Sam Amidon Bright Sunny South (Nonesuch) Rating: 3 out of 5 stars Being born and raised in Vermont but now living in London (with wife Beth Orton) gives Sam Amidon a unique perspective on the (mostly) traditional, acoustic folk of both continents. His fourth album in six years follows the blueprint of the previous ones [...]

Tim Mcgraw Two Lanes Of Freedom (Big Machine) Rating: 3.5 stars (out of 5) “If you think this life I love is a little too country, you’re right on the money,” Tim Mcgraw winks on the lead single of Two Lanes of Freedom, the country megastar’s first album with Big Machine. On an album fueled [...]

(Kenny Chesney on the Brothers of the Sun Tour) Three of country music’s primetime players have announced upcoming tours for 2013. Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, and Blake Shelton will all hit the road this year. Chesney has a new album in the works. The album, still untitled, is set for release on April 30 via [...]

We talk to Ed Sheeran about collaborating with Taylor Swift, his songwriting and performing with Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason at the Olympics. More Bruce Springsteen got into the Halloween spirit by breaking out a rendition of “Monster Mash” at a recent concert. More Reviews: Neil Young, Andrew Bird, Cody ChesnuTT, Andrew Combs, Richard Barone More A [...]

Country artist Tim McGraw will release Two Lanes Of Freedom, his first album for Big Machine Records, on February 5. The first single, “One Of Those Nights,” will make it’s national debut when he performs it on the CMA Awards this Thursday night. The album’s title possibly alludes to McGraw’s lawsuit with Curb Records, his [...]

(Bob Minner and his Bourgeois Slope D guitar with LR Baggs Anthem pickup) There & Back & Back Again, the debut CD from acoustic guitarist Bob Minner could refer to his 20 years on the road as a member of Tim McGraw’s Dancehall Doctors, trekking from show to show, heading home and then doing it [...]

A Nashville court ruled in favor of Tim McGraw and his new record label, Big Machine, this Friday morning in the artist’s drawn-out dispute with his former record label, Curb Records. The court’s ruling stated that Big Machine does not have to yield various records, including emails, contracts and other documents that relate to Big [...]

The saga continues between Tim McGraw and his former label Curb Records. Yesterday, a Nashville court granted Curb’s request to postpone their trial, which focuses on whether or not McGraw has fulfilled his contractual obligations to the label, until it can examine the circumstances around McGraw’s recently announced recordings. In November 2011, Curb Records was [...]

Old friends Tim McGraw and Kenny Chesney kick off their Brothers Of The Sun Tour in Tampa, Florida on 6/1/12

Taylor Swift’s breakout single was 2006′s “Tim McGraw.” Today, McGraw joins Swift, Rascal Flatts, and Martina McBride as the latest addition to the Big Machine Records roster. McGraw, who has sold an astonishing 40 million albums worldwide, famously locked horns with his former label, Curb Records, over the recording of his last album, Emotional Traffic. [...]

  “Red Ragtop” The debut single from McGraw’s excellent 2002 album Dancehall Doctors drew controversy for its references to premarital sex and abortion, and was even banned at some country radio stations. But the song is more than just a firebrand. Written by indie singer-songwriter Jason White, “Red Ragtop” beautifully chronicles the rise and fall [...]

What do country musicians listen to when they want to be inspired? We asked a handful of artists (and a few record execs for good measure) to create a list of their top 5 favorite country songs – and they compiled the perfect playlist. Blake Shelton Top Five ‘80s Country Hits “My Baby’s Got Good [...]