the lowdown on country throwdown
TRANSCRIPT
©2010, MusicRow Communications, LLC—ALL RIGHTS RESERVED [email protected]
The Lowdown on Country Throwdownby Peter Cronin
page 1 Wednesday, May 26, 2010
With 21 acts
performing on three
separate stages, the
sprawling musical
caravan known as Country
Throwdown—currently eight
stops into its tightly packed
22-show itinerary—is a new
kind of tour for country music.
From promoters to bands to fans,
there’s a learning curve here for just
about everyone involved.
Headliners including Montgomery
Gentry, Jamey Johnson, Jack Ingram,
Little Big Town, The Eli Young Band and
Eric Church compete for fans with side
stages showcasing relative up-and-comers
Ryan Bingham & the Dead Horses, The
Lost Trailers, Heidi Newfield, Emily West
and Tyler Reeve. And then there's the
“Bluebird” tent—featuring a revolving door
of fresh-faced singer/songwriters. No, this
ain't your average, run-of-the-mill country
concert.
While country fans may not be accustomed
to the split focus of a multi-stage, traveling
festival, the format
is very familiar to
Throwdown
creators Kevin
Lyman and Sarah
Baer. Their production
company, 4 Fini, is
responsible for the Vans
Warped Tour, now in its
16th successful year, in addition
to the well-established heavy
metal-themed Mayhem and Taste
of Chaos tours. Their freewheeling formula
has struck a chord with the younger, alternative
crowd, but they knew they had a lot to learn
in trying to finesse country music into a
similar mold.
“When we started
talking about this tour,”
says Baer, “I said to
Kevin, ‘If we’re going to
do this I want to be
there every day, and I
want to involve record
labels and management
from day one.’”
Table of Contents
1 The Lowdown on Country
Throwdown
4 Pickin’ On The Patio
5 Grand Ole Opry’s 85th Via
Satellite
5 Country Weekly Fashion
Show
5 Bo Goes to LA
6 Rockin‘ Through The Rain
6 Soles4Soles Relief Fund
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Sarah Baer
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
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page 2 Wednesday, May 26, 2010
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page 3 Wednesday, May 26, 2010
With Lyman based on the West
Coast, Baer relocated from Chicago
to Nashville in October 2008 to plant
the seeds that would grow into
Country Throwdown.
“I don’t think this tour ever would
have happened if Kevin was in Los
Angeles and I was in Chicago trying
to do it,” Baer says. “I met everybody
in this town twice and got their
feedback. But we also knew that if
we were going do this with our stamp
on it, it was going to be different…
and it did need to get shaken up a
little.”
Settling into Nashville, Baer
soaked up the town's wide-ranging
musical offerings, and her Music
City experience directly influenced
Throwdown's eclectic artistic mix. In
fact, she handpicked the songwriters
appearing in the Bluebird Tent,
including Sarah Buxton and Jed
Hughes (who have apparently
morphed into the duo Buxton
Hughes), Walker Hayes, Heather
BMI hosted a tour launch party for the Country Throwdown Tour at Cabanna (5/25). (L-R) back: BMI’s Jody Williams, tour producer Sarah Baer, Bluebird COO Erika Wollam Nichols and BMI’s Beth Mason. Front: Troy Olsen, Ashley Ray, Cory Branan, Sarah Buxton, Dave Pahanish and Brad Tursi.
©2010, MusicRow Communications, LLC—ALL RIGHTS RESERVED [email protected]
Morgan, Brad Tursi, Ashley Ray, Troy
Olsen, Cory Branan and Dave Pahanish.
“After I moved to Nashville, I spent so
much time at songwriter in-the-rounds,”
she says. “It was the best part of booking
this tour. Next year we want Troy Olsen and
his band on the side stage. We want this to
be the first place these artists ever toured.”
Two weeks into Country Throwdown's
eight-week run the buzz is growing and word
is getting out. Tickets sales are exceeding
expectations and everyone, from fans to
artists to tour operators, is having a blast.
For Baer, it's the culmination of two years
of preparation. She's learned a lot about
country music, but at a recent Throwdown
stop in Cincinnati, she got a first-hand lesson
in just how dedicated country music fans
can be.
“Four massive storm cells came through
during the day and nobody left,” Baer says.
“They didn’t care that it rained on them
75% of the day. These people are serious
about their music and serious about their
beer, and I’ve never had more fun on a
show. They’re as passionate about seeing
the shows as we are about putting them
on. And with that combination, this tour is
going to last forever.”
Industry Newsby Peter Cronin
Up On The Roof Warner Music
Nashville is taking it
to the top this summer,
hosting Pickin' On The
Patio. Between May and
Last Saturday night, Laura Bell Bundy made her Opry debut at the War Memorial Auditorium. The first song Bundy performed was a ballad from the Achin’ side of her two part album, Achin and Shakin’. For her second number, Bundy put on her tap shoes and invited the Opry Squaredancers to join her on stage for the performance of her debut single, “Giddy On Up.”
Nashville songwriters and publishers competed in the 5th Annual ASCAP/ole Songwriters Fishing Tournament held during the 15th Annual Key West Songwriters Festival. Harrah's & Caesars Marketing of Nashville sponsored the prizes. Marty Dodson won the Grand Prize trip to Harrah's in Las Vegas. The second place prize trip to Harrah's in Tunica was given to Mike Willis, and Tebey Ottoh came in third with a stay at Harrah's in Atlantic City. The three winners were also awarded a gift card to either Sunset Grill or Midtown Café in Nashville. (L-R): ASCAP's Mike
Sistad, Dodson, ole's Gilles Godard, Willis, Ottoh and Shane Barrett. Photo: Alan Mayor
page 4 Wednesday, May 26, 2010
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October, the label will be “throwing a party on the WMN Patio,” promising “food,
drinks and great music.” The event, sponsored by Aramark, Buffalo Trace Kentucky
Straight Bourbon Whiskey, Red Rooster Bar & Music Hall and Red Bull, will feature
different artists performing each week. The Patio opens at 5:00 PM and music starts
at 5:30 PM. Pickin’ On the Patio will take place May 27, June 24, July 22, August
26, September 23 and October 28 and is open to all MusicRow subscribers, age
21 and up, until the patio is full.
Grand Ole Opry’s 85th Via Satellite In celebration of the 85th anniversary of the Grand Ole
Opry, Sirius XM’s Roadhouse channel will broadcast the Opry’s
85th Anniversary Celebration, which will launch with live
performances by Vince Gill, Brad Paisley, Steve Wariner
and Ricky Skaggs. The Grand Ole Opry 85th Anniversary
Celebration will air on Tuesday, May 25 at 9:00 PM/ET on The
Roadhouse, Sirius channel 62 and XM channel 10.
Star-Studded Lineup For Country Weekly Fashion Show
Curb Records artist Clay Walker
will host and GAC’s Suzanne Alexander will emcee the
4th Annual Country Weekly Fashion Show and Concert on
Tuesday, June 8 at the Wildhorse Saloon in Nashville. Also
joining in the festivities will be artists Joe Nichols, Aaron
and Thea Tippin, Bucky Covington, Love & Theft,
Pam Tillis and Bo Bice, among others. The event will
benefit Musicians On Call, a nonprofit organization with the mission of bringing music
to the bedsides of patients in healthcare facilities. Doors open at 11:00 AM, and the
Fashion Show begins at noon with acoustic performances following at 1:00 PM.
Bo Goes to LA After a week of TV appearances in New York, American
Idol alum Bo Bice is heading to LA for a run that will include
a stop at the Idol finale. Bice released a new album, 3, on
Saguaro Road Records last week with the first single, “You
Take Yourself With You,” already at radio. While in Los Angeles,
Bice will perform for E! Entertainment, the McDonald’s in-
store video Music Magazine, LATimes.com, the KTLA Morning
News, The Game Show Network, and ABC’s On The Red
Carpet. Bice kicks off a national tour in June.
Joe Galante (L) and Naomi Judd (R) joined program host Michael McCall in the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum’s Curb Conservatory on Saturday (5/15) for a special discussion titled The Future Revisited: Country
Music’s Recent Past. Photo: Donn Jones
19 Recordings/RCA Nashville’s Danny Gokey sang the national anthem for a recent Baltimore Orioles game. (L-R): Gokey, The Oriole Bird and WPOC/Baltimore PD Meg Stevens.Bo Bice
page 5 Wednesday, May 26, 2010
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page 6 Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Artists Gather For Rockin’ Through The Rain
Singer/Songwriter Stephen
Salyers, along with a volunteer
committee, will take part in the
Rockin’ Through The Rain Music
Festival at Limelight. American
Idol’s Bo Bice will headline the
day long event which will include
a Silent Auction full of country
music memorabilia. Storme
Warren of GAC will emcee the
event which also will include musical performanes
from Richard Fagan, Trailer Choir’s Big Vinny,
Adam Gregory, Everlife and The Carter Twins.
Doors for the event will open at 11:00 AM, with
music staring at noon. Admission is $10 at the
door. All proceeds will benefit Hands On Nashville.
Rockin’ Through The Rain Music Festival is being
presented by the Billy Ray Cyrus Charities
Foundation.
Six Fifteen Benefit for Soles4Soles Relief Fund On June 3,
Nashville’s Six Fifteen
Magazine will sponsor Style & Sound, a concert,
fashion show and silent auction. Held at Mercy
Lounge, with a suggested $10 donation, the event
will benefit Soles4Souls Disaster Relief fund. Hosted
by VH1’s The Price of Beauty host CaCee Cobb,
Style & Sound will feature Carter’s Chord, Fast
Ryde, Jeremy Lister, Majestico, My Tyger and
The Kingston Springs. Also featured will be clothing
from Nashville’s Blush Boutique, with hair and makeup
provided by the Rodney Mitchell Salon. The Cosmetic
Market is also donating its services, while jewelry
will be supplied by KEZA, an ethnically driven couture
fashion label and business development firm.
Toolpusher/Nine North Recording artist Jason Sturgeon showcased songs from his debut album That’s Me for an industry crowd recently at The Rutledge in Nashville. The album is set for summer release and features the current single, "Simple Life."(L-R): Dennis Kurtz, Toolpusher project mgr.; Flick Wiltshire, Vintage Flick Prod.; Sturgeon; Brian Cecil, Briserv.com; and Vanessa Davis, Splash! Public Relations.
American Roots/Quarterback Records group TelluRide recently began recording their latest album with award-winning producer Josh Leo (Alabama, Reba, LeAnn Rimes) at the helm. The first single from the album is slated to be released this summer, and the album will hit stores this fall. (L-R) back: TelluRide’s Brian Smith, Jimi
Hendrix and Ryan Jones. (L-R) front: Leo and TelluRide lead singer Adam Craig.