DAVE'S DIARY - 28/10/2022 - PREVIEW OF EPISODE 9 - SERIES 53
WILL HOGE HEADLINES NU COUNTRY TV
Tennessean troubadour Will Hoge headlines N u Country TV Wednesday November 2 at 8 pm with his homage to the late John Prine's Cadillac.
Former New Mexico traffic cop Frank Ray and Missouri minstrel Randy Houser open the show repeated Saturdays at 11.30 pm.
Second generation former Oklahoma naval officer Zach Bryan boomerangs to the program filmed and edited by our multi-talented lockdown producer-host Laith Graham.
Sydney speech pathologist Kiara Rodrigues and Golden Guitarist Christie Lamb appear this week.
Nu Country TV is a highlight of C 31 streaming list on Digital 44.
Further info - https://www.c31.org.au/
WHAT WILL HEARD IN THE TENNESSEE TRAFFIC
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Tennessean Will Hoge extends his vast video catalogue with a song inspired by an aural explosion from the late John Prine's Cadillac at Nashville traffic lights.
His vinyl and meatloaf imagery enriched his song recipe shared with band members in his studio and lounge.
When former Chicago mailman, hit writer and Oh Boy record label boss Prine died at 73 on April 7 in 2020 his protégé Hoge recalled a musical entrée in Nashville.
John Prine's Cadillac is on Hoge's 17th album Wings On My Shoes.
Hoge, now 49, was born in Civil War town Franklin and fronted Nu Country with satirical gem Gilded Walls.
Will lampooned fake news and faux pastors with Trump impersonator and cornball clones in his video in which a Trump chump gooses a woman and steals from a hapless charity collector at a Hoge concert in front of Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
Hoge uses music to parody political corruption, anti-intellectualism, poverty, gun control, broken education system and nationwide suffering.
"Those things kept me up at night and this record was less expensive than therapy," Hoge revealed.
"Silence couldn't be a part of my deal anymore. My kids and their future, that's the biggest thing for me. My boys are 11 and 7. They're happy and healthy kids and I feel lucky for that every day."
Hoge and his wife teach at the same Nashville school their sons attend.
"Every morning at 7 o'clock everything I care about in the world goes to one building,” explained Hoge, also a basketball coach.
“It takes one knucklehead with a gun going into that one building to ruin all that for me.”
Will survived a major bike accident in August 2008 when he lost six pints of blood in East Nashville after his scooter collided with a van while en route to buy milk for his family at Kroger.
Hoge suffered crushed lung, broken sternum, ribs, shoulder blades and collarbone and a swollen, bloody face and lost enough ivories to send the tooth fairy to the bank for a loan so he named his album Wreckage.
"It was the first time in my life when music got real unimportant, real fast," Hoge said.
"Almost lost my family. Learning to walk. It was interesting to put the music down for a while and to learn it has its own place. And then when I was able to do it again it became more of a gift."
More info - http://willhoge.com/wired
RANDY HOUSER WRITES NOTES
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Mississippi minstrel Randy Houser, 46, wed Australian wife Tatiana Starzynski on May 4, 2016, after being introduced by songwriter pal Dallas Davidson - her brother-in-law.
The latter day Nashville couple have a young son - Huckleberry Houser.
Randy began performing Note To Self - his sixth album title track video - at Tootsie's Orchid lounge before hitting the famed Ryman auditorium stage with his band.
Houser co-wrote the title track of Willie Nelson's 2020 album First Rose Of Spring after sold out concerts at Corner Hotel, Richmond , and CBD Forum in December of 2019.
Randy and rodeo queen Kylie Frey fronted Nu Country with her song Horses In Heaven on stage at National Rodeo Finals in Arlington , Texas .
He also appeared on Nu Country with love songs Our Hearts and High Times from fifth album Magnolia.
His parents divorced when he was seven and he spent summers with his dad - a professional singer and musician.
He played Mississippi clubs at 15 and moved to Nashville as a demo singer after his dad died.
Houser landed a publishing deal at Windswept Music and joined Jamey Johnson and Davidson as writers of a Honky Tonk Badonkadonk hit for singing actor Trace Adkins.
He cut an unreleased album with MCA producer James Stroud before Anything Goes 2008 , They Call Me Cadillac 2010 , How Country Feels 2013 and Fired Up in 2016.
Further info - www.randyhouser.com
FRANK RAY FROM HIGHWAYS TO CHARTS
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Hispanic heat seeker Frank Ray, now 35, spent a decade as a Las Cruces traffic cop in New Mexico before changing careers and opening shows for expat Australasian star Keith Urban.
This time Frank, born in San Antonio in Texas, found love in an art gallery before taking his belle on a country trip where they played golf by the river.
Country Would Look Good On You is on his second EP Getcha Some.
He fronted Nu Country with his Tequila Mockingbird, Different Kind Of Country and Every Time You Run videos.
Ray, real name Gomez, quit Las Cruces - same hometown as Bri Bagwell - to follow his music
He was lead singer of Border Avenue for three years and opened for Urban, A Thousand Horses , Eli Young Band, Craig Campbell and others.
Further info - https://www.facebook.com/frankraymusic/
ZACH BRYAN SUMMERTIME BLUES
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Chart topping former Oklahoma Naval officer Zach Bryan boomerangs to Behind Bars as he enjoys beaches and stages with his band.
Japan born Zach, just 26, spent eight years in the Navy and evokes a desire to die in the Hamptons in his joyous new video Summertime Blues - his fourth album title track.
He previously fronted Nu Country with Something In Orange from his 34 song #1 album American Heartbreak.
Bryan entertained fellow seamen before taking up music full time after his debut video Heading South filmed by phone in 95-degree heat outside his Navy barracks.
He followed with 2019 debut album DeAnn and 2020 disc Elisabeth .
DeAnn, dedicated to his late mother and Elisabeth - an ode to those he loves - resonated with fans and accelerated his honorable Navy discharge in 2021.
“I wanted to be a writer,” Bryan revealed.
“I'm writing every morning when I wake up. Every night when I go to sleep, I write because it's just like how I deal with life. Just like people watch sports, just like people go golf, it's just something that comes naturally to me. It is beautiful to find that and get to do that, but I'd say that first 100 songs were terrible because I was just trying to figure out how to make poems and things that I've written into work that people could connect with through melodies.”
Further info - https://www.zachbryan.com/
KIARA RODRIGUES HIGH SCHOOL REUNIONS
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Sydney speech pathologist Kiara Rodrigues recalls school in far north Queensland on her Nu Country debut.
High School Reunions follows I Don't Love You Anymore.
“After the pandemic hit I felt like I hadn't achieved as much as I'd wanted to especially with my music,” revealed Kiara who moved to her school when she was nine
“I had this sudden realisation that next year would be 10 years since I finished high school and thought to myself if I went to my reunion now what would I have to show for it?' This is a song and a story that most listeners will relate to, regardless of what they have or haven't done since high school. It's about us all being at different life stages: some of us are still partying, some are having children, and some are in between and have no idea what we're doing. Writing this song really lifted me out of that negative self-doubting period and has increased my passion for making music.”
Kiara graduated from university to work as a Speech Pathologist.
Jeremy Minnett directed her video where classmates are represented by mannequins.
“I want listeners to hear the song and think back to their own memories of how high school reunions can be. But I also want to take them back to that coming-of-age era, where it feels like the world is at your feet” Kiara explained.
“What really matters to me with this track is getting authentic responses and reactions from listeners as they relate this song to their own experiences.”
Further info - https://www.kiararodriguesmusic.com/
CHRISTIE LAMB THREE CHORDS AND A WOMAN'S TRUTH
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Sydney Golden Guitarist Christie Lamb had fertile fodder for her latest parable.
Lamb's childhood heroes included Dolly Parton, Tammy Wynette and Loretta Lynn who inspired new video Three Chords And A Woman's Truth on her fourth album Truth released on ABC Music on September 30.
Christie, now 31, wrote her 19 th single with husband Jonathan English - son of the late Jon English - and Victoria Banks.
“I wanted this song to combine my life story with all queens of country that I grew up listening to like Dolly, Tammy and Loretta,” Christie revealed.
“My teenage years were influenced by Shania, Carrie and Gretchen, along with some of my favourite Aussie ladies including Kasey, Beccy, Gina and Tania. This song has many artists and song titles woven into my personal story and I wanted to celebrate all these strong female country singers in this song and let them know how they have influenced me in my life and music too. The idea behind the song came from a brainstorming session on the plane trip over to Nashville . I was thinking about my truth and all of my influences over the years”.
The video echoes the importance of these iconic women on her career.
“When it came to shooting the music video, I wanted to honour the ladies of country on the big screen behind me.” Christie explained.
“My outfit was inspired by Dolly and our shared love of bling, but I thought a single stool and spotlight on a big stage would give it that Grand Ole Opry feel.”
“The idea behind the song came from a brainstorming session on the plane trip over to Nashville . I was thinking about my truth and all of my influences over the years”.
CLICK HERE for a Christie CD review in The Diary on June 9, 2014.
WIN WAYLON, GEORGE JONES AND MERLE HAGGARD
Help us celebrate being Nu Country TV members and win albums by late Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, George Jones and Highwaymen by becoming a Nu Country member or renewing your membership.
George, Waylon, Merle and Willie Nelson were among country historian Barbara Dowling's favourite Texans.
The Waylon, Highwaymen , Merle and George discs were donated by Barbara who died at 77 in December, 2020.
She co-hosted Long In The Saddle in our Nu Country FM era and was pioneer Australian and Victorian country music awards judge.
Barbara was admired for rising above losing her sight as a young woman and her country passion with annual trips to Waylon's birthplace in Littlefield, West Texas .
Waylon died at 64 on February 13, 2002, and is survived by singing spouse Jessi, now 79, and son Shooter, 43.
WIN KEITH URBAN CDS ALSO
We have expatriate Australasian superstar Keith Urban's chart topping 12th album The Speed Of Now - Part 1.
Also BR5-49 CD Big Backyard Beat Show and Billy Ray Cyrus's historic 1992 album Some Gave All featuring Achy Breaky Heart.
We have other CDS by major artists you can win by becoming a Nu Country TV member or renewing memberships.
They include Brad Paisley, Eric Church, Kip Moore and late larrikin legend A.P. Johnson.
CLICK HERE for our Membership Page for details.