Sold Out Tribute-Benefit Show At Historic Gruene Hall To Hal Ketchum A Celebrated Texas All-Star Success

A sold-out tribute-benefit show Sunday in New Braunfels celebrated Hal Ketchum and acted as a fundraiser to his medical needs to help him fight Alzheimer’s.  The celebration at Gruene Hall was titled “Raised by Wolves: Bound for Glory — A Texas Tribute to Hal Ketchum.”

Those that appeared in the show included Walt Wilkins, Jamie Lin Wilson, Wade Bowen, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Slaid Cleaves, Jesse Dayton, Lee Roy Parnell, Randy Rogers, Bruce Robison, Kelly Wills, Kevin Fowler and more.

A GoFundMe has been started on behalf of the singer-songwriter to help with mounting medical costs and living expenses. “Hal dedicated his life to writing, singing, and performing for his fans worldwide,” reads the post on the crowd-funding site. “He’s played hundreds of benefits, supporting causes and those in need. Any help that you can give Hal and his family is graciously appreciated, whether it’s a dollar or ten, it doesn’t matter. All donations go to the Hal Ketchum Medical Fund.”

And while most of the country may have missed the incredible dedication to their friend down in Texas this past weekend, you can watch the concert in its entirety below. 

That Nashville Sound Friday Newsbytes- Jack Ingram, Carly Pearce, Willie Nelson & More

Welcome to Friday. Hopefully some of you have some live music you're seeing this weekend. We've got several new music videos and new songs up on the newsfeed this morning.

- Bruce Robison has filmed a short biopic behind-the-scenes piece about Jack Ingram's Jason Eady-penned release, "Why I Left Atlanta." 

- Jerrod Niemann has a new music video for "Comeback."

- Willie Nelson and The Boys have a new music video for "Can I Sleep In Your Arms."

- Midland have a new music video for their new single "Make a Little."

- Hear it here: Carly Pearce's new song "I Need a Ride Home."

- Hear it here: Chris Young's newly unveiled track "Holiday." 

- Hear it here: Dierks Bentley's powerful new ballad "Hold the Light" from the upcoming true firefighter film Only the Brave: The True Story of the Granite Mountain Hotshots.

- Lee Roy Parnell performed his new track "Hours In Between" at Music City Roots last week and you can watch the performance (and funky guitar work) here.   

- Blake Shelton announced via Instagram that his next album will be out on November 3rd and be titled Texoma Shore.

- Big Loud Records' Jillian Jacqueline quietly released her new album today called Side A.

Lee Roy Parnell To Release New Album Midnight Believer In August

Artist: Lee Roy Parnell
Album: Midnight Believer
Label: BFD
Release date: August 11, 2017

11 years after his last project, Lee Roy Parnell is back with a new project that will be released in August titled Midnight Believer. That last album saw the Texas Heritage Songwriter’s Hall of Fame member stretching his reach past the traditional country genre, touching on blues and southern roots in his music.

Active since 1990, he has recorded eight studio albums, and has charted more than twenty singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts. His highest-charting hits are "What Kind of Fool Do You Think I Am" (1992), "Tender Moment" (1993), and "A Little Bit of You" (1995), all of which peaked at No. 2. Four more of his singles have charted in the Top Ten as well. Parnell made a shift in the early 2000s back to the bluesier sounds of his early works, releasing two blues albums on Vanguard Records and Universal South. Besides his own work, Parnell has played slide guitar and National guitar on several other country and blues recordings.

The last two years, Parnell has toured heavily as part of Guitar Army, a diverse combination of music and styles. The band is comprised of three world-class musicians: Robben Ford, Parnell, and Joe Robinson.

Former Trick Pony Member Ira Dean Calls On All-Star Cast Of Friends For New Project

Former Trick Pony bass player and vocalist Ira Dean is going solo. Sort of. This past weekend, SiriusXM's The Highway added his new single to its national rotation. The new tune, "Nothin' To Do Round Here," is Dean's new venture on a solo run at country radio. But Dean brought in some extra firepower when he recruited several of his artist pals to join him on what would become a "musical gumbo."

"We'll cross another one off on my bucket list," says Dean. "I always wanted to do not just a vocal event but a Traveling Wilburys kinda thing where it ain't just a vocal event but more of an all star band."

The new song features guest vocals from Ronnie Milsap, Montgomery Gentry, Colt Ford, Jeffrey Steele and Lee Roy Parnell.

Dean notes, "I wanna thank my buddies Ronnie Milsap, Lee Roy Parnell, and Jeffrey Steele for answering the phone when I called. Then it was, 'Man, I wish Eddie and T-Roy would sing on this,' so I made another phone call. Then I was telling Colt Ford about the whole dang thing and how I have never had more fun in the studio in my life and he said, 'Well thanks brother for the call.' He came in and BAM! Right off the cuff, done!"

The new song, written by Dean, Shane Minor and Jeffrey Steele (Dean and Steele also produced the song) is the first single from Dean's forthcoming solo album, It's About Time. The upcoming album will be Dean's first full-length album as a solo artist.
 

Travis Tritt Tells Billboard He's Starting His Own Label

Twenty years after releasing his first album, Travis Tritt plans to take his recording career into his own hands.

The Georgia-based country star tells Billboard.com that before he releases his follow-up to 2007's "The Storm" he plans to open his own label - though unlike something like Toby Keith's Show Dog Nashville, Tritt says that "it's strictly for me to release my music on.

While the label does not have a name just yet, Travis says he's leaning toward calling it Post Oak Publishing. "[It's] in the process," he says. "[We're] working on putting together investors to be a part of it. We're getting very, very close to getting it off the ground."

As far as the creative end of the label, Travis plans to keep it to a minimum of who gets involved. "It's strictly going to be me," he states. "I feel like I've got enough experience over the years. I know what it takes to put a record together, so I'm not looking for people to come in and shape it."

Travis plans to start work on the new album soon, and he has been talking with James Otto and Lee Roy Parnell about collaborating on some songs for the project. "In the meantime, I've been writing on my own," he reports. "It's like Roger Miller used to say, 'Every now and then, like a dog having puppies, you have to crawl under the house and do it yourself.'"

Happy Birthday To Lee Roy Parnell- 52 Today

That Nashville Sound wishes longtime country music artist Lee Roy Parnell a very happy birthday today. Celebrate with a quick watch of a video of one of his big hits "On The Road..."

Active since 1990, he has recorded eight studio albums, and has charted more than twenty singles on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Songs) charts. His highest-charting hits are "What Kind of Fool Do You Think I Am" (1992), "Tender Moment" (1993), and "A Little Bit of You" (1995), all of which peaked at #2. Four more of his singles have charted in the Top Ten as well. Besides his own work, Parnell has played slide guitar and guitar on several other country recordings.