SCOTCOUNTRY MUSIC NEWS

Heavy snow has hit Nashville, and other parts of the Southeast, resulting in concerts by artists like George Strait, Reba McEntire and Julie Roberts being cancelled. Over 100 auto accidents were reoported during the Friday afternoon rush hour around Music City, where up to a foot of snow fell during the day. Our pictures show major highways in downtown Nashville Friday afternoon.

Kentucky country music legend, Loretta Lynn, is honored tonight in a special ceremony for the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. The Butcher Holler native will be among the selected honorees alongside Leonard Cohen, Bobby Darin, Michael Jackson, André Previn, and Clark Terry. Country music legendary producer, Harold Bradley, will be honored in the Technical Grammy Award Honors.
Loretta has been in the business for almost 50 years and continues to sell out concerts.

Word from Nashville is that Vince Gill will produce LeAnn Rimes' next album. The project will be a collection of country love songs that were initially hits for male artists. Recording will begin in February, but no release date has been set.
On his own front, Vince Gill -- Love Songs, a 14-track compilation, was released this week by MCA Records in the USA. The collection includes hit singles and album cuts from Gill's CDs dating back to 1991.

Shirley Collie Nelson, the second wife of Willie Nelson who charted three hit country singles in the early '60s, died Wednesday (Jan. 27) in Missouri at the age of 78. Recording for Liberty Records, she reached No. 10 on the Billboard country charts in 1962 with Nelson on the duet, "Willingly," written by Hank Cochran. The single marked Willie Nelson's first appearance on the Billboard country chart as a recording artist. They were married from 1963 to 1971. Collie's first charting single, "Dime a Dozen" by Harlan Howard, reached No. 25 in 1961. A few months later, a duet version of "Why, Baby, Why" with Warren Smith reached No. 23. In the late 1950s, she was a cast member of the Ozark Jubilee. Before marrying Nelson, she was married to the disc jockey Biff Collie, who also recorded under the name Billy Bob Bowman. In 2009, she published a book, Scrapbooks in My Mind: Featuring Shirley and Willie Nelson and Many Others.

Georgette Jones, the daughter of George & Tammy, has been forced to cancel her Scottish dates next week, due to her work permit not being in order. She was allowed into the UK to visit her boyfiend (who also organised the tour), on condition that she didn't work.
Her Irish dates are still going ahead.

Australian country music’s night of nights, the 38th CMAA Country Music Awards of Australia, presented by Jayco, were delivered tonight to a capacity crowd in Australia’s Country Music Capital, Tamworth. The Awards were hosted by country music sister trio, The McClymonts.

The night belonged to Troy Cassar-Daley who walked away with a total of 6 Awards for his ARIA Award winning album, I Love this Place. The impressive win brings Troy’s cumulative total of Golden Guitar trophies to 20.

The country music singer/songwriter, who was a finalist in 8 Awards’ categories in total, won Album of the Year (co-produced with Rod and Jeff McCormack), Male Artist of the Year, APRA Song of the Year and Single of the Year (both for Big Big Love), Heritage Song of the Year for Chasin’ Rodeo and Vocal Collaboration of the Year for Ain’t Gonna Change For You with The McClymonts.

The Jayco Country Theatre erupted with applause when Tamworth born, Felicity Urquhart, was awarded her first solo Golden Guitar as Female Artist of the Year. Felicity’s album, Landing Lights, has received critical acclaim since its release in 2009.

International country music sensation, Keith Urban, was awarded the Top Selling Album of the Year for his album Defying Gravity. Urban could not attend the Awards, having commitments overseas, and accepted the Award via a recorded video message.

Having received 3 finalist placings, Jetty Road, the quartet featuring identical twin sisters Lee and Paula Bowman, topped off a hugely successful year with their track Million Miles scoring them their first Golden Guitar trophy for Group or Duo of the Year.

The Bushwackers collected their second CMAA Country Music Award of Australia, having won their first Award almost 20 years ago (1981). Their Bush Ballad of the Year win was secured for their single The Road to Thargomindah which was penned by Colin Buchanan.

2005 CMAA College of Country Music graduate, Victoria Baillie, won the Maton New Talent Award for her single Make Me from her 2009 album, Start Brand New.

Brother and sister finalists, Greg Storer and Sara Storer, created a family celebration winning Video Clip of the Year for their duet When I Was A Boy. The clip, directed by Duncan Toombs, was created using thousands of still images of the two performing to give a unique animated impression.

Victorian Bluegrass duo and graduates of the CMAA Australian College of Country Music, The Davidson Brothers, returned to the winner’s arena once again collecting their second consecutive Fender Instrumental of the Year Award, this time for Fox On The Freeway.

The Telstra Horizon Award is a new inclusion in the Awards program this year and was presented to Sydney’s Amber Lawrence. The Award was developed to recognise a young ambassador of Australian country music. The criteria for this CMAA Board selected Award is that the recipient is always improving their skills, including touring, recording, song writing and performing and whilst being young themselves, are excellent mentors. Amber Lawrence fit the criteria perfectly and was chosen to be the inaugural winner.

Also presented during tonight’s program was, for the first time in the history of the CMAA Country Music Awards of Australia, a Lifetime Achievement Award. John Williamson, who is celebrating his 40th year in the business in 2010, presented this special “Golden Guitar” to Chad Morgan. Chad, known fondly as “The Sheik of Scrubby Creek”, released his first album in 1952 and is well known as an Australian comedic singer/guitarist renowned for his vaudeville style of comic country and western songs, his prominent teeth, and goofy stage persona. During his long career he has toured extensively, including the Slim Dusty Show, the All Star Western Show and his own Chad Morgan Show. He has been prolific in his recorded output and his live performances and was inducted into the Australasian Country Music Roll of Renown in January 1987, and awarded an OAM in 2004.

The 38th Country Music Awards of Australia, presented by Jayco, are the pinnacle event of the annual Tamworth Country Music Festival.

Winners in the 38th CMAA Country Music Awards of Australia, presented by Jayco
APRA Song of the Year Big Big Love - written and recorded by Troy Cassar-Daley
Vocal Collaboration of the Year Ain’t Gonna Change For You – Troy Cassar-Daley & The McClymonts
Bush Ballad of the Year The Road to Thargomindah - written by Colin Buchanan, recorded by The Bushwackers
Video Clip of the Year When I Was A Boy – Greg Storer & Sara Storer, directed by Duncan Toombs
Single of the Year Big Big Love – Troy Cassar-Daley
Fender Instrumental of the Year Fox On The Freeway - Davidson Brothers
Group or Duo of the Year Jetty Road – Million Miles
Heritage Song of the Year Chasin’ Rodeo - written and recorded by Troy Cassar-Daley
Top Selling Album of the Year Defying Gravity – Keith Urban
Maton New Talent of the Year Victoria Baillie - Make Me
Female Artist of the Year Felicity Urquhart - Rollercoaster
Male Artist of the Year Troy Cassar-Daley – I Love This Place
Album of the Year I Love This Place – Troy Cassar-Daley Produced by Rod McCormack, Troy Cassar-Daley & Jeff McCormack
Telstra Horizon Award – Amber Lawrence

Tom Paxton has cancelled his UK visit, including his Celtic Connections gig next week. Tom's wife is ill, and needs to be by her side at this time. He promises to return later in the year.
But there's so much Country music still to come to Celtic Connections across Glasgow, including Holly Williams & Edinburgh based bluegrass duo Blueflint, at Oran Mor tonight (Friday 22nd); Raul Malo (Sun 24th ' Classic Grand); Beth Neilsen Chapman & Charlie Dore @The Royal Concert Hall on Monday, Carolina Chocolate Drops @ Strathclyde Suite , Tuesday. On Wednesday, Tim & Mollie O'Brien are platying St Andrews In The Square whilst Buffy St Marie is\at The Old Fruitmarket.
On Thursday The Wiyos & Pokey LaFarge are at The Strathclyde Suite, whilst Paisley's Jill Jackson plays The Classic Grand next Friday.
Rachel Harrington & Diana Jones are amongst the singers at City Halls on Saturday and Canadian sweethearts Madison Violet play there on Sunday 31st.
Madison Violet & Rachel Harrington will both appear on Celtic Music Radio's Celtic Country on Sunday Jan 31st.

Country Music Hall of Fame member Carl Smith, one of the genre's most successful singers and entertainers during the 1950's, died Saturday Jan. 16 at his home in Franklin, Tenn. He was 82.
He was married to June Carter from 1952 until 1957, and their daughter, Carlene Carter, gained prominence as a singer-songwriter during the late '70s. His subsequent marriage to country singer Goldie Hill began in September 1957 and lasted until her death in February 2005. Hill was the mother of his last three children, Lorri Lynn, Carl Jr. and Larry Dean, none of whom sought a career as a performer.
Smith's first No. 1 record, the near-million-selling "Let Old Mother Nature Have Her Way," came in 1951. The next year brought Smith big hits with "(When You Feel Like You're in Love) Don't Just Stand There" and a double-sided smash with the Louvin Brothers' "Are You Teasing Me" and Boudleaux Bryant's "It's a Lovely, Lovely World." Bryant also wrote the two biggest hits of Smith's many in 1953, "Just Wait Till I Get You Alone" and the immortal "Hey Joe."
He stopped touring in 1977, and his long and placid life thereafter as breeder of quarter horses won him a whole new set of friends and peers who often didn't even know he had once been a major country music star.
Daughter Carlene heads over here for a couple of Scottish dates in March.

Charlie Daniels suffered a mild stroke last Friday while snowmobiling during a vacation in Colorado. Daniels was treated at a medical center in Durango, Colo., after the stroke and was then airlifted to a Denver hospital.
He is now recovering at his home in Colorado, where he has been on vacation since Christmas.