Posts from — February 2008

A country music theme park is coming to southern Alabama as reported by Country Hound here and mentioned in a blog post by The 9513 here. The $300 million resort will be named Country Crossing and plans have already been approved with a construction site yet to be chosen. George Jones has already signed on with the project, agreeing to perform their at least four times a year. More information located here.

Always On My Mind – Willie Nelson
This Gold and Platinum favorite from Johnny Christopher, Mark James, and Wayne Carson won Song of the Year at the 1982 Grammys and CMA Awards. In the years since, it’s become a staple all across country radio and at country concerts.
Always On My Mind

A meteor lit up the sky over the Pacific Northwest last night before crashing to Earth in southern Washington state, according to various news reports and government agencies. You can check out the full story here, but it got us thinking about the song “Hot Rock Came To The Country” and so we dug up this video. Enjoy.

And now, Part 1 of a new series that looks at some of country music’s biggest stars, greatest songs, and what might have been.

• Clint Black and Tammy Wynette – Stand By Your Better Man
• Charlie Daniels and Loretta Lynn – The Coal Miner’s Daughter Went Down To Georgia
• Kenny Rogers and Patsy Cline – The Crazy Gambler
• Garth Brooks and Shania Twain – That Don’t Impress My Friends In Low Places Much

Here at Original American Country we’re constantly encouraging a passion for Country Music. How can you fall in love with what you don’t know about? OAC is your answer. Over the next thirty weeks we’ll feature a Country Hit that you can listen to and learn about…

Week 1

Almost Persuaded – David Houston
Judged by many as the best of Houston’s seven Number One hits, this Sherrill-Sutton classic composition about love’s tests, temptations and triumphs walked away with the 1966 Grammy Awards for Best Country & Western Song, Best Recording, & Best Male Performance.
Almost Persuaded

Tommy Cash

He’s the brother of a legend. But he’s built his own special country career, and put his unique signature on country music.

Music was always in the air for country legend Tommy Cash. Even growing up in rural Dyess, Arkansas, where his parents Ray and Carrie Rivers Cash moved to take advantage of a new farm program started by Roosevelt. They never could have expected the talent that would arise out of the fields of cotton they farmed side by side with their children. Slowly but surely, however, young Tommy was absorbing musical influences – everything from the work songs of the fields and nearby railroad yards to the sweet sound of his mother’s hymns and folk songs. Another boy’s ears were perking up too – his older brother Johnny. In truth, music played a big part in the Cash family’s daily life, but no one knew the fame it would bring.

“We grew up in northeast Arkansas…I’m the youngest of seven children. I remember Mama and Daddy working long hours to provide for us and give us a Christian home. Most of all, I remember a whole lot of love,” Tommy says of his upbringing.

Restless, but never one to squander his musical talents, Tommy formed his first band when he was in high school. Music was not his only love, however. All along, he dreamed of being a basketball player. Today, Tommy’s an avid golfer, competing in various celebrity golf tournaments, a sport he took up as an adult.

After high school, Tommy enlisted in the U.S. Army where he passed time as a deejay for AFN radio’s “Stickbuddy Jamboree” in Germany. The experience sharpened his love of music generally, especially country music.

Back in the USA, he forged ahead in the music business, working in radio, even playing with Hank Williams, Jr. In the meantime, he also worked at managing his brother’s record company. Then in 1965 he was signed to Musicor and proceeded to release his first single, “That’s Where My Baby Used To Be.” Tommy just missed the country Top 40 in 1968 with “The Sounds of Goodbye” on United Artists.

“Six White Horses,” (Epic) his 1969 tribute to the Kennedys and Martin Luther King, earned him his biggest success in the US country charts. Just one year later he released a pair of Top 10 singles, “One Song Away” and “Rise And Shine,” written by brother Johnny’s Sun Records contemporary, Carl Perkins. Tommy appeared in 1987 on Austin City Limits with brother Johnny. He’s won a BMI award for his composition, “You Don’t Hear,” a country hit for Kitty Wells. In 1991, he released The 25th Anniversary Album, which featured guest appearances from brother Johnny, Tom T. Hall, George Jones, and Connie Smith.

Despite his distinctly American country sound, Tommy is also an international star. He has been quite popular at U.K. country festivals, toured Australia, and has played in many foreign countries on almost every continent.

Tommy’s wit, charm, and superb performances have led him to entertain at The Grand Ole Opry, Las Vegas, Branson Theaters, military bases, fairs, and corporate functions. He has also been sought after as a guest by several major networks and his videos have been played on Country Music Television and The Nashville Network. His sparkling personality and excellent voice have also made Tommy a popular guest speaker, as well as a vocal talent for commercials.

Today, Tommy continues to entertain audiences with songs from his more than 20 albums. An ambassador of country music to the nation and to the world, Tommy is very outspoken on the music he loves:

“I’m not surprised that country music has been accepted by such a wide audience, and I believe the best is yet to come!”

We salute a true American country original.

Just like today’s hottest country recording artists, Martin guitars were born in the country. When C.F. Martin moved his operation to the rural outskirts of Nazareth, Pennsylvania in 1838, he was relieved to get out of the harsh environment of New York City and back to the tranquil settings reminiscent of his birthplace in Germany. His wife was happy as well – her love of the beautiful rolling hills being a big reason for the move. Not only did The Martin Guitar Company begin in the country, it has played a major role in influencing country music.

Martin’s legendary D-28 “Dreadnought” guitar helped shape the sound of country music by paving the way for the larger body style that is so popular today. Because of its large size and deep bass response, country performers picked them up in a big way. Since country music traditionally lacked a bass instrument, the D-28 was perfect for backing up vocals, fiddles, and banjos. Today the guitar is prevalent in all types of acoustic music and accounts for about 80 percent of Martin’s yearly production.

Not only did Martin help shape country music, country music helped to shape Martin guitars as well. In 1933, country star Gene Autry helped spawn another style of Dreadnought. It was based on his idol Jimmie Rodgers‘ guitar but used the new larger body style popularized by Martin. The guitar had Autry’s name written in pearl script on the fret board.

Martin has produced some of the finest acoustic instruments in the world for over a century and a half. And like a well-crafted song, fine guitars result from a careful attention to detail.

“How to build a guitar to give this tone is not a secret,” Frank Henry Martin explained in 1903. “It takes care in selecting the materials, laying out the proportions, and patience in giving the necessary time to finish every part. A fine guitar cannot be built for the price of a poor one, but who regrets the extra cost for a good guitar?”

The Martin Guitar Company continues to adhere to the principles that have guided it through six generations and continues to produce the finest guitars in the world.