CMT Awards 2010: Country videos plus Jamey Johnson song premiere
Music award shows such as the Country Music Television cable channel’s CMT Awards at 8 tonight exist chiefly to recognize distinguished works, typically of the recent past — and attract audiences with all the star power they can muster — rather than to provide a forum for the discovery of new music.
But tonight’s ceremony from Nashville highlighting viewers’ favorite country music videos of the past year also is giving a first look and listen to singer-songwriter Jamey Johnson’s ambitious new album “The Guitar Songs,” which doesn’t come out until September.
Johnson, who gained critical accolades and a healthy amount of commercial success for his 2008 album “That Lonesome Song” and its award-laden single “In Color” apparently has been on a writing frenzy. He’s assembled two CDs worth of new material: 25 songs, including “Macon,” the one he’s slated to sing tonight at the CMT event, an atmospheric tale of a Georgia trucker on his way home.
Among the show’s other performers announced so far are Toby Keith, Lady Antebellum, Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw and the Zac Brown Band. Award presenters include Taylor Swift, Faith Hill, Sheryl Crow, Kid Rock, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Martina McBride, Kellie Pickler, Blake Shelton, Gloriana and Laura Bell Bundy. This year’s leading nominees include Swift, Urban, Paisley, Keith, Underwood and Reba McEntire.
Johnson will likely be previewing "Macon" and a few more new songs on June 19 as part of the Country Throwdown Tour, which stops that day at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine. The bill also includes Montgomery Gentry, Little Big Town, Jack Ingram, Eric Church, Ryan Bingham and Heidi Newfield. The show is the brainchild of Vans Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman.
-- Randy Lewis
Photo: Jamey Johnson. Credit: James Minchin
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This was the worst show I have every watch. Kid Rock is a disgrace to country music. The smoking and the drinking and rock music is not what country music is all about. WHY?????
What kind of message is this for the young people in our country and my Mom and Dad are totally turn off with this show.
What happened to Country like George Strait and Allen Jackson?? The best was a little part of Easton Corben song. He is country. And Lady Antebella.
Hopefully you will receive more e-mails like this one so you can improve next years performance. If not, country music will not last.
Posted by: Sherri Justice | June 09, 2010 at 07:34 PM
"In Color" is an outright theft of Carbon Leaf's "The War Was In Color" from 2006, and a subpar one at that.
Posted by: TD | July 10, 2010 at 10:13 AM