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Show of hands to celebrate landmark 25 years with fifth 'big gig' at Royal Albert Hall

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The phenomenally popular Show of Hands have today announced they will mark their milestone 25th year with a return to one of the world’s most famous stages – the Royal Albert Hall – on Easter Sunday 2017 (April 16). Singer songwriter Steve Knightley and multi instrumentalist Phil Beer have forged one of the most successful ever partnerships in acoustic roots music and have already scored four sell-outs at the iconic London venue. Now the Devon duo is to head back to the capital to take on the gamble of hiring and selling out the historic 5,000-seater hall for a fifth time – unprecedented for a band of their ilk. They will be accompanied by their long term special guest – double bass player and vocalist Miranda Sykes. Knightley, who has been hailed as one of the country’s best singer-songwriters, says: “Hiring somewhere as high profile as the Albert Hall is obviously not something you undertake lightly but it’s a challenge we relish. We are lucky enough to have an incredible fan base, not only in the UK but in France, Holland, Germany and beyond and hopefully a lot of them will be there to help us celebrate a quarter of a century  as Show of Hands!” Beer, named ‘Musician of the Year’ in the 2011 Spiral Awards and nominated for the same title at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, agrees: “We have had four hugely memorable nights at the Albert Hall and it will be great to see so many of our fans under one roof again in what will amazingly be our 25th year on the road!” This year, their latest critically acclaimed studio album The Long Way Home saw them returning to their musical roots and brought them a nomination for “Best Album” in the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards. Before the Albert Hall gig, Show of Hands have a characteristically busy year in 2016. Their festival season takes in Glastonbury, Aldeburgh’s famous Snape Proms, Shrewsbury and Sidmouth as well as their own signature festival at Dorset’s Abbotsbury Sub Tropical Gardens on July 2. In the autumn they embark on the significant 22-date ‘Walk With Me’ tour (Nov 2-Dec 10) supported by award-winning singer songwriter Megan Henwood. 

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Country legend T.G Sheppard extends 2016 tour

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To the delight of country music fans, T.G. Sheppard will visit more cities during an extensive 2016 nationwide tour with stops planned in Missouri, Montana, Texas, Pennsylvania, Florida and more. Along the way, Sheppard will also be joined by some of classic country’s biggest stars on select shows. “After all these years, to walk out on stage and see the larger than ever crowds singing the words to my songs amazes me,” says Sheppard. “I’ve been saying for years that the fans of real country music would return someday. I’m thankful that the day has arrived and they have returned.” One highlight is a special Independence Day show on July 1 at the Welk Theatre in Branson, where country icon Crystal Gayle will also be performing alongside Sheppard. To show appreciation for our veterans, ticket buyers will receive two free tickets for family and/or friends who’ve served our country. Sheppard opened up about the upcoming date with Gayle and shared stories about working with Elvis Presley and Clint Eastwood in the Branson Tri-Lakes News. Sheppard has experienced a resurgence in his career over the last year, with the release of the chart-topper’s latest album, LEGENDARY FRIENDS & COUNTRY DUETS. The star-studded project features collaborations with some of the genre’s biggest stars including George Jones, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Conway Twitty, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Oak Ridge Boys, Crystal Gayle, Lorrie Morgan and many more. The demand for traditional country music has reached a new high, proven by Sheppard’s recent return this past weekend to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee with special guest T. Graham Brown to a sold out audience. The 1500-seat venue holds a special place in Sheppard’s heart, as it was originally built and named T.G. Sheppard’s Theater in the Smokies.

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Southern Halo release new single Rewind and premiere Taste Of Country video

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The cutting-edge Country trio Southern halo hits fast-forward on their career with the release of their new single, Rewind, and an exclusive video premiere today on Taste of Country.   Entering the MusicRow CountryBreakout™ Chart last week, the single is described by Music News Atlanta’s Rick Moore as “One of the feel-good Country singles of 2016 … (by) the trio of teenage sisters whose remarkable harmonies put them in the company of Lady Antebellum and Little Big Town.” Southern Halo made their CMA music festival performance debut earlier this month with a jam-packed schedule that included an impressive acoustic performance on the CMA’s music city stage.  The sisters co-hosted WTVF-TV’s two-hour-long Morning Show on Nashville’s historic Riverfront, taped TCN’s (The Country Network’s) Live at the Whiskey Bent Saloon and On The Couch, plus filmed an appearance for Young Country TV.  Additionally, the trio performed live for Heartland TV’s Coffee, Country & Cody, and signed autographs galore.  They capped off the week with a performance on the Radio Disney Country Stage. Designed to have a feminine ‘Mark Twain’ feel, the playful companion music video was shot on an island in the Mississippi River near. Filled with images of the sweet Southern life, the clip contrasts the demands of the girls’ professional lives with their natural desire to be normal teenage girls – and have fun.  Produced by Heather Mathews (WHEN COTTON BLOSSOMS, A STONE’S THROW) and co-directed by Heather and James Mathews (SPIDERMAN, SWORDFISH), this is their second outing with the band since the video for “Little White Dress.” Short-listed in Billboard.com’s insightful feature on trending all-female bands, Southern Halo has recently enjoyed media coverage on  Radio Disney Country, WREG-TV (Memphis), Parcbench, AXS.com and WTVF-TV.  Since landing in the National finals of the 2014 Texaco Country Showdown,these Mississippi Delta natives have worked hard honing their craft.  They’ve gone from regional to national acclaim and opened for Brantley Gilbert, Eric Paslay, Tyler Farr, Randy Houser, John Michael Montgomery, Parmalee, Old Dominion, Craig Campbell, Julie Roberts, American Young and B.B. King.  They visited radio stations around the country in support of their debut single, “Little White Dress,” and continue to perform shows regularly.  On July 12, Southern Halo will launch Townsquare Media’s KICK 97.9 FM “Say It With Pepsi” Concert Series in Quincy, Illinois.

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Norma Jean Martine announces release of new album ONLY IN MY MIND

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Norma Jean Martine is set to release her blues inspired guitar-pop album, ONLY IN MY MIND on 9thSeptember 2016. Entirely self-penned, Martine wrote or co-wrote every track on ONLY IN MY MIND including three tracks with Joel Pott (Athlete) The album was produced by Danton Supple (Coldplay) with two tracks being produced by Ed Harcourt. Martine’s trademark husky vocals, which ooze sex appeal whilst blowing the roof off every venue she performs live in, feature on every song on the album.  Martine describes ONLY IN MY MIND as fundamentally an album about love, “Most of the songs on the album are love songs and the many different seasons of love. Love isn’t just one emotion… it’s a weird word we use to describe an array of feelings, and sometimes you don’t even know that feeling can exist until it happens to you.”  ‘ONLY IN MY MIND’s love-theme may well have been what attracted the producers of upcoming film ‘Kids In Love’ (starring Will Poulter & Cara Delevingue) to feature one of the album’s tracks ‘I Want You To Want Me’, in an emotionally charged scene during the film.  Another of the album co-write’s is ‘I’m Still Here’, which was written with the legendary Burt Bacharach,whom Martine recently performed ‘I’m Still Here’ with, at Bacharach’s London Palladium show.  It’s been a busy few months since Martine’s debut EP release ANIMALS at the end of 2015.  Alongside co-writing the title track for Ronan Keating’s Top 5 album ‘Time Of My Life’, she has co-written and featured on two tracks ‘We Ain’t Dead Yet’ and ‘Paint’ on Pablo Nouvelle’s current album ‘All I Need’, out on Armin Van Buuren’s label Armada Music. Martine’s most recent release ‘Freedom’ was her cover of George Michael’s classic 90’s track, which is currently the soundtrack to a multi-million pound Europe wide advertising campaign, reaching nearly 1million streams on Spotify.

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Rock The Holler to bring 19 Top Country Independent Performances to Tullahoma

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Natalie Logan, Kaleb Hensley, The Mikele Buck Band, Flyte Three, Braeden Berry, Jeff Smithart and Old South Redemption to perform along with the other highly anticipated acts of the year. Rock The Holler is coming to The South Jackson Civic Center for the first year the weekend of July 29-31. Along with headliners Kaleb Hensley, Natalie Logan  and The Mikele Buck Band. The 2016 Full Lineup is listed at www.rocktheholler.com. No need for tickets; the event has a $5.00 parking fee (which covers everyone in the vehicle) “We’re looking forward to giving music fans the most memorable weekend of their summer.” Rock The Holler has a great marketplace featuring 20+ vendors, food vendors, as well as the Carnival Midway. The Carnival is the newest addition to the festival presented by Showtime USA, LLC. located in Florida. On Friday and Saturday nights starting at 9pm DJ Vegas with Vegas Entertainment will be hosting the neighborhood block party. There is music to be heard every hour of the festival! Select Rock The Holler performances will be broadcast-ed live online via Facebook with on-air dates July 29-31. This year, fans can support the lifesaving work of The Wounded Warriors Project through a variety of on-site donation opportunities and a contribution made from the $5.00 parking fee. Rock The Holler is a premier music experience set among the Southern Historic District of Tullahoma, featuring renowned headliners and emerging artists. Guests witness unforgettable performances and discover the engaging attractions nestled around every turn that make Rock The Holler a can’t-miss summer tradition for country music fans. For additional information contact Rock The Holler- rocktheholler@gmail.com -www.rocktheholler.com

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Red Sky July announce first headline show at Bush Hall

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With their latest album ‘The Truth and the Lie’ reaching number 3 in the UK Country chart, Red Sky July will follow a string of festival appearances – including Cornbury & Somerset Rocks with Jools Holland – with a headline show at London’s Bush Hall on September 19th. Shelly Poole, one third of Red Sky July tells us: “We are super excited to announce our first headline show at Bush Hall in September. We’ve played there many times in and with different bands, last time supporting the fabulous Amy Helm. The sound is perfect for our kind of music and we plan to put on a one off show suited for the venue. Hope to see you there for a fabulous evening!” Earlier in 2016 Red Sky July performed at Britain’s C2C Festival at London’s O2 Arena and received praise for their classic songwriting, musicianship and harmonies from country and non-country critics alike. Country Music People gave their recent album 5/5 saying “The Truth and The Lie has everything to commend it, really good singing and harmonies, excellent lyrics, strong melodies and superb production”.   Red Sky July are Ally McErlaine (Texas), Shelly Poole (Alisha’s Attic) and Charity Hair (The Alice Band). The band formed in 2009 and released their self-titled debut album in 2011. 2014’s ‘Shadowbirds’ followed. The band have been playlisted on BBC Radio 2, and have supported artists such as Steve Earle, Sheryl Crow, 10CC, Tom Jones and Jools Holland. Festivals they have performed at include T in the Park, Isle of Wight and Glastonbury. The band’s achievements were recognised at the Scottish Music Awards where they were presented with a prestigious Tartan Clef award by Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy. Tickets on General Sale from: Live Nation Friday, 1st July – 9am.

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Kelly Prescott releases new single BATTLE ROAD and announces her new EP HILLBILLY JEWELS

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Country singer-songwriter Kelly Prescott has released her brand new single ‘Battle Road’ to stream on Soundcloud, along with an accompanying music video. In her own words: “Battle Road is a very honest glimpse into most normal relationships. I think a lot of people can relate to this one. Love isn’t always easy.” Battle Road is the first single to be released from her forthcoming EP Hillbilly Jewels, out this summer. Kelly Prescott hails from two musically renowned family lines, spanning three generations from Northern Ontario, Nova Scotia and the Ottawa Valley. She has naturally inherited the foundation to follow her musical heart, drawing inspiration from her great Canadian roots. Imbued with experiences gleaned from growing up in an award-winning studio, she has hit the ground running in pursuit of her own musical expression. When Kelly sings about love you feel every up and down. She sings pain like she never knew anything but hurt; she belts out blues like she was born in the Mississippi Valley, instead of the banks of Mississippi Lake up north in Ontario. Kelly Prescott is a from-the-cradle country singer, influenced by the likes of Emmylou Harris, Roger Miller and Ryan Adams. When her voice is blended with steel guitars and fiddles, country music lovers from way-back-when will hear a kindred soul. When she spins the dial forward a few decades, it’s clear she’s part of a new generation of artists who are making new sounds and big waves. With this new EP, Hillbilly Jewels, Kelly takes the next step in her craft, with songs that speak to a new generation of lovers of country music; plenty of energy, deep passion, powerful vocals, and honest storytelling about real life today.

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Fender makes Andrew Leahey first artist to receive new deluxe Nashville telecaster

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For 70 years, Fender has inspired countless musicians to pick up its electric guitars, from Stratocaster players like Mark Knopfler to Telecaster pickers like Laur Joamets. This week, Fender’s Nashville-based A&R team hand-picked American rock & roll songwriter and guitar player Andrew Leahey, frontman of Andrew Leahey & the Homestead to receive the first in a new line of deluxe Nashville telecaster guitars. “The first guitar I ever bought was a Fender Squire Strat,” Andrew remembers. “I was 10 years old, and I mowed my neighbor’s lawn for an entire summer to save up enough money. Years later, it’s an honor to be working with some of the guys behind this company. They’re true music fans, willing to invest in some of the newer faces in Nashville’s music scene. To say that I’m honored to be the first to receive one of these new guitars is an understatement.” Andrew recovered from a risky brain surgery in 2014 and responded to his new lease on life by writing and recording an 11-track album, ‘Skyline In Central Time,’ due out August 5th on Thirty Tigers. Ken Coomer, Wilco’s drummer and co-founder, produced the project.  

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Lonesome shack release new studio album THE SWITCHER

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“The Switcher is a record that can hold equal audible weight in 1965 as 2065. Rock-n-roll forever and ever, Amen.” – No Depression Veteran rockers Lonesome Shack are known for their no-frills, dirty blues rock. Their upcoming album, The Switcher, promises to be an ambitious step forward. The band challenged themselves to create a collection that packed the same pulverizing punch as their live show. The result is some of their finest work yet.” – Pure volume Lonesome Shack started in the early 2000’s when songwriter Ben Todd developed his musical voice in the isolation of rural New Mexico. After moving to Seattle in 2007, Todd teamed up with drummer Kristian Garrard and they found an instant chemistry. As a duo they released Bound To Die (2008) and Slidin Boa (2010) and brought their primitive boogie to every corner of the USA. In 2011, Lonesome Shack were joined by bassist Luke Bergman and the trio released the live album City Man (2012), which was recorded in one night at their favorite neighbourhood bar, Cafe Racer. With More Primitive (2014), Lonesome Shack continued to hone their skills as an elemental rock group: stripped down, raw, expressive and danceable. Lonesome Shack’s latest album The Switcher is their most ambitious and complete work yet. The Switcher’s 14 songs add dimension to the band’s vision. The album is by turns dirty and raucous or slow and expansive, with resonant lyrics and inventive songwriting. The record was recorded with Johnny Goss, who also manned the board for More Primitive, and an effort was made to make the music sound just as it does at a live show. The album took over a year to complete, pieced together from three different periods of recording sessions. The sounds and feels are varied, but the message is clear – everything is held together by the groove. Lonesome Shack’s The Switcher is out now on Double Vinyl LPs, CD and digital formats.

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Chase Rice releases rallying anthem EVERYBODY WE KNOW DOES

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Chase Rice has built his country music career one fan at a time, honing his vigorous live show by playing everywhere from dive bars and fields to amphitheaters and sheds, listening to peoples’ stories and tapping into the common pulse that brings them together night after night: Music. With four headlining tours, opening runs for stadium superstar Kenny Chesney and  entertainer Dierks Bentley, a chart-topping album and two Top 5 radio hits now under his belt, Rice has ridden the highs and lows right alongside his fans and supporters and harnessed that collective energy in recording music for his forthcoming album.  With his new single “Everybody we know does” available at digital retailers and arriving at country radio on the 28th June, Rice delivers an authentic anthem that reflects the values and lifestyle he shares with his core supporters while also nodding to their diversity. “These last few years have been a whirlwind, being out on the road building our live show and working on new music for the next record. I’ve lived a lot and had some incredible experiences and opportunities, but I’ve also been spending some time out at my farm, just unplugging for a bit and reflecting on what music means to me and what it means to all of the people who have shown up and supported me over the years,” said Rice. “That’s why this song, ‘Everybody we know does’ is really special to me. We went in and recorded it with some of Nashville’s top studio musicians, so it’s our sound and our lives reflected in this song. It’s who we are, and that’s ultimately what brings us all together.” “Everybody we know does” was written by Jeremy Bussey and Travis Denning and is available at all digital retail partners now at http://smarturl.it/everybodyweknowdoes

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