BIG FROG 104'S HOT NEWZ FROM NASHVILLE

October 8, 2010 » Sweet Music Makers: Tuesday night's (10/5) second annual We're All For The Hall concert tightened country's generation gaps as Keith Urban led a 10-artist lineup through the heroes-themed evening. Urban opened the show with a five-song run of his hits before the set change, after which he and Vince Gill led an all-star house band in backing the evening's guests. Dolly Parton, Charley Pride, Billy Currington, Alan Jackson, Alison Krauss, Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride and John Mayer each performed two songs — one of their hits and a cover from one of their country heroes. Urban sang Don Williams' "I Wouldn't Want To Live If You Didn't Love Me" (dedicated to his wife), Currington delivered a moving rendition of Kenny Rogers' "Sweet Music Man," Pride drew a rousing ovation for Conway Twitty's "Hello Darlin'," Parton delivered a stirring version of George Jones' "He Stopped Loving Her Today" and Mayer flew in from Milan, Italy just to trade guitar licks with Gill and Urban on Dwight Yoakam's "Ain't That Lonely Yet." The sold-out audience took to its feet as Jackson, McBride, Parton, Urban and Gill closed with Williams' "Tulsa Time." Watch videos and see a complete set list here. » Guitar Ink: Like the cover art of Jamey Johnson's The Guitar Song, the ink continues to run for the critically acclaimed 25-track, double-disc album. The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Spin, Rolling Stone and others all have glowing endorsements for Johnson's sophomore release, which features the single "Playing The Part." "I've read that dreams were little achievements like [selling 500,000 records]," Johnson says. "[But] all I wanted was just to get to ride around and sing country music. It's cool when things like [this] happen along the way because those are the things I never thought I could achieve. I'll just keep doing what I do. I wake up every day and go play some more country music and have another drink." While Johnson pours himself another concoction, see what the critics are saying here. » Salute The Sun: The "Hello World" music video shoot kept Lady Antebellum out late Tuesday night (10/5), but they still showed up polished for their No. 1 party honoring "Our Kind Of Love" Wednesday (10/6). "We were on a wet street in front of the Capitol building until 2 in the morning," Lady A's Hillary Scott told the packed crowd at Nashville's Hard Rock Café. "So all of us are little raspy and under the weather." Lady A were also surprised with a triple-platinum album certification (three million in sales) for Need You Now during the event. View the full CMT article here. In other Lady A news, the group will release their six-song holiday EP A Merry Little Christmas Tuesday (10/12) exclusively through Target. Updated classics "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," "All I Want For Christmas Is You," "Blue Christmas," "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" "Silver Bells" and the original "On This Winter's Night" are featured. » Enjoy The Small World Ride: The lead single may be "Stuck Like Glue," but Sugarland's Oct. 19 album The Incredible Machine certainly isn't stuck in just one style. According to the duo's Jennifer Nettles, fans can expect to hear several different international flavors on the upcoming country record. "It wasn't a conscious influence ... we didn't go to world music and say, 'Hey we want to write this,'" Nettles says. "But I think many of our influences ... [like] Peter Gabriel, the Police and Sting ... came out in the writing of this record [so] I think they were probably influenced a lot by world music." Sugarland will perform the album track "Stand Up" on the multi-artist CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute, which airs Thanksgiving night. » Fund Fest: Kix Brooks, Karen Fairchild (Little Big Town) and Luke Bryan helped the CMA donate the 2010 CMA Music Festival's record $2,924,936 profits to support Nashville music education and to aid flood relief during an event this week. Oversized checks were presented to CMA's Keep The Music Playing campaign and The Community Foundation Of Middle Tennessee. "Everybody in the music business has a story that's similar to mine," Brooks said during the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum press conference. "I mean, we all start playing music to get chicks, probably, but you really start playing music because you need an escape. And I want to take care of the great [young] talent that we find and help [them] flourish ... As artists we can donate our time, energy and money to help a put a guitar or a woodblock or a triangle in their hands and give them a place to go where they can feel good about themselves ... This is Music City, and we have to stand up and walk the walk." » Cover Shoot Out: Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift have you covered. Or at least newsstands. Underwood graces the People Country November issue, in which she dishes about splitting time between Nashville and Canada to find time for hockey-playing husband Mike Fisher. "It's not like we have office jobs where you can transfer," Underwood says. "It's not a conventional marriage." As the focus in November's Glamour cover spread, Swift opens up about what love is to her. "I've learned that you can't predict it or plan for it," she says. "For someone like me who is obsessed with organization and planning, I love the idea that love is the one exception to that. Love is the one wild card." Follow the links for the features. » Worley Gone With A Trace: Trace Adkins and Darryl Worley will show service members some love during upcoming but unrelated military tours. Adkins will soon head out on his third USO/Armed Forces Entertainment run to the Middle East. Worley is launching a seven-date God & Country Tour of Army garrisons beginning Oct. 15 in Killeen, TX. Worley's seven-song EP by the same title will also be available at the free nightly concerts through Nov. 22. Featured track "Unsung Heroes" is offered as a free download to military personnel here. Complete Worley schedule here. Adkins' itinerary is closely held for security reasons. » Top Of The Class: Jason Aldean, Lady Antebellum, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and Zac Brown Band will be celebrated as inaugural CMT Artists Of The Year during a Dec. 3 live special. The top five artists were determined by sales, radio airplay, concert grosses and activity on CMT.com. Details here. » Deluxe Additions: Country music's biggest night just got bigger with added performers Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Reba, George Strait, Sugarland, Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban slated for the 44th Annual CMA Awards lineup. They join previously announced participants Dierks Bentley, Kenny Chesney, Lady Antebellum, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton and Zac Brown Band with Alan Jackson. The CMAs will air live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena Nov. 10 at 8pm ET on ABC-TV. » Rascal Flap: What do minor league baseball, Country radio and Crime Watchers alerts have in common? "Pray For You" singer Jaron Lowenstein of Jaron & The Long Road To Love, apparently. While attending a Harrisburg, PA awards ceremony last week, Lowenstein swiped the blue-and-yellow uniform of the Harrisburg Senator's team mascot "Rascal" as a practical joke and showed up wearing it for his media interview the next day. In the meantime, the team, which also attended the event, had alerted authorities and local media in an attempt to find the missing costume, valued at $5,000. The uniform was returned undamaged, no charges have been brought and Jaron has, thankfully, avoided the long road to lockup. Read more here. » Hit List The Grand Ole Opry has launched a free mobile app for iPhone and Android devices. Streaming broadcasts, Opry show schedules, videos, member bios and online store access are among the features. Download here. Dierks Bentley has added Luke Bryan, Heidi Newfield, Del McCoury and Laura Bell Bundy to the fifth annual Nashville Miles & Music For Kids. They join previously announced participants Miranda Lambert and Jerrod Niemann for the Oct. 17 charity motorcycle ride and concert, which will benefit the Monroe Carell, Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt. Details here. Zac Brown Band will host a free concert during NASCAR's two-day Coca-Cola Fuels NASCAR Drive event in Miami Nov. 18. The group's music will also be featured in an ad campaign airing at the start of the 2011 racing season. Details here. Martina McBride will perform as part of a multi-genre lineup during David Foster's Oct. 15 Foster & Friends concert in Las Vegas. The concert will be filmed for PBS-TV's Great Performances CD/DVD series. Birthdays John Prine (10/10) Tanya Tucker (10/10) Gene Watson (10/11) On TV Friday (10/8): Toby Keith, Invitation Only: Toby Keith (CMT). Saturday (10/9): Katie Armiger, CBS Early Show. Sunday (10/10): Various Artists, 45th Annual ACM Awards (re-air) (GAC). Upcoming Album Releases Trace Adkins The Definitive Greatest Hits: Til The Last Shot's Fired (10/12) The Band Perry The Band Perry (10/12) Lady Antebellum A Merry Little Christmas (10/12) Darius Rucker Charleston, SC 1966 (10/12) » Volunteer Jam: Charlie Daniels (c) performs with rockers Widespread Panic Wednesday (10/6) at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium. Daniels picked with Panic's Jimmy Herring (l) and John Bell (r) on "Ain't Life Grand," "Who Do You Belong To" and "When You Coming Home" during the sold-out concert. © 2010 LH Publications, LLC