Red, White And Country

Country Side

Posted on May 21, 2016 by Susie Krivak

Happy Friday, gang! A week from today I will be on my flight to the CMAO’s! I received my media accreditation this week and I am ready to roll. I cannot wait to share this experience with you guys.

I want to give a HUGE shout out to my sister this week. Garth Brooks hasn’t been here in 20 years and I didn’t get the opportunity to see him. Well, this time I will!! She got me a ticket for my birthday! I can’t believe it! Thanks Court! Love you!

Let’s see what’s happening:

CELEBRITY NEWS:

You’ve Got a Friend:

Tonight, Clay Walker along with Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner and Joel and Victoria Osteen of the Lakewood Church, will be holding a concert for the Greater Houston Storm Relief Fund. The event will also feature locally and nationally known artists and celebrities and leaders in the community. In a recent press release, Walker was quoted as saying, “Houston has been home to me for most of my life. It is an honour to help those in need by joining together to heal hearts and repair the structures that shelter so many families who make up the rich fabric of our community.” The fund provides support and financial assistance to the residents of Houston who were affected by the recent floods. Mayor Turner said of the event, “It is our privilege to come together and help our fellow Houstonians recover. I thank all of the wonderful people who have made this opportunity to help others in [the biggest] way possible.” If you wish to help, visit houstonrecovers.org to see how to donate.

Host With the Most:

As many of you know, the CMA Festival in Nashville is quickly approaching (June 9-12). One of the unofficial kick-off events is the Music City Gives Back Concert on June 7. This free event in downtown Nashville will be hosted by Rodney Atkins who will team up with headliner Dustin Lynch, Craig Campbell, Lanco and Canaan Smith. In a recent press release, Atkins said, “This is hands-down one of my favourite events to do every year,” he continued, “I’m grateful to all of the artists who are coming out to play with us this year – we’re going to have a good time.” Performances will begin at 6pm but the day begins at 10am with an autograph signing with some of the artists. The day is full of activities which includes, of course, day drinking and playing corn hole (had to look it up – it is like a bean bag toss). If you are in Nashville for CMA Fest, be sure to check it out.

COUNTRY MUSIC:

I was at the Craven Country Jamboree last summer. While I was laying in my tent after the main stage show, I could hear Jason Blaine in the background. It was awesome to be sung to sleep by such a talented artist. So naturally, when the opportunity came up for me to do ANY type of interview with him, I jumped at the chance!

If you look at the Bio page on Jason’s website it reads “Fun, family, friends and faith. They’re the cornerstone of life for Jason Blaine.” I thought about his music and it’s lyrics and decided that this was a fair assessment of who he is as an artist.

Originally from Pembroke, Ontario, he first picked up the guitar at 8 and joined his dad’s band at 16. His hard work paid off because Jason was the Project Discovery winner sponsored by CMT in 2002. Since then he has been nominated for numerous awards including CCMA Single of the Year for “They Don’t Make ‘Em Like That Anymore” in 2012. He was the recipient of that award.

With Lyrics like “Find a cup, fill it up” and “I wanna hold you close, wanna show you what love’s about”, it is clear to see that Jason is a fun-loving romantic. He always makes sure that there is a song for his wife and children on each of his albums. In recent years, Jason has also re-discovered his spiritual side, saying that he “found balance”, proving that you can go out on Saturday night and still make it to church on Sunday morning.

Blaine currently lives in Nashville with his wife and children but next weekend, he will be in Markham, Ontario to attend the CMAO Awards. I am very fortunate that he took a few minutes to answer some questions for me:

Q: You are the leader for CMAO Award nominations. How has the CMAO contributed to your career?

A: It’s an honour to have 6 nominations this year, for sure. The CMAO is passionate about Canadian country music and has created a great opportunity to recognise the work of artists, producers, musicians, songwriters, and country radio and the impact that they have made nationally, all stemming from Ontario! I’m very proud to be associated with that.
Q: If you could play on stage with anyone (dead or alive), who would it be and why?

A: Vince Gill. I have so much respect for him as an artist, musician, singer and songwriter. It just doesn’t get any better for me. If I can choose a Canadian artist as well, I’d say Bryan Adams, for all the same reasons.
Q: You are involved in several charities including holding a golf tournament. How do you decide which charities you want to support?

A: I was looking for a way to use my music to give back to my hometown a few years ago and make a positive impact on the community. I have a wonderful committee of amazing volunteers and together we lend our support to causes most in need within the community and where we feel we can be most effective each year.

Q: How do you balance career and family life?

A: I just try to be present when I’m with my family. I think that is important for anyone trying to balance work & family. The reality is, we all have work to do but it’s about how we spend the time we have together, that’s what counts.

Q: How do you unwind after a show?

A: We usually have a few drinks and laughs on the bus after the show. One of my favourite things about touring is just hanging out with the people I work with.

Q: What is the strangest request you have ever received from a fan?

A: One time a fan pulled off their artificial leg and handed it to me and asked me to sign it. Really not that strange but it did catch me by surprise.

Q: What’s the last photo you took on your phone?

A: A picture of a beautiful sunrise from the BMI Songwriters Festival in Key West.

Please visit Jason’s website (http://www.jasonblaine.ca), follow him on Twitter (@jasonblaine) and for heaven sakes, go and like his Facebook page! For your listening pleasure, I leave you with “Country Side” by Jason Blaine:

Posted in Country Music, Country News | Tagged Canaan Smith, Clay Walker, CMA Fest, CMAO Awards, Craig Campbell, Dustin Lynch, Garth Brooks, Jason Blaine, Lanco, Nashville, Rodney Atkins | Leave a comment

She’s Beautiful In Her Simple Little Way

Posted on May 13, 2016 by Susie Krivak

Hi Everyone!

The store is up!! The store is up!! http://www.cafepress.ca/redwhiteandcountry !! Please go check it out for some really awesome Red, White and Country Gear!! There are still a few things that need to get up there but this is the bulk of it. As I add new products, I will let you know.

I would like to take a moment to send positive thoughts and prayers to the folks in Fort McMurray, Alberta. For those of you who don’t know, wild fires have ravaged this part of the country causing thousands to be evacuated from their homes and from the community in general. If you would like to help the cause, please text REDCROSS to 30333 to make a donation. It will be added to your phone bill. If you wish to donate more, The Red Cross has also set up an Alberta Fires appeal. This is the link: https://donate.redcross.ca/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1951&ea.campaign.id=50610 . You can also contact The Red Cross by calling 1-800-418-1111. Hang in there Fort Mac. We are routing for you.

CELEBRITY NEWS:

Hello Dolly:

If you are a big Dolly Parton fan and have always wanted to see her live, this may be your opportunity. According to the Calgary Herald, this vivacious 70 year-old will be performing at the Calgary Saddledome on September 16. The country superstar will be performing material from her impressive career which spans over 50 years. This is also the first time that Parton has toured in Canada in over 20 years. Keep an eye out this summer for the release of her 2-disc collection called “Pure and Simple” which features some of Dolly’s largest hits. If you would like to see this living legend live, tickets went on sale on Saturday May 7 at www.livenation.com. You can also order by phone at 1-855-985-5000.

Let The Music Do The Talking:

Ok. This has got to be one of the strangest things I came across on the internet in the few couple of days. Well…at least where country music is concerned. Naturally, I HAD to write about it.

Steven Tyler, long time front man of Aerosmith and American Idol judge, is heading out on a 19 city solo tour. (wait for it…) He will NOT be backed by Aerosmith, rather Nashville-based band Loving Mary. (that still isn’t it…) Tyler wanted to create a more intimate experience for his fans that will include stories about some of the popular songs. It will also include some songs from Tyler’s solo COUNTRY project. Yes…I said it. Steven Tyler has a country album coming out. It currently has no official release date. He is a realist about what to expect from this project. He knows that it won’t take off and break sales records. However, it is important for him to follow the ideas he has. Tyler was quoted as saying, “I’m such a passionate person that if I don’t go after my muse like that, I’ll wind up on drugs again.” Tyler and Loving Mary have 2 Canadian dates so far; July 10th in Vancouver and September 13th in Toronto. I can’t believe that I am about to say this….but DAMN….I wish I could see this show! I have a feeling that it is going to be bigger than he, you or I can expect.

COUNTRY MUSIC:

Because of this blog, I have had the opportunity to interview some very interesting and talented folks across North America. Ray Gibson is no exception to this. Not only is this British Columbia native really talented but when it comes down to it, she is friendly and a country girl at heart. I was able to pin her down for a chat a while back and we had a great time!

Ray discovered her musical ability at a very young age. She started playing the piano by ear at the age of 3. Coming from a family where music was played for fun, her mother, father and grandmother all played piano by ear as well. Her brother also played piano and her sister was in band. At 15, she learned how to play the guitar by ear and that soon was followed by the ukulele, banjo and mandolin. She took one music class – to learn the clarinet. But when they asked her to learn to read the notes she asked, “Can’t we play this by how it feels?” When she told me that she started playing music at such a young age, I asked her how her childhood was different from her friends. “Well, I could have gotten outside more and played in the dirt,” she laughed. She always found an excuse to not go outside and play, often coming home to hit the books so she could spend the rest of her time playing the piano. Now, that isn’t to say that Ray wasn’t involved in extracurricular activities. Not only did she take choir in high school, she also played soccer and took highland dancing for about 10 years.

Music is where Ray’s heart lies, and it shows. On her last EP, she “made sure she covered all the emotions”. Her debut single “In Your Kiss” released on Canadian Country Radio on September 14, 2015 and her EP released on iTunes on October 12, 2015. Some of the songs on the EP were co-written, so I wanted her take on the pros and cons of co-writing. Unable to give me a con, Ray said that she was really nervous to start the process. “I didn’t want to hurt their feelings,” she started, “But I had to learn that it was a song and you have to do what’s best for the song.” The other benefits of co-writing in her eyes are that you can learn from other people’s experiences and that when you are writing on your own, you are stuck with what you have. “There are no other thoughts on the process.” She writes with several groups of people and enjoys changing up. She does admit that her style has changed over the last few years. When I asked her about her early work, she said, “If I could describe my first EP, it was pretty safe.” She also used the term “lovey-dovey”, which made both of us laugh. But as Ray grows and has more experiences, she feels as though she is finding her voice, who she is, and is discovering what kind of artist she wants to be. She feels that now she is “pushing boundaries”.

Ray has an extremely strong social media presence and it is because of this, she has caught the attention of Carrie Underwood, Brett Eldridge, Chase Rice and Chris Lane. I asked Ray what thoughts ran through her head when she saw that Carrie Underwood, who was a huge inspiration for her, had taken interest in her work. “My mind kinda went blank for a second because I couldn’t believe it.” She also mentioned that when you are starting out as a performer that there is a lot of self-doubt, so something like this was encouraging. In an industry that can be frustrating to be a part of, Ray says, “Something I had to accept was to know that I wasn’t always going to be accepted.” She continued by saying that it is hard to understand and realize that you aren’t always going to be everyone’s cup of tea. “It’s frustrating because you work so hard at your craft and you work on a specific song or rehearse for a specific show and you always get mixed reviews from people. It’s definitely a hard thing to overcome when not everyone is going to love you.” She did turn a negative in to a positive by adding that it is a good thing to go through because “it makes you stronger”.

Keeping this in mind, I wanted to find out her take on being a female in the country music business. There is this common misconception that female singers all sound the same, thus inhibiting their ability to become really successful. She said, “I don’t think I can agree completely with that.” She continued, “There are a lot of female artists that are completely different.” She mentioned that females in this business are now more likely to stand up for each other and produce more risky music. We agreed that there are a number of men in the industry that sound the same and that it’s up to the audiences now. “We need to get out of the ‘Bro Country’ trend and listen to the females more.”

Although Ray has been welcomed to Nashville with open arms, she prides herself on being a Canadian country girl. This term means a lot of different things to different people. I asked her what it means to her. She replied, “I think it is just about being proud of where you are from and being proud of the people around you.” She went on to say, “The industry here in Canada is such a great community. Everyone is so encouraging. With the female artists here, it’s not a competition; we’re not going up against each other. We’re kind of teaming up. We’re doing this together.” This was really important when it came to being in the top 6 for the CCMA discovery award in which all of the recipients were female. Ray said that the experience was one of the best things she has been a part of so far. The program helped the artists learn about the industry and helped them find themselves as artists.

This charming young lady has had a busy schedule, including being in the top 8 emerging artists and performing a Boots and Hearts, performing at an after party for Florida Georgia Line, and sharing the stage with Aaron Pritchett, Tyler Ward and Wes Mack. To unwind from such a hectic life, she enjoys reading and running and of course, looking for new music. She admits, “I am like a grandma! I like to go to bed really early.” She really appreciates her alone time. I wanted to know what her on the road necessity. She laughed, “Ok, this is going to sound really cheesy. One thing I have to bring is a Polaroid of my boyfriend and I that he gave me before I played at Boots and Hearts.” He had put the picture in a frame and wrote “Believe in yourself because I believe in you. Good Luck” on the back.

This girl is sweet and blessed with amazing talent. It was an absolute pleasure speaking to her. Please check out her website (raygibsonmusic.com) and be sure to follow her twitter (@raygibsonmusic). In the meantime, you should listen to this – “In Your Kiss” by Ray Gibson:

Posted in Country Music, Country News | Tagged Aaron Pritchett, Alberta Fires, Boots and Hearts, Brett Eldridge, Cafe Press, Carrie Underwood, CCMA, Chase Rice, Chris Lane, Discovery Program, Dolly Parton, Florida Georgia Line, Fort McMurray, Ray Gibson, Red Cross, Steven Tyler, Tyler Ward, Wes Mack | Leave a comment

A Little Bit Stronger

Posted on April 27, 2016 by Susie Krivak

Well, as of 2 weeks ago, I am officially a housewife/writer full-time. Although I have been off work for about 6 months, it somehow becomes different when you know you won’t be returning to the workplace. How did I spend my second full week? In bed with a chest cold. Oh well, such is life. But what is really cool about it is I can really put a huge focus on writing both my blog and my novel. I get to work on some things for myself for the time being and that feels pretty cool.

I am making some progress on the Café Press site, so that should be up and running soon!! I will post the details when I am ready to roll.

CELEBRITY NEWS:

On The Road Again:

A while back I mentioned that Lady Antebellum would be taking a break from touring to spend some time with their families. Originally it was going to be for an undetermined amount of time. Luckily for Lady A fans, the break was short and sweet. Their first public performance since their hiatus will be on May 7^th at the Kentucky Derby, where the group will sing The American Anthem. Charles Kelley is currently finishing his tour promoting his solo project. The group will get back together for their tour which will include some Canadian cities and runs from May 27 to August 26. Welcome back, Lady A!

Happy Together:

Rumour has it that country super star Keith Urban and movie star wife Nicole Kidman are celebrating their 10^th anniversary by renewing their vows. One thing is for certain, the couple is celebrating 10 years of wedded bliss. However, they will not be renewing their vows. While on the red carpet, they dispelled the rumour to People. Urban is quoted as saying, “They’re daily in the sense of action as opposed to being recited. I like to think of showing those on a daily basis.” Kidman added, “I love him, but I also like him.” Earlier this year, Urban sat down with Entertainment Tonight and shared his secret to a happy marriage, “Keep dating your wife – that’s it. I’m still trying to get her to go out with me.” From the looks of it, he is doing a good job because she couldn’t look more in love with him. Congratulations Keith and Nicole!

COUNTRY HISTORY:

I know I usually do some sort of fashion feature. But I also like to put something “educational” in here, like the history of the trucker cap. I think it is important to talk about the history of the music we love so much.

Since it is playing such a huge part of my life right now, I would like to tell you a little about the Country Music Association of Ontario (CMAO). In my last blog post, I mentioned that I that I would be going to the CMAO Award show and the R2I Spring Tune Up Conference. Most provinces have a variety of associations that support the arts and that includes country music. Ontario is no exception to the rule. Identifying a need for workshops and resources to support the country music industry, Rob MacArthur, Linda Wright and a group of interested individuals felt it was time for a voice for country music in Ontario. It was established in May 2007 with the name Ontario Country Music Association. It wasn’t long after its Board of Directors was chosen in October of 2008 that their name was changed to The Country Music Association of Ontario or The CMAO. This was to avoid confusion with a company that was no longer in existence. CMAO became incorporated on March 25, 2010.

They attracted new members through open stage nights and continued with seminars and demo nights. This year will be the 4^th Annual CMAO Awards and along with it will be the 3^rd Annual Road to Independence Spring Tune Up Conference. CMAO continues to help people in the country music industry work toward having a flourishing career. Please visit their website at www.cmaontario.ca for more information about the CMAO, the upcoming conference and, of course, the awards show. I hope to see you there!

COUNTRY MUSIC:

I’ve spoken to A LOT of country music fans. One thing that most of us have in common is the reason we love this genre of music: the fact that it tells a story. Ok, admittedly there ARE songs that are just about having a good time but even some of those tell a great story. That is exactly what Blake Reid is – a phenomenally talented storyteller.

Blake grew up on a farm in Cremona, Alberta. In fact, he is a part of 5 generations of farming. Now, if you know anything about farming, you’ll know that hard work and dedication are what is required to do the job. This is what he and his family know. But here, in the fifth generation, he decided to step outside the box to pursue music full-time. He had already stepped out on his own as a farmer but music has always been a part of his life. I asked him to make a comparison between the hard work required for farming and the music industry. What was easier about farming? Blake laughed “You always know what your product is.”

Because of his background, I was curious as to how his family reacted when he said that he wanted to have a music career. Blake was fortunate enough to have full family support, “They’ve always been supportive. I come from, well, there’s a lot of music in my family as well. My grandpa played semi-professionally the banjo. So he paid for the farm and supported the farm through the depression playing banjo.” Of course his father did have concerns about the amount of time he was spending away from the farm leaving gaps in the work force. “We always tried to time it so that during the harvest and maybe spring seeding I didn’t play as much.” His grandpa was a huge inspiration for Blake musically, playing the banjo well in to his 50’s and 60’s. Even with his advancing Alzheimer’s Disease, he could still remember how to play the banjo.

Playing rodeos, bowl-o-ramas, one night shows and the club circuit for a decade, Blake released “Against The Grain”. When asking him what he learned on that album that he carried through to the more recently released “Rust”, he replied, “Be yourself without apology.” When speaking about “Against the Grain” he says, “I was basically me without apology on that album.” We talked a little about what makes a great song to him and he said, “It was the songs I wrote about myself that people responded to.”

The “Rust” album still carries forward that theme of down-home, roots, and being unapologetic. “It continues on with that theme at the same time it’s got a little bit of a different theme with it.” Blake continued, “Even though it’s got a lot of energy and some of the instrumentation kind of reflects what today’s country would, it is still about ‘Hey we need to slow life down a bit and appreciate all aspects’ or tip our hat to the past.” Because Blake has this home-grown connection, I asked him if he had ever been asked to compromise his artistic integrity for a song. “Not directly,” he answered. He added that sometimes when you are writing with a group of people, you have to go with the majority and sometimes they want to focus on direct trends. “Lyrically I like to have a little more depth, have more of a message or a story in the lyrics.” The compromise doesn’t stop at the song writing stage. It can happen in production as well. “In the studio sometimes you can get pushed a little bit past what you’re comfortable with.” During this process, Blake learned that he was capable of reigning in the musicians to achieve the sound he wants.

If you go to listen to Blake’s music, you may recognize his voice. He is the singer and songwriter of The “Hell or High Water” song that became the anthem for the 2013 flood relief campaign in Alberta. We talked a little bit about the song. “Where the inspiration for “Hell or High Water” came from was I think there were so many people hurting and their lives were affected.” We chatted about the t-shirts that were being sold, and he mentioned to me that the shirts were made by the Calgary Stampede. “The phrase came from a phrase that Nenshi, the Mayor, said.” He received a lot of feedback and comments from people who had heard the song. People dropping a line to tell him that they’d heard it and it gave them inspiration to carry on. “To get that kind of feedback is huge.” Blake told me a story about that difficult time. He had received a comment from someone who had heard his song. Her cul-de-sac had been entirely destroyed. She wondered if he would be able to come and sing that song for them because they needed the pick me up. He and a friend went down there with a cooler of water and sang to them while they locked arms and hugged each other. “It was probably one of the highlights of my music career.”

Blake has been having many successes with his career. He was one of 6 artists chosen across Canada to be a part of the CCMA Discovery program. Through this he had the opportunity to play at the CCMA Award Show in Edmonton that year. I asked him what kind of feelings he had about doing a show of that stature. He explained that during the mentorship week in Toronto they did an industry performance as well as one in Edmonton. When it came down to the big show, Blake said, “Because the CCMA is such a classy organization and they worked with us that whole week, the performance at the end was the pinnacle, but there was no pressure.”

He has played numerous, and some very large shows. I wanted to know how he likes to unwind afterwards. “Well, usually I go down and see if there are some people in the crowd to talk to. I always love connecting with the fans.” He mentioned that he likes to chat with them about normal, every day things. “Its kinda fun to have a beer and visit with folks after the show.”

Artists usually have very eclectic musical tastes. Blake says, “I like to listen to some of the indie artists and the Texas artists.” But he loves the singer songwriters. “They turn themselves inside out because they are a reflection of their songs.” He has a true love for old country so I asked him what his thoughts on the “Bro-Country” phenomenon were. He replied, “I respect anybody that can stand up there and make music. I really do respect all genres of country and I like Bro-Country. I like the energy.”

But if Blake could perform with any country artist past or present on stage, his top choice would be Willie Nelson. He answered like a shot! “I am a die-hard Willie Nelson fan and Kris Kristofferson fan. I’ve always been a die-hard Steve Earle fan and I actually opened for Steve Earle and did a couple of shows with him this summer. That was on my bucket list! Sharing his stage was a pretty cool experience.” I asked him if there were any other bucket list shows for him. With no hesitation he replied, “Farm Aid.” Not only is there the appeal of Willie, Neil Young and John Cougar, he added, “Just the whole premise behind it. I think that I’d love to play Farm Aid.” He did try to get involved this year but his application was too late.

One thing I can say for certain is that Farm Aid better get on top of it and sign this man up! He is talented and an absolute pleasure to speak to. Please take a look at his website (www.blakereid.ca). You can also find him on Facebook (Blake Reid Music) and Twitter (@blakermusic). In the meantime here is “Stay Home” by Blake Reid:

Posted in Country History, Country Music, Country News | Tagged Blake Reid, CCMA, CMAO, Farm Aid, John Cougar, Keith Urban, Kris Kristofferson, Lady Antebellum, Neil Young, R2I Spring Tune Up, Steve Earle, Willie Nelson | Leave a comment

Sing Me Back Home

Posted on April 12, 2016 by Susie Krivak

Hi Everyone!!

I am slowly on the road to recovery and I am hoping things start moving smoothly.

There are a couple of big things that I would like to talk about with you today. First and foremost, Frank and I have restructured a few things and I have decided to leave my current position so I can dedicate my time to getting in to better shape mentally and physically. In turn, this will also allow me to put far more focus on my passion – writing this blog! It is a bold move to make but I know in my heart that this is the write thing to do (see what I did there…). I also have a Café Press site that I am setting up where you will be able to purchase Red, White and Country swag!!! As soon as it is up and running I will post the link so you can get hooked up. I can’t wait for y’all to see the fantastic work my great friend Teena Lee has done for me! And I REALLY can’t wait to see you guys wearing my gear!

Secondly, and this is a HUGE one, Strut Entertainment based in Toronto has asked me to team up with them to promote the upcoming Country Music Association of Ontario Awards Show and the CMAO R2I Spring Tune Up Conference. I will be heading out to Toronto at the end of May to cover both events. There may even be some great interviews coming up from some of the nominees! Stay tuned! The next few weeks are going to be amazing!

Here are the nominees for the 2016 CMAO Awards:

Radio Station of the year (Major Market) 2016

Radio Station of the Year (Secondary Market) 2016

COUNTRY NEWS:

Typically with the blog, I write a news section, a fashion section and then an interview. Today, I would like to discuss something else. On Wednesday, April 6, country music suffered a huge loss with the passing of Merle Haggard. So today, I would like to pay tribute to the country legend, known lovingly as “The Hag”.

Merle was born in 1937 near Bakersfield, California on April 6^th. Is father was a railroad worker and he and his parents lived in a converted box car. When his father passed away from a stroke in 1954, Haggard’s mother was forced to look for work and Merle was left with family members to be taken care of.

Because he had been sort of left to his own devices, Haggard became somewhat of a rebel, racking up a criminal record that consisted of grand theft auto, phony checks and skipping school. While sewing his wild oats, he taught himself how to play the guitar. He inherited his musical abilities from his father, who was a guitarist and a fiddle player.

When he wasn’t serving time in jail or reform facilities, Merle worked in the oil fields by day and played the guitar at night in local bars. At the age of 20, he was sent to San Quentin prison for burglary and for an attempted escape from the county jail. While serving a two and a half-year sentence, he completed his GED and played in the prison’s country band. It was also here that Merle was in the audience for Johnny Cash’s famed performance in 1959. He was paroled in 1960 and returned to Bakersfield. He sang and played guitar in local honky-tonks. The gritty sound that he was becoming known for was a huge contrast to the “safe” sound of country that was coming out of Nashville at the time.

In 1962, he signed with Tally Records and recorded five songs, which included his debut single “Sing A Sad Song”. It rose to number 19 on the country music charts. Then, in 1965 he formed a back-up band called The Strangers and signed with Capitol Records. For the rest of the 60’s, Haggard and his band released a series of number one hits, including “Okie From Muskogee”, which earned him several CMA awards. Over his career, Merle released almost seventy albums and six hundred songs, two hundred and fifty of which he wrote himself.

In 2008, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He had surgery to remove the tumor. After a very quick recovery, he returned to touring and song writing. Haggard passed away in his home on his 79th birthday. He had been suffering from a case of double pneumonia and succumbed to the illness after 11 days of fighting. The country music community has had an outpouring of tributes and sympathetic messages to the family. Willy Nelson posted a picture of the two of them with the message “He was my brother, my friend. I will miss him”.

In remembrance to “The Hag”, here is a 1978 live performance of “Sing Me Back Home” recorded at Austin City Limits. Rest in peace, Merle. Your legend will live on forever.

COUNTRY MUSIC:

I happened to be home when it happened. I got a new email notification and when I opened it, I found a listing for all of the nominees for the CMAO awards. In the Female Artist of The Year category was a familiar face; Leah Daniels. As I looked on, I saw that she is nominated for a few awards! In the fall, this talented young lady and I had an opportunity to have a chat.

Leah Daniels Let me start off by saying that talking to Leah is really like sitting on a deck having a cold beer with a good girlfriend. Friendly, funny, and obviously stunning, Leah comes across as laid back as can be. It sort of made sense that we got on like a house on fire, since we both happen to be small town girls. Leah is from Uxbridge, Ontario and continues to live on a farm near there. Out of curiosity, I asked how small the town was. Her first response was, “Well, we have a Wal-Mart.” We both laughed, understanding the significance of this. She continued to tell me that there was around 8,000 people in the town. Coming from a small town and having lived in large cities, Leah and I had yet another common thread. If you have never lived in a town like this, you should know that there is a certain simplicity that comes with growing up like that; a place where a handshake seals the deal. I had to ask her how she feels that her background changes her view of the music industry. She admits that she is a very happy and positive person. After moving to Toronto, she soon realized that more often than not, smiling at people made them think you were interested in them. “I had to learn how to put on my business face.” In a nutshell, she had to learn to be confident and when to put her foot down.

Leah grew up listening to a variety of music. Her grandfather listened to traditional country while her uncle and brothers all were in to rock. Where she originally drew the line was at yodeling. Her grandfather really wanted her to learn how to yodel. At the time, she thought it was so uncool and so old-fashioned. That was until she got her first cassette tape, Leann Rimes “Blue”. “In that song she does a little yodel and I heard that and thought ‘Oh, well, if Leann Rimes can yodel then it must be cool.” Despite her varied musical education, she admits her sound is not what would be considered traditional country. “Its definitely like pop rock country for sure.” Her iPod playlist is very eclectic, including it’s fair share of classic rock. Bearing this in mind, I asked her why she opted to stick with country music. “I think it comes down to the stories and the lyrics and that’s what country music does so brilliantly,” She added, “Its real life.”

Naturally, I am familiar with Leah’s music and there was one song in particular that I was curious about. The song “Go Back” has a bit of a dark side to it. With lyrics such as “I see you creepin’ round the other side of town…” and “He’s not your play thing, he’s not your anything…”, it leaves you wondering where the inspiration for it comes from. So, I asked her. “Sometimes there’s things that happen in your life and you gotta get them off your chest and write a song about it. ‘Go Back’ was definitely one of those songs.” Co-writing the song with Beverly Mahood and Bruce Wallace allowed her to see the male and female perspective of a song like this, “A lot of us can relate to both sides of the story.” She admits when she first started co-writing that she had some anxiety about it. “When I first started writing music, I would always write by myself because it was almost therapeutic.” She continued, “I started writing with other people and fell in love with it. Often times when I am writing by myself, I’ll run in to a block and sometimes the song never gets finished. But when you are writing with other people it forces you to work through those. You’re not just drawing upon your past experiences but you’re drawing upon theirs as well.” Leah has also written with the likes of Sam Ellis, Dan Hill and Gavin Brown.

This talented girl has worked both in Canada and in the US – Nashville, of course. There is an obvious difference between the Canadian and American country music scene. She said, “Everybody there [in Nashville] is doing music. I always come back feeling so inspired.” The real difference in Leah’s opinion is that everything in Canada is so widespread, “You have to seek it out more.”

Being a female in this industry comes with it’s challenges. I’ve referred to Jason Aldean’s comments about female country artists previously on this blog. I asked Leah what she thought about his comment that all women sound alike. “For one, I don’t think that we do. I think that our voices are quite unique actually. I would almost argue that sometimes, when I am listening to the radio, that the guys sound the same.” I had to agree with her. It made me consider the “Bro Country” phenomenon, where a lot of the male acts sound very similar. Leah commented, “I think that we’re almost nearing the end of that phase, or at least I would like to think we are. It was huge and still is but I think with all music there are trends that happen, they come and go. I think that if you’re a band starting out I would try and not do the bro country thing and do something different.”

All of her hard work over the last couple of years has paid off for Daniels. She has had several CCMA nominations. The first one she received was for “Interactive Artist of the Year” three years ago. “I remember I was at my cottage and you know, at your cottage you’re trying not to be on your phone too much. I saw that my phone was going off the hook and I saw that I was nominated. I just freaked out! I mean that is the ultimate recognition in Canada. To have that happen was a dream come true.” Being an “interactive artist” suggests that Leah made full use of social media to promote herself in the beginning and continues to be social media heavy. I asked her what some of the strangest requests or messages she has received. She laughed. She’s had everything from marriage proposals to people asking if she would come and visit them. “That’s the thing with the internet. Anything can happen online and you gotta kind of filter through some of it.”

It was clear that Leah and I had gotten to a point where I could ask her a couple of personal questions. She is on the road quite a bit so I asked her what some of the things that she must have with her. “I gotta have my notebook. I have a notebook that I write everything in whether its things that I gotta do today or song lyrics, stuff that I need to remember. I have that always with me. And one other thing, this is probably weird, but dental floss. If I forget my dental floss, it just totally throws me off.”

Something people may not know about Leah is that she is a bit of a foodie. “I love food, so let’s just put that out there. I love trying all different kinds of food. Some of my faves are…I love pasta and I love seafood. If I’m at home and want to make something special or something that I’ll enjoy, I’ll make some garlic shrimp and some fettuccine alfredo type of thing.”

This talented young lady was so much fun to chat with and I can honestly say I hope our paths will cross again. Please pop by her website (http://www.leahdaniels.com) or follow her on Twitter (@LeahDaniels). For now, I would like to leave you with “Go Back” by Leah. I am sure you will love it as much as I do!:

Posted in Country Music, Country News, Uncategorized | Tagged Beverly Mahood, Bruce Wallace, CCMA, CMAO, CMAO 2016, Country Music, Country News, Dan Hill, Gavin Brown, Leah Daniels, Merle Haggard, Nashville, Sam Ellis, Strut Entertainment | Leave a comment

It’s Been a While

Posted on March 9, 2016 by Susie Krivak

Hey Everybody!

I’m sorry I’ve been gone for so long. It has been a heck of a journey and it’s still not over. I still have a few things to get through and things will get a lot better.

The disorder I am dealing with is called Trigeminal Neuralgia. It is a painful neurological disorder that affects the face, head and ears. Sometimes the pain can feel like an electrical shock pain. They have been playing around a lot with my meds over the last few months without resolve. It is looking like I may require a surgical intervention. But I need to see a couple of more people before I go back to the surgeon.

The medications caused a variety of side effects for me. No filter, loss of balance. Some days it appeared that I had been on the road with Willy Nelson for a couple of days. I had a bad fall that appears to have damaged a tendon in my arm. So while some people think that I am getting a vacation…this has hardly been one. Doctors, tests, blood work, more doctors, potential brain surgery. And not to mention the depression that comes with this endless cycle.

A few years ago I was diagnosed with something called massive depressive disorder. Basically, when I get the blues, I REALLY get the blues. At the same time I was diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder and OCD. I can say this…OCD…the REAL OCD sucks!! My compulsions are counting and list writing. I know that sounds odd. a couple of lists is fine, but 5 or 10 and then a list of the lists, that’s a problem. I was in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy which was very useful. I was able to learn how to stop or at least control the compulsions. Pacing is new. I have started pacing. Some days are really good and some days are really bad. Depression is difficult to get a hold of. It can spiral out of control quickly. This time when my depression got bad, the OCD triggered fast, unlike the last time where it took some time to manifest. I was counting and pacing all over the apartment. Being alone a lot during the day gives your brain a lot of time to follow the rabbit hole to a very dark an unhappy place. Sometimes, it’s just for one day, sometimes it is for days at a time. The days that are ok seem to get further between. You try to laugh or smile, but it becomes physically impossible to become happy. The thought of being artistic or creative eventually seems like an unbearably difficult task to accomplish.

That’s it in a nutshell. I am going to try to get back to writing because I love writing and I love country music. So I am hoping that maybe getting back to this will brighten my spirits. To the artists I have interviewed but haven’t featured yet; I deeply apologize. They will be written over the next few weeks.

I am looking forward to getting back in to the swing of things! Thank you for being patient 🙂

Posted in Camo, Country Fashion, Country Music, Country News, Uncategorized | Tagged Country Music, Depression, Trigeminal Neuralgia | Leave a comment

Sorry For The Delay

Posted on October 27, 2015 by Susie Krivak

Hi Everyone;

Thanks for sticking it out with me y’all. I am going to try to have a new post up on Friday. I deeply apologize for the delay in writing a new post. I am dealing with a particularly painful neurological disorder. Let me paint you a picture…

About 12 years ago, I was heavily involved in playing softball. I was a catcher. Because we were in a beer league, there was really no call for wearing a face mask. During a game I was catching and a ball came off the back of the bat and hit me in the face. It knocked me out cold. When I came too, my first question was “Do I have all my teeth?” Everyone said yes. I then asked if my teeth went through my lip. Everyone said no. I got helped up and looked at the blood down the front of my jersey. I was fine with that and said, “Well, then. Let’s play.” Of course they wouldn’t let me and I got benched. I ended up having a very fat lip and a what turned out to be a massive concussion. I was not even able to drive for 10 days to ensure I wouldn’t have any seizures. The end result was permanent neurological damage…a disorder called Trigeminal Neuralgia. That means I have a compression on the central nerve of the brain. It causes extreme facial pain in some. In fact it is nick named the suicide disease. For me, it is a constant ache in my ear and jaw with intermittent shooting pain. The medication I am usually on controls it well. However, this flare up has now been going on for over a week and has required a booster. What causes a flare up? Weather changes, stress…anything. It is hard to pin point. My GP is in the process of trying to get me in to see a neurologist so we can see if the condition has worsened.

Bare with me, everybody! I am planning a come back! It is just taking a bit longer than I was hoping.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Missing Friday Blog

Posted on October 18, 2015 by Susie Krivak

Hey folks,

Sorry I missed writing on Friday. There have been some family things going on. It has been a bit of a stressful time. I needed a couple of days off. I will resume on Tuesday. Thanks for understanding, Ya’ll.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Let Me Take Your Picture

Posted on October 14, 2015 by Susie Krivak

Sorry for the late entry folks. A bad case of writer’s block and a family “thing” held me back from getting this done a little earlier than I usually like. But here we are. It’s Tuesday, it’s getting posted and all is right with the world. I can’t even believe I said “writer’s block”. It is so strange to me to think that I am someone that actually faces something like that!

Here’s your news:

CELEBRITY NEWS:

Gilbert Loves the Vets:

What you may not know about realize about Brantley Gilbert is that he was studying to become a marriage counselor before he decided to go after his country music dreams. It appears that this skill is coming in handy. Gilbert is a very vocal and active supporter of the troops overseas as well as veterans. He was quoted as saying, I invest in relationships so once I care about somebody, one I give a s**t about somebody, I like to keep up with them and make sure they’re okay the best I can.” Many of the people the Gilbert has been in contact with are suffering from PTSD. The singer finds himself having late night phone conversations about things that are often hard to talk about. Gilbert admits that taking the focus off of himself for a while is good for them and good for him too.

Dear Trisha:

Trisha Yearwood just celebrated receiving a star on Nashville’s Music City Walk of Fame with husband Garth Brooks. While at the ceremony, Yearwood offered some words of wisdom to the young ladies who are aspiring to be country singers, the most notable of which was the importance of being unique. Yearwood told one media outlet, “I think women actually have an opportunity. My advice would be just be true to yourself and be you.” Contrary to Jason Aldean’s belief that female artists have a difficult time achieving success is because they all sound the same, Yearwood argues that it hasn’t always been easy for guys either. “It’s hard to be unique, especially for guys. When I was first starting it was whether you wore the hat or didn’t wear the hat. It was really hard to distinguish yourself.” Thanks for clearing that up, Trisha!

COUNTRY FASHION:

Whether it was in the 1950’s or last week at a country music concert, it is undeniable the plaid shirt is an important part of the western wear wardrobe.

The word “plaid” originally referred to a kilt or blanket that was worn in Scotland to ward off the elements. “Tartan” was the word that was used to refer to the pattern of the fabric, which was associated with a clan or geographical region. Tartan prints were forbidden in Britain during the 18^th century because of the association with the Scottish Rebellion of 1745. It didn’t become legal again until 1782.

During the 19^th century, the pattern came from Europe to the US and it became called “plaid” which is how we know it today. In the 1850’s , Woolrich Woolen Mills created “Buffalo Plaid” which is the black and red checked pattern that is mostly associated with lumberjacks. Throughout the early to mid 1900’s, plaid and plaid flannel were very popular but when Pendleton released a female version of the Buffalo Plaid, the pattern really took off.

During the 1970’s, plaid came in all forms, from fashion to interior design. When Daisy Duke wore her “Daisy Dukes” with a plaid shirt knotted above her naval on The Dukes of Hazzard, the plaid shirt all of a sudden became sexy. While this was happening, punks in the UK were wearing plaid in layers that were ripped in shredded giving plaid a more rebellious tone.

From grunge to high fashion, plaid has become a mainstay in popular culture for both socialites and cowboys alike.

COUNTRY MUSIC:

I first met Jason Kirkness outside of my building. Stranger yet, he actually lives in the building. We chatted about country music, but what he failed to mention was that he was an accomplished musician in his own right. That’s ok, I found out on my own.

Jason is from a small town south-east of Winnipeg, Manitoba called Kleefeld. When he left the small town, the population was only about 300. He had a very interesting moment while playing at Tiger Stadium a few years ago. He realized that the size of the field was about the same size as his town.

This was a great place for us to start. I already knew that he had performed a lot. I asked him what one of the most memorable performances he’s ever done had been. Without hesitation, he replied, “(Dauphin) Country Fest this year. It was truly one of the highlights of my life. I got to do the Song Writers Circle. Wendell Ferguson hosted it and the first guy in the round was Charlie Major. And then I sang. After me were Brett Kissel and Gord Bamford.”

It was obvious that Jason is proud of his accomplishments, even though sometimes he may try to downplay the size of them. I asked him at what point he knew that this is what he wanted to do with his life. “It sorta happened by accident,” he started. “I still haven’t actually decided that this is what I want to do with my life, it’s just the thing I have been doing, I guess.” He then told me the story of where it all began. “Me and my buddy, we were 13 years-old. I got a guitar, he got a drum set. We ended up playing Johnny Cash and CCR covers with his Dad in the garage. We would work all day on the honey farm and then sing all these songs. After his Dad would go to bed, we would play Nirvana songs and The Doors and just try to make music.” He did this through high school, albeit with a different drummer. When he was 21, he started a cover band and they played classic rock in different venues across Western Canada. He worked at the Pyramid Cabaret in his downtime so he was always around music. “15 years and 2 albums go by and you think, ‘I guess I’m a professional musician.’”

As they toured the country they had requests for Bad Company and Trooper, but they also had requests for songs like Fishin’ In The Dark. They had started adding country songs in their set list somewhere around 2002. “We started getting requests for CCR. I was like, ‘Don’t worry guys. I got this.’ because I’ve known all these songs since I was little. Playing the Johnny Cash songs, I didn’t know other people wanted to hear them.” Somewhere between 2004 and 2005, Jason had switched gears. “I ended up with no more classic rock band. I was like, ‘I’m done with you guys’ and I started a country band. I had written some songs and stuff so we played that and we played some of the hits.” The rest, I guess you could say, is history.

Because of Jason’s involvement in the music scene, I was curious to know what he would be doing if he wasn’t “doing” music at this point. He answered, “I think a lot of the things that I already do besides being an artist. I produce records for other artists and I’m helping an R&B soul singer with all of the stuff for her that a manager would normally do.” What was very surprising is Jason’s other passion. “I like photography. That’s probably my big hobby. I’ve invested way more money in to photography gear than in to music gear.” I looked around his apartment. I couldn’t help but notice that despite his passion, there was no artwork on his walls. So I asked him why. “It is definitely a more personal thing,” he started. “You know I post photos all the time but the ones I take that are my artwork photos, I don’t think I’ve ever gotten around to posting anything like that.”

I found it interesting that he says photography is so personal, especially considering he is a song writer and a song like “Leavin’” was about a particularly difficult event in his life. I asked him if this was indeed the case for him when it came to photography, what the difference was between song writing and taking photos. He paused for a moment and chose his words carefully. “That comes down to a philosophy, I think. Because music has been my job for such a long time and pretty much my entire social circle is musicians; keeping in mind that it’s the coolest job ever – but it is my job, when I write a song or pick a new cover song to add in our set list, I’m thinking of everybody else. I’m thinking about how to make other people happy.” He came back to photography, “I’ve been lucky enough that I’ve shot for Men’s Health and TSN photography-wise. I’ve had some photos published professionally. I shot a bunch of photos for a band called The Color. They went on to be quite successful. I’m proud of those sorts of accomplishments.”

Jason has spent some time in the US pursuing his career. I asked him what he felt the differences between the American and Canadian country music scene was. He replied, “Canadians relate to artists a lot differently than Americans do. Americans want to have stars. They want to have tiers and levels. It’s, I think, why American Idol really works. It quickly elevates someone in their status. I don’t think Canadians have a high priority on someone being famous or not. I think it really shows in how much freedom as an artist within a genre you have. For American artists, if they have a hit song that sounds a certain way, they’re gonna keep tightening the pigeon-hole. I think a Canadian audience will be more like, ‘That’s cool and all. But what else?’”

We had already spoken about memorable performances. So I decided to ask him about the strangest performances he ever performed. He laughed and took a few moments to think about it. He had the first one. “We used to not necessarily play in very nice places. I’m thinking it was the early 2000’s in a town where they have a bad reputation. A young lady was on the dance floor and without missing a beat, she urinated in her pants, which were white pants, and threw up and didn’t stop dancing.” We were laughing but I couldn’t help but ask what he did. “Nothing! I did nothing! The thing was that same night there they had Foxy Boxing, except they didn’t have the oversize novelty gloves. They just had 2 girls, 3 minutes, punching each other.” I was kind of left speechless. He went on to tell me about a concert that they were doing at a local attraction. “Canada Day about 5 years ago we played at The Forks. I was the band before the WSO. So keeping in mind it’s not like now where everybody listens to country music. It was still like, ‘You like country. You certainly don’t.'” Jason told me more of the story, “There was about 20,000 people but there was nobody on the concrete. There was 20,000 people and they were all 200 feet away.” But in true performer fashion, the show went on.

It is difficult to imagine what it would be liked to be placed in a position like either of these. I asked him how he knows if a show was successful. He laughed, “You mean besides Twitter?” He continued, “I like the bad Twitter comments. Those are always my favourite ones. I think if you have a crowd of people who are cheering and happy and then a few people who say negative things, I think you did your job. If everybody’s just kissing your ass about it then it’s not going to get any better.” I asked him if he ever left the stage thinking he hadn’t done a good job. He quickly answered, “That’s pretty much how I feel after every one.” I found this surprising and it led to a whole other discussion. Jason does consider himself a perfectionist and “particular”. His apartment is cleaner than any guy’s apartment I have ever been in, yet said he could point out several things that could have been adjusted. He then said, “Being a perfectionist makes it very difficult to release records.”

Jason is a jack of many trades, including doing sound at The Hub at The University of Manitoba. When I asked about the last photo he took on his phone, he said (of course), “A band that was playing at The Hub at The UofM. And a sound board. And a ‘selfie’ backstage at Cowboys.” He even showed me some video of the band at The UofM.

He is currently making a video for a cover of Folsom Prison Blues. He has a full length album that he hopes to release 3 new singles from over the next year. He was ready to release it then had some things go on in his personal life and he wanted to be able to dedicate the time to it that it deserved. He said, “I’d rather have 11 great songs. Not 1 song and a bunch of s**t you don’t want to listen to.” I appreciated his candor. He is most certainly a funny, interesting and charismatic guy and it is easy to see why he is so good at his job.

You should definitely go and pick up his latest album “One More Night” at noisetrade.com/jasonkirkness/one-more-night. It is fantastic! Visit his website http://www.jasonkirkness.com/ and like his Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/JasonKirknessMusic). For now, please enjoy “Take Your Picture” by Jason Kirkness:

https://www.facebook.com/JasonKirknessMusic

Posted in Camo, Country Fashion, Country Music, Country News | Tagged Brantley Gilbert, Brett Kissel, Charlie Major, Gord Bamford, Jason Kirkness, Plaid Shirts, Trisha Yearwood, Wendell Ferguson | Leave a comment

Hey little cowgirl, leave the Stetson on

Posted on October 10, 2015 by Susie Krivak

Sorry this is a little later in the day than usual, gang. I have been fighting off some crazy stomach flu so getting any writing done has been challenging. I know I usually like to have it up on Thursday night, but here we are. At least it is still Friday and you can get some leisure reading in as your weekend begins. I hope you all have a fantastic Thanksgiving (yes, American friends, we have Thanksgiving in October). Make sure you get your fill of turkey and pie!!

Roll the tape…

CELEBRITY NEWS:

Burnin’ it Down in B.C.:

Jason Aldean’s Burn It Down Tour is getting ready to wrap up over the next few weeks. However there was a slight hiccup. On Tuesday morning, one of Aldean’s semi-trucks hauling a trailer flipped over when the driver lost control while driving to the show in Prince George, British Columbia. Several news outlets and a representative for Aldean have confirmed that the driver has sustained minor injuries. The truck and trailer however have been written off. Aldean moved the concert to the Wednesday night to accommodate for the accident. Although the truck is destroyed, I think we can all agree it is good to hear that everyone involved is safe.

Let the Stars Shine:

As the CMA Awards approach, the first list of performers has been released. I’ve already mentioned that Hank Williams Jr. and Eric Church will be opening the show and we can also expect to see Thomas Rhett perform with Fall Out Boy. But wait, there’s more. There of course will be huge stars such as Little Big Town, Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert, Luke Bryan (dear LORD, please sing “Strip it Down”), and his majesty, Garth Brooks. If you are a huge country music fan and aren’t able to catch the show on November 4^th (like me, as I will be at Tim Hicks), make sure you set your PVR. This is something you are not going to want to miss!

Let me Tell Ya About Scotty:

American Idol darling Scotty McCreery is planning to release a book next year. Although this deep-voiced country singer is only 22 years-old, his biography titled “Go Big or Go Home:The Journey Toward the Dream” will be available in book stores on May 3, 2016. The book will talk about McCreery’s life, from childhood to releasing 2 studio albums and his faith. Because of his deep Christian roots, the book is being by Zondervan, a Christian book publisher based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It looks like 2016 will be a big year for McCreery as he is also preparing for the release of his 3^rd studio album at the same time.

COUNTRY FASHION:

It’s the King of cowboy hats. The gold standard. An American classic. Timeless. It’s a Stetson. For 150 years, Stetson has been the embodiment of American country spirit.

The company was founded by John B. Stetson who was taught the hatter trade by his father. After going out west during the gold rush and having little success, he returned to Philadelphia in 1865. With $60 he borrowed from his sister, he rented a room and launched his own hat business. He was struggling until he followed his instinct for a market back out west. In 1870, he purchased a building on the outskirts of Philadelphia and established what would eventually become the largest hat factory in America. The company was a huge success and by the early 1900’s was considered innovative and “ahead of it’s time” yet able to maintain some of the traditional aspects of hat making. This also marked the time of the death of John B. Stetson.

Through the 20’s and 30’s, Stetson continued to be innovative, creating fashionable and practical styles to meet the needs of all of its customers, even during the depression. They joined in the war efforts of the 40’s and made thousands of hats for the military. As time went on, hats were no longer a required accessory (mainly during the 60’s and 70’s) and Stetson faced some difficult decisions, one being to close their factory in Philadelphia. They were, however, left with their plant in St. Joseph, Missouri.

During the 80’s and 90’s, Stetson made a come-back by successfully establishing itself as a lifestyle brand, which included licensing eye wear and fragrances. It is currently seeing a rebirth in its line (some would say because of the “hipster” crowd). People have been turning to the company not only for their hats, but for their apparel, footwear and home products.

Despite the fact that the brand has seen some hard times, their quality and their reputation has carried them for the last 150 years. Here is why:

COUNTRY MUSIC:

When I first found out that Rich Cloke was open to me interviewing him, I wasn’t sure what to expect. He is so talented and, I’m comfortable saying this, he is great looking. What I didn’t expect was that I would feel like I was talking to someone I have known for years. He honestly was so friendly and so open, I really couldn’t have asked for a better interviewee.

Rich was born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario. He currently lives in Burlington, which isn’t too far away from Hamilton. As a kid, he was really in to sports, but he eventually traded in his hockey skates for cowboy boots. I had read that in his bio, but of course, I needed to know more. “I liked playing all sorts of sports and hockey was the one that stuck. For the longest time I though I wanted to play professionally and music just kind of took over. It came a lot easier than sports did in terms of song writing and just playing and singing.” He and his parents looked at the odds of becoming a professional hockey player and the “life span” of a pro. After that, his parents really encouraged the music part of it. Rich quoted them, “Focus on being a musician if that is what you want to do.” Rich does play a game of pick-up once in a while, “you know, to burn off calories.”

We moved in to talking about the music industry. Rich has had some exposure to the U.S. country music scene. I was curious to hear his perspective on the difference between the U.S. county music industry and the Canadian country music industry. He said, “There is a lot more pop infusion. I think a lot of Canadian country artists hold on to a little bit more of that old school, traditional country. They seem to get that in there a little bit more which I think has a lot to do with that sound that country has in Canada. But you’re seeing a lot of newer artists coming up that are kind of adopting that kind of American sound.” He continued, “With the way the industry is in Canada, to my knowledge, there are only a handful of record labels. I think there’s only Sony Music, Warner and Universal that are the 3 major labels left in Canada and the majority of the rest are indie labels. If you go to the U.S. there are so many more major labels so to survive as an artist, to make it, a lot of artists I am finding, are coming over or are adapting to the American take on country music.” We started talking about country acts such as Sam Hunt and Florida Georgia Line and their contemporary sound. I asked Rich how he felt about this push away from the traditional and a moving toward pop elements in country. He replied, “Personally, I love it. I think it’s really cool to see a genre go from old school to where its developed today, with those different genres, those cross-overs. I like it.” I asked him if he could be on stage with any country singer past or present, who it would be. And without hesitation, he replied, “I think it would be amazing to open for Garth Brooks. Garth Brooks for me is my generation of country music. When I first heard country music it was Garth Brooks, Garth Brooks, Garth Brooks. Just to see what he’s done and the success he’s had as a song writer and a performer, he just gets it. He knows what he’s doing.”

Since we were on the topic of contemporary country, I asked Rich about writing versus co-writing. I always find it interesting to ask people who co-write what they feel the pros and cons are of this writing method. “The pro is that it’s always nice to get a second opinion; to have a fresh set of ears and talent when you’re putting down lyrical ideas or a melody. The con is when you have a solid idea and you really got to trust who you’re writing with, in my opinion, that they’re going to have good ideas. I always have a vision of how I want the song to go and the direction I want to take it and how it’s going to sound in the end. Then when I take it to a co-writing session and say ‘OK, this is the idea I have’, it can be flipped right on its head. You gotta be able to accept that.”

It was clear from our conversation that Rich had a great group of people around him. We had already been talking about trust in co-writing, so I went one step further. I asked him if there was anyone that he trusted entirely with his life. He responded immediately, “My wife.” Rich and his wife were married in 2011. We went on to talk about other people he trusts and the relationships he has with people. “I’m 30 and me and my buddies have this conversation all the time where you kind of joke ‘we are so old and so busy all the time’ that there is no time for fake friends. If I have time I’m gonna hang out with you guys! If someone else wants to hang out I don’t know what I’m gonna do! We just joke about it, we aren’t really like that,” Rich laughed and continued, “I’m lucky to have a really good group of people in my life and close friends that I’ve grown up with and a close family that are really supportive of what I am doing.” Having seen some of the photos that Rich has posted on Facebook, I know this is absolutely true. There are pictures of him with his parents, with cousins, with his friends. It is evident that he is surrounded by people who truly believe in him and what he is doing.

Rich has built up an inner circle of people who believe in him and that he trusts. So I asked him what the best piece of advice he’s gotten was and who it came from. Rich answered, “Some of the best advice I’ve gotten was from my good friend Flavio, who’s been in the music business for the last 25+ years. The advice he’s given me in terms of what to do as an indie artist is how you need to present yourself and how valuable reputation is in this industry and just always being the better person in a situation.” Rich went on to say, “He’s been a mentor to me, for sure.”

As an artist by night and an employee by day, there is very little time that Rich gets to unwind. I asked him what some of his guilty pleasure television was. He laughed, “I have been caught several times watching The Real Housewives.” I, of course, burst out laughing, “Now, wait a minute,” he interrupted, “It’s just because I am a supportive husband!” Based on that kind of answer, I then asked him what was something he did that most people would find surprising. He was quiet for a moment, and then said, “My friends are shocked when I tell them I have Taylor Swift on my iPhone. I am like, ‘Hey man! She writes catchy tunes!’” I had to admit that, I too was a bit cray-cray for Tay-Tay. Apart from Taylor, Rich also told me that he loves Chris Young and Kenny Chesney. In fact, he said that Kenny Chesney is by far the best concert he had ever seen.

Because Rich is so busy out and about, I wanted to know what one thing that was a must have for him when he was on the road (of course, electronics and instruments not included). He replied, “I am kind of a freak when it comes to hygiene so I would say Dove soap.” Naturally I asked if this was an OCD thing or if he showered 2 or 3 times a day. “No – I just really like to be clean” and he then admitted to being a 2 shower a day kind of guy.

To finish off the interview, I asked what the last photo he took with his phone was. He laughed, “My friends were coming over for a get together last weekend and I took a photo of the 9 beers that my buddy left over the weekend before and I said, ‘Don’t worry about buying beer’!” What a good friend.

Rich will be busy over the next few months filming a video for the 3^rd single coming off his album Northern Skies and he is currently planning a cross-Canada tour hopefully for the late 2015 or early 2016. I can honestly say that I sure hope it finds him stopping in Winnipeg. I would love to have a beer with my new chum!

I sure hope you take the time to stop in at Rich’s website www. richclokemusic.com and be sure to check out his Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/RichClokeMusic) His Twitter handle is @RichClokeMusic if that is your cup of tea. Here is my cup of tea…it’s “Rockin’ in the Summer” by Rich Cloke:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oENixnUt3kA

Posted in Country Fashion, Country Music, Country News | Tagged CMA Awards, Eric Church, Garth Brooks, Hank Williams Jr., Jason Aldean, Kenny Chesney, Little Big Town, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Rich Cloke, Scotty McCreery, Stetson, Thomas Rhett, Tim Hicks | Leave a comment

I’m Just an Okie from Muskogee

Posted on October 6, 2015 by Susie Krivak

It’s Tuesday once again folks. Time is moving so quickly that Christmas will be here before you know it. Did I just say that out loud? I did. I did just say that! I am not really a “winter person”. So when I think of Christmas, I think more of -40c. Christmas itself is magical…it’s the weather that comes with it. Bah! We still have to get through Thanksgiving (this weekend for my Canadian folks), Halloween and Remembrance Day. I don’t know why I am jumping the gun.

I hope you all had a great weekend and are enjoying this last gasp of summer time weather. If you live somewhere that is warm all the time…keep doing what you’re doing.

Here is the news:

CELEBRITY NEWS:

Are You Ready?:

It is CMA award season and the 2015 CMA Awards show is set to air on ABC on November 4^th. Opening the show will be Eric Church and Hank William’s Jr. The 2 will be performing a song off of William’s latest album that is soon to be released on Nash Icon Records. The song is “Are You Ready For The Country”, which was originally done by Neil Young and then covered by Waylon Jennings in 1976. Williams’ album will be his first on Nash Icon. The only other country artist who has released an album on this label is Reba McEntire. Williams’ album is scheduled to be released in early 2016. Church is up for 5 awards this year, including Entertainer of the Year. It is the first time he’s been nominated to the top honour. Good luck, boys!

Heads Up!:

Poor Sara Evans! This weekend, Evans had a bit of a mishap; she fell down the stairs of her tour bus resulting in an emergency trip to the doctor, a knee brace and a pair of crutches. This didn’t slow the brunette songstress down one bit. She still made it to her October 3^rd performance in Bloomsburg, PA. She has a few weeks of rest coming up before her next show in early November at Shooting Star Casino in Minnesota. Evans has dates scheduled across the country throughout November and December and plans to make it to all of them. Get well soon, Sara!

Solo Does NOT Equal Breakup:

You may or may not have heard that Lady Antebellum frontman, Charles Kelley, will soon be releasing a solo album. Okay, okay…take a deep breath…hold…………and release. In an interview with A Taste of Country, Kelley assures Lady A fans that the band is in a great place and that there are no plans for a split. “Lady Antebellum is not breaking up,” says Kelley. “I don’t think we ever will break up.” Kelley also promises that his solo project will be grittier and more personal than the music released by Lady Antebellum as of late. The first single to be released will be “The Driver” which features Eric Paslay and Dierks Bentley. Personally, I really like Charles Kelley and will be on the look-out for his EP. And I think we can all agree that there is some sense of relief in hearing that Lady A will not be going anywhere for the foreseeable future.

COUNTRY FASHION:

I can honestly talk about cowboy boots all day. But did you know that not ALL boots are classified as just cowboy boots? There are 2 distinct styles of cowboy boots: western (sometimes known as classic) and roper. Within these, there are a couple of different variations based on need or look you want. But how can you tell the difference?

When it comes to western boots, there are 2 main styles. One is a classic style and the other is a western riding boot. The classic cowboy boots style typically has an angled heel (often referred to as a cuban heel) that is usually around 1” – 1 ½” height. It is slightly lower than the western riding boot heel (which usually comes in at about 2”). The standard boot height for the classic cowboy boot is around 12”. These boots are more practical for riding, walking and of course, dancing.

The western riding boot has a similar construction; it is just the dimensions that change. They are mainly designed for riding, hence the name. As previously mentioned, the heel is the highest of the western boots, but they too are angled. The leather on the soles is smoother to prevent the boot from catching on the stirrups in the event the rider falls. This is also the reason why these boots never have laces on them. The toe is more tapered to allow the rider smoother entry of the boot in to the stirrups. The shaft is typically longer than that of the classic western boot (13” total length) so that the rider has more coverage on the legs. This will prevent pinching and chafing from the saddle and protects the wearer from things such as brush and thorns.

Ropers come in two styles – with laces and without. They got their name from the fact that these are the type of boots worn by rodeo calf ropers in competition. They have a very short heel, the lowest of all of the western style boots. The heel is squared off and it is also the lowest overall height of all of the western boots, extending several inches above the ankle. The toe is usually rounded and the sole on it is flexible. The work western boot is very similar to the roper in style, with only an anti-slip (rubber) sole and extra mid-sole cushioning being the only real differences. Neither the roper nor the work boot are very fancy and are made with more durable types of leather due to their utilitarian nature.

Let’s look at all 3 styles side-by-side. Can you see the differences?

COUNTRY MUSIC:

I am not sure how many of you are big fans of The Voice, but I am obviously a huge fan! It is such a great way to find out about new artists (as well as get my BS dose). Corey Kent White was on The Voice last season and I loved him! I was so sad to see him leave. Despite his premature dismissal from the show, this 21 year-old Bixby, Oklahoma native has not let the grass grow under his feet at all. He has taken full advantage of the exposure the show has given him and has run with it.

Although Corey is still young, he has been singing and song writing for about 10 years. He grew up in a very musical family and listened to a lot of Garth Brooks (as you do growing up in Oklahoma). At a very young 8 years-old, Corey began playing guitar and taking music lessons. His first time on stage alone was at the State Fair in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was just him and his guitar. But by age 11, Corey had become part of a musical group of 11-16 year-old musicians called Oklahoma Stomp which showcased Western Swing style of music.

While Corey was in high school, he was signed by BMI Song Writing Group and was frequently travelling back and forth between Oklahoma and Nashville. He knew that he had to move to Tennessee to really start his career so he took one extra step and pushed himself even harder to graduate one year early. He is currently enrolled at Oklahoma State University on top of doing a university show circuit. The fact that he is doing this yet still found time to release his album “Making Noise” proves that Corey is dedicated, driven and a very hard worker.

I reached out to Corey (with fingers crossed) in hopes that I would get the opportunity to have him answer some questions for me. To whoever says crossing your fingers doesn’t work…it totally does! Here is “5 in 5 with Corey Kent White”:

1) How are you finding balancing University and your career? What is the most challenging part about it? Corey: 1 word. Netflix. Honestly, it’s just a matter of self-discipline. I am a full-time student at Oklahoma State University. I’m currently in 15 hours online and that’s tough. The most challenging part is convincing yourself to start working on something that could easily be put off for something more fun. Luckily, I have great parents & grandparents who instilled a good work-ethic in me.

2) What is the best piece of advice you received while you were on The Voice and who did it come from? Corey: Reba told me to just be me. I think that’s so important, especially as an artist. Nobody great ever sounded like anyone else.

3) If you had to describe your life over the last 12 months, how would you do it? Corey: The most fun I’d never want to have again. Ha! I’ve grown so much as a man and an artist but the growing process can be frustrating & exhausting. I’m thankful for the experience. It’s made me better. I’m very thankful to have the last 12 months under my belt so I can continue pressing on towards my goals.

4) What is one thing that is a “must have” when you are on the road? Corey: My Martin & Co. guitar. It goes everywhere with me. Been with me for nearly 10 years now.

5) What is the last photo you took with your phone? Corey: A pic of my new blue heeler puppy, Gracie.

Corey, thanks so much for taking time out of your gruelling schedule to answer these!

Please take an opportunity to check out his website: www.coreykentwhite.com and I highly recommend following him on Twitter (@CoreyKentWhite). If you aren’t a Voice watcher (or even if you are), here is “She Ain’t Perfect” by Corey Kent White:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbGGcGUtSbE

Posted in Country Fashion, Country Music, Country News | Tagged Blake Shelton, Charles Kelley, Corey Kent White, Cowboy Boots, Dierks Bentley, Eric Church, Eric Paslay, Garth Brooks, Hank Williams Jr., Lady Antebellum, Neil Young, Reba McEntire, Sara Evans, Waylon Jennings | Leave a comment

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