On the Road Again With Steel Magnolia

Our friends at The Boot have a great ongoing life-on-the-road series featuring Joshua Scott Jones of Steel Magnolias. In his latest installment Joshua talks about the perks and pitfalls of a travelling band. After a show in Kansas City, he was treated to an exclusive after show party at local honky tonk (complete with mechanical bull) PBR.
But more often than not, the road stories include the long bus rides, changing planes, checking in and out of hotel rooms, etc. No wonder there are so many wisftul country songs about being on the road. It's funny, as the youngest member of our band I haven't had that much road experience. But my cousins/bandmates have shared their horror stories with me (Including the one about being stiffed by a club owner after a show and not having enough money for a hotel that night.) It makes me understand why my partners were willing to give up touring. It also makes me wonder why bands are willing to put themselves through the gruelling realities of life on the road. Then I remember - it's all about the music!

Lady Anti-Bellum

There's a nice article on Dawn.com about Lady Antebellum and their new album, Own the Night. In the article Kelley, Hillary, and Dave discuss the hazards of overnight success (and the years it takes to build up to "overnight success")They actually brought in a conflict mediator to help them hash out some of their disagreements. Lucikily, Family Reunion is an extended family so our disagreements can be heated, but we're always willing to work them out because we know there's no escaping family. Usually when we have creative differences over a song, we'll just record it two (or more) ways and let the band and other family members vote on which one they like best. We used that democratic method for our song, YES, and a few months later it's really hard to remember what the differences were in the first place. Lady Antebellum's new song "Just a Kiss" has already raced to number one on the country charts - and that'll go a long way toward healing any disagreements!

Fun With Science

See this wierd image? It's called a QR code. Somehow, through the magic of science if you take a picture of this with your cell phone it will take you directly to this blog. Pretty cool, huh?
We've been busy lately putting the finishing touches on our first album, and I'll keep ya'll posted as we get ready for the big release. This little thingy up above is one of the cool gadgets Cousin Hollywood came up with to help us get the news out when it's ready. Stay tuned for more later!

New Hank Williams CD

For those of you who became country music fans through the songs of Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flatts, and any of the current generation of stars, it may surprise you to learn that country music has been around longer than ten years. Although no one can say with any certainty when the first, sweet strains of country music floated down from the Appalachains; most of us can agree on the first country music star: Hank Williams. This new, 3 CD set called "The Legend Begins" is not another greatest hits collection (Although if you don't have one already - go get one!) It is instead a collection of lost treasures from his earliest days as a performer, some going back to when he was just fifteen years old. To new fans of country music (and fans of new country music) this may sound like a different style of music entirely. But this is where it all began. Just released today, I haven't had a chance to listen yet; but I will soon. I hope some of my fellow artists will take a listen as well!

Song of the Week: Wanna Make You Love Me by Andy Gobson

With a sweet, smooth, and emotionally compelling voice Andy Gibson sings the words that every woman wants to hear. In his song, Wanna Make You Love Me, Andy pledges that his lover makes him want to be a better man. But listening to this song (and watching him perform it in the video) tells me that's going to be one tough feat as Andy seems like a pretty good man (dare I say, a hard man?) already. I love the tone and feel of this song. I love the Tom Petty reference. But most of all I love the words. When I hear a song like this, it makes me imagine that perfect Hollywood moment when my soul mate rides up on horeseback and sweeps me away.

Keith Urban Likes Freedom (and tattoos)

Closing out this week of remembrance and patriotism, I thought it would be nice to end on a light note. Above, Keith Urban shares his thoughts behind his first tattoo (an American Eagle.) Funny that someone from Australia can appreciate the freedoms that this country has to offer when so many of our own people seem to take it for granted. Please don't forget that the 9/11 attacks were committed by Muslim extremists who wanted to stifle our freedom to think and act differently from them. So I thank God for our brave men and women in uniform who are willing to fight to protect our freedoms. If you see any military, police, or firemen this weekend, let them know how much you appreciate the proctections they offer. Enjoy your freedoms and allow others to enjoy theirs. And if you freely choose to get a tattoo this weekend, send me a pic if you care to share!

Alan Jackson and 9/11 Memories

There's a nice aricle over on CMT about Alan Jackson and 9/11. He tells how the song, Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning) came to him int he middle of the night and how he sang it into his portable recorder. He talks about his indecision on performing it live at the CMA awards that year. No doubt his song brought comfort to a great many people (although personally, I felt more comforted by Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue by Toby Keith.) It's odd, on this anniversay of that fateful day two things really stand out to me: 1. I remember what a picture perfect, sunny, autumn day it was. I remember actually being so mad that the sun continued to shine when we had just been so viciously attacked. 2. I remember needing to be with friends more on that day than any other I can remember.
My friend, Carmella Inchierchiera, is still working to help others cope with 9/11. I chose her song, Fallen Heroes (performed by Nelson Blanchard,) as my song of the week to help commemorate 9/11. But I failed to mention that Carmella is donating 50% of proceeds from the song to 9/11 Health Now, a charity to help first responders who have developed cancer and other health issues as a direct result of their heroic efforts that day. So go check out her song and the 9/11 charity she supports, it's a good song for a good cause.

Jason Aldean shares back to school memories

CMT online has a short article with Jason Aldean sharing some of his back to school memories. He talks about wearing boots to school and talking to friends about the hit country songs of summer. He goes on to say that he doesn't write songs to change the world, but songs to capture a feeling - like the feeling of being a teen and going back to school in the fall. My bandmate, Cousin JD, has a back to school memory that he carries with him to this day. Although he tells people his nickname stands for Jack Daniels, it really comes from when he was too young to drink. On his first day of school in Jr. high he showed up with a John Deere hat. Before the day was over, no one knew his real name, but everybody called him John Deere. By October, it was shortened to just JD, and the name's been with him ever since. For those of you going back to school today (or have kids going back) I wish you all a day full of wonderful memories and a happy and healthy new school year. If you have any favorite school memories, please feel free to email me or just shar them below.

Song of the Week: Fallen Heroes by Nelson Blanchard

I know everyone's enjoying the last day of summer vacation, but with the 10 year anniversary of 9/11 less than a week away, I felt this song was more appropriate than a summer party song. No words can ever fully express the horror and sorrow of that terrible day, but as songwriters it's our job to try. Songwriters must face both the best and worst of our human experience. In this song our ICMA frinds, Carmella Inchierchiera and Nelson Blanchard, take on both at the same time and succeed in delivering a heartfelt tribute to those who risked everything on that day. Whatever your political beliefs, please take a moment to reflect on the fact that there is evil in this world, and take a moment to give thanks to the heroes among us - both then and now.

Yes, I'm a top 40 artist!

For the second time, Family Reunion has cracked the top 40...in Italy! The latest country music top 40 chart currently has our song, YES, listed at #38 on the charts. So raise a glass of chianti and toast our friends overseass who apparently have great taste in music. Ciao baby! (Stay tuned for more updates on our upcoming album release!)