Showing posts with label Natalie Hemby. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Natalie Hemby. Show all posts
Sunday, September 19, 2021
Monday, July 19, 2021
Sunday, February 14, 2021
That Nashville Sound Sunday Newsbytes - Rory Feek, Tracy Lawrence, Natalie Hemby, Lilly Winwood & More
After a fairly slow and underwhelming start to 2021 in new music, there's some light and anticipated music on the horizon.
The career-encompassing project is a combination of brand new material, collaborations, and some of Lawrence’s favorite hits. The first in the series, Volume 1: Stairway to Heaven Highway to Hell, will be that first one released in April. This 10-song collection features all new material from Lawrence, who penned nine of the 10 tracks, mixing his signature blend of contemporary and traditional country that has made him a mainstay since his debut album, Sticks & Stones, in 1991.
“It has truly been the honor of a lifetime to be so welcomed by country music fans,” says Lawrence. “As I look back over the past 30 years, I am incredibly humbled to have been able to live my dream and to have so many folks support me along the way. I wanted to celebrate this amazing milestone with fond reflection and embrace the next chapter with the people who made it all happen, my fans.”
Rodney Crowell and all of his friends have collaborated on a new compilation album, Songs From Quarantine Vol. 1, which has an all-star cast of singer-songwriter, country and Americana VIPs sending in tracks from their own splendid isolation.
Six of the 13 artists represented — Ry Cooder, Elvis Costello, Joe Henry, Ronnie Dunn, John Hiatt and Crowell himself — contribute original songs that have never been released before in any context. The remaining seven offer demos or otherwise stripped-down or alternate versions of numbers they’ve put out in full form before, with Emmylou Harris, Lucinda Williams, Keith Urban, Jeff Tweedy, Rosanne Cash, Steve Earle and Taj Mahal rounding out the guest list. (Download the album here.)
Rory Feek has a solo album called Gentle Man coming out this June and he's released a music video from one of the early songs released off the album that features Vince Gill on harmony vocals. The new song is called "Me and the Blues."
Says Feek on the new song, "Five years ago, Joey gave me a gift. A Valentine's card. It was to be the last note, the last written words, and the last card I would ever receive from her. That card was her Valentine's gift to me that year. This is my Valentine's gift to her this year…"
That Nashville Sound praised Natalie Hemby's 2017 solo album, Puxico. In 2019, she teamed with Brandi Carlile, Maren Morris and Amanda Shires to form The Highwomen. Now she's just signed with Fantasy Records and will be releasing a new album later in 2021.
The upcoming solo album has been produced and mixed by her husband Mike Wrucke. She joins a roster at Fantasy Records that includes Tanya Tucker, James Taylor, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Paul Simon, Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real, and more.
“Both Mick Management and Fantasy Records have an exceptional and eclectic roster of artists they work with,” said Hemby. “Their teams are some of the most respected in the music business. I’m so proud to be a part of their musical families…it is truly a dream come true for me.”
A little more about this new-to-us artist from her website bio: "After feeling that the countryside of her native Gloucestershire, England felt too familiar, and London was, in her own words, “so big, so expensive, and reeked of havoc and loss and all that good stuff,” she decided to spend a few weeks in Nashville, where she spent her childhood summers, but ended up staying instead. Winwood’s debut EP, Silver Stage, chronicled the journey through earnest coming-of-age narratives and a sound that—much like her father’s work—offers an English take on traditional American roots music. Backed by Nashville-via-Australia producer Joshua Barber (Gotye, Archie Roach), the songs on Silver Stage blend Bonnie Raitt’s world-weary vocals, My Morning Jacket’s ethereal twang, and Brittany Howard’s no-bullshit bravado to create an EP that pays homage to Lilly’s singer-songwriter idols (like John Prine) and establishes the twenty-one-year-old as a writer that’s wise beyond her years. Following the release of Silver Stage, Winwood has continued on to collaborate with fellow East-Nashville-based Americana artists such as Boo Ray, with the release of their A-side/ B-side vinyl collaboration. Lilly also collaborated with Nashville based Americana artist Don Gallardo on his 7-track EP In the Name of Good Intentions where Lilly’s vocals are featured on more than half of the songs. Rolling Stone deemed Winwood and Gallardo’s “Shine a Light on Me” one of the Top 10 Best Country, Americana songs to hear now in 2019, amongst Trisha Yearwood and Tanya Tucker. Lilly has set her debut album release Time Well Spent for early 2021. This record was produced by Alex Munoz and Allen Thompson in Nashville, TN at High Cotton Recording Studio."
Monday, September 30, 2019
Album Review - Jon Pardi - Heartache Medication
Album: Heartache Medication
Label: Capitol Nashville
Release date: September 27, 2019Rating: Four and A Half Stars Out Of Five
From the very first track "Old Hat" where he unapologetically refuses to accept that hat acts and the neo-traditional country music movement are dead, Jon Pardi sets the tone for an album in which you don't have to throw away the old to embrace the new. They can coexist in perfect harmony and bring out the best of both. And boy does he ever.
Jon Pardi delivers a project that is worthy of major acclaim. It is modern honkytonk music that borrows the best from the past and delivers it with a modern energy that's simply fun from any angle you look at it. There's a pure joy that is inherently at the core of this album that shines through. He just sounds like he's having a blast. It seeps through every note and word. The highlights are so many. There's the heartfelt duet "Don't Blame It on the Whiskey" with Lauren Alaina written by Eric Church and Miranda Lambert. There's the fantastic boom chicka boom opening nod to Johnny Cash on "Me and Jack." There is a rocking riff impossible to not tap your toes to on "Oughta Know That." There's the phenomenal steel and fiddle work on "Just Like Old Times."
Jon Pardi might not be breaking any historic new ground with song topics, but he just might be if you consider this is being done in 2019. On "Call Me Country", he says "I sing songs about freight trains and prisons, heartaches and honkytonks, with cowboys and outlaws in good hearted women. Boots and straw hats are gone just like that. Hell you can't even recognize me, they used to call me country." With a simple verse, he bookends his opening song and fulfills the promise of the album by delivering modern production in a classic country sound with classic country themes.
The writing is smart and filled with a number of Nashville's brightest including Jeff Hyde, Matt Jenkins, Barry Dean, Natalie Hemby, Josh Thompson, Rhett Akins, Luke Laird, Dean Dillon, Jeffrey Steele and more. Pardi himself is on half of the tracks.
(Up on soapbox) This is what major label music should be all about. Our industry is so narrow in focus on what they believe to be a correct fit for country music radio- and we forget how country music might be the widest umbrella of all music genres. Music is so much more interesting when its coming at us from diverse places in style and sound. Congratulations and kudos to Capitol Nashville for providing the artistic and creative freedom for Pardi to put together such a outstanding album. It will easily be one of the finalists for mainstream album of the year.
Saturday, July 20, 2019
That Nashville Sound Saturday Newsbytes - Lots of New Album Announcements & New Music Videos
- Marc Broussard released a new music video for "Lonely Night in Georgia" featuring the Elijah Gospel Choir.
- The Highwomen released a new music video for "Redesigning Women."
- Gwen Sebastian released a new music video for "Rock Stars."
- Midland released a new music video for "Put The Hurt On Me."
- The Mavericks released a new music video for "Come Unto Me."
- The before-mentioned The Highwomen—a new collaborative movement formed by Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby, Maren Morris and Amanda Shires—officially launches today with the release of the group’s debut single, “Redesigning Women.” The single is the first unveiled from collective’s highly anticipated self-titled debut album, produced by Grammy Award-winning producer Dave Cobb, which will be released September 6 on Low Country Sound/Elektra Records.
“Anyone can be a Highwoman,” Carlile notes. “It’s about banding together, abandoning as much ego as humanly possible, holding one another up and amplifying other women every chance we get. Shoulder to shoulder. One push, one love.”
The Highwomen track listing:
1. Highwomen (written by Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires, Jimmy Webb)
2. Redesigning Women (written by Natalie Hemby, Rodney Clawson)
3. Loose Change (written by Maren Morris, Maggie Chapman, Daniel Layus)
4. Crowded Table (written by Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby, Lori McKenna)
5. My Name Can’t Be Mama (written by Brandi Carlile, Maren Morris, Amanda Shires)
6. If She Ever Leaves Me (written by Amanda Shires, Jason Isbell, Chris Thompkins)
7. Old Soul (written by Maren Morris, Luke Dick, Laura Veltz)
8. Don’t Call Me (written by Amanda Shires, Peter Levin)
9. My Only Child (written by Natalie Hemby, Amanda Shires, Miranda Lambert)
10. Heaven Is A Honky Tonk (written by Brandi Carlile, Natalie Hemby, Ray LaMontagne)
11. Cocktail And A Song (written by Amanda Shires)
12. Wheels Of Laredo (written by Brandi Carlile, Tim Hanseroth, Phil Hanseroth)
- Corb Lund has announced he's coming back into our lives with a new covers project, taking on tracks by the likes of AC/DC, Bob Dylan and Billy Joel. The EP release is called Cover Your Tracks, and it will arrive on September 13 via New West Records.
The record is made up of eight songs. In addition to taking on tracks by those aforementioned artists, Lund also covers works by Nancy Sinatra, Marty Robbins, the Eagles, and Willie Nelson & Ray Charles.
Says Lund on the project, "Earlier this year I recorded a bunch of cover songs by some of my favoritee artists and writers from various periods in my life, mostly for fun and to get them out of my system. Many of the songs we've been playing live for years. Being re-inspired by this stuff and getting back in the studio to cut it was a great warm up for making another record of my own songs, which I'm working hard on writing as we speak. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy listening to these old favorites as much as we enjoyed recording them."
- Grammy award -inning country music singer and Grand Ole Opry member Crystal Gayle announced the upcoming release of her first new album in nearly 16 years, You Don’t Know Me. Available everywhere September 6, with a pre-sale beginning August 9, the new album is being released by Southpaw Musical Productions, and distributed by BFD in partnership with The Orchard. Co-produced, recorded and mixed by Crystal's son Christos Gatzimos, You Don’t Know Me is a collection that finds the acclaimed stylist exploring the songs of such country legends as George Jones, Patsy Cline, Buck Owens and Eddy Arnold. The album might come as a surprise to those who associate Crystal with an uptown sound that made her a star on both country and adult-contemporary pop charts. But she has known this repertoire of hardcore country standards all her life.
“This wasn’t a stretch at all,” says Crystal. “This project is a labor of love that my son, Christos, and I produced together. It is filled with country classics that I grew up singing. They are very much a part of my history and I’ve been wanting to do this for a long time. I feel very lucky to have known and worked with many of the artists who had the original hits.”
Thursday, May 30, 2019
Jon Pardi Preps Heartache Medication For September Release
Album: Heartache Medication
Label: Capitol Nashville
Release date: 9/27/19
Northern California native Jon Pardi announced the upcoming arrival of his next album coming in September, Heartache Medication.
“I promise you that nobody has stressed over the dilemma of album number three more than the guy to my left right here,” Universal Music Group Nashville chairman and CEO Mike Dungan told the music media at the announcement as he recalled conversations with Pardi about the project. “‘What do I do? Do I back off? Do I make it country? How can I make it different? I don’t want to make the same record again.’ Along the way he kept saying, ‘It feels pretty good, but it’s even more country than the last one.’”
Dungan said upon listening to Heartache Medication, he thinks it’s “a complete masterpiece.” “Those of us who have had a chance to listen to this and had a chance to live with it have been divided into different camps. Everyone seems to have their own favorite [song],” he added. “It’s telling me we have a record that is going to go on in history and be talked about for a long time.”
“I named it Heartache Medication because it talks about sad topics, but it makes you feel good at the same time,” he said. Pardi further explained that the project also includes love songs and that the album goes “great with beer and good times.”
He added, “I’m really proud of it. I’m really proud of all the session players, the songwriters that delivered great songs. I wrote half the record and Nashville stepped in and wrote the other half, and I’m very proud of that. I think everybody’s going to love it.”
Heartache Medication is the follow up to Pardi’s co-produced Platinum-selling No. 1 album California Sunrise, which featured multi-Platinum hits including “Dirt on My Boots,” “Head Over Boots,” “Heartache on the Dancefloor” and “Night Shift.”
Heartache Medication Track Listing:
1. “Old Hat” (Jeff Hyde, Matt Jenkins and Ryan Tyndell)
2. “ Heartache Medication” (Jon Pardi, Barry Dean and Natalie Hemby)
3. “Nobody Leaves A Girl Like That” (Bart Butler, Marv Green and Jimmy Yeary)
4. “Ain’t Always The Cowboy” (Brandon Kinney and Josh Thompson)
5. “Me And Jack” (Jon Pardi, Rhett Akins, Bart Butler and Luke Laird)
6. “Don’t Blame It On Whiskey (Featuring Lauren Alaina)” (Eric Church, Michael Heeney, Luke Laird and Miranda Lambert)
7. “Tied One On” (Bart Butler, Chase McGill and Jamie Paulin)
8. “Oughta Know That” (Jon Pardi, Bart Butler and Luke Laird)
9. “Tequila Little Time” (Jon Pardi, Rhett Akins and Luke Laird)
10. “Buy That Man A Beer” (Clint Daniels, Justin Lantz and John Pierce)
11. “Call Me Country” (Jon Pardi, Bart Butler and Driver Williams)
12. “Just Like Old Times” (Jon Pardi, Jeff Hyde and Michael Heeney)
13. “Love Her Like She’s Leaving” (Bart Butler, Dean Dillon and Jessie Jo Dillon)
14. “Starlight” (Jon Pardi, Bart Butler and Jeffrey Steele)
Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Wednesday, February 7, 2018
Kacey Musgraves To Release Golden Hour
Album: Golden Hour
Label: UMG Nashville
Kacey Musgraves releases her 4th Studio album for UMG Nashville, Golden Hour. Musgraves describes her new LP as having a "trippy" twist, citing the Bee Gees, Sade, and Neil Young as influences. In addition to reuniting with previous collaborators such as Luke Laird, Shane McAnally, and Natalie Hemby, Musgraves sought out pals Ian Fitchuk and the Silver Seas’ Daniel Tashian as her primary co-producers and co-writers.
"Naturally, her relationship with (new husband Ruston) Kelly inspired plenty of material. "I have a lot more love songs this time around, and I’ve never been one to write a love song and really feel it," Musgraves said to EW.com.
"On this record, there's the lonely girl, the blissful girl, the new wife, the girl that's missing her mom, the angry girl, the sarcastic girl, the Sixties-sequined Cruella de Vil with the beehive, the shy girl, the life of the party, the winner, the loser – they're all characters on this record. None of them alone are me, but the golden hour is when they all come together and you see me as a whole."
The album will be available on disc, digitally as well as on a clear vinyl limited edition LP version.
Track listing:
Side A:
1. Slow Burn
2. Lonely Weekend
3. Butterflies
4. Oh, What A World
5. Mother
6. Love Is A Wild Thing
Side B:
1. Space Cowboy
2. Happy & Sad
3. Velvet Elvis
4. Wonder Woman
5. High Horse
6. Golden Hour
7. Rainbow
Sunday, July 2, 2017
That Nashville Sound's Top Albums Of The First Half of 2017
On one hand, you have terrestrial radio which continues to put out male-dominated uptempo numbers that borrow more from pop rock production than they do the steps that the founding country mothers and fathers laid down for them to get there. That's not to say that everything on the radio is that way or everything on the radio is bad. There's some terrific songs receiving airplay that will certainly be on our Top Songs of 2017 list that will be coming out later. It's just that we lament their lack of diversity. Country casts a huge shadow across a number of different sub-genres including bluegrass, Red Dirt, Americana, Countrypolitan, traditional, inspirational and more. As this list below will show, there are contributions that are incredibly powerful beyond the narrow boundaries of that radio dial.
To prove this point, recent best-selling albums that have led the charts include Chris Stapleton, Joey Feek, Jason Isbell, Sturgill Simpson and Willie Nelson- all artists with virtual no radio support. There's still an audience for all everything under the country umbrella.
The amount of great music that has been released into 2017 has been nothing short of remarkable, however. We live in an incredible time. The internet, YouTube and digital platforms give independent artists a more playing field to get their music heard than ever before and as a result, we have more options at receiving that music than at any time in our history. But a handful of those releases stand out above all others. That's where this list comes in. Through the first half of 2017, these are the albums that struck an emotional chord and moved this listener to fall in love with their projects over and over again.
1. Jason Eady - Jason Eady - Any casual reader of this site has heard us pontificate at the genius of Eady's storytelling on TNS favorite albums like When The Money's All Gone and AM Country Heaven. And while Money still resonates as one of THE great albums of the last decade, Jason Eady might be its equal. Eady finds inspiration- and passes it along in his storytelling- in 10 songs about the ups (and mostly) downs of love and life. Words and lyrics aren’t just spoken, they’re painted on a auditory canvas. Feelings bleed their way throughout the album like an emotional blanket. It’s storytelling depth with an eye for detail hardly seen across any genres in modern music. Tracks like "Barabbas," "Black Jesus," "Not Too Loud," and "Where I've Been" are modern-day Don Williams-like crafts of art. But its "Waiting To Shine" that stands out above all others. The ultimate singer-songwriter sings of chasing the ultimate song and it's absolute perfection. Eady has done it again with a project that digs deep with a production that allows that storytelling to breathe.
3. Various Artists - Gentle Giant - The Songs of Don Williams - It becomes clear from the very first song that this tribute to country music great Don Williams including performances by Pistol Annies, Brandy Clark, Lady Antebellum, Dierks Bentley, Chris Stapleton, Alison Krauss, John Prine, Jason Isbell, Trisha Yearwood, Keb' Mo' and Garth Brooks is going to be special. The ties that bind are the incredible stories and songwriting that the severely underrated Don Williams has crafted over many decades of performances and for the most part, the list of artists invited to cover his songs do a masterful interpretation. Sidenote: Williams' longtime producer and friend Garth Fundis produced the tribute album.
5. Various Artists - Outlaw - Celebrating the Music of Waylon Jennings - On July 6, 2015, a collection of music's legendary outlaws and rising superstars came together for a once-in-a lifetime concert in Austin, Texas, to celebrate the life and music of country music legend Waylon Jennings. The concert featured performances by Chris Stapleton, Shooter Jennings, Jessi Colter, Bobby Bare, Lee Ann Womack, Buddy Miller, Sturgill Simpson, Kacey Musgrave, Jamey Johnson, Robert Earl Keen, Kris Kristofferson, Ryan Bingham, Alison Krauss, Toby Keith, Eric Church, and Willie Nelson. It's completely as bad-ass as it sounds. The only criticism is that it took nearly two years to get in our ears.
6. Chris Stapleton - From a Room, Volume 1 - One of the hardest things to do in entertainment (and sports) is to follow-up an amazing performance/project with another one- particularly when that first one is a your solo debut like Traveler was for Stapleton. That's where the story is wrong, however. Stapleton is can't suffer from the sophomore slump because he's a seasoned pro with bands like the Steeldrivers and Brothers Jompson under his belt. This project doesn't transcend Traveler, but it certainly extends that story, delivering emotive fare with that distinctive delivery that is pure Chris Stapleton and no one else. "Second One To Know" and "Either Way" stand out as favorites on the project.
7. Glen Campbell - Adios - In the throws of his well-documented early diagnosis of Alzheimer's Disease three years ago, Campbell entered the studio with family at this side and made a final album filled with songs that unintentionally say goodbye. Produced by Glen's longtime banjo player and friend Carl Jackson, the album features Glen singing four Jimmy Webb songs that Glen never recorded but always loved, including the title track. Adios features songs written by Roger Miller, Bob Dylan, Dickey Lee, Jerry Reed, Fred Neil, and includes a duet with Willie Nelson on "Funny How Time Slips Away" - and special guest Vince Gill on harmony vocals in "Am I All Alone (Or Is It Only Me)." The album is a true family affair as Glen's daughter Ashley and sons Cal and Shannon, all perform on the record. "Just Like Always" is among his very best work of his career.8. Willie Nelson - God's Problem Child - At 84, his voice is diminished and that distinctive guitar play on old Trigger isn't as nimble as it used to be. But Nelson's ability to craft and select songs is better than ever. Cover to cover this album speaks to the soul. Mickey Rachael's harmonica work glows throughout the recording beautifully. It's an album about mortality but done "Willie-style" with lots of silly humor and even some pathos for the loss of his good friend, Merle Haggard. "Old Timer" reflects on his age incredibly well and "Delete and Fast Forward" and "Your Memory Has A Mind of It's Own" stand out as tracks for the ages.
10. Angaleena Presley - Wrangled - If there’s a pedigree for a modern country music star, then Angaleena Presley fits all of the criteria: a coal miner’s daughter; native of Beauty, Kentucky; a direct descendent of the original feuding McCoys; a one-time single mother; a graduate of both the school of hard knocks and college; a former cashier at both Wal-Mart and Winn-Dixie. Her sass shines through as 1/3 of the supergroup Pistol Annies and it bleeds over on this project as well. Each song on this album features sharp lyrics, sublime melodies, strong performances and appropriate production, with Presley cool, calm and collected at the center of it all.
12. Alison Krauss - Windy City - From the minute that Krauss opens her mouth on the first and title track, she has you hooked. Quite honestly, she could sing the phone book with that ethereal voice of hers and I just might have to sit down and listen. Her voice caresses the mic with the tender touch of a velvet glove. It’s expressive. It’s personal. And it draws you in like a whisper on a wind. That fragility is transferred best to songs that share the same sense of frailty. The lyrics she sings and inquiries she pose hang there in the air like a ghost to the ears.
13. Charlie Worsham - Beginning of Things - The clever, quirky Beginning of Things comes as a surprise to some, but a long-awaited delivery from those of us that fell in love with 2013's Rubberband. Worsham indulges in being a little bit all over the map as he shifts directions from song to song, moving from gentle fingerpicking folk to simmering soul- throwing in a good measure of his trademark humor along the way.
15. Jason Eady and Courtney Patton - Something Together - Thoroughly enjoyable duets by two incredible talents. These new acoustic recordings are familiar but have a new sound and feel, and remind that it is a joy to have this married couple collaborating together. There's not much new here, but the interpretations and singing on each other's "fan favorites" like "Lonesome Down & Out," "Man on a Mountain," "So This Is Life."and "Cry Pretty" give them a new auditory feel not heard on their first album release.
16. Darin and Brooke Aldridge - Faster & Farther - The North Carolinian husband and wife team have hit their stride with this outstanding new bluegrass release filled with incredible musicianship and rich harmonies. Faster and Farther, their sixth project for Mountain Home Music, has an infectious energy that has so much to like. Yet it's the soaring and impeccable vocals of Brooke Aldridge that are the repeated highlights of the album. Her voice is commanding and match the production perfectly. Taking nothing away from Darin's tracks, each time Brooke takes the vocal reins, her beautiful delivery delivers on nearly every song. All in all, this is a project that delivers incredibly well and should be in a music collection for anyone who is a fan of modern bluegrass.
17. Joey Feek - If Not For You - This album belongs on this list if almost only for sentimental and historical reasons. Feek's well-documented lost battle with cancer last year sets the stage, but it's this "lost" album that was never released on a short-lived solo major-label signing that takes the spotlight. Feek's vocals shine like they always have as part of Joey + Rory and she sings to us from the other side with stunning tracks like "See You There" and "Southern Girl."18. Jake Worthington - Hell of a Highway - I have to admit that I'm not a fan of NBC's The Voice and as a result, hadn't had an opportunity to hear young Worthington sing until I hosted him at my Golf & Guitars Music Festival in Sacramento in May. Shy and unassuming, this Texan blew away the crowd in our singer/songwriter night with a deep holler voice that reminds of Randy Travis and Mark Chesnutt and a delivery that has an ability to wrench every drop of emotion out of every single line of lyric. I do not overstate the fact that his performance wowed/stunned the first night audience and that was with incredible songwriters performing with him by the likes of Jack Ingram, Jamie Lin Wilson, Drew Kennedy and more. Worthington is the absolute real deal and this EP balances equal parts traditional honkytonk dance numbers and weepers. He nails them both. Our only criticism is that it being an EP, there's just not enough songs on the project. More Jake is a very good thing.
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
Wednesday, January 11, 2017
Hear It Here: Natalie Hemby Play "Grand Restoration" From Puxico
Friend-of-the-blog and all-around fantastical writer Juli Thanki of The Tennessean had Natalie Hemby into the newspaper's "studio" where she played "Grand Restoration" a couple days ahead of the release of her promising new album release of Puxico. Click HERE to hear her play live.
Thursday, December 8, 2016
Sunny Sweeney To Release Trophy In March With Four Lori McKenna Co-Writes
Album: Trophy
Label: Thirty Tigers
Release date: March 10, 2017
2017 is shaping up to have some serious releases from some ladies with some serious singer-songwriter chops. Following up on previous album announcements from the likes of Jeannie Sealy, Natalie Hemby, Valerie June, Whitney Rose, Alison Krauss, LeAnn Rimes and Whiney Rose, critically-acclaimed artist Sunny Sweeney announced that she will release her fourth album Trophy on March 10th via Thirty Tigers. Trophy promises to feature "the young troubadour’s most serious set of songs, a new side of Sunny Sweeney. Rootsy and real, Trophy showcases Sweeney's maturation as a songwriter and as an artist growing into her own."
Trophy is the follow-up to Provoked (one of That Nashville Sound's Top 20 Albums of 2014), which offered a glimpse into where Sweeney was headed. Billboard, Rolling Stone Country, No Depression, The Washington Post and Elle are just a handful of the outlets that supported Sweeney's direction. NPR’s All Things Considered said, “Sunny Sweeney has all the right stuff for country stardom - a Texas pedigree, a heart-melting voice, stunning looks and the ability to seem both tough and vulnerable”. On Concrete, her 2011 major label release, Sweeney became the first female artist to reach the Top 10 on the country radio charts in over a decade.
From the press release:
"Sweeney has never been afraid to write about personal experiences, her unapologetic honesty and revealing vulnerability shows her as an artist who is equally as tough as she is tender. On Trophy it's clear that she's in a positive place, however the variety of songs on the album take listeners on an emotional rollercoaster. On the gorgeous “Grow Old With Me” and “Nothing Wrong With Texas”, Sweeney taps into the themes of love and sense of place. A highlight of the album, “Bottle By My Bed” is a heart-wrenching song expressing the sadness and frustration of not having a child. Though she didn’t set out to, Sweeney co-wrote the majority of Trophy with female writers, including four songs with Grammy Award-winning songwriter Lori McKenna. Her resulting songs capture the feminine experience with a combination of nuance, humor and accuracy only possible from the perspective of Sweeney and her collaborators. Trophy was produced by Grammy-nominated engineer/producer Dave Brainard (Brandy Clark's 12 Stories)."
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Singer-Songwriter Natalie Hemby Goes Home For Upcoming Puxico Release
Album: Puxico
Label: GetWrucke Records
Release date: Jan. 13, 2017
You can officially mark this as the first highly anticipated album of 2017. Accomplished and critically-acclaimed songwriter Natalie Hemby has announced that she'll be releasing her album Puxico in mid-January. She has written songs for Lee Ann Womack, Eli Young Band, Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Sunny Sweeney and Little Big Town. Hemby has accumulated five #1 Billboard singles during her career. Hemby's cuts include "White Liar" and "Only Prettier" by Lambert, "Pontoon" and "Tornado" by Little Big Town, "Drinks After Work" by Keith and "Automatic" by Miranda Lambert.
The album follows the documentary of the same name that Hemby released in late 2014. Named after the hometown of her grandparents in Missouri, the filmed celebrated the lives of the people living in the town and the Homecoming celebration happening during filming.
"When I originally set out to make this film, I wanted to tell the story of Homecoming," said Hemby. "How it's put on, who's involved, what's involved, how do you keep it going, etc. I wanted to show that small town America still existed and the kind of unsung heroes it still creates."
"I really want people to fall in love with their hometowns again, big or small," said Hemby. "I want people to see this documentary and say, 'Hey, that reminds me of my hometown.' I want people to understand how sacred and rare it is to have a long-standing tradition and how important it is that we keep it alive."
"When you keep these traditions alive, you keep your hometown from disappearing, and it is so important that we never let our towns disappear because they raise such extraordinary people."Hemby recorded all of the music for the documentary and while it's unclear at press time of this article whether the album is the soundtrack release , it is categorized that way under Apple Music. You can listen to a snippet of the first single below.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)