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Elton John at the CMA's

C

classic_rocker

Guest
Saw a commercial on CBS while watching Survivor Thursday night. Kind of floored me. Elton John to perform at the CMA's!!! Why???
Tho not a big country fan myself, I do listen occasionally and to my knowledge have never heard an Elton John song on country radio. My guess is the marketing geniuses for CBS and the CMA's want to bring in a bigger audience.
Watched last year and have to admit I was a little shocked to see "country hip hop" i.e Cowboy Roy, and have never heard him on country radio either.( he does seem to get a lot of air play on CMT).
IMHO Elton John fits into the CMA's about as well as Toby Keith would fit into the MTV music awards.
 
Elton John recorded a duet with Tammy Wynette "A Woman Needs" in 1994 and also sang "Stand By Your Man" on a Tammy Wynette tribute album, so he has some country credentials.



> Saw a commercial on CBS while watching Survivor Thursday
> night. Kind of floored me. Elton John to perform at the
> CMA's!!! Why???
> Tho not a big country fan myself, I do listen occasionally
> and to my knowledge have never heard an Elton John song on
> country radio. My guess is the marketing geniuses for CBS
> and the CMA's want to bring in a bigger audience.
> Watched last year and have to admit I was a little shocked
> to see "country hip hop" i.e Cowboy Roy, and have never
> heard him on country radio either.( he does seem to get a
> lot of air play on CMT).
> IMHO Elton John fits into the CMA's about as well as Toby
> Keith would fit into the MTV music awards.
>
 
When an art form sells its soul, it really has no value anymore. Anything will pass as Country. I'm surprised Snoop Dooggy Dogg hasn't performed at the CMA's yet. Give it time and you'll have some Gangsta Country.

We pick on ladies too much, because it always takes two. But you know the difference between how radiant and pure someone is who preserves their purity until the right person comes into their life and one who will be with anyone who comes down the pike.

Well Country music has sold itself out. It's tethered, stained, defiled, and in short not worth listening to, unless there's a "Classic Nashville Pop" station that will throw in a country song once or twice an hour. Even those stations make sure they throw in as little Country as possible, and favor pop acts like Ann Murray, Barbara Mandrell, and Gary Morris.
 
Actually, Elton John has a duet with Catherine Britt that is currently
being played on country radio. That may have more to do with it than
anything.

I myself was appalled several years back when Neil Diamond played the
CMA show. He seems even less country than Elton.


> Elton John recorded a duet with Tammy Wynette "A Woman
> Needs" in 1994 and also sang "Stand By Your Man" on a Tammy
> Wynette tribute album, so he has some country credentials.
>
>
>
> > Saw a commercial on CBS while watching Survivor Thursday
> > night. Kind of floored me. Elton John to perform at the
> > CMA's!!! Why???
> > Tho not a big country fan myself, I do listen
> occasionally
> > and to my knowledge have never heard an Elton John song on
>
> > country radio. My guess is the marketing geniuses for CBS
> > and the CMA's want to bring in a bigger audience.
> > Watched last year and have to admit I was a little
> shocked
> > to see "country hip hop" i.e Cowboy Roy, and have never
> > heard him on country radio either.( he does seem to get a
> > lot of air play on CMT).
> > IMHO Elton John fits into the CMA's about as well as Toby
>
> > Keith would fit into the MTV music awards.
> >
>
 
> Actually, Elton John has a duet with Catherine Britt that is
> currently
> being played on country radio. That may have more to do
> with it than
> anything.
>
> I myself was appalled several years back when Neil Diamond
> played the
> CMA show. He seems even less country than Elton.

No, Neil isn't country... but he did get some country airplay. There were some country stations that played "Forever in Blue Jeans" as an oldie, I think sometime in the early 90s. And it did sort of fit in with the music of that era. But I don't think there were many, if any, country stations who played it as a current.

Pop artists trying to "go country" isn't anything new... Dean Martin tried it back in the 60s with no success. I even once came across a "Don Ho in Nashville" album.
 
>> Pop artists trying to "go country" isn't anything new...
> Dean Martin tried it back in the 60s with no success. >>

I remember Dean Martin's country-style hits "Houston" and "Little Ole Wine Drinker Me" getting lots of country radio airplay in the 1960's.
 
> >> Pop artists trying to "go country" isn't anything new...
> > Dean Martin tried it back in the 60s with no success. >>
>
> I remember Dean Martin's country-style hits "Houston" and
> "Little Ole Wine Drinker Me" getting lots of country radio
> airplay in the 1960's.
--------------------------------------------------------------------

I recall a song by him called "This is my first country song".

I also recall it didn't go anywhere.

Back in the 50's/60's, you could see almost anyone on the pop charts
from rock & rollers to country(AND western) artists.

A look at some weekly charts from the mid-to-late 60's would shock
the alledged programmers of today.
<P ID="signature">______________
"What's That?" "French Horns!"

</P>
 
It's TV

The justification I see from the point of view of CBS is getting ratings. The CMA Awards show, as far as I'm concerned is a TV show and having performers like Elton John should help the TV show get better ratings...especially given that having Elton John on should draw in viewers who are not country music fans.

To a certain extent, I think the same thing is at work with "American Idol" and "Nashville Star". Country radio will get far more mileage out of the current "American Idol" winner Carrie Underwood than with Nashville Star winner Erika Jo simply because American Idol is a show watched by many more people.

The CMA Awards show is something that is somewhat important with country radio listeners, but I don't think what happens on the show is terribly important to what goes in country radio except as show prep material to talk about.


> Saw a commercial on CBS while watching Survivor Thursday
> night. Kind of floored me. Elton John to perform at the
> CMA's!!! Why???
> Tho not a big country fan myself, I do listen occasionally
> and to my knowledge have never heard an Elton John song on
> country radio. My guess is the marketing geniuses for CBS
> and the CMA's want to bring in a bigger audience.
> Watched last year and have to admit I was a little shocked
> to see "country hip hop" i.e Cowboy Roy, and have never
> heard him on country radio either.( he does seem to get a
> lot of air play on CMT).
> IMHO Elton John fits into the CMA's about as well as Toby
> Keith would fit into the MTV music awards.
>
 
> Elton John recorded a duet with Tammy Wynette "A Woman
> Needs" in 1994 and also sang "Stand By Your Man" on a Tammy
> Wynette tribute album, so he has some country credentials.
>
>
>
He also recently recorded a song with Country newcomer, Catherine Britt.
Doesn't make him Country. If he is, so is Richie Sambora, since he played a couple of shows with Brad Paisley!!!
It's about attracting a wider audience, period. $$$ talks.
 
Barbara Mandrell ---YUCK!!!<P ID="edit"><FONT class="small">Edited by Musicradio on 11/08/05 01:04 PM.</FONT></P>
 
> When an art form sells its soul, it really has no value
> anymore. Anything will pass as Country. I'm surprised Snoop
> Dooggy Dogg hasn't performed at the CMA's yet. Give it time
> and you'll have some Gangsta Country.
...
> Well Country music has sold itself out.


I agree...When I heard they were passing Rascal Flatts off as Country...
 
Despite whatever gets played on the radio and whatever sells
a million freakin' copies, a lot of the best music ever made
has never even found its way to the programmer's desk.

Let's face it, we've all got those obscure album tracks, B-sides
and oddball stuff by artists no one but you has ever heard of that
just sticks out as you own personal favorites. The best station
to listen to music on is your own CD player (or MP3, etc etc.)




> When an art form sells its soul, it really has no value
> anymore. Anything will pass as Country. I'm surprised Snoop
> Dooggy Dogg hasn't performed at the CMA's yet. Give it time
> and you'll have some Gangsta Country.
>
> We pick on ladies too much, because it always takes two. But
> you know the difference between how radiant and pure someone
> is who preserves their purity until the right person comes
> into their life and one who will be with anyone who comes
> down the pike.
>
> Well Country music has sold itself out. It's tethered,
> stained, defiled, and in short not worth listening to,
> unless there's a "Classic Nashville Pop" station that will
> throw in a country song once or twice an hour. Even those
> stations make sure they throw in as little Country as
> possible, and favor pop acts like Ann Murray, Barbara
> Mandrell, and Gary Morris.
>
 
Re: It's TV

> To a certain extent, I think the same thing is at work with
> "American Idol" and "Nashville Star". Country radio will
> get far more mileage out of the current "American Idol"
> winner Carrie Underwood than with Nashville Star winner
> Erika Jo simply because American Idol is a show watched by
> many more people.
>
And yet I haven't heard either of them on any of the country radio stations I've listened to in at least 4 different markets.

It is being theorized that CBS wants to trash the show before handing it to ABC. Sounds somewhat credible.

I haven't liked the CMAs since Vince Gill was host...and even then not always. Garth Brooks anyone? Thinking of the performance of the song "Long necked bottle"
 
> > >> Pop artists trying to "go country" isn't anything
> new...
> > > Dean Martin tried it back in the 60s with no success. >>
>
> >
> > I remember Dean Martin's country-style hits "Houston" and
> > "Little Ole Wine Drinker Me" getting lots of country radio
>
> > airplay in the 1960's.
--------> ------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> I recall a song by him called "This is my first country
> song".
>
> I also recall it didn't go anywhere.
>
> Back in the 50's/60's, you could see almost anyone on the
> pop charts
> from rock & rollers to country(AND western) artists.
>
> A look at some weekly charts from the mid-to-late 60's would
> shock
> the alledged programmers of today.
>
The concept of Country and Pop intergrating with each other is nothing new. I have been seeing many pop and country acts doing a concert together on the famed Crossroads TV program, on CMT, for quite a while now.

I recently saw Wynonna do a concert with members of Rock band Heart recently, along with Pat Benatar doing a concert with Martina McBryde and John Bon Jovi doing a concert with Sugarland (I do believe).

If I am wrong on that last one, feel free to correct me.

Mixing Country with Pop is nothing new. It is now common for both styles to be heard on opposite stations. Here is one example, of what I am speaking of. Who would have thought that Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow would do a Country tune and get it played on Country radio. They are known for doing mostly rock and pop tunes but this song suprised me when it first came out. That particular song got major airplay, when it was first released. It is still getting major airplay, on many of the pop and country stations I am able to get.

RDP <><

P.S. Since we were speaking of Elton, I saw him singing some with Shania Twain, when she did a concert from Walt Disney World in Florida, not too long ago.
 
> Saw a commercial on CBS while watching Survivor Thursday
> night. Kind of floored me. Elton John to perform at the
> CMA's!!! Why???
> Tho not a big country fan myself, I do listen occasionally
> and to my knowledge have never heard an Elton John song on
> country radio. My guess is the marketing geniuses for CBS
> and the CMA's want to bring in a bigger audience.
> Watched last year and have to admit I was a little shocked
> to see "country hip hop" i.e Cowboy Roy, and have never
> heard him on country radio either.( he does seem to get a
> lot of air play on CMT).
> IMHO Elton John fits into the CMA's about as well as Toby
> Keith would fit into the MTV music awards.
>

"Tiny Dancer", anyone? Back in the day, with that pedal steel featured so prominately, it would have sounded at home on Country radio. Except that the artist was Elton John. Another "sorta" country song from Elton was "Levon".
 
> The concept of Country and Pop intergrating with each other
> is nothing new. I have been seeing many pop and country
> acts doing a concert together on the famed Crossroads TV
> program, on CMT, for quite a while now.
>
> I recently saw Wynonna do a concert with members of Rock
> band Heart recently, along with Pat Benatar doing a concert
> with Martina McBryde and John Bon Jovi doing a concert with
> Sugarland (I do believe).
>

Sugarland and Bon Jovi? What, was Porter Waggner and Ozzy Osborne unavailable.
 
Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood is off to a very quick start on country radio with "Jesus, Take The Wheel". I think it had around 70 or so adds out of the box its first week, so you should be hearing it soon..it's only been out a couple of weeks. She's identified herself as a country artist and certainly has a higher profile than the current Nashville Star winner Erika Jo. I don't know how big a country career Underwood will have, but I think her current single will make an impact.

As for music award shows, I've never been a fan of them myself. Award shows in general seem to be geared more toward "the event" than it does with the music or the artists. I understand why that that is, so I don't gripe about it. I do think that what happens on the award shows is somewhat irrelevant to what's actually happening on radio.


> > To a certain extent, I think the same thing is at work
> with
> > "American Idol" and "Nashville Star". Country radio will
> > get far more mileage out of the current "American Idol"
> > winner Carrie Underwood than with Nashville Star winner
> > Erika Jo simply because American Idol is a show watched by
>
> > many more people.
> >
> And yet I haven't heard either of them on any of the
> country radio stations I've listened to in at least 4
> different markets.
>
> It is being theorized that CBS wants to trash the show
> before handing it to ABC. Sounds somewhat credible.
>
> I haven't liked the CMAs since Vince Gill was host...and
> even then not always. Garth Brooks anyone? Thinking of the
> performance of the song "Long necked bottle"
>
 
Re: Carrie Underwood (and Gary Allan)

> Carrie Underwood is off to a very quick start on country
> radio with "Jesus, Take The Wheel". I think it had around
> 70 or so adds out of the box its first week, so you should
> be hearing it soon..it's only been out a couple of weeks.
> She's identified herself as a country artist and certainly
> has a higher profile than the current Nashville Star winner
> Erika Jo. I don't know how big a country career Underwood
> will have, but I think her current single will make an
> impact.

When I first heard "Inside Your Heaven" on AC radio, I thought it was a Country crossover song. I was surprised to find out that it has only been targeted to AC and CHR stations. With a slight remix I think it would do well on Country radio, just like Sheryl Crow's "First Cut". Country radio is already playing a lot of rock-style tunes anyway; for example, Gary Allan's "Best I Ever Had", which is basically a dead ringer for a Goo Goo Dolls song. And speaking of which, I think "Best I Ever Had" would make a good AC/CHR crossover, even without any kind of remix. Keith Urban's songs are far more "twangy" than this, and that hasn't stopped them from gaining great success in the pop music genre.

p.s. Another possible AC crossover I've had in mind is Kenny Chesney. In addition to a decent voice, he's got great looks (at least when he keeps his hat on!) and a lot of free publicity in the tabloids recently. He's already become well-known far outside the realm of country music, so why not take advantage of that?
<P ID="signature">______________
noiboc.jpg

"This is the New York Emergency Broadcast System satellite channel. They took the crosstown bus."</P>
 
Re: Carrie Underwood (and Gary Allan)

RCA stuck their toe in the country radio water with "Inside Your Heaven", but it wasn't seriously marketed towards country radio. I do agree with you that it could have been marketed country, but it really was a Pop/AC song. Although it's not really traditional country sounding, "Jesus, Take The Wheel" is a song that's much more appropriately marketed for country radio, so she's an artist that may well have some success marketing separate singles for pop and country radio, much like LeAnn Rimes has done recently or Linda Ronstadt 25-30 years ago.

Gary Allan's "Best I Ever Had" is actually a remake of a rock song...not by the Goo Goo Dolls, but by Vertical Horizon.


> > Carrie Underwood is off to a very quick start on country
> > radio with "Jesus, Take The Wheel". I think it had around
>
> > 70 or so adds out of the box its first week, so you should
>
> > be hearing it soon..it's only been out a couple of weeks.
> > She's identified herself as a country artist and certainly
>
> > has a higher profile than the current Nashville Star
> winner
> > Erika Jo. I don't know how big a country career Underwood
>
> > will have, but I think her current single will make an
> > impact.
>
> When I first heard "Inside Your Heaven" on AC radio, I
> thought it was a Country crossover song. I was surprised to
> find out that it has only been targeted to AC and CHR
> stations. With a slight remix I think it would do well on
> Country radio, just like Sheryl Crow's "First Cut". Country
> radio is already playing a lot of rock-style tunes anyway;
> for example, Gary Allan's "Best I Ever Had", which is
> basically a dead ringer for a Goo Goo Dolls song. And
> speaking of which, I think "Best I Ever Had" would make a
> good AC/CHR crossover, even without any kind of remix.
> Keith Urban's songs are far more "twangy" than this, and
> that hasn't stopped them from gaining great success in the
> pop music genre.
>
> p.s. Another possible AC crossover I've had in mind is Kenny
> Chesney. In addition to a decent voice, he's got great
> looks (at least when he keeps his hat on!) and a lot of free
> publicity in the tabloids recently. He's already become
> well-known far outside the realm of country music, so why
> not take advantage of that?
>
 
Hey Keith

Are you the guy who once worked with Moon Mullins
in Nashville?

I think I know you.
 
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