A Hillbilly Deluxe New Year’s Eve

01/02/2007

Arista Nashville duo Brooks & Dunn closed down 2006 with a New Year’s Eve headlining show at Nashville’s Gaylord Entertainment Center. Pictured (L-R): Arista Nashville VP National Promotion Skip Bishop; Kix Brooks; BNA Records artist Kellie Pickler; Ronnie Dunn; Sony BMG Nashville Exec. VP Butch Waugh; Chairman Joe Galante; and Exec. VP A&R Renee Bell.

Industry News Daily (1/3/07)

STEEP SLOPES FUND HIGH HOPES: Events continue to be added to Country in the Rockies, being held Jan. 26-30 in Steamboat Springs, CO. Artists set to perform are Little Big Town, Robert Earl Keen, Blue...

Closed For The Holidays

12/22/2006

Music Row closes today (12/22) for the holidays. We will begin publishing again on Jan. 2. Our very best wishes to all our readers, advertisers and supporters who help make this endeavor possible. We love this town, and we thank you for allowing us to be Nashville’s Music Industry Publication for over 25 years.

Sincerely,
David, Christie, Sarah, Jon and Michelle

Montgomery Gentry Celebrate New Year With CNN

Jon Freeman – 12/21/2006

Montgomery Gentry will ring in 2007 with a performance at Rupp Arena in their hometown of Lexington, Ky. CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360° will be on location at the show for a special episode highlighting those dedicated to community service. The duo will also appear in the Wall Street Journal’s New Year’s Eve edition.

Gretchen Wilson...On Ice?

Jon Freeman – 12/21/2006

Gretchen Wilson joined some of the world’s top ice skaters Nov. 8 to tape “Gretchen Wilson’s Country On Ice” before a live audience in Philadelphia, Penn. Wilson and band gave a live concert that included hits like “Redneck Woman” and “Here For The Party,” as skaters Kurt Browning, Todd Eldredge, Irina Slutskaya and others performed routines on ice. The show will be broadcast Dec. 23 on NBC from 3-5 p.m. CT and re-air on The Style Network Jan. 5 from 4-6 p.m. CT and Jan. 7 from 9-11 a.m. CT.

McGraw’s Video Kicks Off 2007 On CMT

Michelle Ross – 12/21/2006

CMT will air Tim McGraw's latest video for the song "Last Dollar," as the first played video of 2007. The television premiere, set for Mon., Jan. 1 at 5 a.m. CT will follow the online premiere at CMT.com at 12:01 a.m. ET the same day. The video, directed by Sherman Halsey and Jeff Johnson, was derived from footage shot during the "Soul 2 Soul II" tour in 2006 and will feature a special surprise ending. The live performance video is a continual flow of imagery of McGraw’s performances plus behind the scenes happenings. McGraw's upcoming studio album is due out in early 2007.

Cochran and Moore Celebrate 10 Years

12/21/2006

Legendary singer/songwriter Hank Cochran and Martha Moore of so much MOORE media celebrate a milestone this month with their 10-year affiliation. “Hank is an icon,” says Moore of her longtime client. “Hank is a credit not only to country music, but to mankind. He is simply an amazing person, and it has been a privilege and an honor to work with him these many years.”

Lorrie Morgan Receives “Lone Sailor” Award

12/21/2006

Lorrie Morgan accepts a “Lone Sailor” plaque from U.S. Navy Captain Matt Straughan in recognition of her support of the United States Military. Morgan visited the Naval Support Activity Mid-South in Millington, Tenn. to perform for Navy personnel and their families on Dec. 13, as part of the Spirit of America Tour. The Spirit of America Tour is a non-profit funded by the Robert and Nina Rosenthal Foundation, aimed at bringing headline entertainment to our troops, stateside.

CBuJ Ent. Increases Catalog

Jon Freeman – 12/21/2006

Independent label CBuJ Entertainment, a hybrid-label/national distributor for recorded and licensed music, reports a 500% increase in its catalog of distributed titles despite the court-ordered liquidation of sub-distributing partner Bayside Distribution and top selling retail customer Tower Records in October 2006. Since its start in 2001, CBuJ has kept direct accounts with Anderson Merchandisers and the Handleman Company, but used Bayside to keep distribution of its products balanced. "Since even before the court order, we were scrambling to replace our distribution partner,” says CbuJ President John Burns. “Over the past 60 days, we have gone from having zero distribution to securing direct vendor agreements with all of Bayside's former accounts." Among the labels now distributed by CBuJ are Wounded Bird Records, a reissue label of ‘60s, ‘70s and early ‘80s rock and folk albums. Other labels include San Francisco Sound, Soundworks/Jerden, Innova Recordings, Spira Select, Chord International, Traditional Crossroads, and Rack 'Em Records, an imprint formed by Texas icon Joe Ely. CBuj plans to develop artist management and music publishing to its base of operations in the coming year.

Underwood/Flatts Lead 4th Quarter Sales

David M. Ross – 12/21/2006

Source: Nielsen SoundScan. Music Row Magazine is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or licensed by, Nielsen SoundScan. SOUNDSCAN is the registered trademark of Nielsen Entertainment, LLC.

The ’05/’06 current country Top 75 sales gap increased the week ending 12/17/06 fell an additional 778,730 units spreading the Nov./Dec. deficit to 3.23 million units. Carrie Underwood and Rascal Flatts continue to be country’s top sellers this week (199,114 and 142,719 respectively), but were the only CDs to break the 100k unit barrier for the week. Last year’s list of 12/18/2005 boasted seven titles in 99k+ category, with Underwood and Chesney in the 200s.

Keith Urban (92,010), Sugarland (90,592) and George Strait (68,119) again filled out the Top 5 positions (week ended 12/17/06). On the mainstream sales chart 26 CDs scanned 100k+ units for the current week. Underwood placed No. 6, edged out by debuts from Young Jeezy (352,392) and fellow American Idol alum Taylor Hicks (298,199).

The Graph
A week-by-week 4th quarter 06/05 comparison reveals that 2006 4th Quarter Top 75 Current Country sales are about 3.23 million units behind last year’s pace YTD. The 2006 4th quarter release schedule kept pace with 2005 through the week ending 11/12, but then faltered. For example, this past week (12/17) sold over 775,000 less Top 75 units than the same week in 2005.