Salon.com > Chris Talbott

“Tennessee Waltz” singer Patti Page dies at 85

Wed, 02 Jan 2013 22:46:00 +0000

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Unforgettable songs like "Tennessee Waltz" and "(How Much Is That) Doggie in the Window" made Patti Page the best-selling female singer of the 1950s and a star who would spend much of the rest of her life traveling the world.

When unspecified health problems finally stopped her decades of touring, though, Page wrote a sad-but-resolute letter to her fans late last year about the change.

"Although I feel I still have the voice God gave me, physical impairments are preventing me from using that voice as I had for so many years," Page wrote. "It is only He who knows what the future holds."

Page died on New Year's Day in Encinitas, Calif., according to publicist Schatzi Hageman, ending one of pop music's most diverse careers. She was 85 and just five weeks away from being honored at the Grammy Awards with a Lifetime Achievement Award from The Recording Academy.

Page achieved several career milestones in American pop culture, but she'll be remembered for indelible hits that crossed the artificial categorizations of music and remained atop the charts for months to reach a truly national audience.

Jason Mraz to make historic appearance in Myanmar

Fri, 16 Nov 2012 14:01:00 +0000

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Jason Mraz will make history next month when he performs in Myanmar to raise awareness about human trafficking.

Mraz will headline a free outdoor concert on Dec. 16 at People's Square in Yangon, at the base of Shwedagon Pagoda.

The Grammy-winning singer-songwriter is believed to be the first international artist to perform an open-air concert in the country. The show includes local acts and is hosted by MTV EXIT, the music channel's initiative to raise awareness about human trafficking and exploitation.

"That's pretty exciting," Mraz said of the history involved, "and I'm going there with an enormous amount of gratitude and respect, and I hope we can actually make a difference. I hope it's also a testament to the songs. I've always wanted my songs to be about healing and self-empowerment, and if this is the way MTV is acknowledging that, then I am incredibly grateful."

The show, which will include local acts, will be broadcast on Myanmar national television and will air on MTV's international network in 2013. Mraz hosted a similar concert in the Philippines last year. He first became interested in the issue about four years ago when he attended the Freedom Awards, an annual salute to those working against human exploitation put on by the organization Free the Slaves.

Rush, Public Enemy among Rock Hall of Fame noms

Thu, 04 Oct 2012 13:20:00 +0000

Rush, Deep Purple, Public Enemy and N.W.A. are among the group of first-time nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

They join returnees Heart, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Randy Newman, Donna Summer and Kraftwerk among the 15 artists vying for entry.

Even in the iPod age, the list of nominees up for induction in 2013 is as eclectic as they come. Nominees differ wildly in sound, origin and influence, ranging from the enduring prog rock of Canadian trio Rush and Procul Harum to German proto-electronica act Kraftwerk, the disco of Chic and Summer to the New Orleans funk of The Meters and the blues of Albert King and the Paul Butterfield Blues Band.

Motown also is represented by first-ballot entries The Mavelettes.

Joel Peresman, President and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, acknowledged the extreme variety of this year's nominee class in a Thursday news release.

Composer Marvin Hamlisch dies at 68 in Los Angeles

Tue, 07 Aug 2012 14:11:21 +0000

Marvin Hamlisch, who composed the scores for dozens of movies including "The Way We Were" and the Broadway smash "A Chorus Line," has died in Los Angeles. He was 68.

Family spokesman Jason Lee said Hamlisch collapsed and died Monday after a brief illness. Other details were not released.

Hamlisch's career included composing, conducting and arranging music from Broadway to Hollywood, from symphonies to R&B hits. He won every major award in his career, including three Academy Awards, four Emmys, four Grammys, a Tony and three Golden Globes.

His music colored some of film and Broadway's most important works.

Hamlisch composed more than 40 film scores, including "Sophie's Choice," ''Ordinary People" and "Take the Money and Run." He won his third Oscar for his adaptation of Scott Joplin's music for "The Sting." His latest work came for Steven Soderbergh's "The Informant!"

On Broadway, Hamlisch received both a Tony and the Pulitzer Prize in 1975 for the long-running favorite "A Chorus Line" and wrote the music for "The Goodbye Girl" and "Sweet Smell of Success." He was scheduled to fly to Nashville, Tenn., this week to see a production of his musical "The Nutty Professor," according to his publicist.

Black Keys, Foo Fighters sign up for charity show

Tue, 07 Aug 2012 11:12:35 +0000

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Organizers of a charity concert in New York's Central Park next month have come up with a new way to help the world's poor.

You can't buy tickets to watch Foo Fighters, The Black Keys, Neil Young & Crazy Horse and the other acts at Global Festival 2012. But you can earn them in a lottery by taking action against extreme poverty around the world through a website and app designed to get people moving before a big event, not after.

Organizer Hugh Evans calls the concert a "crescendo" to more than a month's worth of charitable acts by fans who access activities at the Global Citizen website, which launched Tuesday. The goal is to spur more than 100,000 actions by September.

The Sept. 29 concert also will include Band of Horses and K'Naan.

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Online:

http://www.globalcitizenmovement.com

Country duo Love and Theft start over, yet again

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 10:44:39 +0000

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The members of country duo Love and Theft view the last few years as addition by subtraction.

First they lost their record label. Then Brian Bandas, the third member of their trio, quit. But with a new deal with Sony Music Nashville imprint RCA Nashville and a single chugging up the charts, Eric Gunderson and Stephen Barker Liles love their new lives.

Liles says the same musical influences, goals and visions for the band.

You can't blame Gunderson and Liles for feeling nervous upon the release of their self-titled second album, which came out last week. They've been to this point before only to have everything fall apart when their two previous labels shut down.

Dierks Bentley releases 4-song ode to summer fun

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 10:10:02 +0000

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A few years ago, Dierks Bentley went hard against country music convention by releasing a rockin' bluegrass-roots album. He decided to break the rules again.

This time around, Bentley is releasing a new four-song EP called "Country & Cold Cans" even while his last album continues to chart hit singles.

He says he cut the short album just to have a little fun with his friends. The EP will be a digital-only release available on iTunes initially.

He's supporting it with a quick three-date tour from Aug. 20-22 at the University of South Carolina, the University of Georgia and the University of Mississippi. Tickets go on sale Friday.

Underwood, Miranda Lambert lead CMT nominations

Mon, 23 Apr 2012 14:46:45 +0000

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — With Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert and Taylor Swift atop the list, look no further than the CMT Music Awards nominations for proof country music's new favorite color is blonde.

Underwood earned five nominations, Lambert has four as a solo artist and as part of her trio Pistol Annies, and Swift led a contingent of stars earning three apiece for the 11th annual video awards show. Nominations were announced Monday morning on the "Today" show.

Underwood's "Good Girl," Lambert's "Over You" and Swift's collaboration with The Civil Wars on "The Hunger Games" soundtrack entry "Safe & Sound" are among 10 nominees for video of the year.

Tracy Morgan to apologize for remarks in Nashville

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 10:41:00 +0000

Comedian Tracy Morgan was in Nashville, Tenn., Tuesday to issue an apology to the lesbian and gay community after an anti-gay rant during his June 3 show there drew fire.

Morgan was scheduled to address reporters Tuesday morning at the Nashville Convention Center after meeting with members of the audience who were offended by his comedy routine and representatives from gay advocacy groups.

The "30 Rock" actor already has issued a public apology. He met with homeless lesbian and gay youth and advocates Friday in New York City as well. Morgan agreed to the Nashville meeting at the request of Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation President Jarrett Barrios.

Morgan was not expected to take questions during the news conference.

Label sues Tim McGraw for breach of contract

Wed, 18 May 2011 18:30:00 +0000

Tim McGraw and Curb Records could be headed to court over an unreleased album.

The independent record label has filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against McGraw, claiming the country superstar failed to provide a fifth and final album that met contractual obligations by an April deadline.

A statement from McGraw's spokeswoman says the singer turned in "Emotional Traffic" last fall and that Curb is holding the album "hostage" in an attempt to keep the singer "perpetually" under contract. The label contends some of the songs were recorded so long ago they violate terms of the deal.

Curb asks a judge to force McGraw to turn in new material for a fifth album, bar him from signing with another label and nullify a 2001 agreement that eliminated a sixth record from McGraw's contract.

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Online:

http://www.timmcgraw.com

http://www.curb.com

Chasing Tiger’s tale

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 04:19:00 +0000

Trying to unwind after a 14-hour day Saturday, I popped on the History Channel and watched hapless documentarians search in vain for the abominable snowman.

Nothing, not even an extra-large footprint to report.

I know how they feel.

I've been chasing a Tiger's tale across the rolling piney woods of south-central Mississippi with nothing to show for it but a notebook full of rumors. It seems that everyone has seen Tiger Woods in this town of 45,000, supposedly undergoing treatment for sex addiction at one of the country's finest facilities.

Like the sherpas of Nepal, locals in the Hub City report new sightings all the time.

Someone swears they saw him on horseback the other day. Another watched a convoy of black SUVs with windows as dark as midnight pull into a gas station, and Woods popped out of one.

Details relayed from friends of friends of friends are circulating like crazy, each with its own hint of truth, but no proof. It's the most exciting thing to happen here in a while, and everyone's talking about it.

Most stories go a little something like Steve Brantley's: "I know someone whose sister-in-law's cousin saw him. But I've yet to talk to anyone who's actually seen him."

Same for me, Steve.