CRS - Can Remember Stuff

Good Monday morning. Now that country radio folk, including yours truly, have had the weekend to get home and recover from the whirlwind that is CRS, let’s see if we CAN Remember Stuff! So many things are going on, often times simultaneously, that it’s good to look back and review some of the highlights or announcements that may have been missed.

With Kenny Chesney off the road this summer, it looks like Brad Paisley is picking up the slack on the festival-style concert experience. To open the H20 summer tour, Brad’s pulled the A-list of new talent together, including Darius Rucker, Josh Thompson, Miranda Lambert, Steel Magnolia, Easton Corbin, and Justin Moore. The tour kicks off in May. ….. Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, and Kellie Pickler took home award plaques as souvenirs from CRS. Carrie’s award was for 20 million “Digital Transactions;” Miranda got a gold plaque for her album Revolution, and Kellie took home a platinum decoration for one million digital downloads of “Best Days of My Life.” ….. Bryan Adams showed up as the surprise guest at one of the many industry parties that go during CRS Week. He sang “Summer of ’69,” and “Run To You,” after which Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood jumped up to sing their respective Bryan Adams covers. ..... Rupert showed up. A name not often associated with country music, Rupert Boneham from Survivor Hereos vs. Villians was spotted mingling among the radio and record folk. ….. A little bit of baby talk was also heard in the hallways, and no, it wasn’t from radio people who were spending a little bit too much free time away from microphones. Luke Bryan spilled the news that he and his wife, Carolyn, are expecting their second child in August. Their first son, Bo, will be turning two in March. James Otto was also pretty giddy about the news that he and his wife, Amy, will be welcoming their first child, also in August. … There was also talk in the hallways on Friday of what would have been Johnny Cash’s 78th birthday. How fun is this? By pure coincidence, the 10 billionth song was downloaded on iTunes on Friday, and it was Johnny Cash’s “Guess Things Happen That Way.” iTunes checked the account records, and it was a 71-year-old man, Louie Sulcer of Georgia, who downloaded the tune, and to his surprise, he received calls from both Apple CEO Steve Jobs and Johnny Cash’s daughter Rosanne Cash. Apple also threw in a $10,000 iTunes credit for the lucky downloader.