Country Music

Country Music Hits

Uncategorized

HE SANG “LIFE IN THE FAST LANE.” THEN DON HENLEY MOVED HIS CHILDREN AWAY FROM LOS ANGELES SO THEY WOULDN’T HAVE TO GROW UP IN IT. For years, Don Henley lived at the center of one of rock music’s wildest success stories. Then his priorities changed. Henley married Sharon Summerall in 1995, and they eventually had three children. When the children were young, the family moved from Los Angeles to Dallas, closer to Sharon’s parents. Henley had a simple reason. He wanted his children to grow up more like he had in Texas. He said he did not want to raise them in an environment filled with the self-absorption of Hollywood, especially when touring already kept him away from home. Fatherhood changed his music, too. His 2000 album Inside Job was shaped by marriage, children and the birth of his first daughter. “Taking You Home” came directly from that new chapter of his life. The man who had spent years singing about excess, temptation and life in the fast lane finally found something more important than the road. He wanted his children to have a childhood.

No Comments

Don Henley, Fatherhood, and the Quiet Choice to Leave Los Angeles Behind For years, Don Henley lived at the center…

Uncategorized

JOE WALSH’S DAUGHTER SPENT YEARS THINKING HIS ABSENCE MEANT HE DIDN’T LOVE HER. AS A CHILD, SHE CAME UP WITH ONE SOLUTION — BECOME FAMOUS TOO. Lucy Walsh was still young when her parents divorced in 1988. Her father was constantly away, caught between touring, rock stardom and substance abuse. Nobody explained that world to a little girl. So Lucy made sense of it herself: Dad kept leaving because she was not important enough for him to stay. She later admitted that she began chasing fame for one heartbreaking reason. If she became famous too, she thought she could be where her father was — and maybe he would stop leaving. Then Joe got sober. When Lucy was 12, she was brought to see him, and the two slowly began rebuilding what addiction and years apart had damaged. Decades later, Lucy no longer talks about Joe Walsh only as the famous guitarist from the Eagles. She talks about learning to see the imperfect man behind the rock star — and realizing she never had to become famous to deserve her father’s love.

No Comments

Lucy Walsh, Joe Walsh, and the Long Road Back to Love Lucy Walsh grew up in the shadow of a…

Uncategorized

“I’M NOT A GUY WHO BELIEVES IN ALL THAT MUMBO JUMBO.” — GEDDY LEE, AFTER RUSH’S FIRST SHOW IN 11 YEARS. Rush played their first full show in 11 years on June 7 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles. Later that night, Geddy Lee was back at the hotel, texting Alex Lifeson. They were in the same building. They still texted. His door was open a crack. And then he looked down. There was a bird standing on his floor. Small. Calm. Like it had been invited. If you’ve seen the poster for this tour, you know it — two birds sitting on a wire, and a third one flying away. Everyone knows who that third bird is. Geddy loves birds, so he stepped toward it. It flew past him into the bedroom and landed on the edge of his bed. He came closer. It just looked at him. Then it went out the door. He ran to the computer to tell Alex what had just happened. He’s been clear he’s not a man who believes in that kind of thing. And while he was still typing, the bird came back. Just its head in the doorway. One more nod. He said, “Okay, bye.” And it flew off. He kept that story to himself for two months — until a radio host in Toronto asked him if he’d felt Neil.

No Comments

Geddy Lee, a Bird, and a Quiet Moment That Meant More Than He Expected Rush returned to the stage on…

Uncategorized

MOTT THE HOOPLE WERE READY TO BREAK UP. THEN THEY TURNED DOWN THE FIRST SONG DAVID BOWIE OFFERED THEM — SO HE WROTE THEM ANOTHER ONE. By early 1972, Mott the Hoople had made four albums without the commercial breakthrough they needed. The band had reached the point of calling it quits. David Bowie was a fan. When he heard what was happening, he offered them “Suffragette City.” They turned it down. Bowie could have walked away. Instead, he came back with another song written for them: “All the Young Dudes.” This time, they said yes. Bowie produced their recording, and the song changed everything. Released in 1972, “All the Young Dudes” climbed to No. 3 in Britain and gave Mott the Hoople the breakthrough they had been unable to find on their own. They had already decided their story was over. Then they rejected David Bowie once — and he gave them the song that allowed it to continue.

No Comments

Mott the Hoople, David Bowie, and the Song That Changed Everything By early 1972, Mott the Hoople were running out…

Uncategorized

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN COULDN’T FINISH “BECAUSE THE NIGHT.” JIMMY IOVINE PUT THE DEMO IN PATTI SMITH’S HANDS — AND SHE TURNED IT INTO THE BIGGEST HIT OF HER CAREER. In 1977, Bruce Springsteen was working on Darkness on the Edge of Town when he recorded an unfinished song called “Because the Night.” The music was there. So was the chorus. But Bruce struggled with the verses and eventually decided he wasn’t going to finish it. Jimmy Iovine was engineering Bruce’s sessions while also producing Patti Smith’s next album. He heard something in the unfinished song and brought the recording to Patti. She took it home and wrote her own lyrics around what Bruce had started. Patti Smith Group recorded “Because the Night,” with both Smith and Springsteen credited as writers. Released in 1978, it climbed to No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 5 in Britain — the biggest hit of Patti’s career. Bruce couldn’t find the words to finish it. Patti Smith did.

No Comments

How Bruce Springsteen’s Unfinished Song Became Patti Smith’s Signature Hit In 1977, Bruce Springsteen was deep in the work that…

Uncategorized

TIMOTHY B. SCHMIT LOST THE POCO JOB TO RANDY MEISNER. A YEAR LATER, HE REPLACED HIM. EIGHT YEARS AFTER THAT, IT HAPPENED AGAIN — THIS TIME WITH THE EAGLES. In 1968, Timothy B. Schmit auditioned for a new country-rock band called Poco. He didn’t get the job. The bass position went to Randy Meisner instead. But Randy left Poco the following year, and Timothy was called back. In 1969, he finally joined the band he had wanted so badly to be part of. For the next eight years, Timothy built his career with Poco while Randy went on to become a founding member of the Eagles. Then, in 1977, Randy left the Eagles. Once again, Timothy B. Schmit was the man chosen to take his place. This time, the opportunity changed his life. With the Eagles, Timothy would co-write and sing “I Can’t Tell You Why,” one of the defining songs of The Long Run. The first time Randy Meisner got the job Timothy wanted. The next two times Randy left, Timothy was the man who followed him.

No Comments

Timothy B. Schmit, Randy Meisner, and the Strange Way a Career Finds Its Shape Sometimes the music business feels less…

Uncategorized

JOE WALSH LOST HIS DAUGHTER WEEKS BEFORE HER THIRD BIRTHDAY. HE WROTE HER A SONG — THEN PUT SOMETHING IN HER FAVORITE PARK FOR EVERY CHILD TOO SMALL TO REACH. On April 1, 1974, Joe Walsh’s daughter Emma Kristen was riding with her mother on the way to nursery school when another car ran a stop sign and struck them head-on. Emma died from her injuries. She was only two years old, just weeks away from turning three. Joe was devastated. Later that year, he closed his album So What with “Song for Emma,” a quiet goodbye to the little girl he had barely been given time to know. But the song was not his only memorial. At North Boulder Park in Colorado, where Emma had played, Joe had a small drinking fountain installed in her memory — low enough for little children to reach. Years later, he took Stevie Nicks there and told her about Emma. Stevie went home deeply moved and wrote “Has Anyone Ever Written Anything for You?” for Joe. Joe had written a song for his daughter. Years later, someone wrote one for the father who never stopped missing her.

No Comments

Joe Walsh, Emma Kristen, and the Song That Refused to Let Go Some stories in music are about success, and…

Uncategorized

THE CROWD THOUGHT THEY WERE WATCHING THE END OF A TOUR. THEY WERE ACTUALLY WATCHING GLENN FREY’S LAST PUBLIC SHOW WITH THE EAGLES. 173 DAYS LATER, HE WAS GONE. On July 29, 2015, the Eagles walked onto the stage at the CenturyLink Center in Bossier City, Louisiana, for the final night of their History of the Eagles tour. Glenn Frey was 66. There was no farewell speech. No announcement that this would be the last time. To everyone in the arena, it was simply another night with the band they had loved for decades. They played through the songs that had built their history: “Tequila Sunrise,” “Lyin’ Eyes,” “Take It Easy,” “Hotel California.” The final song of the night was “Desperado,” the classic Frey had written with Don Henley more than forty years earlier. Then Glenn walked offstage. Nobody in that crowd knew they had just watched his final public Eagles performance. On January 18, 2016, only 173 days later, Glenn Frey died at 67 after complications from rheumatoid arthritis, acute ulcerative colitis and pneumonia. What looked like the end of a tour had quietly become the end of an era.

No Comments

The Night the Crowd Thought It Was Only the End of a Tour On July 29, 2015, the Eagles stepped…

Uncategorized

AS A LITTLE BOY, JACK REID OFFERED TO PAY HIS COUSIN DAVIS TO STAND BESIDE HIM AT A SCHOOL TALENT SHOW. DAVIS SAID NO. YEARS LATER, THEY WERE PLAYING NEARLY 90 SHOWS TOGETHER. Jack did not want to face the stage alone. Music was already part of his life. His father, Wil Reid, had taught him guitar when he was six, and his grandfather was Harold Reid, the deep voice of The Statler Brothers. Davis came from the same family tradition. He was the son of Langdon Reid and the grandson of Don Reid. But as a child, he was not ready to perform, even when Jack offered him money. That changed when Davis was 13. After hearing the piano in Chicago’s “Saturday in the Park,” he began teaching himself to play. His father later helped him improve. The two cousins eventually became Jack and Davis Reid Music. By 2023, they were performing close to 90 shows in a single year. The little boy Jack could not persuade to join him for one school talent show had finally taken the stage beside him — carrying The Statler Brothers’ family harmony into a third generation.

No Comments

How Jack Reid and Davis Reid Turned a Family “No” Into a Stage Partnership As a little boy, Jack Reid…

Uncategorized

THE STATLER BROTHERS COULD HAVE ENDED THEIR TELEVISION SHOW WITH THEIR BIGGEST HIT. INSTEAD, EVERY WEEK THEY SAVED THE LAST SONG FOR GOD. “The Statler Brothers Show” brought country stars, comedy and familiar songs into American homes. It became one of the most successful programs on The Nashville Network. But when each episode reached its final minutes, the laughter stopped. Bill Walker sat at the piano, and Don, Harold, Phil and Jimmy gathered for a gospel song. It was not reserved for Christmas or Easter. It was how they closed the show every time. The Statlers had begun singing gospel music long before “Flowers on the Wall,” the awards and the packed concert halls. Television made them bigger stars, but success never made them hide where they came from. For seven seasons, they entertained the country. Then, before saying goodnight, four voices came together and returned to the faith that had started it all.

No Comments

The Statler Brothers and the Song They Saved for God The Statler Brothers brought laughter, harmony, and a familiar kind…

You Missed

Uncategorized

HE SANG “LIFE IN THE FAST LANE.” THEN DON HENLEY MOVED HIS CHILDREN AWAY FROM LOS ANGELES SO THEY WOULDN’T HAVE TO GROW UP IN IT. For years, Don Henley lived at the center of one of rock music’s wildest success stories. Then his priorities changed. Henley married Sharon Summerall in 1995, and they eventually had three children. When the children were young, the family moved from Los Angeles to Dallas, closer to Sharon’s parents. Henley had a simple reason. He wanted his children to grow up more like he had in Texas. He said he did not want to raise them in an environment filled with the self-absorption of Hollywood, especially when touring already kept him away from home. Fatherhood changed his music, too. His 2000 album Inside Job was shaped by marriage, children and the birth of his first daughter. “Taking You Home” came directly from that new chapter of his life. The man who had spent years singing about excess, temptation and life in the fast lane finally found something more important than the road. He wanted his children to have a childhood.

Uncategorized

JOE WALSH’S DAUGHTER SPENT YEARS THINKING HIS ABSENCE MEANT HE DIDN’T LOVE HER. AS A CHILD, SHE CAME UP WITH ONE SOLUTION — BECOME FAMOUS TOO. Lucy Walsh was still young when her parents divorced in 1988. Her father was constantly away, caught between touring, rock stardom and substance abuse. Nobody explained that world to a little girl. So Lucy made sense of it herself: Dad kept leaving because she was not important enough for him to stay. She later admitted that she began chasing fame for one heartbreaking reason. If she became famous too, she thought she could be where her father was — and maybe he would stop leaving. Then Joe got sober. When Lucy was 12, she was brought to see him, and the two slowly began rebuilding what addiction and years apart had damaged. Decades later, Lucy no longer talks about Joe Walsh only as the famous guitarist from the Eagles. She talks about learning to see the imperfect man behind the rock star — and realizing she never had to become famous to deserve her father’s love.

Uncategorized

“I’M NOT A GUY WHO BELIEVES IN ALL THAT MUMBO JUMBO.” — GEDDY LEE, AFTER RUSH’S FIRST SHOW IN 11 YEARS. Rush played their first full show in 11 years on June 7 at the Kia Forum in Los Angeles. Later that night, Geddy Lee was back at the hotel, texting Alex Lifeson. They were in the same building. They still texted. His door was open a crack. And then he looked down. There was a bird standing on his floor. Small. Calm. Like it had been invited. If you’ve seen the poster for this tour, you know it — two birds sitting on a wire, and a third one flying away. Everyone knows who that third bird is. Geddy loves birds, so he stepped toward it. It flew past him into the bedroom and landed on the edge of his bed. He came closer. It just looked at him. Then it went out the door. He ran to the computer to tell Alex what had just happened. He’s been clear he’s not a man who believes in that kind of thing. And while he was still typing, the bird came back. Just its head in the doorway. One more nod. He said, “Okay, bye.” And it flew off. He kept that story to himself for two months — until a radio host in Toronto asked him if he’d felt Neil.

Uncategorized

MOTT THE HOOPLE WERE READY TO BREAK UP. THEN THEY TURNED DOWN THE FIRST SONG DAVID BOWIE OFFERED THEM — SO HE WROTE THEM ANOTHER ONE. By early 1972, Mott the Hoople had made four albums without the commercial breakthrough they needed. The band had reached the point of calling it quits. David Bowie was a fan. When he heard what was happening, he offered them “Suffragette City.” They turned it down. Bowie could have walked away. Instead, he came back with another song written for them: “All the Young Dudes.” This time, they said yes. Bowie produced their recording, and the song changed everything. Released in 1972, “All the Young Dudes” climbed to No. 3 in Britain and gave Mott the Hoople the breakthrough they had been unable to find on their own. They had already decided their story was over. Then they rejected David Bowie once — and he gave them the song that allowed it to continue.