THE OAK RIDGE BOYS HAVE STARTED A MUCH NEEDED REVIVAL WITH THEIR NEW CD, "17TH AVENUE REVIVAL"

 

By definition, a "revival" is a reawakening, a restoration of force or validity. The Oak Ridge Boys named their latest project "17th Avenue Revival" for a reason because that's exactly what they knew this collection of the perfect songs, produced by the perfect person was going to be just that, the revival that we needed. This new CD is unlike any other these legends have released and even though the CD doesn't officially hit shelves until March 16, the reviews are coming in droves of nothing but positive reaction. I think the Boys have finally outdone themselves and that's pretty hard to do.

I remember speaking to Duane Allen in their Hendersonville, TN office last September during a personal trip to Nashville and they had just completed recording and were out starting to talk to people around town about the CD. He told me this was going to be something special, something different and something that would be talked about for a long time. He said it wasn't a typical Oaks release, it had that something different that reached out to multi-genres and various age groups. He was so proud but I don't think even he knew how understated he was at that time. This CD is OUTSTANDING. It's a result of four men believing in every word they sing and in wanting to revive a message of unity and coming together and it's the result of the vision of one of country music's most amazing producers, Dave Cobb, who knew just what the Oaks were wanting to do and how they wanted it to sound.

"17th Avenue Revival" has given us a return to that southern gospel sound that The Oak Ridge boys are known and respected for, it's brought us back full circle to the kind of music that only the Oaks can pull off in only a way that the Oaks can pull off. This CD is exactly what we needed, at the exact time in this world when we truly need something to get us back on our feet and rejoicing again and giving us reason to bow our heads in gratitude for the multitude of blessings we sometimes forget we've been given. Well written music with a message is one of those blessings that seems to get lost in today's country. This CD is a blessing to any country music fan who appreciates a story and great lyrics and with tracks written by artists such as Jamey Johnson, Ashley Monroe, Vince Gill, Buddy Cannon, Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally, and other songwriting royalty, it's a reason to say thank you. It's a reminder that God isn't forgotten, that He hasn't been cast aside and that His presence is brighter than ever and it's put forth in such a way in this CD that it's not really "religious", it's just simply apparent. It puts faith back in country music, a place where it has always been welcome. The Oak Ridge Boys have made that light shine again in country music and made us want to jump to our feet and yell "Hallelujah and Pass the Cornbread! Now THIS is some good music y'all!" Even if you're not a religious person, this will still get ya in right in the spirit.

"Pray to Jesus", written by one of country's best storytellers, Brandy Clark, and Shane McAnally who pretty much has written most of the hits on today's charts, has been called one of the "Best Songs of The Week"of Feb 23, 2018 by Rolling Stone. We loved it on Brandy's debut CD and we love it even more now.

The CD is set for release on March 16. You can pre-order your digital copy now on most outlets or you can order the physical CD, collector's vinyl, or even cassette at www.oakridgeboys.com. (They even donated a special Edison cylinder version to the Country Music Hall of Fame! How awesome is that???)

OAK RIDGE BOYS - 17TH AVENUE REVIVAL

TRACK LISTING

1. “Brand New Star” (Aaron Raitiere & Mando Saenz)
2. “There Will Be Light” (Jamey Johnson, Larry Shell & Buddy Cannon)
3. “God’s Got It” (Charlie Jackson)
4. “I’d Rather Have Jesus” (Rhea Miller & George Beverly Shea)
5. “Walk in Jerusalem” (Traditional /Public Domain)
6. “Where He Leads Me I Will Follow” (Ernest W. Blandy / Public Domain)
7. “Pray to Jesus” (Brandy Clark & Shane McAnally)
8. “If I Die” (Ashley Monroe & Vince Gill)
9. “Let It Shine on Me” (Vince Gill & Ashley Monroe)

Connect with the Oaks online

Website - www.oakridgeboys.com
Twitter - @oakridgeboys - @joebonsall - @duaneallen - @rasterban - @wlgolden
Facebook - Oak Ridge Boys   
Instagram - @theoakridgeboys 

SHANE MCANALLY VS SHANE MCANALLY SHOWDOWN COMING AT CMA AWARDS

Hit Songwriter and Producer Earns Four Nominations Including Two in Song of the Year Category, Impacts Single and Album of the Year at the 49th Annual Awards Show

Photo Credit:  Kelly Christine Musgraves

Shane McAnally pulled off a rare, if not unprecedented feat, Wednesday morning when he was nominated for four CMA Awards – twice in the Song of the Year category (Kenny Chesney’s “American Kids” and Sam Hunt’s “Take Your Time”), Single of the Year for “Take Your Time” as a producer and Album of the Year for Kacey Musgraves’ Pageant Material (as a producer) and unofficially squares off with himself for Song of the Year for the 49th Annual CMA Awards.

The hit songwriter and producer reached a number of milestones with his four nominations. He joins Alan Jackson as the only songwriters to have two of his songs compete in the Song of the Year category in different years. He won the 2014 CMA Song of the Year for co-writing Kacey Musgraves’ “Follow Your Arrow with Musgraves and Brandy Clark.

“Considering the amount of amazing music that was made this past year, I am so honored that we are getting this sort of love from the CMA this morning,” McAnally said. “I am so excited for these artists and their teams and still can’t believe this is my life.”

McAnally also was previously nominated twice in the Song category when Kacey Musgraves’ “Merry Go Round” and Miranda Lambert’s “Mama’s Broken Heart” were nominated in 2013. The Song of the Year nominations put McAnally in some fairly rare company in CMA history. He’s now among the awards’ most-nominated songwriters with five songs awarded nominations. Jackson and Bob McDill have written seven, Bobby Braddock, Vince Gill and Brad Paisley have six, and McAnally is tied with Don Schlitz with five. He has a total of nine career nominations.

McAnally also is up for a trophy as producer on Hunt’s single “Take Your Time” with Zach Crowell and Musgraves’ album Pageant Material with Musgraves and Luke Laird. “American Kids,” a No. 1 song that served as the thematic launching point for Chesney’s The Big Revival album and tour, also is nominated in this category, but the award only goes to the performer and producer.

McAnally is one of Music Row’s most popular songwriters with cuts recorded by many top stars, including Tim McGraw, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban and Darius Rucker. He and Kacey Musgraves co-produced her album Pageant Material, released earlier this year with Laird and is at work on Old Dominion’s first release, Meat and Candy, for RCA Records. He is currently serving as lyricist and composer for the Dallas-based show Moonshine: That Hee Haw Musical, which runs at The Dallas Theater Center through the Fall.

#SONGWRITERNEWS - SMACKSONGS PARTNERS WITH JOSH OSBORNE

Josh Osborne (left) & Shane McAnally (right)

Photo Credit: Jason Krupek

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (June 8, 2015) -- SMACKSongs President and CEO Shane McAnally, announced the signing of Josh Osborne as a full partner of the music publisher today.  “Since the first time working with Josh, we always knew we wanted to someday build a partnership beyond just writing songs together,” said McAnally. “This partnership marks a new beginning for SMACKSongs and we are excited to welcome him to the SMACK family.”

Osborne has written many No. 1 songs including Kenny Chesney’s “Come Over”, Billy Currington’s “We Are Tonight”, Eli Young Band’s “Drunk Last Night” and Blake Shelton’s “My Eyes.” He has become a frequent collaborator of Sam Hunt (co-writing his No. 1 singles “Leave the Night On” and “Take Your Time”) and Kacey Musgraves (co-writing the GRAMMY Award-winning Best Country Song “Merry Go Round”). Osborne was nominated for the 2015 ACM Songwriter of the Year and his home state of Kentucky recently honored him on the Country Music Highway. Osborne currently has three songs on the charts:  Kenny Chesney’s “Wild Child”,  Jake Owen’s “Real Life” and Blake Shelton’s “Sangria.”

“Becoming a partner at SMACK is an incredible opportunity,” said Osborne. “To get to be a part of so many projects I believe in professionally, and so many people that I believe in personally, is more than anyone in our business could ask for.”

Kobalt, an independent music publishing and global music rights management services company, will serve as the exclusive worldwide administrator for SMACKSongs.

“The addition of Josh Osborne to the SMACKSongs family further solidifies its position as one of the hottest indie publishers on Music Row,” said Kobalt Senior Vice President of Creative (Nashville), Whitney Daane. “Kobalt is proud and privileged to be a part of the team!”

CMA CLOSE UP: CMA SONG OF THE YEAR WINNERS FOLLOW THEIR ARROW

Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves and Brandy Clark share Song of the Year honors at the 2014 CMA Awards.

Photo credit: John Russell

By Jeff Walter

© 2015 CMA Close Up® News Service / Country Music Association®, Inc.

“Follow Your Arrow” still doesn’t sound like a Country hook to Shane McAnally.

This is despite the fact that McAnally, along with Brandy Clark and Kacey Musgraves, built on those three words to create the song that won Song of the Year honors at the 2014 CMA Awards.

“It sounded more like a pop hook,” said McAnally, who added that Musgraves had asked if she could take it to her friend Katy Perry, the pop and Super Bowl sensation. “It sounded more like a sign or a bumper sticker.”

Truth be told, Country radio appeared to agree, as the song peaked at No. 43 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart. “It’s the lowest-charting single I’ve ever been a part of,” said Musgraves, who recorded it for Same Trailer Different Park, her critically acclaimed major-label debut on Mercury Nashville. “And it’s done more for me.”

“Follow Your Arrow” has touched a lot of people. “Country Music is supposed to be the truth-telling, storytelling format,” Clark observed. “Whether it’s my truth, Shane’s truth, Kacey’s truth or yours, it’s somebody’s truth. It’s great that people recognized that.”

Though “Follow Your Arrow” has been celebrated and condemned for its support of marijuana and same-sex relationships, the writers insist it’s about far more than that. Indeed, Clark and McAnally, the first openly gay artists/writers to receive a CMA Award, express hope that someday such distinctions won’t matter.

“I don’t think we were making some big gay statement or some big drug statement,” said McAnally.

“People try to highlight those parts of the song, but we’re encouraging the other side too,” Musgraves added. “It’s just … “

“Be. Who. You. Are,” McAnally chimed in.

These days, when in Nashville, Clark, McAnally and Musgraves get together for a weekly writing session. With “Follow Your Arrow,” Musgraves showed up with a melody, a hook and a general idea for a song “to encourage people to go with their internal compass.” Her inspiration was an arrow necklace she had given to a friend who was going to Paris for four months. She included a card with a little poem that read “Follow your arrow wherever it points.”

“I thought that would be cool to put in a song,” she said.

It mostly came together in around two hours, with Clark and McAnally helping to shape it and lend it a little more of a narrative feel. They reconvened the next day to write the summarizing bridge: “Say what you think. / Love who you love. / ’Cause you just get so many trips ’round the sun. / Yeah, you only, only live once.”

For Clark, the power of “Follow Your Arrow” continues to unfold on the road. “People tell me what that song has meant to them,” she said, shaking her head in amazement. “I mean, it’s like ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ to some people. It’s really cool to know that we had something to do with maybe someone walking a little taller that day, feeling like, ‘My parents don’t accept me, but I’m OK in my own skin.’”