Rusty Truck Slide Into Country Tradition on 'Rattle Trucks' - Song Premiere

Mark Seliger usually spends his time behind the camera; through the years, he's shot such iconic artists as the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Kurt Cobain. However, Seliger also finds himself on the other side of the lens occasionally as the frontman of the country group Rusty Truck. Now you can hear the band's new track, "Rattle Trucks," in which Seliger drapes yearning, melancholy vocals over wandering slide guitars, reaching deep into country and western traditions.

Video: Mark Seliger Shoots Katy Perry for the Cover of Rolling Stone

"Rattle Trucks" is on Rusty Trucks' forthcoming second album, Kicker Town, out June 18th on Crosseyed Music.

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Rusty Truck Slide Into Country Tradition on 'Rattle Trucks' - Song Premiere

Mark Seliger usually spends his time behind the camera; through the years, he's shot such iconic artists as the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Kurt Cobain. However, Seliger also finds himself on the other side of the lens occasionally as the frontman of the country group Rusty Truck. Now you can hear the band's new track, "Rattle Trucks," in which Seliger drapes yearning, melancholy vocals over wandering slide guitars, reaching deep into country and western traditions.

Video: Mark Seliger Shoots Katy Perry for the Cover of Rolling Stone

"Rattle Trucks" is on Rusty Trucks' forthcoming second album, Kicker Town, out June 18th on Crosseyed Music.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

Amazon Music and MP3 Center

Read more »

Book Excerpt: Ringo Starr Realizes a Dream With His 1970 Country Album

Ringo Starr had always loved country and western music. Back in 1959, he had joined an English group called The Raving Texans. He took the stage name Ringo not only because of the rings he wore, but also in honor of "Johnny Ringo," a real life cowboy involved in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

When the Beatles and Rolling Stones barnstormed across America in 1964 and 1965, many parts of the US only had country radio stations. The exposure deepened the bands' affection for the genre.

Coincidentally, at the end of 1964, Bonanza star Lorne Greene released an album called Welcome to the Ponderosa with a song about the gunfighter Johnny Ringo on it. Since it was during the height of Beatlemania, the label released it as a single. The song shot to number one by December, even though it had nothing to do with Richard Starkey. It must have been a hilarious capper to one of the best years of Starr's life to hear cowboys atmospherically harmonizing "Ring-go" to a two-step beat on the radio everywhere he went.

Starr went on to cover country artist Buck Owens' "Act Naturally" on the Help! album, co-wrote with Lennon-McCartney (supposedly) the country-inflected "What Goes On" on Rubber Soul, and wrote the country "Don't Pass Me By" on the White Album.

Thus when Starr met Nashville guitarist Pete Drake in 1970 while working on George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, it was natural for the two to share a rapport. When Starr broached the idea of doing a country album, Drake replied everyone in Nashville would love to participate. Drake did hundreds of sessions a year and assured Starr they could complete the project in two days. With Starr's commitment, Drake rounded up his musician and composer friends and assembled a batch of songs for Starr to pick from.

Starr arrived in Nashville on June 22nd and cut the tracks on June 30th and July 1st. In order to keep Starr in tune, other vocalists sang just out of range of the microphone. For the album's title track, "Beaucoups of Blues," Starr selected a song by Buzz Rabin, a Nashville songwriter whose later credits included "If You'll Hold the Ladder (I'll Climb to the Top)," a tune used in Tender Mercies.

On a number of songs the incomparable Jordanaires provided the backing vocals as they had for Elvis on many of his classics, starting with "Heartbreak Hotel." They also sang for Ricky Nelson, among many others. Elvis' own original guitarist Scotty Moore engineered, and Charlie "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" Daniels played guitar. With so many authentic country contributors, the songs were not odd pastiches like "Don't Pass Me By," but bona-fide Nashville productions.

One stand out track is "15 Draw," a mellow song about a guitar player writing to his Mom, acknowledging how he could never settle down and stay married. The guy didn't take over his dad's hardware business because he thought he was going to make it big, but so far it hasn't happened and he needs to borrow $15. Still, he lets her know that he doesn't drink as bad anymore, and overall he sounds pretty content, though slightly wistful. Low key like lonely Texas highways, the song conjures a world like the country films Crazy Heart (2009) or Tender Mercies (1983).

It features the finger picking of Jerry Reed, in the Country Hall of Fame for both his singing and guitar playing. Elvis covered his 1967 song "Guitar Man" and brought Reed in to play in his own unique style on the track, and the song marked the beginnings of Elvis' rock and roll comeback after years spent making pop movie soundtracks. Reed then won the Grammy for "When You're Hot You're Hot," which is why Ringo quotes it in the "$15 Draw" fade out. Later Reed starred alongside Burt Reynolds in Smokey and the Bandit and sang its classic theme, "East Bound and Down."

The album didn't make the UK charts, and only reached number 65 in the US, so for the next two years Starr decided to focus on acting. But today, Blues is often rated by critics alongside 1973's Ringo (and perhaps 1992's Time Takes Time) as the Ringed One's best solo album. It depends upon whether you prefer country or slick pop rock.

From the book Still the Greatest: The Essential Songs of the Beatles' Solo Careers by Andrew Grant Jackson. Copyright 2012 by Andrew Grant Jackson. Published by Scarecrow Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group.

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Book Excerpt: Ringo Starr Realizes a Dream With His 1970 Country Album

Ringo Starr had always loved country and western music. Back in 1959, he had joined an English group called The Raving Texans. He took the stage name Ringo not only because of the rings he wore, but also in honor of "Johnny Ringo," a real life cowboy involved in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral.

When the Beatles and Rolling Stones barnstormed across America in 1964 and 1965, many parts of the US only had country radio stations. The exposure deepened the bands' affection for the genre.

Coincidentally, at the end of 1964, Bonanza star Lorne Greene released an album called Welcome to the Ponderosa with a song about the gunfighter Johnny Ringo on it. Since it was during the height of Beatlemania, the label released it as a single. The song shot to number one by December, even though it had nothing to do with Richard Starkey. It must have been a hilarious capper to one of the best years of Starr's life to hear cowboys atmospherically harmonizing "Ring-go" to a two-step beat on the radio everywhere he went.

Starr went on to cover country artist Buck Owens' "Act Naturally" on the Help! album, co-wrote with Lennon-McCartney (supposedly) the country-inflected "What Goes On" on Rubber Soul, and wrote the country "Don't Pass Me By" on the White Album.

Thus when Starr met Nashville guitarist Pete Drake in 1970 while working on George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, it was natural for the two to share a rapport. When Starr broached the idea of doing a country album, Drake replied everyone in Nashville would love to participate. Drake did hundreds of sessions a year and assured Starr they could complete the project in two days. With Starr's commitment, Drake rounded up his musician and composer friends and assembled a batch of songs for Starr to pick from.

Starr arrived in Nashville on June 22nd and cut the tracks on June 30th and July 1st. In order to keep Starr in tune, other vocalists sang just out of range of the microphone. For the album's title track, "Beaucoups of Blues," Starr selected a song by Buzz Rabin, a Nashville songwriter whose later credits included "If You'll Hold the Ladder (I'll Climb to the Top)," a tune used in Tender Mercies.

On a number of songs the incomparable Jordanaires provided the backing vocals as they had for Elvis on many of his classics, starting with "Heartbreak Hotel." They also sang for Ricky Nelson, among many others. Elvis' own original guitarist Scotty Moore engineered, and Charlie "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" Daniels played guitar. With so many authentic country contributors, the songs were not odd pastiches like "Don't Pass Me By," but bona-fide Nashville productions.

One stand out track is "15 Draw," a mellow song about a guitar player writing to his Mom, acknowledging how he could never settle down and stay married. The guy didn't take over his dad's hardware business because he thought he was going to make it big, but so far it hasn't happened and he needs to borrow $15. Still, he lets her know that he doesn't drink as bad anymore, and overall he sounds pretty content, though slightly wistful. Low key like lonely Texas highways, the song conjures a world like the country films Crazy Heart (2009) or Tender Mercies (1983).

It features the finger picking of Jerry Reed, in the Country Hall of Fame for both his singing and guitar playing. Elvis covered his 1967 song "Guitar Man" and brought Reed in to play in his own unique style on the track, and the song marked the beginnings of Elvis' rock and roll comeback after years spent making pop movie soundtracks. Reed then won the Grammy for "When You're Hot You're Hot," which is why Ringo quotes it in the "$15 Draw" fade out. Later Reed starred alongside Burt Reynolds in Smokey and the Bandit and sang its classic theme, "East Bound and Down."

The album didn't make the UK charts, and only reached number 65 in the US, so for the next two years Starr decided to focus on acting. But today, Blues is often rated by critics alongside 1973's Ringo (and perhaps 1992's Time Takes Time) as the Ringed One's best solo album. It depends upon whether you prefer country or slick pop rock.

From the book Still the Greatest: The Essential Songs of the Beatles' Solo Careers by Andrew Grant Jackson. Copyright 2012 by Andrew Grant Jackson. Published by Scarecrow Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group.

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Kitty Wells, Pioneering Country Singer, Dead at 92

Frank Driggs Collection/Getty Images

Pioneering female country singer Kitty Wells died today at her home in Madison, Tennessee, due to complications from a stroke, her grandson John Sturdivant Jr. told the New York Times. She was 92.

An undeniable influence in the world of country, success came somewhat late for Wells, who in 1952 recorded what would become her signature track, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels." At the time, the then-33-year-old wife and mother was preparing to call it a day in the music industry to become a homemaker.

The song ended up topping the country charts for six weeks and even crossed over into the Top 40, making her the biggest female country star after World War II. Her success paved the way for future female singers whom Nashville had previously considered not worth the investment.

"I wasn't expecting it to make a hit," she told the Nashville Scene in 1999 about the cut she recorded to collect a $125 union-scale wage. "I just thought it was another song."

A counter to Hank Thompson's Number One hit "Wild Side of Life" – a track in which the singer blamed the woman he picked up at a bar for ruining his life – the J.D. Miller-penned words for "It Wasn't God..." became an anthem for women in a post-war America marked by rising divorce rates and changing sexual norms. The NBC radio network deemed the track "suggestive" and banned it; the Grand Ole Opry initially wouldn't let Wells perform the track but ultimately changed their minds.

Born Muriel Ellen Deason in Nashville on August 30th, 1919, Wells grew up listening to a mix of Grand Ole Opry and gospel music. Wells' long career included stints playing with her husband Johnnie Wright and making appearances on hit radio shows like "Louisiana Hayride" and the Opry; in 1968, she had her own syndicated television show and in 1974, she made a record with members of the Allman Brothers and the Marshall Tucker Band. In her 27-year career, 84 of Wells' singles appeared on the country charts, with 38 of them making it to the Top Ten. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1976 and in 1991, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences presented her with a Lifetime Achievement Award – an honor only two other country performers, Hank Williams and Roy Acuff, have ever received.

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Kitty Wells, Pioneering Country Singer, Dead at 92

Frank Driggs Collection/Getty Images

Pioneering female country singer Kitty Wells died today at her home in Madison, Tennessee, due to complications from a stroke, her grandson John Sturdivant Jr. told the New York Times. She was 92.

An undeniable influence in the world of country, success came somewhat late for Wells, who in 1952 recorded what would become her signature track, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels." At the time, the then-33-year-old wife and mother was preparing to call it a day in the music industry to become a homemaker.

The song ended up topping the country charts for six weeks and even crossed over into the Top 40, making her the biggest female country star after World War II. Her success paved the way for future female singers whom Nashville had previously considered not worth the investment.

"I wasn't expecting it to make a hit," she told the Nashville Scene in 1999 about the cut she recorded to collect a $125 union-scale wage. "I just thought it was another song."

A counter to Hank Thompson's Number One hit "Wild Side of Life" – a track in which the singer blamed the woman he picked up at a bar for ruining his life – the J.D. Miller-penned words for "It Wasn't God..." became an anthem for women in a post-war America marked by rising divorce rates and changing sexual norms. The NBC radio network deemed the track "suggestive" and banned it; the Grand Ole Opry initially wouldn't let Wells perform the track but ultimately changed their minds.

Born Muriel Ellen Deason in Nashville on August 30th, 1919, Wells grew up listening to a mix of Grand Ole Opry and gospel music. Wells' long career included stints playing with her husband Johnnie Wright and making appearances on hit radio shows like "Louisiana Hayride" and the Opry; in 1968, she had her own syndicated television show and in 1974, she made a record with members of the Allman Brothers and the Marshall Tucker Band. In her 27-year career, 84 of Wells' singles appeared on the country charts, with 38 of them making it to the Top Ten. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1976 and in 1991, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences presented her with a Lifetime Achievement Award – an honor only two other country performers, Hank Williams and Roy Acuff, have ever received.

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Shooter Jennings Returns To Country With 'Family Man'

Shooter Jennings performs in New Orleans.

Shooter Jennings’ last album was the ambitious, critically acclaimed Black Ribbons, a bleak look at a futuristic world that found the son of country legend Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter teaming with horror-meister Stephen King.

"I meant to establish something my own that was different from my dad and the whole country thing," Jennings tells Rolling Stone.

Having successfully achieved that goal, Jennings is back with a new album, Family Man, that firmly embraces his dad’s heritage and "the whole country thing."

"I actually didn't know this record was going to be so country," he admits. "[But] after Black Ribbons, I kind of stripped it down to my roots as much as I possibly could. And I kind of went after something that was a little different. And it ended up being really rootsy kind of country sound, but it was something that I felt really comfortable doing. I’m really proud of this record."

The collection was inspired by Jennings' own life as a family man, being a father and husband (Jennings is married to actress Drea de Matteo of The Sopranos), but it also took him very much back to his own dad.

"A record like this can only naturally bring me back to him. It's like he's around a lot more when I'm doing a record like this," he says. "Taking on really the record as a whole by myself, producing it myself, writing everything, definitely causes me to think about him a lot more."

And as he’s gotten older, Jennings finds himself empathizing quite a bit with his own dad. "Having kids and understanding myself, and understanding life, love and all the battles that go with that definitely has made me think about him," he says. "It's weird because my dad was such an awesome dad [and] I have a boy now, whose real name is Waylon. And I really wish that they had gotten to know him, but at the same time, it's like, it's been 10 years since my dad has been gone."

Like other famous progeny in the musical world, Jennings has struggled to find his own identity and break away from the expectations of others. Between the artistic success of Black Ribbons and gaining more self confidence as he’s gotten older, Jennings doesn’t really care anymore what others think.

"I'm always influenced by my dad, you understand? [But] Black Ribbons is like the Jacob Dylan dance record or whatever," he says, laughing. "That freed me up to care less if what I was going to do next was similar to what he was doing. [And] the older I've gotten, the less I've cared. And the less I've cared, the better what I'm doing has gotten. With this record, I definitely feel that I did something that was really true to who I am. And I definitely don't feel pressure right now when it comes to my dad, and I don't feel pressure when it comes to anything. I kind of feel liberated. I'm proud of that."

Working on the new country album also allowed Jennings to be more involved in his dad’s legacy. "I'm immersed with a lot of things with my dad," he says. One of those is a reported bio-pic, which Jennings says is coming along behind the scenes. "I have found a producer and a writer that I really like. And so we're kind of in steps of trying to at least outline the script," he says.

Jennings has a very specific idea of the time period he wants to cover. "Trying to get his whole life in a movie doesn't really interest me. I'd rather it focus on really the heart of his life, which was that Nashville battle, and how he won that," he says. "That's kind of the important part of the story, so for me, I definitely don't want to take it places like Ray and Walk the Line and stuff, where it's just like him picking cotton all the way to the end in two hours."

No one has been cast yet, but there have been names bandied about. One possibility that Jennings likes is actor Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker), who Jennings says "would probably make a pretty good choice."

Don’t expect to see Jennings in the movie. Asked if he’ll have a part, he laughs and says, "I hope not. I'd like to be in a lot of the background stuff, the music and stuff like that. But I have no interest in actually being in it."

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Shooter Jennings Returns To Country With 'Family Man'

Shooter Jennings performs in New Orleans.

Shooter Jennings’ last album was the ambitious, critically acclaimed Black Ribbons, a bleak look at a futuristic world that found the son of country legend Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter teaming with horror-meister Stephen King.

"I meant to establish something my own that was different from my dad and the whole country thing," Jennings tells Rolling Stone.

Having successfully achieved that goal, Jennings is back with a new album, Family Man, that firmly embraces his dad’s heritage and "the whole country thing."

"I actually didn't know this record was going to be so country," he admits. "[But] after Black Ribbons, I kind of stripped it down to my roots as much as I possibly could. And I kind of went after something that was a little different. And it ended up being really rootsy kind of country sound, but it was something that I felt really comfortable doing. I’m really proud of this record."

The collection was inspired by Jennings' own life as a family man, being a father and husband (Jennings is married to actress Drea de Matteo of The Sopranos), but it also took him very much back to his own dad.

"A record like this can only naturally bring me back to him. It's like he's around a lot more when I'm doing a record like this," he says. "Taking on really the record as a whole by myself, producing it myself, writing everything, definitely causes me to think about him a lot more."

And as he’s gotten older, Jennings finds himself empathizing quite a bit with his own dad. "Having kids and understanding myself, and understanding life, love and all the battles that go with that definitely has made me think about him," he says. "It's weird because my dad was such an awesome dad [and] I have a boy now, whose real name is Waylon. And I really wish that they had gotten to know him, but at the same time, it's like, it's been 10 years since my dad has been gone."

Like other famous progeny in the musical world, Jennings has struggled to find his own identity and break away from the expectations of others. Between the artistic success of Black Ribbons and gaining more self confidence as he’s gotten older, Jennings doesn’t really care anymore what others think.

"I'm always influenced by my dad, you understand? [But] Black Ribbons is like the Jacob Dylan dance record or whatever," he says, laughing. "That freed me up to care less if what I was going to do next was similar to what he was doing. [And] the older I've gotten, the less I've cared. And the less I've cared, the better what I'm doing has gotten. With this record, I definitely feel that I did something that was really true to who I am. And I definitely don't feel pressure right now when it comes to my dad, and I don't feel pressure when it comes to anything. I kind of feel liberated. I'm proud of that."

Working on the new country album also allowed Jennings to be more involved in his dad’s legacy. "I'm immersed with a lot of things with my dad," he says. One of those is a reported bio-pic, which Jennings says is coming along behind the scenes. "I have found a producer and a writer that I really like. And so we're kind of in steps of trying to at least outline the script," he says.

Jennings has a very specific idea of the time period he wants to cover. "Trying to get his whole life in a movie doesn't really interest me. I'd rather it focus on really the heart of his life, which was that Nashville battle, and how he won that," he says. "That's kind of the important part of the story, so for me, I definitely don't want to take it places like Ray and Walk the Line and stuff, where it's just like him picking cotton all the way to the end in two hours."

No one has been cast yet, but there have been names bandied about. One possibility that Jennings likes is actor Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker), who Jennings says "would probably make a pretty good choice."

Don’t expect to see Jennings in the movie. Asked if he’ll have a part, he laughs and says, "I hope not. I'd like to be in a lot of the background stuff, the music and stuff like that. But I have no interest in actually being in it."

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'American Idol' Recap: Cheerleaders, Debs and Country Girls

Jessica Sanchez performs in front of the Judges on 'American Idol.'

Welcome back to American Idol! Last night the men delivered a round of mostly lackluster performances, but as you know, girls just want to have fun (and sing Adele, probably), so I had high hopes for tonight. Ryan Seacrest kicks things off doing a little cheer because Scotty McCreery is contractually obligated to return to the show in a few weeks. He then introduces the judges: Jennifer Lopez! Randy Jackson! The "controversial" Steven Tyler, who seems mostly asleep until someone mentions a girl in a short skirt. He's like a pervy dormouse. 

To show America that she is a country girl, Chelsea Sorrell shoots a gun, rides an ATV, and bemoans the fact that it takes 40 minutes to get to a mall. Then to prove that she is the next Carrie Underwood, she sings a Carrie Underwood song, specifically, "Cowboy Casanova." The judges think it's a risky choice, because as much as she wants to be Carrie Underwood, she is no Carrie Underwood.

The judges all sing along as Erika Van Pelt belts out Heart's "What About Love." She does a solid job, but it's also the first time she's really sounded like the wedding DJ that she is. I mean, she's good, but it reminds you that she's one mediocre rendition of "Brick House" away from playing your cousin Sally's bat mitzvah. The judges chide her for not giving it her all, but they swear they loved her performance.

Jen Hirsh drops the very important information that her family owns a vineyard, which clearly means free wine if you vote for her, right? BRB – off to text my vote to AT&T. Jen delivers the night's first Adele cover. She sings "One and Only" as all wannabe torch singers are required to do in this day and age. The judges like it, but once again they aren't sure she gave it everything she has, and they warn her not to play it safe.

'American Idol' Season 11 in Photos

Brielle Von Hugel swears up and down she is a typical teenage cheerleader from Staten Island who just happens to be on American Idol. There is no way this girl is bearable, right? I mean, she is the Mean Girl. She does a bluesy rendition of Otis Redding's "Dock of the Bay," which seems dated for this modern American teen. Randy Jackson has no idea that Brielle had all that swagger, and he makes a Janis Joplin reference that Brielle's mom will have to explain to her. Speaking of swagger, Brielle rushes to the interview camera and references herself in the third person three times in one minute. New record?

Hallie Day has an amazing voice and the saddest aura about her. She manages a stirring version of "It's a New Dawn, It's a New Day," but singing a song that that Jennifer Hudson sings in a Weight Watchers commercial is risky. Sure enough, Randy pinky-swears he liked the song but then torpedoes her by asking, "What kind of artist do you want to be?" He rambles on about how he is not sure how to pigeonhole her. Then he references Lana Del Rey, and you know poor Hallie is doomed. 

Eighteen-year old Skylar Laine is wearing a cheering uniform, or maybe an ice skating outfit, when she sings "Stay with Me." Her attire is unfortunately distracting me, because she can sing her small-town country blues away. Randy, who seems to be doing all the talking tonight, thinks she sounds like a mashup between Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson, which is a good thing.

Among the ladies, this competition is shaping up to be a country croon-off. Next to vie for the crown is Baylie Brown, who sings like a Weeble Wobble. The judges note the uneven performance and Baylie blames her nerves, pats her nearly bare chest, and hopes America still loves her (boobs). J.Lo helpfully recommends Baylie wear a looser dress next time. Song choice idea: "Be Still My Beating Heart" by Sting. You're welcome, Baylie.

Hollie Cavanagh's performance of Christina Aguilera's "Reflection" is remarkable, especially because I have no memory of having seen her before now. The judges love her, but they feel she was a bit controlled. Jennifer wants America to see what you "really do do when you do let your hair down." Randy's inner ten-year old couldn't let that one go and he Beavis-laughs, "Heh heh, doo-doo. " Backstage, Hollie takes her hair out of a bun.

Oregon girl Haley Johnsen's rendition of the Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams" is powerful, but strange. It's in the wrong key? It's pitchy? She opted to sing a few verses without words? As the lights go up, the judges have really confused looks on their faces. J.Lo hopes America recognized her potential, which I'm sure they didn't. Randy calls her version a bit of a nightmare instead of a dream. It was pitchy, all over the place and not at all spot-on. He may not be succinct, but he gets his point across.

Sixteen-year old Shannon Magrane's dad is in the same room as Steven Tyler for the first time since the aging pervert hit on her and he . . . couldn't care less. He's just here to support his little six-foot tall girl as she sings a song I've never heard in a debutante-ball dress. It's an extremely mature performance, if in this case that means getting louder and louder and raising your arms over your head. The judges love it, and Jennifer gets her "goosies." 

Jessica Sanchez is far from boring.  The only woman of color in the competition is a petite powerhouse despite having swollen vocal cords. Her performance of "Love You I Do" earns the night's first standing ovation from the judges.

The final performer tonight is Elise Testone, who is a little pitchy when she's away from her security piano. But her performance is overwhelming and soulful and the judges love it.

So how come the boys get an extra performer, but the girls have to stick with 12? Come back tomorrow to see this group of excellent performers slashed in half like an Eli Roth horror flick. Fun! 

Last episode: Boys Who Love Girls

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Johnny Cash's Family Kicks Off Blowout Celebration of Country Icon's 80th

Johnny Cash records in the studio.Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

On February 26th – what would have been Johnny Cash's 80th birthday – his siblings, children and grandchildren will gather at his boyhood home in Dyess, Arkansas, to celebrate the upcoming restoration of the crumbling 1930s structure. Then they will head to the town's community center to sing and share stories about the late star. "He should've lived to 80," says daughter Rosanne Cash. "It's hard. But it's so uplifting to celebrate it this way, rather than going to a dark place about how sad it is he isn't still around."

The Dyess events will kick off a busy year for the Cash estate. This summer, a separate museum will open in downtown Nashville with the most comprehensive collection of Cash artifacts ever. On April 3rd, two lost gospel albums Cash cut in the Seventies and Eighties will be released as Bootleg IV: The Soul of Truth. A few months later, Sony will put out a huge box set of everything Cash released on Sun and Columbia Records in the first three decades of his recording career, along with unreleased music. There might even be enough late-period material left in the vaults for another volume of Rick Rubin's American Recordings series, which ended in 2010. Says son John Carter Cash, "I do believe there's enough to warrant a release he would be proud of."

The Nashville museum is being organized by Bill Miller, who befriended Cash in the Seventies. Miller, who owned a historical-documents business, helped fuel Cash's hobby of collecting signed presidential papers, while Cash supplied Miller with priceless country-music history. "There were literally thousands of pieces," Miller says of the collection. "It got to a point where I was scared to leave my house." Up to a thousand items will be on display, including Cash's prized custom Gibson acoustic, a Grammy trophy, gold and platinum records, and handwritten lyrics to "Folsom Prison Blues" and "I Walk the Line."

Johnny Cash's boyhood home in Dyess, Arkansas.

The Cash family, meanwhile, is focusing on the Dyess restoration. Arkansas State University, which recently purchased the home, plans to use old photographs and interviews with Cash's living siblings to restore the home to its original form. The university is also creating a museum nearby that will cover Cash's modest upbringing through his early 1950s Air Force stint, with items like his senior-prom booklet and letters he sent while stationed in Germany to first wife Vivian Liberto, who died in 2005. "My sisters and I went through the last of my mom's belongings and found all this stuff – it was breathtaking," says Rosanne, who will play a benefit in Arkansas with Willie Nelson this fall. "The last time I was at the house, I was thinking about how many times my dad must have walked that road as a little boy. You don't really take in the full poignancy of it until your parents are gone."

This story is from the March 1st, 2012 issue of Rolling Stone.

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Johnny Cash's Family Kicks Off Blowout Celebration of Country Icon's 80th

Johnny Cash records in the studio.Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

On February 26th – what would have been Johnny Cash's 80th birthday – his siblings, children and grandchildren will gather at his boyhood home in Dyess, Arkansas, to celebrate the upcoming restoration of the crumbling 1930s structure. Then they will head to the town's community center to sing and share stories about the late star. "He should've lived to 80," says daughter Rosanne Cash. "It's hard. But it's so uplifting to celebrate it this way, rather than going to a dark place about how sad it is he isn't still around."

The Dyess events will kick off a busy year for the Cash estate. This summer, a separate museum will open in downtown Nashville with the most comprehensive collection of Cash artifacts ever. On April 3rd, two lost gospel albums Cash cut in the Seventies and Eighties will be released as Bootleg IV: The Soul of Truth. A few months later, Sony will put out a huge box set of everything Cash released on Sun and Columbia Records in the first three decades of his recording career, along with unreleased music. There might even be enough late-period material left in the vaults for another volume of Rick Rubin's American Recordings series, which ended in 2010. Says son John Carter Cash, "I do believe there's enough to warrant a release he would be proud of."

The Nashville museum is being organized by Bill Miller, who befriended Cash in the Seventies. Miller, who owned a historical-documents business, helped fuel Cash's hobby of collecting signed presidential papers, while Cash supplied Miller with priceless country-music history. "There were literally thousands of pieces," Miller says of the collection. "It got to a point where I was scared to leave my house." Up to a thousand items will be on display, including Cash's prized custom Gibson acoustic, a Grammy trophy, gold and platinum records, and handwritten lyrics to "Folsom Prison Blues" and "I Walk the Line."

Johnny Cash's boyhood home in Dyess, Arkansas.

The Cash family, meanwhile, is focusing on the Dyess restoration. Arkansas State University, which recently purchased the home, plans to use old photographs and interviews with Cash's living siblings to restore the home to its original form. The university is also creating a museum nearby that will cover Cash's modest upbringing through his early 1950s Air Force stint, with items like his senior-prom booklet and letters he sent while stationed in Germany to first wife Vivian Liberto, who died in 2005. "My sisters and I went through the last of my mom's belongings and found all this stuff – it was breathtaking," says Rosanne, who will play a benefit in Arkansas with Willie Nelson this fall. "The last time I was at the house, I was thinking about how many times my dad must have walked that road as a little boy. You don't really take in the full poignancy of it until your parents are gone."

This story is from the March 1st, 2012 issue of Rolling Stone.

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Kenny Chesney Leads 47th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards Nominations

Kenny Chesney performs at the 45th annual CMA Awards.

Kenny Chesney is the top nominee at the 47th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, with nine nods including Entertain of the Year, a category he has won four times since 2004. The singer is also up Male Vocalist of the Year and as both artist and producer for Album of the Year for Hemingway's Whiskey.

Jason Aldean is the second most-nominated artist, with nods for Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Album of the Year and Single Record of the Year for "Don't You Wanna Stay," his hit duet with Kelly Clarkson. Lady Antebellum is just behind Aldean with five nominations, including Vocal Group of the Year, which they have won the past two years. Taylor Swift leads in the female categories with three nominations overall, including her third consecutive nomination as Entertainer of the Year.

The ACM awards ceremony will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on April 1st on CBS. The show will be hosted by Blake Shelton and Reba McEntire.

The major nominations for the 47th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards are as follows:

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Chris Young

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

Sara Evans
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR

Love and Theft
Montgomery Gentry
Steel Magnolia
Sugarland
Thompson Square

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR

The Band Perry
Eli Young Band
Lady Antebellum
Rascal Flatts
Zac Brown Band

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Chief – Eric Church (EMI-Nashville)
Produced by:  Arturo Buenahora, Jr., Jay Joyce

Four the Record – Miranda Lambert (RCA)
Produced by: Chuck Ainlay, Frank Liddell, Glenn Worf

Hemingway's Whiskey – Kenny Chesney (BNA)
Produced by: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney

My Kinda Party – Jason Aldean (Broken Bow Records)
Produced by: Michael Knox

Own the Night – Lady Antebellum (Capitol Records Nashville)
Produced by: Lady Antebellum, Paul Worley
SINGLE RECORD OF THE YEAR

"Crazy Girl" – Eli Young Band (Republic Nashville)
Produced by: Mike Wrucke

"Don’t You Wanna Stay" – Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson (Broken Bow Records)
Produced by: Michael Knox

"Red Solo Cup" – Toby Keith (Show Dog-Universal Music)
Produced by: Toby Keith

"Tomorrow" – Chris Young (RCA)
Produced by: James Stroud

"You and Tequila" – Kenny Chesney Featuring Grace Potter (BNA)
Produced by: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney

SONG OF THE YEAR

"Crazy Girl" – Eli Young Band
Composers: Lee Brice, Liz Rose
Publishers: Cake Taker Music (BMI), Mike Curb Music (BMI), Sony/ATV Tree Publishing (BMI), Sweet Hysteria Music (BMI)

"Home" – Dierks Bentley
Composers: Brett Beavers, Dierks Bentley, Dan Wilson
Publishers: Big White Tracks (ASCAP), Chestnut Barn Music (BMI), Chrysalis Music/BMG Rights (ASCAP), Chrysalis One Songs (BMI)

"Just A Kiss" – Lady Antebellum
Composers: Dallas Davidson, Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott
Publishers:  Dwhaywood Music (BMI), EMI Blackwood Music, Inc. (BMI), EMI Foray Music (SESAC), Hillary Dawn Songs (SESAC), Radiobulletspublishing (BMI), String Stretcher Music (BMI), Warner-Tamberlane Publishing Corp. (BMI)

"Threaten Me With Heaven" – Vince Gill
Composers: Amy Grant, Vince Gill, Dillon O’Brian, Will Owsley
Publishers: Grant Girls Music (ASCAP), Vinny Mae Music (BMI), Willie-O Music (ASCAP)

"You and Tequila" – Kenny Chesney Featuring Grace Potter
Composers: Matraca Berg, Deana Carter
Publishers:  Deanaling Music (ASCAP), Hannaberg Music (BMI), Songs of Universal Inc. (BMI), WB Music Corp. (ASCAP)

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Kenny Chesney Leads 47th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards Nominations

Kenny Chesney performs at the 45th annual CMA Awards.

Kenny Chesney is the top nominee at the 47th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, with nine nods including Entertain of the Year, a category he has won four times since 2004. The singer is also up Male Vocalist of the Year and as both artist and producer for Album of the Year for Hemingway's Whiskey.

Jason Aldean is the second most-nominated artist, with nods for Entertainer of the Year, Male Vocalist of the Year, Album of the Year and Single Record of the Year for "Don't You Wanna Stay," his hit duet with Kelly Clarkson. Lady Antebellum is just behind Aldean with five nominations, including Vocal Group of the Year, which they have won the past two years. Taylor Swift leads in the female categories with three nominations overall, including her third consecutive nomination as Entertainer of the Year.

The ACM awards ceremony will be broadcast live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on April 1st on CBS. The show will be hosted by Blake Shelton and Reba McEntire.

The major nominations for the 47th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards are as follows:

ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR

Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Taylor Swift

MALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

Jason Aldean
Kenny Chesney
Brad Paisley
Blake Shelton
Chris Young

FEMALE VOCALIST OF THE YEAR

Sara Evans
Miranda Lambert
Martina McBride
Taylor Swift
Carrie Underwood

VOCAL DUO OF THE YEAR

Love and Theft
Montgomery Gentry
Steel Magnolia
Sugarland
Thompson Square

VOCAL GROUP OF THE YEAR

The Band Perry
Eli Young Band
Lady Antebellum
Rascal Flatts
Zac Brown Band

ALBUM OF THE YEAR

Chief – Eric Church (EMI-Nashville)
Produced by:  Arturo Buenahora, Jr., Jay Joyce

Four the Record – Miranda Lambert (RCA)
Produced by: Chuck Ainlay, Frank Liddell, Glenn Worf

Hemingway's Whiskey – Kenny Chesney (BNA)
Produced by: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney

My Kinda Party – Jason Aldean (Broken Bow Records)
Produced by: Michael Knox

Own the Night – Lady Antebellum (Capitol Records Nashville)
Produced by: Lady Antebellum, Paul Worley
SINGLE RECORD OF THE YEAR

"Crazy Girl" – Eli Young Band (Republic Nashville)
Produced by: Mike Wrucke

"Don’t You Wanna Stay" – Jason Aldean with Kelly Clarkson (Broken Bow Records)
Produced by: Michael Knox

"Red Solo Cup" – Toby Keith (Show Dog-Universal Music)
Produced by: Toby Keith

"Tomorrow" – Chris Young (RCA)
Produced by: James Stroud

"You and Tequila" – Kenny Chesney Featuring Grace Potter (BNA)
Produced by: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney

SONG OF THE YEAR

"Crazy Girl" – Eli Young Band
Composers: Lee Brice, Liz Rose
Publishers: Cake Taker Music (BMI), Mike Curb Music (BMI), Sony/ATV Tree Publishing (BMI), Sweet Hysteria Music (BMI)

"Home" – Dierks Bentley
Composers: Brett Beavers, Dierks Bentley, Dan Wilson
Publishers: Big White Tracks (ASCAP), Chestnut Barn Music (BMI), Chrysalis Music/BMG Rights (ASCAP), Chrysalis One Songs (BMI)

"Just A Kiss" – Lady Antebellum
Composers: Dallas Davidson, Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott
Publishers:  Dwhaywood Music (BMI), EMI Blackwood Music, Inc. (BMI), EMI Foray Music (SESAC), Hillary Dawn Songs (SESAC), Radiobulletspublishing (BMI), String Stretcher Music (BMI), Warner-Tamberlane Publishing Corp. (BMI)

"Threaten Me With Heaven" – Vince Gill
Composers: Amy Grant, Vince Gill, Dillon O’Brian, Will Owsley
Publishers: Grant Girls Music (ASCAP), Vinny Mae Music (BMI), Willie-O Music (ASCAP)

"You and Tequila" – Kenny Chesney Featuring Grace Potter
Composers: Matraca Berg, Deana Carter
Publishers:  Deanaling Music (ASCAP), Hannaberg Music (BMI), Songs of Universal Inc. (BMI), WB Music Corp. (ASCAP)

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Killers Bassist Mark Stoermer Goes Country Rock with Solo Debut

Mark Stoermer, 'Everyone Loves the Girl'

Click to listen to Mark Stoermer's 'Everyone Loves the Girl'

The Killers bassist Mark Stoermer recorded Another Life, his debut solo album, while the band took an extended hiatus in 2009. They had just finished touring in support of their third record, Day and Age.

The album – a set of polished, thoughtful country rock tunes with a touch of his band's new-wave production style – are the first songs Stoermer ever wrote on his own. (You can hear "Everyone Loves the Girl," a highlight from the album, above.) Rolling Stone recently caught up with Stoermer to chat about striking out on his own, as well as the Killers' progress on writing and recording their fourth album, which is expected to be finished sometime this year.

You’ve been playing in the Killers for a decade now – how did that experience inform how you made this solo album?
It was a completely different approach to anything I have been involved in with the creative side with the Killers, because with the Killers I never wrote the lyrics or the vocal melody, and I never sang, obviously. Usually, if I’d come up with something, it was a riff or a chord progression or maybe an instrumental melody that was applied to a collaborative effort. So, this was the first time where I was able to tell stories and have complete control over the whole thing. I never even wrote lyrics or complete songs before the band. If I took anything from being in the band I learned partly how to write songs. I think I learned a lot from being involved in the process. I applied a little bit of that to my writing. But this style is very different, because it’s just me and everything is more storytelling based.

What kind of stories did you want to tell?
It’s a combination of things that are going on in my life, things that I was thinking about. I guess real stories, but in a way that meant something to me and maybe connects with someone else if they hear it. When I was writing these, I didn’t know if I was going to even put these out, it started out just as demos, and I didn’t even know if it was going to actually sing it or anything. It was really an experiment from the beginning, just something I was doing with my time off.

When you started off doing this, were you writing it with the Killers in mind, or did you always intend for this material to exist outside of the band?
Some of it started towards to the end of the Killers touring, like in a hotel room with a laptop or like a Dictaphone. And just getting rough ideas, but I didn’t know where it was going. I think the majority of the songs were written when we finally took off from touring in 2010, the first like three or four months. At first, I guess, that was always a possibility, but it wasn’t my main focus, I was just writing to write. Then it got to the point where I decided to write more lyrics and apply stories to them.

I hear a lot of country influence on this record. Was that something you were going for here?
I grew up with it on the radio, like Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson and stuff like that. I started listening to more Hank Williams probably the last few years. I don’t know, it’s there. It’s not my main influence as a whole, but there are definitely­­ country artists that were always there in my life probably when I was a kid, just kind of seeping into my brain.

At this point, everyone in your band except for Dave Keuning has made a solo album. Are you guys planning to come back together as a band soon?
Yeah, we’ve been working on a few songs since last May. We did 12 shows last year. We were playing old songs, and we’re in the studio right now writing and recording. We go back and forth – sometimes we're writing, and sometimes we're recording. It’s been kind of a slower process than usual because it’s taken a lot to get back into the swing of things and to try to figure out what we’re about, because we’re all different people now that we had the time off. But it’s coming along.  What we’re doing this year is trying to finish the new record.

How has the experience of writing your own songs from top to bottom influenced the way you work with the band now?
It’s hard to say, it possibly did in subtle ways or like in the back of my mind. But when it’s the band – it’s a "when something’s not broke, you don’t need to fix it" kind of thing.  On one hand, I’ve written songs top to bottom, but I’m trying not to change the approach too much. We all have our roles kind of with what we’ve done before and it’s worked. It’s a true band where we work things out even if someone else wrote the majority of the song sometimes. But I don’t think that’s really changed when the four of us get together too much. That’s probably for the better. I think we all evolve, and you apply what you learn to a point, but at the same time we all have a role in that group anyway.

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Lionel Richie Preparing Duets Album With Country Stars

Lionel Richie and Darius Rucker perform together at the 45th annual CMA Awards.

Lionel Richie will go back to his roots in Alabama with Tuskegee, a new album due March 27th that will reprise 13 of the singer's biggest hits in duets with country stars including Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean and more.

The album will feature new versions of "Say You, Say Me," "You Are," "Sail On," "Hello" and other highlights of the singer's multi-platinum career. Other stars set to appear include Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles, Rascal Flatts, Darius Rucker and Shania Twain, as well as veterans Kenny Rogers, Willie Nelson and Jimmy Buffett. Richie and friends will also tape a concert special on April 2nd in Las Vegas, and it will air at a later date on CBS. 

Richie clearly loves Tuskegee, his hometown; he said in a statement, "[The city] is where I learned about life and love and the power of music, and the place I built a musical foundation that knows no genres or boundaries." Richie is already something of a fixture in the country world, with his frequent appearances on the Country Music Association Awards programs. His songs having been covered by stars such as Kenny Rogers and Conway Twitty.  

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Lionel Richie Preparing Duets Album With Country Stars

Lionel Richie and Darius Rucker perform together at the 45th annual CMA Awards.

Lionel Richie will go back to his roots in Alabama with Tuskegee, a new album due March 27th that will reprise 13 of the singer's biggest hits in duets with country stars including Tim McGraw, Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean and more.

The album will feature new versions of "Say You, Say Me," "You Are," "Sail On," "Hello" and other highlights of the singer's multi-platinum career. Other stars set to appear include Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles, Rascal Flatts, Darius Rucker and Shania Twain, as well as veterans Kenny Rogers, Willie Nelson and Jimmy Buffett. Richie and friends will also tape a concert special on April 2nd in Las Vegas, and it will air at a later date on CBS. 

Richie clearly loves Tuskegee, his hometown; he said in a statement, "[The city] is where I learned about life and love and the power of music, and the place I built a musical foundation that knows no genres or boundaries." Richie is already something of a fixture in the country world, with his frequent appearances on the Country Music Association Awards programs. His songs having been covered by stars such as Kenny Rogers and Conway Twitty.  

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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Killers Bassist Mark Stoermer Goes Country Rock with Solo Debut

Mark Stoermer, 'Everyone Loves the Girl'

Click to listen to Mark Stoermer's 'Everyone Loves the Girl'

The Killers bassist Mark Stoermer recorded Another Life, his debut solo album, while the band took an extended hiatus in 2009. They had just finished touring in support of their third record, Day and Age.

The album – a set of polished, thoughtful country rock tunes with a touch of his band's new-wave production style – are the first songs Stoermer ever wrote on his own. (You can hear "Everyone Loves the Girl," a highlight from the album, above.) Rolling Stone recently caught up with Stoermer to chat about striking out on his own, as well as the Killers' progress on writing and recording their fourth album, which is expected to be finished sometime this year.

You’ve been playing in the Killers for a decade now – how did that experience inform how you made this solo album?
It was a completely different approach to anything I have been involved in with the creative side with the Killers, because with the Killers I never wrote the lyrics or the vocal melody, and I never sang, obviously. Usually, if I’d come up with something, it was a riff or a chord progression or maybe an instrumental melody that was applied to a collaborative effort. So, this was the first time where I was able to tell stories and have complete control over the whole thing. I never even wrote lyrics or complete songs before the band. If I took anything from being in the band I learned partly how to write songs. I think I learned a lot from being involved in the process. I applied a little bit of that to my writing. But this style is very different, because it’s just me and everything is more storytelling based.

What kind of stories did you want to tell?
It’s a combination of things that are going on in my life, things that I was thinking about. I guess real stories, but in a way that meant something to me and maybe connects with someone else if they hear it. When I was writing these, I didn’t know if I was going to even put these out, it started out just as demos, and I didn’t even know if it was going to actually sing it or anything. It was really an experiment from the beginning, just something I was doing with my time off.

When you started off doing this, were you writing it with the Killers in mind, or did you always intend for this material to exist outside of the band?
Some of it started towards to the end of the Killers touring, like in a hotel room with a laptop or like a Dictaphone. And just getting rough ideas, but I didn’t know where it was going. I think the majority of the songs were written when we finally took off from touring in 2010, the first like three or four months. At first, I guess, that was always a possibility, but it wasn’t my main focus, I was just writing to write. Then it got to the point where I decided to write more lyrics and apply stories to them.

I hear a lot of country influence on this record. Was that something you were going for here?
I grew up with it on the radio, like Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson and stuff like that. I started listening to more Hank Williams probably the last few years. I don’t know, it’s there. It’s not my main influence as a whole, but there are definitely­­ country artists that were always there in my life probably when I was a kid, just kind of seeping into my brain.

At this point, everyone in your band except for Dave Keuning has made a solo album. Are you guys planning to come back together as a band soon?
Yeah, we’ve been working on a few songs since last May. We did 12 shows last year. We were playing old songs, and we’re in the studio right now writing and recording. We go back and forth – sometimes we're writing, and sometimes we're recording. It’s been kind of a slower process than usual because it’s taken a lot to get back into the swing of things and to try to figure out what we’re about, because we’re all different people now that we had the time off. But it’s coming along.  What we’re doing this year is trying to finish the new record.

How has the experience of writing your own songs from top to bottom influenced the way you work with the band now?
It’s hard to say, it possibly did in subtle ways or like in the back of my mind. But when it’s the band – it’s a "when something’s not broke, you don’t need to fix it" kind of thing.  On one hand, I’ve written songs top to bottom, but I’m trying not to change the approach too much. We all have our roles kind of with what we’ve done before and it’s worked. It’s a true band where we work things out even if someone else wrote the majority of the song sometimes. But I don’t think that’s really changed when the four of us get together too much. That’s probably for the better. I think we all evolve, and you apply what you learn to a point, but at the same time we all have a role in that group anyway.

To read the new issue of Rolling Stone online, plus the entire RS archive: Click Here

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