Tag Archives: David Nail
Week ending 2/8/14: #1 singles this week in country music history
Leave a comment Posted by Razor X on February 9, 2014
1954 (Sales): There Stands The Glass — Webb Pierce (Decca)
1954 (Jukebox): There Stands The Glass — Webb Pierce (Decca)
1954 (Disc Jockeys): There Stands The Glass — Webb Pierce (Decca)
1964: Begging To You — Marty Robbins (Columbia)
1974: World Of Make Believe — Bill Anderson (MCA)
1984: Show Her — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1994: I Swear — John Michael Montgomery (Atlantic)
2004: Remember When — Alan Jackson (Arista)
2014: Drink A Beer — Luke Bryan (Capitol)
2014 (Airplay): Whatever She's Got — David Nail (MCA)
Charts	Alan Jackson, Bill Anderson, David Nail, John Michael Montgomery, Luke Bryan, Marty Robbins, Ronnie Milsap, Webb Pierce
3 Comments Posted by Jonathan Pappalardo on April 4, 2013
Now that we've turned the clocks forward an hour and our calendars from March to April, it's time to turn our attention to Las Vegas and the annual Academy of Country Music Awards telecast. CBS is carrying the show live Sunday Night (April 7) and it promises to be an eclectic mix of mainstream country music; hosted by Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan. Look for Tim McGraw to sing his latest "Highway Don't Care" with Taylor Swift and Keith Urban, while Jason Aldean is rumored to be involving Joe Diffie in his performance of "1994." Kelly Clarkson will be singing "Don't Rush" and Bryan plans to debut a new single, "Crash My Party." But I'm most excited to see what promises to be a buzzed about moment – Garth Brooks and George Strait collaborating for the first time to pay tribute to show producer Dick Clark.
Here are the nominees and predictions:
· Jason Aldean
· Luke Bryan
· Miranda Lambert
· Blake Shelton
· Taylor Swift – Jonathan Pappalardo
As a fan voted award, the logic would be on Taylor Swift to take this home. And while she's the likely winner, I'm wondering if Blake Shelton's Voice popularity may propel him to the podium instead. There has to be a chance someone besides Swift could take this home, right? Well, I'm not betting on it, but Shelton seems the most likely one to do it.
· Eric Church
· Toby Keith
· Blake Shelton – Jonathan Pappalardo
It's nice to see Keith sneak in a nod here, as he's still a gifted vocalist and "Hope On The Rocks" proves it. Aldean is just too weak a singer to make much of a significant impact and I can't see the Academy embracing Church. So this as a two-way race between show co-hosts Shelton and Bryan, and I only see the ACM awarding it to Bryan if they want to shake it up. But they may see him as an eventual winner (like after he releases his next album) and go with Shelton again.
· Miranda Lambert – Jonathan Pappalardo
· Martina McBride
· Kacey Musgraves
· Carrie Underwood
While I would love to see Musgraves take this home, she's too new for such a prestigious honor. McBride's a broken record at this point – she hasn't had an impactful hit single in years and while Underwood is releasing some of the most ambitious songs of her career, she'll likely be seen as old hat by this point. This is Lambert's award to lose and Swift's dominance in a completely different genre market isn't going to change that.
· Big & Rich
· Florida Georgia Line
· Love and Theft
· Sugarland
· Thompson Square – Jonathan Pappalardo
If Florida Georgia Line wins this award, I'm done. "Cruise" may've been one of the biggest hits of last year, but popularity hardly denotes quality. Thompson Square should repeat here and even though they aren't as strong as they could be, they're the best of this bunch outside of Sugarland.
· The Band Perry
· Eli Young Band
· Lady Antebellum
· Little Big Town – Jonathan Pappalardo
· Zac Brown Band
After their come out of nowhere Grammy win in February, Little Big Town are the darlings of Nashville and that will continue with a win here. Their success is long overdue, as is a win in this category. Zac Brown Band and The Band Perry can have fun duking it out for second place.
New Artist of the Year
· Florida Georgia Line – Jonathan Pappalardo
· Brantley Gilbert
· Jana Kramer
This is really a toss up. Any of these three could win although Kramer has proven the most country minded of the nominees. She's my favorite, but I'm not counting out Florida Georgia Line. It's another fan voted award and "Cruise" is insanely popular.
Album of the Year [Award goes to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company]
· Blown Away – Carrie Underwood (19/Arista Nashville), Produced by: Mark Bright
· Chief – Eric Church (EMI-Nashville), Produced by: Jay Joyce
· Red – Taylor Swift (Big Machine Records), Produced by: Jeff Bhasker, Nathan Chapman, Dann Huff, Jacknife Lee, Max Martin, Shellback, Taylor Swift, Butch Walker, Dan Wilson
· Tailgates & Tanlines – Luke Bryan (Capitol Nashville), Produced by: Mark Bright, Jeff Stevens
· Tornado – Little Big Town (Capitol Nashville), Produced by: Jay Joyce – Jonathan Pappalardo
A good list of mainstream albums. Chief would seem the frontrunner since it already won the CMA Award, but this is the first race to include Little Big Town's superstar making set. I'm going out on a limb and say Tornado will take this home.
Single Record of the Year [Award to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company]
· "Even If It Breaks Your Heart" – Eli Young Band (Republic Nashville), Produced by: Mike Wrucke
· "Over You" – Miranda Lambert (RCA), Produced by: Chuck Ainlay, Frank Liddell, Glenn Worf
· "Pontoon" – Little Big Town (Capitol Nashville), Produced by: Jay Joyce – Jonathan Pappalardo
· "Springsteen" – Eric Church (EMI-Nashville), Produced by: Jay Joyce
· "Wanted" – Hunter Hayes (Atlantic/WMN), Produced by: Hunter Hayes, Dann Huff
"Pontoon." It won the CMA, a Grammy, and reversed the fortunes of a band too talented for the oblivion it was heading for. There's no way they'll lose, but if they do it'll go to Hayes and his sophomore single "Wanted."
Song of the Year [Award to Composer(s)/Publisher(s)/Artist(s)]
· "A Woman Like You" – Lee Brice, Composers: Phil Barton, Johnny Bulford, Jon Stone, Publishers: 3JB Music (BMI), Adios Pantalones (SESAC), Hears That Skyline Music (SESAC), Sixteen Stars Music (BMI), Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp. (BMI)
· "Even If It Breaks Your Heart" – Eli Young Band, Composers: Will Hoge, Eric Paslay, Publishers: Cal IV Songs (ASCAP), Will Hoge Music (BMI)
· "Over You" – Miranda Lambert, Composers: Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, Publishers: Pink Dog Publishing (BMI), Sony ATV/Tree Publishing (BMI) – Jonathan Pappalardo
· "Springsteen" – Eric Church, Composers: Eric Church, Jeff Hyde, Ryan Tyndell, Publishers: Bug Music (BMI), Ole Purple Cape Music (BMI), Sinnerlina (BMI), Sony ATV/Tree Publishing (BMI)
· "Wanted" – Hunter Hayes, Composers: Hunter Hayes, Troy Verges, Publishers: Happy Little Man Publishing (BMI), Songs From The Engine Room (BMI), Songs Of Universal Inc. (BMI)
"Over You." The ACM will follow in the footsteps of the CMA and bring Lambert and Shelton to the podium. Two genre superstars are just too hard to ignore. Their only competition, Kacey Musgraves' 'Merry Go 'Round' wasn't even nominated, so I just don't see anyone else taking this home.
· Rodney Clawson
· Dallas Davidson (Already won, off-camera award)
· Josh Kear
· Luke Laird
· Shane McAnally
Davidson has already won; this is an off-camera award. But I would've gone with McAnally who seems to be on fire right now. His collaborations with Brandy Clark are killer.
Video of the Year [Award to Producer(s)/Director(s)/Artist(s)] *(Off Camera Award) [TIE]
·" Creepin'" – Eric Church, Producer: Iris Baker Director: Peter Zavadil – Jonathan Pappalardo
· Merry Go 'Round – Kacey Musgraves, Producers: Perry Bean, Kacey Musgraves Director: Perry Bean
· "Tornado" – Little Big Town, Producer: Iris Baker Director: Shane Drake
· "Wanted" – Hunter Hayes Producers: Stephanie Reeves, Eric Williams Directors: Traci Goudie, Patrick Hubik
· "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" – Taylor Swift, Producer: John Nguyen Director: Declan Whitebloom
· "The Wind" – Zac Brown Band, Producer: Ben Kalina Director: Mike Judge
Most of Zac Brown Band's videos are distracting, with annoying concepts that take away from the song completely. "The Wind" is no exception. The Swift clip is awful and does nothing to portray her maturity and "Wanted" isn't special enough to stand out from this pack. Church deserves this the most, as both the song and video for "Creepin'" are completely original. This is where he should get some much-deserved hardware.
Vocal Event of the Year [Award to Artist(s)/Producer(s)/Record Company] *(Off Camera Award)
· "Don't Rush" – Kelly Clarkson Featuring Vince Gill (19/RCA/Columbia Nashville) Produced by: Dann Huff
· "Easy" – Rascal Flatts Featuring Natasha Bedingfield (Big Machine Records) Produced by: Dann Huff, Brian Kennedy, Rascal Flatts
·"Feel Like a Rock Star" – Kenny Chesney (Duet With Tim McGraw) (Blue Chair/BNA) Produced by: Buddy Cannon, Kenny Chesney – Jonathan Pappalardo
· "Let It Rain" – David Nail Featuring Sarah Buxton (MCA Nashville) Produced by: Chuck Ainlay, Frank Liddell
· "The Only Way I Know" – Jason Aldean With Luke Bryan & Eric Church (Broken Bow) Produced by: Michael Knox
What a terrible, terrible bunch of songs that equate to nothing more than empty opportunistic pandering. The only worthwhile songs here are "Don't Rush" and "Let It Rain" and they are hardly 'events.' I bet Chesney/McGraw will take this home but if it wasn't an off-camera award, than I'd say Aldean/Bryan/Church. The latter would make for ratings gold on stage, but it would be a wasted opportunity off-camera. In truth, though, I couldn't care less about these nominees if I tried.
Awards Discussions	Ben Kalina, Big & Rich, Blake Shelton, Brantley Gilbert, Brian Kennedy, Buddy Cannon, Butch Walker, Carrie Underwood, Chuck Ainlay, Dallas Davidson, Dan Wilson, Dann Huff, David Nail, Declan Whitebloom, Eli Young Band, Eric Church, Eric Paslay, Eric Williams, Florida Georgia Line, Frank Liddell, Garth Brooks, George Strait, Glenn Worf, Hunter Hayes, Iris Baker, Jacknife Lee, Jana Kramer, Jason Aldean, Jay Joyce, Jeff Bhasker, Jeff Hyde, Jeff Stevens, Joe Diffie, John Nguyen, Johnny Bulford, Jon Stone, Josh Kear, Kacey Musgraves, Keith Urban, Kelly Clarkson, Kenny Chesney, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Love And Theft, Luke Bryan, Luke Laird, Mark Bright, Martina McBride, Max Martin, Michael Knox, Mike Judge, Mike Wrucke, Miranda Lambert, Natasha Bedingfield, Nathan Chapman, Patrick Hubik, Perry Bean, Peter Zavadil, Phil Barton, Rascal Flatts, Rodney Clawson, Ryan Tyndell, Shane Drake, Shane McAnally, Shellback, Stephanie Reeves, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, The Band Perry, Thompson Square, Toby Keith, Traci Goudie, Troy Verges, Vince Gill, Will Hoge, Zac Brown Band
Week ending 1/21/12: #1 singles this week in country music history
3 Comments Posted by Razor X on January 22, 2012
1952: Let Old Mother Nature Have Her Way — Carl Smith (Columbia)
1962: Walk On By — Leroy Van Dyke (Mercury)
1972: Carolyn — Merle Haggard (Capitol)
1982: I Wouldn't Have Missed It For The World — Ronnie Milsap (RCA)
1992: Love, Me — Collin Raye (Epic)
2002: Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning) — Alan Jackson (Arista)
2012: Let It Rain — David Nail featuring Sarah Buxton (MCA)
Charts	Alan Jackson, Carl Smith, Collin Raye, David Nail, Leroy Van Dyke, Merle Haggard, Ronnie Milsap, Sarah Buxton
Album Review: Tim McGraw – 'Southern Voice'
13 Comments Posted by Occasional Hope on October 27, 2009
Tim McGraw has never impressed me as one of the great country voices, but where he frequently has impressed me is in his choice of interesting material, the kind of songs which are worth hearing in anyone's hands. His tenth studio album is produced by the same production team of McGraw, Byron Gallimore and Darran Smith (the lead guitarist in Tim's band the Dancehall Doctors) as Tim's last three, with backing from the Dancehall Doctors on all but one track, occasionally augmented by additional musicians or string sections. The sound is definitely quite rock-influenced, and a long way from traditional country, but the production is a good deal more restrained than on much of what is emerging from Nashville at the moment. Overall, there isn't much variation in tempo or melody, but the material is mostly interesting and adult. There isn't much to appeal to the children and emotional adolescents at whom current radio playlists seem aimed, and this is a good thing. I don't like everything here, but it is a serious attempt at making an artistically satisfying album.
It gets off to a discouraging start. Opening track 'Still', written by fellow-Curb artist Lee Brice with Kyle Jacobs and Joe Leathers, is a very well-written song with a nice reflective feel and effective restrained vocals in the verses about seeking refuge from the stresses of the world in memory and imagination, and finally in church, but the chorus is musically rather pop-sounding, with strings and detectable vocal processing in places. The next track, 'Ghost Town Train (She's Gone)', a heavily allusive song written by Troy Olsen and Marv Green about a woman leaving, is a bit dull and emotionally unconvincing with a lot of soulless "oh nos" despite some nice fiddle lines from Dean Brown.
Things really start to pick up with 'Good Girls', the first of the well-chosen story songs which dominate the song selection. The downbeat melancholy tale of a woman's murderous response to her husband cheating with her best friend was written by the Warren Brothers with Aimee Mayo and Chris Lindsey, and is well played out although I don't much like the tune on the chorus.
Album Reviews	Aimee Mayo, Byron Gallimore, Casey Beathard, Chris Lindsey, Chris Stapleton, Darran Smith, David Nail, Jamie O'Hara, Joe Doyle, Joe Leathers, Josh Kear, Kenneth Wright, Kyle Jacobs, Lee Brice, Lee Thomas Miller, Marv Green, Pat Buchanan, The SteelDrivers, Tim McGraw, Tom Douglas, Troy Olsen, Warren Brothers
Album Review: David Nail – 'I'm About To Come Alive'
20 Comments Posted by Occasional Hope on August 19, 2009
Missouri's David Nail has been on the fringes of success for a while. He first saw chart action back in 2002, when his Mercury single 'Memphis' failed to gain traction, faltering outside the top 50, and David was unceremoniously dropped, leaving an unreleased album (produced by Alan Jackson's producer Keith Stegall) to languish in the vaults. David gave up music for a while, but unlike many artists in his position, he was lucky enough to get a second chance when MCA signed him.
Unfortunately, I don't like I'm About To Come Alive at all, for two reasons: the production (by Frank Liddell and Mike Wrucke), which is surprisingly heavy-handed, and David's voice, which has a slightly nasal tone I just can't warm to, as well as sounding highly processed at times. The overall feel of the album is Rascal Flatts meets James Otto, a comparison underlined by the presence of a song co-written by Gary LeVox, 'Summer Job Days', which sounds like a Rascal Flatts reject. This probably means David has a genuine shot at radio and sales success. He is currently basking in the success of his very first top 30 hit, 'Red Light'. This is not a bad song (co-written, incidentally, by another up and coming artist, Jonathan Singleton), and I would probably like it in the hands of a more compelling vocalist. Sadly, I don't feel an emotional connection in David's version, or believe him when he sings about his world crashing down.
The album was originally due to be released this time last year, but was delayed when the lead single, the title track, failed to catch on with radio programmers. It's a cover of an alt-rock song, and not a very interesting one, with no country elements I could detect in either the music or the production. Indeed, it is evident from the opening track, the pretty piano-led homesick ode to 'Mississippi' (which has one of David's better vocals), that this is far from a traditional country record, and it stays in much the same vaguely soulful groove throughout. 'Mississippi' is written by Scooter Carusoe, David Colehour and Chuck Leavall.
Carusoe seems to be a favorite writer for David, and the pair collaborated on two songs here, of which 'Again', a nostalgic look back at youth, is the better. 'Clouds' was less interesting. Carusoe also wrote 'Turning Home' with Kenny Chesney; this one starts out as a pleasant ballad with piano-dominated backing, with one of David's more emotionally convincing vocals, but halfway through the production gets out of hand and completely overwhelms the song.
Album Reviews	Alan Jackson, David Nail, Frank Liddell, Gary LeVox, James Otto, Jonathan Singleton, Keith Stegall, Kenny Chesney, Mike Wrucke, Miranda Lambert, Rascal Flatts, Scooter Carusoe, Sean McConnell