Hit writers inducted into Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame

Classes of 2020 and 2021 honored at double gala event

by Preshias Harris

It was a scintillating evening of songs, stars, special memories and – above all – some of the worlds finest songwriters being honored by their peers when The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame welcomed ten new members to its ranks.

Garth Brooks paying tribute to Kent Blazy during his induction into the NaSHOF. Photo: Preshias Harris

It was a unique gala: because of the pandemic, the 2020 gala was postponed so it was double the pleasure, double the fun as the Classes of both 2020 and 2021 were inducted at the same ceremony as part of the NaSHOF’s supersized 50th and 51st Anniversary Hall of Fame Gala. The musical contributions of the newest inductees were celebrated through star-studded performances of some of their biggest songs for the capacity crowd at Nashville’s Music City Center.

The Class Of 2020: Kent Blazy and Brett James in the songwriter category; Spooner Oldham in the veteran songwriter category, Steve Earle in the songwriter/artist category and Bobbie Gentry in the veteran songwriter/artist category.

Class of 2020 Pictured (l-r) are: NaSHOF Board Chair Sarah Cates, inductees Brett James, Kent Blazy, Steve Earle, Spooner Oldham and NaSHOF Executive Director Mark Ford. Photo: Bev Moser

The Class of 2021:  Rhett Akins and Buddy Cannon in the songwriter category; John Scott Sherrill in the veteran songwriter category; Toby Keith in the songwriter/artist category and Amy Grant in the veteran songwriter/artist category.

Class of 2021 Pictured (l-r) are:  NaSHOF Board Chair Sarah Cates, Inductees Rhett Akins, Toby Keith, Buddy Cannon, Amy Grant and John Scott Sherrill and NaSHOF Executive Director Mark Ford. Photo: Bev Moser

The inductees and the musical guests who honored them shared so many fascinating stories and insights about how they reached the pinnacle of their artistry.

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‘Inside Track’ mid-month update

Elvie Shane at No. 1, Chris Young and Kane Brown celebrate… and more

By Preshias Harris

Here’s a quick round-up of some of the stories that will be in my column in November. Scroll down for news about Brad Paisley, Luke Bryan, Chris Young, Kane Brown, this year’s NSAI Annual Song Contest, the 2021 inductees into the Songwriters Hall of Fame … and “My Boy” Elvie Shane’s long climb to No. 1!

“My Boy” tops Billboard Airplay chart

Elvie Shane is No. 1 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart dated Oct. 23, 2021!  Elvie’s debut single, “My Boy” (Wheelhouse), leaps from No. 5 to No. 1 for its 54th week on the chart, according to MRC Data. That’s right: a nail-biting fifty-four week climb!

On Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart (blending airplay, streaming and sales data), “My Boy” rose from No. 7 to No. 4.  Written by Elvie along with Nick Columbia, Lee Starr and Russell Sutton, “My Boy” is a track from Elvie’s upcoming album Backslider, set for release Oct. 29.

Earlier on Instagram, I proudly posted:

Sharing a plaque of memorable photos with Elvie Shane

So excited for @elvieshanemusic. He has the #1 #countrymusic song for #Myboy. I gave him this 2021 music milestone plaque when he, Mandy and their baby stopped by the office a couple of weeks ago.  Photos are of his first tour bus, his first Grand Ole Opry appearance, Bonnaroo stage, and Elvie, Mandy and Caleb in a People Magazine exclusive. I watched him work hard all these years and wanted to give him something to remind him how truly special 2021 has been for his career and his family.  I was blessed to be there at the journey’s start. Love y’all Elvie.

“My Boy” was written from Elvie’s perspective as a stepfather. “We’ve been told for five years that this song was a No.1,” Shane told Billboard. “I always found it hard to believe that I could be part of something like that.”

Preorder/presave Backslider here.

NSAI’s Song Contest open for entries

Continue reading “‘Inside Track’ mid-month update”

Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame to induct five of Music City’s finest

Class of 2021 and Class of 2020 to be honored at November Gala

By Preshias Harris

Country music fans think of Nashville as a city built on the success that many Country recording artists found in the studios of Music City.  But the artists themselves will readily tell you that the real stars are the songwriters.  When Number One parties are held in Nashville, they celebrate the songwriters who wrote the chart-toppers, rather than the singers and bands on the recording. The 1982 hit song “16th Avenue” (written by Thom Schuyler and recorded by Lacy J. Dalton) summed it up this way: “God bless the boys who make the noise on 16th Avenue,” referring to one of the streets than comprise Nashville’s fabled Music Row. 

For many years, the songwriting community mainly consisted of “boys” (and old boys) and while more females are now seeing their names on songwriting credits, only one female writer will be among the inductees into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Class of 2021.  

Amy Grant, Toby Keith, Rhett Akins, Buddy Cannon and John Scott Sherrill will be inducted into the Hall this November, according to an announcement made July 13 by Sarah Cates, chair of the Nashville Songwriters Hall off Fame Foundation board of directors, and Mark Ford, its executive director.

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‘Songwriting picked me,’ says Walt Aldridge

Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame 2017 inductee talks to Country Aircheck

Walt Aldridge shared his thoughts about how he evolved from a recording engineer to a major hit writer in this interview from the Sept 25 issue of Country Aircheck, where you can find the original story. More about Aircheck at the foot of this article. Walt is a great songwriter and has always been generous with his time, sharing his experience and knowledge of the music industry and the process of songwriting.

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Walt Aldridge

Alabama native Aldridge engineered more than 200 records during his time at Fame Studios in Muscle Shoals and later, in Nashville. His cuts include Ronnie Milsap’s “There’s No Gettin’ Over Me,” Earl Thomas Conley’s “Holding Her And Loving You” and Tim McGraw’s “Some Things Never Change.”

I always had a fascination with making records. Writing songs allowed me to produce, play, sing on and engineer my demos. When I got started, the studio was a hallowed ground that you had to be invited to, or have a lot of money so you could rent one. So, by becoming a songwriter, it gave me the opportunity to do what I’d always been intrigued by – making music.

Rick Hall (right) signs Duane Allman as session guitarist at Fame, 1968. Photo: Getty Images

I remember walking into Fame and seeing the records hanging on the wall, thinking, “This looks like the set list for the band you were in, in sixth grade,” with “Mustang Sally,” “Land Of A Thousand Dances” – all these great soul records. Knowing you’re sitting where Duane Allman sat to play a guitar part on a Wilson Pickett record challenges you to dig deep and do your very best.

Rick Hall was my first my boss and mentor. Rick has always preached the preeminence of the song. Some of my favorite recordings are not technically or vocally the best, but they always connect and hit a nerve. Very often, you’ll have a fantastic singer with a great band and engineer, but if the song doesn’t hit that nerve with people, it doesn’t matter.

Songwriting picked me as opposed to me picking it. Tommy Brasfield was a writer in Nashville who was more experienced. He heard some of my songs and said, “You have a lot of ability, but I think I could help you frame your music more towards the radio.” If I ever did anything right, it was being open to that, rather than saying, “I like my music the way it is and I don’t need your help.”

No Getting Over Me

So Tommy and I started writing and eventually we wrote “No Gettin’ Over Me,” which was my first hit. That was back in the golden age of crossover, so it was a No. 1 Country record, a Top 5 Pop and No. 1 Adult Contemporary. After that hit I said, “Okay, it looks like I’m a songwriter – and a country songwriter, for that matter.”

My writing equipment is a guitar, a laptop and some kind of caffeine. I like to start in the morning when I’m fresh. But I’ve written all different ways.

“Power through writer’s block”

When I have writer’s block, I power through. So much of what we do is crafting, is a learned instinct. The old saying that sometimes inspiration comes after perspiration is very true. And you don’t know when the muse is going to visit.

Marty Stuart playing Hank’s guitar

One time I was writing with Marty Stuart and we were stuck. He said, “Why don’t we just swap guitars and see if that jogs anything loose?” I said, “Boy, this is a really cool old Martin guitar. What’s the story?” He said, “Well it was Hank’s guitar.” I said, “Hank Jr.?” He said, “No, that was Hank Sr.’s guitar.” I was holding the Holy Grail of guitars. “Your Cheatin’ Heart” could have been written on this guitar. So, I don’t know whether it’s imagined or whether there’s real energy coming from the wood and the wire. But different guitars inspire different moods and words.

I wish I’d written “He Stopped Loving Her Today.” Every line in it is absolutely perfect. Couldn’t have been better.

A song’s demo is a critical part of it. You’re not only writing the lyric and melody, you’re often writing the guitar intro lick that’s going to be a hook. You’re writing the production, somewhat. On “Holding Her And Loving You,” we just didn’t get it on the demo. But somehow, Earl Thomas Conley and his producer Nelson Larkin were able to hear through the demo and imagine it. When they played us the record, it sounded like a hit. When you heard Earl sing it, you believed it.

“Write to express yourself”

You don’t write songs for the money or the gold records. You write because you want to express yourself in some way that you’re unable to express yourself otherwise. Getting this induction means my colleagues who have written some of my favorite songs – people whose opinions I value the most – are willing to say, “Hey man, you did good.” It’s quite a club to be voted into. I’m deeply honored.

~~~

Again, my thanks to Lon Helton and all at Country Aircheck for allowing me to reprint this article. I recommend that you visit this link to the Sept 25 edition of Country Aircheck to read the original article and see why Country Aircheck is a ‘must read’ for anyone involved in Country radio and the music industry. – Preshias.

Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Class of 2017

Induction ceremony set for October 23

Four of Nashville’s finest will receive one of the music industry’s most coveted honors: induction into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. The class of 2017 consists of Jim McBride, Walt Aldridge, Tim Nichols and the late Vern Gosdin.

Pictured (l-r) are: Pat Alger, Buddy Cannon (representing the late Vern Gosdin), Jim McBride, Tim Nichols, Walt Aldridge and Mark Ford, executive director of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. (Photo courtesy: Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame)

The announcement was made at a news conference on August 9 by Pat Alger, chair of the organization’s board of directors. The induction ceremony will take place on October 23 at the Music City Center.

As in previous years, there are several categories for the new inductees. Aldridge and Nichols will be inducted in the Songwriters category, McBride is the inductee in the Veterans category, and Gosdin will be honored in the Songwriter/Artist category.

Walt Aldridge

Walt Aldridge

Walt Adridge has written hit songs for artists such as Ronnie Milsap (“There’s No Getting Over Me”), Earl Thomas Conley (“Holding Her and Loving You”) and Conway Twitty (“She’s Got a Single Thing In Mind”). Florence, AL, native Aldridge was also an integral part of the Muscle Shoals music scene, working at the aptly named Fame Studios.

Tim Nichols

Tim Nichols

Tim Nichols wrote “You’re Not in Kansas Anymore” for Jo Dee Messina, “I’m Over You” for Keith Whitley and “Cowboys and Angels for Dustin Lynch. One of his biggest hits was his 2004 song for Tim McGraw, “Live Like You Were Dying,” co-written with Craig Wiseman. That song won the Grammy Award for Best Country Song at the 47th Grammy Awards and was the ACM ‘Song of the Year.’

Jim McBride

Jim McBride

Jim McBride, the honoree in the Veteran category, has had a long career as a songwriter, having written his first song when he was twelve. Success eluded him until he moved from Huntsville, AL, to Nashville and began to get cuts including “A Bridge That Just Won’t Burn” for Conway Twitty. The song won McBride’s first BMI Award along with co-writer Roger Murrah. Other McBride hits include “Chattahoochie” for Alan Jackson and songs cut by John Anderson, Waylon Jennings and many more.

Vern Gosdin

Vern Gosdin

Vern Gosdin racked up nineteen Top-Ten Country chart hits between 1977 and 1990, including three Number Ones: “I Can Tell By the Way You Dance,” “Set ‘Em Up Joe” (a tribute to Ernest Tubb), and “I’m Still Crazy.” He faced several setbacks including signing with record labels that either shut down or went bankrupt. He almost left the music business entirely in the 1970s, operating a glass company in Cartersville, GA, before being coaxed back and creating a string of hits including 1983’s “Tennessee Courage,” a song Gosdin co-wrote with Louis Brown and Max D. Barnes.  Known to his many fans as ‘The Voice,’ Vern Gosdin passed away following a stroke in April 2009.

The Hall of Fame

The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to honoring and preserving the songwriting legacy that is uniquely associated with the Nashville music community. Its purpose is to educate, celebrate and archive the achievements and contributions made by members of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame to the world.  The class of 2017 will join be joining the 203 members previously inducted in the NSHoF.

Read more about the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and see photos and info about all the inductees here.