Mary Sarah - Comfortable Alone - "Without You" - Single Review

© Katie Kauss - Used by permission

Most people may know Mary Sarah as a  semi-finalist (finishing fifth) from the TV talent show "The Voice" from 2016. But the 22-year-old Texan wasn't a newcomer to music for that show; she actually already was able to look back on a career spanning over a decade. After her TV experience last year, she now just released her first single, "Without You." 



To completely understand who Mary Sarah is, we have to roll back the tape of life. Starting in church and with vocal lessons when she was about nine, she started performing regularly on what is called the Texas Opry circuit, smaller Opry venues in more rural environments. When she was 12 she ventured west for a development deal and got signed by Kidz Bop and an ensuing 6 months tour across the United States. Back in Texas, the late great singer/songwriter and producer Freddy Powers took her "under his wings." Having been Merle's neighbor on a houseboat and frequent co-author, Powers penned Haggard classics like "Natural High" and "A Friend In California." Some of his musical influences are definitely part of "Without You."



When she was 15 she released her debut album "CRAZY GOOD" and three years later doubled down with "BRIDGES," a heartfelt collection of well-known songs, done as duets with the original singers of the hits. Yes, Powers may have helped with introductions, but it was her sheer talent, that made it possible for her to record duets with everybody from the late Ray Price, Merle Haggard, Lynn Anderson and Powers to still living legends like Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, the Oak Ridge Boys, Ronnie Milsap, Vince Gill, Tanya Tucker and even Neil Sedaka.



Fast forward to #77seventeen, as her own hashtag proclaimed. As a gift to herself and to her fans, Mary Sarah released her first single "Without You" since "The Voice" on her birthday. Co-written with Gospel songwriter and producer David Garcia, Bart Butler (Jon Pardi's current single "Heartache On The Dancefloor") and former Dreamworks recording artist Mike Walker it easily bridges the old with the new.



Despite a low-profile, almost restraint jazz-bluesy arrangement (evoking Amy Winehouse) the prominent steel guitar sets traditional contra tones. The lyrics of the mid-tempo break-up song evolve from early hurt and tears to a resolute empowered woman, who is ready again to face the world and actually feels comfortable to be without her former partner. Written from experience, Mary Sarah was quoted:



“The beauty of the poetic words is that finding yourself through a broken relationship is a very empowering thing to do”. 



Her true delivery shows honesty and self-determination to move on. It's a remarkable effort and I know, Freddy Powers would be proud of his former "student." Now we just can wish that the powers that are in radioland share the song on their airwaves with a greater public so we all can enjoy the delights of that new single.



Lyrics:

You left a mark on my heart that I never thought would go away

I cried so hard in the dark I stained my pillow case

Mascara Black, wishin' you'd come back, but that was yesterday



But what a waste

Yeah I'd never thought I would, but baby I'm all good without you



I've got a move on, new song that I'm singing to

I've got a throwback, come back, step in my groove

I've got these going out paint the town red pair of shoes

You bet I do, jokes on you

No, you never thought I would, but baby I'm all good without you



Without you, I got room to breath

I'm finding who I am

I finally had time to see that you just ain't the man

That I thought you had seemed

You're just not all I cracked ya up to be

Yeah, I never thought I would, but baby I'm all good without you



I've got a move, on new song that I'm singing to

I've got a throwback, come back, step in my groove

I've got these going on, paint the town red pair of shoes

You bet I do, jokes on you

No, you never thought I would, but baby I'm all good without you



Yeah I never thought I would, but baby I'm all good without you



I've got a move on, new song that I'm singing to

I got a throwback, come back, step in my groove

I've got these going on, paint the town red pair of shoes

You bet I do

No, you never thought I would, but baby I'm all good without you



No, you never thought I would, but baby I'm all good without you



I'm good



***(*)/***** 3.5/5





Here's also a live version of the song, recorded on WSMV Channel 4 in Nashville







The track is now available at all digital outlets including iTunes and Google Music. Mary Sarah is managed by 144 Entertainment, PR by April Dickey -Bandwagon Publicity

Sources: marysarah.com, youTube, Spotify, Bandwagon Publicity,

Pete Mitchell - Texas Troubadour Passes

Pete Mitchell passed away last Saturday (7/23) at the age of 74 due to cancer. Originally born in Canada as Peter Michaud, he came to the US, after playing the scene in Toronto where the Hawks (who later became The Band) played the same clubs in the early 60s.





Immigrating to the States, he Americanized his name to Mitchell, played with Wynn Stewart, Cal Smith, Ray Price and Waylon Jennings, who later adopted the leather-casing for his electrical guitar.

In the mid 70's while living in the Fort Worth area, he got picked up by Ernest Tubb and so became a Texas Troubadour. Mitchell or the "little man from Canada" as E.T. called him played with Tubb until his death in 1984. Pete wasn't just a touring musician, but also appeared on E.T.'s recordings - sometimes with his given name, Michaud. You will also find him on other recordings, e.g. John Anderson's "EYE OF THE HURRICANCE."









 After Tubb's passing Pete stayed in Nashville as a session player and toured with several artists. Some times he would sit in with his former Texas Troubadour, steel guitarist Lynn Owsley. In the video below the two share the stage with one of the fathers of the modern Steel Guitar, Jimmy Day.



Jimmy Day & Lynn Owsley - Steel Guitar; Pete Mitchell - Guitar





When Jimmy Day passed away in 1999, Pete came to Austin to pay his respect and was re-introduced to Jimmy's sister-in-law, Paula. It was love at first sight, and a little time later, Pete moved from Nashville to Buda (outskirts of Austin) got married and settled down in Texas. As a sideman he would play with local people like the Troubadillos, James Hand, James White and Alvin Crow's Hardcore Country band as wel as with Lost John Casner. He played his last gig during Christmas week (2015) with Glen Collins at Watterson Hall in Red Rock. During the music fair SXSW he would was often a hired gun for musicians passing through Austin, needing a solid picker to make them shine.



As producer and steel guitarist Tommy Detamore put it: "Pete was such a treasure. I feel so lucky I got to make record with him. Only problem was I kept halting the progress to ask him to show me how he did something! His approach to guitar was so cool and innovative. Some of those bends he did...man..three string bends....index finger bends...so fluid."



And Pete did it with a lot of charm and always a smile on his face.





Sources: YouTube, LynnOwsley.com, converstations with Pete

Willie Nelson To Release Ray Price Tribute

In 2013 as Ray Price knew he was dying, he went back into the studio to record his last album "BEAUTY IS..." hiring producer and this year's"Country Music Hall of Fame"-inductee, Fred Foster as well as string arranger/conductor Bergen D. White. 

Foster was quoted about Ray and the recordings: "He called me in 2012 and said, 'I think I have one album left in me; I’m not well, you know. I want to do one last one, and I want you to do it with me.’" Foster was influential in Ray Price's early career and got him to sing in his own style instead of trying to imitate Hank Williams. Shortly thereafter Ray came up with his own signature song, the country 4/4 shuffle. Vince Gill was asked by Ray to sing harmony on two of the tracks. The album, which was released by AmeriMonte Records four months after Ray's passing, also contained a track written by Ray's old pal, Willie Nelson. The whole project was recorded in a converted church, at Ocean Way Nashville Recording.

Ray Price with Willie Nelson on bass and Jimmy Day on steel guitar

Fast-forward to today, not only is today Fred Foster's 85th Birthday (7/26) but it was also announced that Willie will release "FOR THE GOOD TIMES: A TRIBUTE TO RAY PRICE" on September, 16.  And yes, Willie went into the same studio, got Fred and Bergen as producer and arranger and invited Vince Gill and his traditional Country/Western Swing Outfit "The Time Jumpers" to be the backing band on the more country-heavy half  of the dozen tracks. The whole project doesn't come as a big surprise, Willie as an aspiring songwriter used to work for Ray Price's publishing company and for a short time in 1961 was even playing bass behind Price as a Cherokee Cowboy. Ray also recorded several songs written by Willie, 'Night Life", "I'm Still Not Over You" and "It Always Will Be" are included here. Besides Willie's songs, there are two by Hank Cochran, one by Bill Anderson, Roger Miller, Harlan Howard, the Bob Wills classic "Faded Love," the Ralph Mooney/Charles Seals classic "Crazy Arms," Kristofferson's "For The Good Times" and the Ray Price/Rusty Gabbard shuffle "I’ll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)."



Over the years Willie and Ray recorded several projects together, as examples Willie's "SAN ANTONIO ROSE" or the concept album "LAST OF THE BREED" which was also produced by Foster and featured Merle Haggard. This is a great album showcasing the deep friendship between Willie and his former boss.







Balanced by honky tonk heavy fiddles (Kenny Sears) and pedal steel (Paul Franklin) to the string arrangements for the countrypolitan sound that Ray also created, the tribute covers a wide variety. Also worth mentioning is the art work of the album - basically it looks like Ray's "NIGHT LIFE" album from 1963.















Tracklist for Willie Nelson's For the Good Times: A Tribute to Ray Price: 

"Title" (Songwriters) and chart placing



1. "Heartaches by the Number" (featuring the Time Jumpers) (Harlan Howard) #2 1959

2. "I’ll Be There (If You Ever Want Me)" (featuring the Time Jumpers) (Rusty Gabbard; Ray Price) #2 1954

3. "Faded Love" (Bob Wills; John Wills; Billy Jack Wills) #3 1980

4. "It Always Will Be" (Willie Nelson)

5. "City Lights" (featuring the Time Jumpers) (Bill Anderson) 1958 #1

6. "Don’t You Ever Get Tired of Hurting Me" (featuring the Time Jumpers) (Hank Cochran) #11 1965

7. "Make the World Go Away" (Hank Cochran) #2 1963

8. "I’m Still Not Over You" (Willie Nelson) #6 1967

9. "Night Life" (Walt Breeland, Paul Buskirk, Willie Nelson) #28 1963

10. "Crazy Arms" (featuring the Time Jumpers) (Ralph Mooney; Charles Seals) #1 1956

11. "Invitation to the Blues" (featuring the Time Jumpers) (Roger Miller) #3 1958

12. "For the Good Times" (Kris Kristofferson) #1 1970



Sources: WillieNelson.com, BMI, Billboard, YouTube, Rolling Stone, Bear Family Ray Price Box Set

Clay Blaker's "What A Way To Live" resurfaces on iTunes

As of today singer/songwriter Clay Blaker finally has his own facebook page.



After retiring from the music biz over a decade ago, "Slick" as he is also known, spends most of his time catching the surf off Panama. Yes he had a group where dedicated fans and friends would post a video or memories from his shows in the US or his many tours in Europe. But these fans and friends kept bugging him to at least interact with them from time to time.



And that's exactly what Clay will try to do, as he stated in his first post on his new page: "I promise I’ll try hard to answer all messages and inquiries … at least until it starts cutting in on my surfing time, lol."



Also announced today: Clay's debut album "What A Way To Live" from 1981 which he cut during his second tour in Europe with an A-list of European pickers from the Netherlands and Denmark (list see below) is now finally available in a digital format and can be downloaded on iTunes or 300 other internet sites.



On his first album Clay pretty much stuck with the traditional Honky Tonk and Western Swing sound, he used to be playing at the Broken Spoke, the Split Rail, Cheatham Street or Gruene Hall in Central Texas. He wouldn't start featuring some of his songwriting that then would be recorded by other artists until his second album "Sooner Or Later." Of that album "Lonesome Rodeo Cowboy" and "The Only Thing I Have Left" were both recorded by George Strait.



Besides the title song, Willie Nelson also wrote "Darkness On The Side Of The Earth." Two Johnny Gimble swing tunes - "Under The 'X' In Texas" and "Playin' Around (Fiddlin' Around)" as well as the Leon Rhodes, Buddy Charleton instrumental "Rhodes-Bud Boogie" showcase the excellent musicianship, sometimes with twin steel guitars of the European pickers.

They also shine on Red Steagall's "Lone Star Beer And Bob Wills Music" (a co-write with Glenn Sutton). Another Honky Tonk treat is a medley of Ray Price tunes:  "Touch My Heart" (Johnny Paycheck; Aubrey Mayhew); "The Other Woman" (Don Rollins)  and "Another Bridge To Burn" (Harlan Howard).



Clay Blaker, Vocals

Koos Biel, Steel Guitar

Nils Tuxen, Electric Guitar, Acoustic Guitars, Steel Guitar

Bob Kelly, Steel Guitar

Maurits Hitijahubessy, Steel Guitar

Ton Trussel, Fiddle

Robert Kramer, Harmonica

Dolf deVries, Piano

Knut Henriksen, Six String Bass, Guitars

Peter Kreynen, Upright Bass, Electric Bass

Steve Mendell, Electric Bass

Dik Boer, Drums

Jelle Biel, Producer

Recorded at Flowertree Studio, Groningen, Holland



But that's still not all, Clay now also have his own YouTube channel, where he presents some of his videos. Besides some live Texas Connection videos (albeit a bit grainy) from the show of the same name, which aired on TNN, and a cut of his second album "Sooner Or Later" there is a superb acoustic version, just Clay and his guitar of the title track of his 2001 album "Rumor Town," a song he co-wrote with Tommy Connors and which was recorded by a TV station in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Ray Price - Honky Tonk Hero

We all knew it would happen. The pancreatic cancer was back and Ray refused to go through another strain of chemo and decided to die peacefully in hospice care in his Texas house in Mount Pleasant. A rushed statement by his son made him die premature, but this afternoon 4:43pm he did pass away.



I'm sure there will be many (better and extensive) obituaries covering his six decades in the music scene. I thought I will just remember him with some anecdotes, trivia and personal experiences.

Ray Price single handedly changed country music a decade before Willie and Waylon started their outlaw waves in the music business. After being a disciple (actually room mate) of Hank Williams, his early albums were pure Hank influenced, songs right on the edge between sin and salvation. With the emergence of Rock'n'Roll, Ray changed the old solemn sounds with his signature hard driving, jazz-influenced 4/4 shuffle into a highly dance-able Honky Tonk sound which up to this day still exists in every "true" Texas jukebox. Just listen to "Home In San Antone" from his album "San Antonio Rose" - you may have to do that several times to get actually get the different layers - first just listen to the tight rhythm work of the drums and the bass, add the "classic" fiddlin' by Tommy Jackson, then indulge in the mastery of Jimmy Day on the steel guitar and then give a listen to Ray vocal acrobatics. Piece the pieces together and the sum is way bigger than it's parts. And please be warned this stuff is addictive.

Yes I'm bluntly honest - some of his next invention, the cosmopolitan Nashville sound turned me off, all the strings were layered so thick and smooth, that at the time it was barely listenable to. I did change my mind in retrospect. And the BS (yes that stands also for a musician) crap that Nashville is now releasing, elevates these tunes like gems in a field of burnt coal pieces.

When he was introduced into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1996 I was there at the Grand Ole Opry working the event for several European radio stations and will never forget his quip "Well It's About Time." And right he was, having changed the sound of country music twice. In substance he was the Tony Bennett of Country Music, where George Jones was Frank Sinatra.



In 2000 Ray made a trip to SXSW (music fair) to perform a free concert at Waterloo Park. Despite a cold front who dropped the balmy afternoon temperatures 30 degrees into the 40s, there were more than a thousand attending and enjoying that show (which also featured the Derailers and Hank Williams III).

Still remember dancing on the lawn of the park - mostly to stay warm - when someone poked me in the back - they were some old friends of mine, members of BR5-49 who also attended the music fair and came out that night to check out and pay tribute to the Cherokee Cowboy. 

This is from later years, but pretty much sums up the experience at Waterloo Park - two Kris Kristofferson penned hits for Price - "Help Me Make Through The Night" / "For The Good Times"







By 2007 I was struggling, living out of my car - but Ray announced two concerts in Austin, together with Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Asleep At The Wheel as part of the "Last Of The Breed"-Tour. Sure glad I was able to work "parking" these two magical nights and seeing that show twice.

After the show we all rushed to Poodie's (Willie's former road manager's place - RIP) to see who would show up for the after party, some of the Cherokee Cowboys did, but it never became that much wished for Jam-Session for all the musicians involved. Nevertheless Ray stole the show these two nights.

A year later he returned with "Time" actually touching some of the old shuffle themes who made him so famous. "You Just Don't Love Me Anymore" became an instant favorite.









A must have for every true Honky Tonk fan is Ray Price's 10 CD box by Bear Family which chronicles the years from 1950 - 1966.

Ray Price - Honky Tonk Hero

We all knew it would happen. The pancreatic cancer was back and Ray refused to go through another strain of chemo and decided to die peacefully in hospice care in his Texas house in Mount Pleasant. A rushed statement by his son made him die premature, but this afternoon 4:43pm he did pass away.

I'm sure there will be many (better and extensive) obituaries covering his six decades in the music scene. I thought I will just remember him with some anecdotes, trivia and personal experiences.

Ray Price single handedly changed country music a decade before Willie and Waylon started their outlaw waves in the music business. After being a disciple (actually room mate) of Hank Williams, his early albums were pure Hank influenced, songs right on the edge between sin and salvation. With the emergence of Rock'n'Roll, Ray changed the old solemn sounds with his signature hard driving, jazz-influenced 4/4 shuffle into a highly dance-able Honky Tonk sound which up to this day still exists in every "true" Texas jukebox. Just listen to "Home In San Antone" from his album "San Antonio Rose" - you may have to do that several times to get actually get the different layers - first just listen to the tight rhythm work of the drums and the bass, add the "classic" fiddlin' by Tommy Jackson, then indulge in the mastery of Jimmy Day on the steel guitar and then give a listen to Ray vocal acrobatics. Piece the pieces together and the sum is way bigger than it's parts. And please be warned this stuff is addictive.

Yes I'm bluntly honest - some of his next invention, the cosmopolitan Nashville sound turned me off, all the strings were layered so thick and smooth, that at the time it was barely listenable to. I did change my mind in retrospect. And the BS (yes that stands also for a musician) crap that Nashville is now releasing, elevates these tunes like gems in a field of burnt coal pieces.
When he was introduced into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1996 I was there at the Grand Ole Opry working the event for several European radio stations and will never forget his quip "Well It's About Time." And right he was, having changed the sound of country music twice. In substance he was the Tony Bennett of Country Music, where George Jones was Frank Sinatra.

In 2000 Ray made a trip to SXSW (music fair) to perform a free concert at Waterloo Park. Despite a cold front who dropped the balmy afternoon temperatures 30 degrees into the 40s, there were more than a thousand attending and enjoying that show (which also featured the Derailers and Hank Williams III).
Still remember dancing on the lawn of the park - mostly to stay warm - when someone poked me in the back - they were some old friends of mine, members of BR5-49 who also attended the music fair and came out that night to check out and pay tribute to the Cherokee Cowboy. 

This is from later years, but pretty much sums up the experience at Waterloo Park - two Kris Kristofferson penned hits for Price - "Help Me Make Through The Night" / "For The Good Times"



By 2007 I was struggling, living out of my car - but Ray announced two concerts in Austin, together with Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Asleep At The Wheel as part of the "Last Of The Breed"-Tour. Sure glad I was able to work "parking" these two magical nights and seeing that show twice.
After the show we all rushed to Poodie's (Willie's former road manager's place - RIP) to see who would show up for the after party, some of the Cherokee Cowboys did, but it never became that much wished for Jam-Session for all the musicians involved. Nevertheless Ray stole the show these two nights.
A year later he returned with "Time" actually touching some of the old shuffle themes who made him so famous. "You Just Don't Love Me Anymore" became an instant favorite.




A must have for every true Honky Tonk fan is Ray Price's 10 CD box by Bear Family which chronicles the years from 1950 - 1966.

Is The Riot over - Blake and Ray meet

Update (2/1/2013) 11am



The riot may be over... continue reading...

There is a new picture - taken by Shelton's wife Miranda Lambert, circulating on Twitter and some Facebook pages; it depicts Ray Price and Blake Shelton, meeting on Ray's tour bus outside of his show at the Choctaw Casino Resort in Durant, Oklahoma. Miranda and Blake obviously visited with the Hall of Famer to bury the hatchet. Miranda commented on the picture as follows "Country music binds us together! We are a family. Forever and always. Tonight was a celebration of friends and hero's (sic)." According to other sources, Blake was even introduced by Price on stage".  



http://www.facebook.com/BoycottBlakeShelton?fref=ts



But the boycott is continuing, the facebook page, dedicated to boycott loud mouth Blake Shelton, counts over 1250 members by now and is still growing. As you may see, by clicking on the site, Grand Ole Opry legend Jean Shepard came out to reflect on Shellton's initial BS, and basically called him to be full of it.

Willie Nelson renamed his current tour, he was among other shows part of President Barack Obama's inauguration celebration, into the "Old Farts and Jackass"-Tour in response to Shelton's comment (see below in original post). As self-proclaimed co-leader of the "Old Farts" party, he not only shared with us, that he was completely dressed in black by "designer" Levi Strauss, but also chipped in, into the controversy if Beyonce lip-synched at the festivities. He assures us that his music is no "Willlie Vanillie" and that he can testify in front of Congress that country music is in good hands (with him). Read more about the funny Wille updates on his website - www.willienelson.com



Next up for Blake - to reconcile with Willie Nelson and Jean Shepard. One thing that may help Blake in this undertaking is, that the original video was withdrawn from circulation because of "copyright" issues. (Really?!)



ESSENTIAL WILLIE NELSON BY NELSON,WILLIE (CD) [2 DISCS] (Google Affiliate Ad)



2nd Update (2013-01-25 2:11pm



Dale Watson chipped in with a song sent from Antwerp, Belgium - enjoy





The fanpage Miranda & Blake on facebook had to close down it's wall postisngs...



The page's likes below keep on growing, adding over 250 likes in roughly 12 hours, keep on going there and click that "like"



Update (2013-01-24 11:11pm) - there is now a page on facebook that asks for boycotting Blake Shelton, I dare you to like it, the more the better...

http://www.facebook.com/BoycottBlakeShelton



--------------------------------------------Original post below:----------------------------------------------------

Even though he told US Weekly that one of his New Year's resolution is to "keep the peace" on Social Media (as in his mouth shut and his twitter fingers numb), he stepped in a big pile of BS again. This time with a traditional media outlet, GAC TV in one of their biographical segments called "Backstory" and we are not yet four weeks into the New Year.



"If I am 'Male Vocalist of the Year' that must mean that I’m one of those people now that gets to decide if it moves forward and if it moves on. Country music has to evolve in order to survive. Nobody wants to listen to their grandpa’s music. And I don’t care how many of these old farts around Nashville going, “My God, that ain’t country!” Well that’s because you don’t buy records anymore, jackass. The kids do, and they don’t want to buy the music you were buying."



You can find the original quote at the very end of the tape at 14'25"







And sure enough, after offending gays, when he published rewritten verses for a Shania Twain song, and after upsetting animal lovers for killing a tortoise by just drivin' over it, his mouth needs a good washin' with a bar of soap again.



Well this time he didn't just upset a certain segment, but almost all of the people of whole genre of music, by not acknowledging the tradition and history of Country Music and basically piss on it!

Screenshot of Ray Price's fb page

That didn't sit to well, with 87-year old two time Grammy Award winner and Country Music Hall of Fame member Ray Price. After seeing the threat in "Saving Country Music," he commented on his facebook page, comparing Shelton's career as a flash in the pan and wondering out loud, where Shelton's accomplishments may be in 63 years from now.



Also commenting on the whole upheaval was Country Comedian Ray Stevens, through his publicist: "... 'Old Farts and Jackasses', all I want to know is how he found out the title to my next single because it's been a closely guarded secret here at the "Home." He also promised to release the single on vinyl or 8-Track at your nearest Tower Records store, therefore having some fun with the "old ways of music distribution."



Blake finally came out in the afternoon and started tweeting apologies from his twitter account @blakeshelton (pasted together...)



Whoa!!! I heard I offended one of my all time favorite artists Ray Price by my statement “Nobody wants to listen to their grandpas music”..And probably some other things from that same interview on GAC Backstory.. I hate that I upset him.. The truth is my statement was and STILL Is about how we as the new generation of country artists have to keep re-inventing country music to keep it popular. Just EXACTLY… The way Mr. Price did along hid journey as a main stream country artist.. Pushing the boundaries with his records. “For The Goodtimes” Perfect example with the introduction of a bigger orchestrated sound in country music.. It was new and awesome!!! I absolutely have no doubt I could have worded it better(as always ha!) and I apologize to Mr. Price and any other heroes of mine that it may offended.. I meant every word I said. Country music is my life and it’s future AND past is important to me. I’ll put my Lo(v)e and respect and knowledge About it up against anybody out there… ANYBODY…



Well nice try and I do see hand reaching out for peace, but he's still unapologetic, thinks that his words were taken out of context. He was also high-fiving fans who told him they would stand by him any which way...



Sorry Blake but in my opinion that just doesn't work. And yes your statement is not just hurtful, but also deceiving, it's the old farts and jackasses who still buy music, but it's music that matters to them from artists that matter to them. And yes people are tuning out of the commercial crap offered on the airwaves - instead they listen to more public, satellite or other radio-stations that cater to them (eg KOKE FM in Austin). Or they tune into internet stations, like TexasPrideRadio.com or have their own programs (like Pandora) on their phones, iPads or computers.



But I don't want to finish this with a sour note - below is "chief old fart and jackass" Ray Price - with the opening track of his 2002 album "Time", the lovely shuffle "You Just Don't Love Me Anymore". John Morthland wrote in his review about this album, "doesn't come across as nostalgic, but rather as the eloquent statement of a masterful artist who knows he's just not done quite yet, thank you."











Sources: GAC / Backstory (youtube) http://www.savingcountrymusic.com/blake-shelton-calls-classic-country-fans-old-farts-jackasses http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ray-Price/368389809921178 https://twitter.com/blakeshelton www.kokefm.com www.texasprideradio.com