | Chron.com – Houston Chronicle.