Music

Barry Gibb and Keith Urban meet on a cinematic rendition of the Bee Gees' hit "I've Gotta Get a Message to You." The song is one of a dozen new collaborations between the sole living Gibb brother and country, Americana and bluegrass artists.Urban's voice is the first to greet listeners in this new version of the '60s hit, his tender vocals layered with a studio ensemble of piano and light strings. Together, the pair tell the story of a man awaiting execution who wants to send one more message to his...

Few artists of any stripe have ever exited this world with the panache of David Bowie, who left us with some of his most fascinating work just before his death on January 10th, 2016. The biggest surprise was his masterpiece of a final album, Blackstar, released just two days before his passing; but there was also Lazarus, the remarkable off-Broadway play that opened a month earlier. The show picks up the story of Thomas Newton, the alien Bowie played in The Man Who Fell to Earth, 30 years later, while...

Thirty-one years ago today, on Jan. 9, 1990, Willie Nelson's Stardust album was certified quadruple platinum, for sales in excess of 4 million units.Stardust, released in 1978, includes two No. 1 hits, "Georgia on My Mind" and "Blue Skies." The 10-track record features classics from all genres, including "Unchained Melody," "Don't Get Around Much Anymore" and "Someone to Watch Over Me."R&B star Booker T. Jones produced Stardust, which hit platinum status in December of 1978, eight months after it was released. The record proved that Nelson's instincts were right, even though...

After nearly three months of teasing and a chain-store “leak,” Morgan Wallen’s Dangerous: The Double Album — in all its 30-track glory — was released on Friday. One of the most anticipated tracks pairs Wallen with Chris Stapleton. “Only Thing That’s Gone,” written by Wallen with Matt Dragstrem, Chase McGill, and Josh Thompson, delivers a heavy dose of country-soul. Wallen kicks off the mid-tempo slow-burner, relaying a breakup tale to a sympathetic bartender. “She told me where I could go/just stopped in here before I went,” he sings. Stapleton comes...

Singer-songwriter Ed Bruce, who wrote "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" and more classic country hits, has died. According to a press release from his representative, Bruce died in Clarksville, Tenn., on Friday (Jan. 8) from natural causes at the age of 81.Born on Dec. 29, 1939, in Keiser, Ark., Bruce moved to Memphis with his family early in his life, and he considered Tennessee his home state, according to his official biography on his website. He began writing songs in his teens and, and he...

Ed Bruce, the country singer-songwriter behind hits including “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys,” died Friday, January 8th in Clarksville, Tennessee, from natural causes, according to his publicist. He was 81. William Edwin Bruce Jr. was born December 29th, 1939, in Keiser, Arkansas, and raised in nearby Memphis, Tennessee. That put him in close proximity to Sun Records engineer Jack Clement and owner Sam Phillips, who signed him at 17 to release the 1957 rockabilly side “Rock Boppin’ Baby.” Bruce would later record with RCA and...

Thirty-eight years ago today, on Jan. 8, 1983, Reba McEntire earned her first No. 1 hit with "Can't Even Get the Blues." The song, McEntire's 14th single, was from her fifth studio album, Unlimited, which was released on Mercury Records."Can't Even Get the Blues," which was written by Tom Damphier and Rick Carnes, was one of the first uptempo songs that McEntire released as a single -- and she had to fight to even record it. The tune was being considered for Jacky Ward, another artist on Mercury, and McEntire argued...

Zayn Malik conjures crushing-out anticipation and tension between lovers in his new song “Vibez.” The single is slated to appear on the singer’s upcoming third studio album, Nobody Is Listening, which will arrive on January 15th via RCA Records. The sultry slow jam finds the R&B-pop crooner in an amorous mood. “Don’t keep me waiting/I’ve been waiting all night to get closer,” he sings on the chorus. “And you already know I got it for you/You know the vibes, know the vibes, put it on ya/If it’s movin’ too fast,...

Brandi Carlile and her wife of more than eight years, Catherine Shepherd, are raising two young daughters in rural Washington State — but when things get a bit hectic, they've got family and friends nearby to help.Truly, the couple don't have to go far to see some of their loved ones: Carlile's bandmates — two of whom are married to Carlile and Shepherd's siblings — live so close by that their homes essentially form a small compound."Everybody teased, 'Brandi's forming a cult.' Next thing I knew, the people I work...

Foo Fighters deliver a thrilling rendition of their hit “My Hero” in this exclusive clip from the upcoming episode of Austin City Limits, which features highlights from a pair of archival ACL performances by Dave Grohl and company. “I’m sure I can speak for every musician when I say that being asked to come play Austin City Limits is practically like getting a medal,” Grohl said in a statement of the venerable music series. “As a musician, it’s something to aspire to and if you actually achieve that then you...

Natalie Stovall, the newest member of the country trio Runaway June, didn't quite have a merry Christmas. As the musician revealed last week, she tested positive for the coronavirus over the holidays.Not quite as exciting as her two bandmates — Naomi Cooke and Jennifer Wayne — each getting engaged during the same span, but Stovall took things in stride. The namesake Natalie Stovall and the Drive performer has a husband herself, fellow musician James Bavendam, and, from how the singer put it in her Dec. 30 message, it seems he was affected by...

Country music made huge strides forward with streaming listeners in 2020, led by a handful of popular releases from Luke Combs and Morgan Wallen. That meant a bigger piece of a still-growing pie from a genre that has historically lagged with regard to streaming. Year-end data from the Rolling Stone Charts shows country music posting a 19% increase in on-demand audio streams in 2020 over the previous year, which is higher than the overall increase in streams of 16%. That’s a bigger percentage increase than rock, rap/hip-hop, and R&B. The...

A mob of pro-Donald Trump rioters stormed the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday afternoon (Jan. 6), breaking through barriers and into the building, putting the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, along with other government offices and officials, into lockdown.As the country followed the news on television and social media, many prominent names used their platforms to condemn the actions of the mob and the people in power, including the President Trump. Among those vocal people was Tim McGraw, who called the scene "terribly sad."McGraw has identified himself as...