TNS Video History- Amy Grant- "My Grown Up Christmas List"

Crystal Shawanda Shares Very First Singing Performance

Country singer/songwriter Crystal Shawanda shared a little piece of her childhood yesterday when she posted the video below of her very first singing performance.

"Just wanted to say Happy Holiday to Everyone & thanks for a great year! Check out my very first performance...It just happens to be a Christmas song."

New Music Video From The Trishas- "Drive"

The Trishas
"Drive"
Directors: Jason Lindsey, Jon Holloway
Writers: Jason Eady, Kelley Mickwee, and Jamie Wilson

New Music Video From Darryl Worley- "The Fishin' Hole Song"

Darryl and songwriting pal Wynn Varble recorded “The Fishin’ Hole,” better known as “The Andy Griffith Show” theme song, and the song is being offered through a text-to-give campaign to raise money for relief efforts caused by wave of natural disasters that impacted numerous states in 2011.

Fans can text the word FISH to 50555, which allows a ten dollar donation to be added to the user’s phone bill. As a thank you gift, a link to a free ringtone of the song is sent to the donor’s phone. These funds are received by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Foundation, and the net proceeds are then used to help restore levees, replace equipment lost or damaged in the disasters and re-stock fish in waters affected by flooding, tornadoes, drought and more. Donations from other parts of the country are distributed back to the state of origin’s wildlife agency.

"The Fishin' Hole Song" from Outdoor Music on Vimeo.

Jimmy Wayne Has Mad Dancing Skills This Christmas Season

Jimmy Wayne sent this cute link out via Twitter and Facebook today. A fan plopped his head on a holiday-themed JibJab cartoon and sent it to him earlier in the day. After you're done watching, you can Elf Yourself too.

Click on the artwork to the right to check out Jimmy's mad dancing skills.

New Music Video From Tanya Tucker- "Merry Christmas Wherever You Are"

70's Country Music Hitmaker Billie Jo Spears Passes Away

Billie Jo Spears, a consistent female country hit-makers in the 1970s, has died in Texas at age 74.

She was famous for her 1975  hit “Blanket on the Ground,” as well as for working-girl anthems and for songs that fused country and disco. Spears was extremely popular in Great Britain and  was a fixture in Branson, Mo. for a time.

Born in 1937 in the shipyard city of Beaumont, Texs, she was the daughter of a truck-diver father. Her mother was a welder in the shipyards, as well as a guitarist in the Light Crust Doughboys western-swing band. Billie Jo Spears began singing professionally at age 13. She first recorded in Houston at that age and also appeared on the Louisiana Hayride in Shreveport, La.

After working as a drive-in restaurant carhop and as a secretary, she moved from Texas to Nashville in 1964. Signing with Capitol Records, she first hit the top-10 on the country charts with 1969’s “Mr. Walker It’s All Over,” the saga of a downtrodden secretary. She followed it with “Pittsburgh General,” which stood up for nurses. Other early singles included “Stepchild” (1969), in which a boy kills his abusive stepfather, and “Marty Gray” (1970), which dealt with teen pregnancy.

She faded from the hit parade and underwent vocal-cord surgery, then scored a huge comeback on United Artists Records with the toe-tapping “Blanket on the Ground.” It became her first and only No. 1 hit, both in the U.S. and abroad.

She fused country songs with danceable pop rhythms in such big hits as 1976’s “What I’ve Got in Mind,” 1977’s “If You Want Me,” 1978’s “57 Chevrolet” and 1979’s remake of Gloria Gaynor’s disco classic “I Will Survive.” Spears was also distinctive in that she rarely recorded female “victim” material. Almost all of her hit ballads are about women asserting themselves. These include “Standing Tall” (1980), “I’ve Got to Go” (1978), “I’m Not Easy” (1977), “Never Did Like Whiskey” (1976) and her revival of Tammy Wynette’s “Your Good Girl’s Gonna Go Bad” (1981).

Her other hits include 1976’s “Misty Blue” 1978’s “Love Ain’t Gonna Wait for Us” and 1979’s “Livin’ Our Love Together.” She also recorded several notable duets with the late Del Reeves. Throughout her career, she sang with a tangy Texas accent and a feisty attitude. Her last appearance on the national country charts was in 1984.

In later years, she retained her popularity in the U.K. and recorded several albums for that market. She continued to tour stateside, despite triple-bypass heart surgery in 1993. Her most recent album was released in 2005. She had 22 British shows booked for 2012 at the time of her death.

Thanks go to Doug Davis of CountryMusicClassics.com for this contribution.

Lyle Lovett Announces New Album Release Me To Be Released Late February

Lyle Lovett will be releasing his new album, Release Me, on Feb. 28, 2012. Produced by Nathaniel Kunkel and Lovett, Release Me represents the end of an era as it's his last record for Curb/Universal Music Group after being on the label for his entire career.

"I don't know really how it's gonna go, but I probably want to make my records myself and then figure out how to sell them after they're made," Lyle told Rolling Stone. "[Curb's] been great to me and they've given me my career, but I'm excited to see what's next."

From the press release: "Release Me is quintessential Lyle, mixing a smart collection of originals and covers that show not only the breadth of this Texas legend's deep talents, but also the diversity of his influences, making him one of the most infectious and fascinating musicians in popular music."

Lovett's new Christmas EP, Songs For the Season, was just released and is available at iTunes, Amazon and other online outlets. Also produced by Kunkel and Lovett, the EP features the Vince Guaraldi classic, "Christmastime Is Here," Frank Loesser's timeless "Baby, It's Cold Outside" and Lovett's own "The Girl With the Holiday Smile." "Christmastime Is Here" and "Baby, It's Cold Outside" feature Austin, TX-based singer Kat Edmonson on vocals.

Hear It Here- Jack Ingram Covers Willie Nelson's "Pretty Paper"

The Henningsens Get A Record Deal With Sony

In news that might be a bit off the mainstream country music radar, a small family trio of incredible vocalists, musicians and songwriters named The Henningsens were signed to a recording contract this week by Sony Records.

That Nashville Sound featured this fantastically talented group in its Up & Coming New Nashville feature back in April.  This farm family from Illinois is Brian (dad), Aaron (eldest son) and Clara (daughter). The group is working on its debut album with Paul Worley and will be assigned a label imprint soon. The trio is also the songwriting team behind The Band Perry’s hit single “You Lie.” The band also ]co-wrote The Band Perry's "Independence," "Miss You Being Gone," and "Lasso" and has cuts by Wynonna Judd and Sara Evans. 

You can hear a couple performances below:

New Music Video From Raul Malo- "I'll Be Home For Christmas"

TNS Video History- Dolly Parton- "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town"