Randy Montana Releases New EP Put Me In A Box

Former Mercury Records artist and current Sony/ATV songwriter Randy Montana has released a brand new 5 song EP entitled Put Me In A Box this week via i-Tunes. Montana says, “Put Me In A Box speaks from a wiser, more mature place.”

Track Listing:

1. "Put Me In A Box" (Randy Montana, E. Dylan)
2. "Young In This Town" (Randy Montana, T. Reeves, J. Hoge)
3. "Practice Swing" (Randy Montana, B. Chaffin)
4. "Train Wreck" (Randy Montana, C. Wilson)
5. "Creepin' Up On Me" (Randy Montana, B. Chaffin)

Montana is a songwriter’s son who has found his own voice and quickly earned respect as a tunesmith on Music Row. He co-wrote nine songs on his eponymous album, and Montgomery Gentry recorded the Montana-penned “Can’t Feel the Pain.” Emmylou Harris was so impressed by Montana’s talent that she harmonizes with him on “Last Horse.”

His father is Billy Montana, whose hits include Garth Brooks’ “More Than a Memory,” Sara Evans’ “Suds in the Bucket” and the Grammy-nominated Jo Dee Messina hit “Bring on the Rain.” “Growing up around it, it took me awhile to come into my own,” he says. “I never worried about being in a shadow or anything like that. But I also wanted to achieve that same kind of songwriting level that my dad achieved.”

He signed with Sony Music Publishing in 2008 and began writing with its team of established writers. His burgeoning catalog caught the attention of Universal Music Group Nashville’s Joe Fisher, and he soon signed with Universal’s Mercury Nashville and began creating his debut album. That debut album spawned the two charted hits, “1,000 Faces” and the debut single, “Ain’t Much Left Of Lovin’ You.”

Country Music News Round-Up- New Albums Galore & Jack Ingram Covers Patty Griffin

"It was while making newspaper deliveries, trying to miss the bushes and hit the porch, that I first learned the importance of accuracy in journalism." ~Charles Osgood- CBS News

* Mercury Records Nashville will release singer/songwriter Randy Montana’s self-titled debut album on July 26. Montana’s album is produced by Jay Joyce (Patty Griffin, Faith Hill) and includes the charted hits "Ain't Much Left Of Lovin' You," and his current single "1,000 Faces.” Also on the album is the loved track “Last Horse,” which features Emmylou Harris on harmonies.

* Jake Owen has announced that his third album Barefoot Blue Jean Night will land on August 30. Produced by Joey Moi, Rodney Clawson and Tony Brown, the album will house 11 new tracks including the lead single, “Barefoot Blue Jean Night” which has reached the top twenty on the Billboard charts.

“It is kind of ironic that my new album is being released on August 30, two days after I turn 30 and this is my third record,” Jake said. “This album is a big step for me and my career and I can’t wait for people to hear it.”

* Nashville country/inspirational trio Point of Grace is releasing a greatest hits package on July 12th entitled Turn Up The Music: The Hits Of Point Of Grace. Bandmembers Shelley Breen, Leigh Cappillino and Denise Jones are kicking it off with a new track, “Hole In The World,” which will be hitting the CCM and country radio airwaves this summer. The track was previously written and recorded by The Eagles.  For those unfamiliar with the band, here's a little teaser from their press release:

Since forming at Ouachita Baptist University, the two-time GRAMMY nominees have sold more than 6.5 million albums and earned 24 consecutive No. 1 singles (27 total including radio staples “Steady On”, “The Great Divide” and “Circle of Friends”), a feat unmatched by any artist in any genre. They’ve won 13 prestigious Dove Awards, including 2011’s “Country Album of the Year” for No Changin’ Us as well as “Christmas Album of the Year” for Home For The Holidays and are the reigning Inspirational Country Music Awards “Entertainer of the Year.”

* Mark Wills releases a suprisingly serious album this month with the unveiling of Looking For America- released on the independent Gracie Productions. The album includes a very strong song about a soldier's difficulty in recallibrating to home life after serving in the desert called "Crazy Being Home" that's one of the stronger unheard cuts of the year. In an initiative with USA Cares, Mark Wills is using the single to introduce the Warrior Treatment Today “Crazy Being Home” national awareness campaign surrounding the severity of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).  The album's release date is tomorrow, June 21, 2011.

“This is definitely a personal album for me and although some folks might see it as a bit of a departure from the music I’ve recorded in the past, this project is really ‘all-encompassing,’” Wills reveals. “It’s got gun and grit, pain and romance, heart-heavy emotions and is chock-full of life situations; there is a strong dose of reality in this record. All of the songs really spoke to me and I felt the ‘tug’ to record each and every one for very different reasons.”

* Dave Stewart- best known for his work with The Eurythmics- is releasing a Nashville-born Americana-themed album called The Blackbird Diaries on August 23rd. It features a co-write with Bob Dylan as well as duets with Stevie Nicks, Martina McBride, Colbie Caillat, and the Secret Sisters. From his press release:

The Blackbird Diaries is indeed a novel approach for Stewart: tenacious rock steeped in Americana and blues riffs with his most personal, story-driven lyrics to date.

*  30 Texas music legends including Willie Nelson, Rhett Miller, Shawn Colvin, Robert Earl Keen and dozens more have come together to both pay tribute and add to her philanthropic endeavors with fellow Texan Sara Hickman's The Best of Times. Sales of this compilation CD, available nationwide August 23, 2011, will benefit Theatre Action Project (TAP), a non-profit that brings art, music and theatre to Central Texas schools. The 38-track double disc project was inspired by a recent slash in arts funding by Texas State Legislature.

“I wanted to utilize my position as the Official State Musician of Texas to promote families being creative together,” says Hickman. “Many times this starts with children bringing home ideas they learn at school.”

* Jack Ingram has been travelling with Patty Griffin on tour the last couple of weeks and covers her song in his Acoustic Motel series about a soldier coming home after serving his duty overseas called "I Am Not A Bad Man." Check out the acoustic performance HERE.