Big Country Notes for JULY 5

TIM McGRAW AND FAITH HILL WILL AUCTION JEEP

Faith Hill and Tim McGraw have a long history with Jeeps. They were taking a ride in one in State College, Pennsylvania when they made a commitment to each other. Now the couple is giving some other lucky person a chance for the same experience. Tim and Faith are auctioning off a 2007 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon 4x4 in a charity auction on eBay. The Jeep was generously donated by Faith and Tim’s Neighbor’s Keeper Foundation and the Jeep brand, which is tour sponsor for the “SoulIISoul 2007” tour. Bids are being taken on eBay at eBay.com/JeepSoul2Soul. Bidding closes at midnight on July 14th. Proceeds from the auction go to the Neighbor’s Keeper Foundation. The organization was founded by Tim and Faith as a commitment to adults and children deprived of basic humanitarian services or programs either as a result of a natural disaster or social status.
The winner will be recognized by Tim and Faith at the August 4th show in Las Vegas. He or she gets a trip for two to Las Vegas that includes round trip airfare, hotel and ground transportation, two tickets to the “Soul2Soul Tour 2007” concert and the opportunity to meet Tim and Faith backstage prior to their performance and other items.

BRAD PAISLEY’S TOUR SEES 42-PERCENT INCREASE IN ATTENDANCE OVER 2006

Brad Paisley has played to over 250-thousand fans in his first 23 shows this year. That’s a 42-percent increase for his “Hershey’s Presents Bonfires and Amplifies” tour over last year’s “Time Well Wasted” tour. Paisley is thrilled about his association with Hershey’s. He says, quote, “It’s the dream of every artist to find the right collaboration with a sponsorship package. I like it because it’s a tour sponsorship that is something that I heavily endorse.” Paisley adds, quote, “They are helping us reach people that we’ve never been able to reach before. And we have reinvested the money in our show which is definitely impressive to see.” Among the new tricks for the show this year is virtual fire on the big screens around the stage and a holographic Alison Krauss, who comes out, sits on a stool and sings with him. He says, quote, “The further back you are the more real she looks. I’ve had people think she was really there.”

FINAL HEARING DATE SET FOR SARA EVANS DIVORCE CASE

Sara Evans will finally get her day court. According to “The Tennessean,” a final hearing for the divorce of Evans and her husband, Craig Schelske, will take place December 12th. The couple will appear in a Williamson County courtroom for the three- or four-day hearing. Despite the fact that Evans and Schelske have been asked to use a mediator in the handling of the divorce they are no closer to settling, which is why the hearing has been set. Schelske is asking to have the couple's three children live with him in Oregon during the summer. A Williamson County judge will rule on that in the coming days. Sara filed for the divorce in October of 2006, while she was a competitor on “Dancing with the Stars.” She and Schelske exchanged various charges between the two of them in ensuing weeks, including verbal and emotional abuse from Evans. She left the competition to spend time with her children during the emotional weeks following her filing for divorce.

CHRIS CAGLE READYING NEW ALBUM

Chris Cagle has been in the studio working on his upcoming album for Capitol-Nashville. The singer will release the first single from the project, “What Kinda Gone,” later this month. Cagle describes the song as, quote, “an up-tempo, get-up-and-dance tune featuring lyrics that roll right off the tongue.” It’s one of seven songs Chris has recorded for the project. The singer says, quote, “It’s so good to come back to radio with a song that I know is format-friendly, sing-able, unique and comical in content…and I’m very proud of the production.” The disc reunites Cagle with producer Scott Hendricks, who was responsible for Chris’s first recording contract with Virgin Records in 2000.

CMA AND ABC OFFER COUNTRY FANS ONLINE EXPERIENCE

Martina McBride and Trace Adkins are making the country music community a little more interactive online. These and other artists will take country fans for some behind-the-scenes action from this year’s CMA Music Festival online at ABC.com. Fans will have the opportunity to have an interactive experience with some of their favorite artists at the festival, all hosted by former "Bachelor" participant Bob Guiney. Included in the footage are backstage interviews with Martina and Sugarland during the nightly stadium concerts at LP Field. Fans can also hang out with Terri Clark and Craig Morgan during the day shows at Riverfront Park. They can be right there with the enthusiastic fans who are in line for autographs from Trace at the Exhibit Hall. Additionally, viewers can visit with Bucky Covington and Billy Ray Cyrus on their tour buses. The exclusive videos featured on ABC.com debut Monday. The video vignettes will also be featured on the homepage of ABC.com.
The four-day festival was filmed for a two-hour, primetime network television special. "CMA Music Festival: Country's Night to Rock" airs July 23 at 9:00 p.m. Eastern on ABC.

JACK INGRAM MIGHT NEED ONSTAR

Jack Ingram is a physical fitness buff. Even on the road he tries to keep up with some kind of fitness regime by running five miles a day whenever he can. A recent incident in Spokane, Washington while on Brad Paisley’s “Bonfires & Amplifiers” tour may have him taking a second look at his running schedule. Jack says, quote, "I have one of the assistants from the venue drop me off five miles from the amphitheater and I usually memorize the route so I remember how to make it back.” That works if you’re concentrating on the route and not talking. In Spokane Jack was engrossed in conversation while being driven to his drop-off spot, so on his run back to the arena he made a wrong turn. He says, quote, “Keep in mind, I had no cell phone, no money, no ID...nothing! And I ran through a farm and had to jump over a bunch of barbed-wire before I found the venue about 30 minutes later!" Fans in Bossier City, Louisiana tonight or Houston, Texas tomorrow might keep an eye out for Ingram. He advises, quote, "If you see me running in your town, you may want to stop and ask me if I need directions!"

TAYLOR SWIFT VERIZON CAMPAIGN EXPANDS

Watch for Taylor Swift in a theatre near you soon. The singer hasn’t taken on a movie role – Verizon is using her tune “Our Song” in an upcoming Screenvision program that will play in movie theatres before the film begins. Swift is already involved with Verizon. Her image and artwork is being used on in-store Point-of-Sale materials and in a print campaign running in “Seventeen” magazine and other print outlets. Taylor is the only country artist being used in the theatre campaign, which runs in August on four-thousand movie theatres around the country.

SAXAPHONE PLAYER BOOTS RANDOLPH DIES LAST TUESDAY

Boots Randolph, the legendary saxophone player who was among Nashville’s elite musicians, died Tuesday. The musician had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage June 25th. Raldolph, who was 80, was taken to a hospital and remained in a coma until the end. A spokesperson for Randolph says the decision was made to take him off of his respirator Tuesday morning. The musician was often paired with pianist Floyd Cramer and guitarist Chet Atkins for concerts. The three, all of whom have passed on, were considered among Nashville’s top musicians. Boots had a major hit with his song “Yakety Sax” and was in major demand for recording sessions. He jokingly called himself the only “hillbilly saxophone player in the world.” Randolph played on songs by Elvis Presley, Brenda Lee and Johnny Cash. He also owned a nightclub in Nashvlle’s Printer’s Alley for many years. His most recent album, “A Whole New Ballgame,” which was an album of standards, was released last month.

QUICK BITES

John Rich of Big & Rich has been in the studio doing the final mixes on Randy Owen new album project, which he is producing. Owen told “Country Aircheck Monitor,” quote, “I’ve been real impressed with what he’s done so far.

Trace Adkins was a guest on CNN Headline News yesterday. He chatted with host Glenn Beck via satellite from Nashville. Beck is hosting a weeklong series for CNN Domestic titled, "We the People," focusing on real America and issues that really matter.

Dwight Yoakam has a new partnership with the Bicycle Music Co. The singer also has a new album -- "Dwight Sings Buck" – which will be released September 25th by New West Records.

Ty Herndon isn’t superstitious. He’s performing at the Nashville Palace next Friday, July 13th.

Big Country Notes for JULY 2

ALAN JACKSON SAYS HE HAS ALWAYS LOVED THE SOUND OF DUET VOICES

Alan Jackson and Brooks and Dunn are taking the month of July off from their co-headlining tour. The two headliners have had fun on the first part of the tour and are enjoying each other’s music. Jackson says he’s been a fan of duos for a long time. He says the Bellamy Brothers were among his favorites when he was a kid and he thinks Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn are carrying on the tradition. Alan says, quote, “I like a duo like that. It’s a little different than just…you know—there’s a million guys with cowboy hats [that] come along like me standing there, and I think the duo gives it a whole different personality.” The tour picks up again in Little Rock, Arkansas on August 24th, followed by Birmingham, Alabama August 25th and Atlanta, Georgia August 26th. It ends in Orlando, Florida on October 21st.

BRAD PAISLEY SAYS NEW ALBUM “5TH GEAR” MORE LIKE HIM THAN ANY PREVIOUS PROJECT

Brad Paisley pours his heart and soul into the albums he releases. He writes many of the songs and he plays a wicked guitar on the music tracks. He also has a part in many of the major decisions that go along with putting out an album, including what the cover looks like and how the songs will be sequenced. He says his new disc “5th Gear” feels more like him in live performance than anything he’s done so far. Brad says, quote, “I think that when picking songs there were like a couple of criteria this time that were very important to me that I wanted to meet.” He adds, quote, “They were things I sort of made up as a theory as to what makes an album great and what makes a song worthy of being on an album.”

SARA EVANS SAYS HER SINGLE “AS IF” WAS A SONG THAT WROTE ITSELF

Songwriters know that some songs almost write themselves while other can take years to complete. Sara Evans says her new single “As If” was one of the quick writes. The singer says, quote, “It’s was one of those songs that wrote itself. When a song does that, you know it’s special.” Sara also says it was a natural choice for the first single off her upcoming greatest hits disc due out this fall. She says she’s very excited about the single and says, quote, “I knew people would relate to it and would love to just crank their radio up and listen to it.” Fans will also get to hear it on tour as the singer is scheduled for concerts in Wendover, Nevada tomorrow and Pasco, Washington on Wednesday.

KELLIE PICKLER VISITS WITH HOCKEY PLAYER BOYFRIEND IN CANADA

During some rare time off, Kellie Pickler visited her hockey star boyfriend Jordin Tootoo in his hometown of Rankin Inlet in the Nunavut Province of Canada. Kellie and Jordin, who is a player for the Nashville Predators, have been dating since January. CBC News reports this is Pickler’s first visit to Canada. She told CBS, quote, "I've had different types of food that I never in my wildest dreams ever thought I'd try … raw caribou and whale blubber." She says that besides ketchup chips, which aren't available in the U.S., her favorite part of the trip has been the people. Picker says, quote, "I've never felt so welcome anywhere like I have here. As soon as I got off the plane, everyone was waiting for me at the airport, just to welcome me to the community. Everyone's been so nice." After her visit with Jordin and his family Kelly resumed touring with a series of fairs and festivals including Lawrence County Fair in Proctorville, Ohio on July 12th, the Hodag Country Festival in Rhinelander, Wisconsin on July 14th and Country Thunder festival in Twin Lakes, WI on July 18th. She meets up again with Brad Paisley’s “Bonfires & Amplifiers” tour on July 19th at Jamboree in the Hills in Morristown, Ohio.

VAN ZAN ALBUM DUE FOR SEPTEMBER RELEASE

Johnny and Donnie Van Zant of Van Zant have written six of the eleven cuts for their upcoming album “My Kind of Country,” due for a September 18th release. The duo’s sophomore effort follows on the heels of their gold-selling disc “Get Right with the Man.” Johnny and Donnie are both individual members of rock bands Lynyrd Skynyrd and .38 Special, respectively. They admit they had no idea what to expect when they recorded their first country album. Johnny says, quote, “It was always our dream to record together on a country album … and to have country radio, the industry and the fans support us they way they did just blew us away.” Donnie adds, quote, “Yeah, and putting out another country record is like icing on a really cool cake!” The two plan to hit the road together this fall in support of “My Kind of Country.”

RANDY OWEN OF ALABAMA HONORED BY ALSAC/ST. JUDE

Randy Owen of Alabama was honored Saturday night at the 50th anniversary celebration of ALSAC/St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Owen, a longtime St. Jude supporter, was presented with the Founder’s Award – an honor that Danny Thomas bestowed only on very special occasions. Owen told the people at the celebration, quote, “Danny Thomas was such a special person. I didn’t have the chance to know him as well as some of you, but it shows you how a good man can inspire you in just a brief time.” Tony Thomas, Danny’s son, told Owen, quote, “I know if my father was here, he would want you to have this award.” Randy helped start the Country Cares for St. Jude Kids program in 1989 after meeting Danny. The program has become one of the most successful radio fundraising events in the country, garnering more than 310-million-dollars in pledges for the hospital. After receiving his award, Owen and his new band performed for more than one thousand volunteers, board members, ALSAC staff and other guests who were in attendance at the event.

STEVE AZAR DATES WITH HOOTIE & THE BLOWFISH POSTPONED

Steve Azar's previously announced tour dates with Hootie & the Blowfish have been postponed until further notice. Darius Rucker, lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish, was forced to undergo surgery for a staph infection in his left. He will be off the road through mid-July, forcing the delay of 13 dates in the group’s summer concert tour. Shows will be rescheduled as soon as details can be worked out. Azar was scheduled to be on six of the cancelled dates. The band is scheduled to be in Nashville on September 9th to do a benefit show for the W.O. Smith School, which gives music lessons to needy kids.

DAN SEALS IN HOSPITAL WITH NON-HODGKIN’S LYMPHOMA

Dan Seals is battling Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma cancer at Nashville’s Vanderbilt Hospital and Houston’s MD Anderson. According to reports, Seals is doing well but will continue to undergo treatment. Seals had eleven number one hits in the late 1980’s, among them “Everything That Glitters Is not Gold,” the 1986 Country Music Association’s Single of the Year “Bop” and “Meet Me In Montana” with Maria Osmond.

COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAMER CELEBRATES 80TH BIRTHDAY

Charlie Louvin celebrates his 80th birthday on July 7th and he has an upcoming weekend filled with activities. First he will have a special performance at Mercy Lounge in Nashville on Friday. Saturday he will celebrate his birthday with a performance at the Grand Ole Opry and on the ”Midnight Jamboree” at Ernest Tubb’s Record Shop near the Opry House. Sunday he will celebrate the world premier of his new video “Ira,” which is about his brother Ira Louvin, at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. The Louvin brothers are Hall of Fame members. A week later, on July 14, Charlie begins a 13-city tour with Lucinda Williams in Kansas City, Missouri.

QUICK BITES

Keni Thomas will sing the National Anthem and perform with the Nashville Symphony at Nashville’s “Let Freedom Sing” concert at Riverfront Park July 4th. Also on the concert are Taylor Swift and Jason Michael Carroll. Thomas will represent country music this month when he appears on the cover of July’s issue of “Christian Single” Magazine.

The Nashville Convention & Visitor's Bureau estimates the combined total attendance for the recent CMA Music Festival was 191-thousand people. That crowd generated 21-million-dollars in spending to the city.

Marshall Tucker Band guitarist George McCorkle died Friday morning in Nashville from cancer. He co-founded the Marshall Tucker Band in 1971 in Spartanburg, South Carolina with band members Doug Gray, Paul Riddle, Jerry Eubanks and the late Tommy Caldwell and the late Toy Caldwell. McCorkle wrote one of the band's Southern rock anthems, "Fire on the Mountain."

Mark Chesnutt has signed with Lofton Creek Records and will release a new album, “Rollin' With the Flow” later this year. He joins labelmates Keith Bryant, Heartland, Shawn King, “American Idol” finalist Carmen Rasmusen and Doug Stone.

Time Life has set an August 28th release date for their compilation disc “Classic Bluegrass Collection.” The three CD set will include bluegrass recordings across a variety of record labels including music from Vince Gill, Patty Loveless, Ricky Skaggs, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss and Country Music Hall of Famers Bill Monroe and Flatt & Scruggs, as well as selections from the “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” soundtrack.




"RATATOUILLE" #1 FILM IN UNDERWHELMING BOX OFFICE DEBUT

The film "Ratatouille" has cooked up a moderate success in its debut weekend. The animated film has made just more than 47-million-dollars to place first in the box office charts. However, that's the lowest opening for a Pixar release in nine years. "Ratatouille" had been expected to rake in up to 65-million-dollars in its debut. Bruce Willis’ “Die Hard” hero John McClane yippee-ki-yayed his way to second place in the box office race. The fourth installment in the action franchise, "Live Free Or Die Hard," took in just over 33-million-dollars in its debut. "Evan Almighty" sank to third with 15-million. (Metro Source)

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. (final figures will be released today):

1. "Ratatouille," $47.2 million.
2. "Live Free or Die Hard," $33.15 million.
3. "Evan Almighty," $15.1 million.
4. "1408," $10.6 million.
5. "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer," $9 million.
6. "Knocked Up," $7.4 million.
7. "Ocean's Thirteen," $6.05 million.
8. "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," $5 million.
9. "Sicko," $4.5 million.
10. "Evening," $3.5 million.