Roy Clark helps Brad Paisley close “H20 World Tour” in Tulsa
Country Music Hall of Famer and Tulsa resident Roy Clark and Brad Paisley jam during Paisley's Nov. 20 concert at Tulsa's BOK Center. (Photo by Ben Enos)
Country Music Hall of Famer and Tulsa resident Roy Clark surprised Oklahoma music fans Nov. 20 when he joined superstar Brad Paisley on stage for a rare live performance. Paisley wrapped up his 2010 “H2O World Tour” with a concert at Tulsa’s BOK Center.
Clark made a special guest appearance to play an instrumental version of “Ghost Riders in the Sky” alongside Paisley, pairing two of country music’s great guitarists.
“I learned to play guitar with a Roy Clark songbook, so I blame all of this on him” Paisley told the sold-out crowd.
“Brad’s show and guitar playing really inspired me! I’m going on tour!” Clark said after feeling the excitement and energy of Paisley’s show.
It was the first time the two Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year award winners have ever played together. Clark received the top CMA honor in 1973 and Paisley won the title for the first time earlier this month at the 2010 CMA Awards.
Over the past year, Paisley has played to nearly a million fans in more than 73 markets, including more than 51,000 at Boston’s Gillette Stadium, 70,000 at AquaPalooza, more than 35,000 at Gulf Shores for “Concerts for the Gulf,” two sold-out shows in London, England, and Notodden Norway’s Musikkfestival.
Darius Rucker and Justin Moore have been special guests on the tour, and Steel Magnolia, Easton Corbin and Josh Thompson were performers on the Water World Stage.
The final leg of the H2O World tour – appropriately renamed the “H2O Frozen Over” tour – kicks off Jan. 20 in Green Bay, Wisc., with Jerrod Niemann and Rucker as special guests. Check www.bradpaisley.com for tour information.
-BAM
Photo gallery: CMA Music Fest sets attendance record; Oklahoma stars light up Nashville event
Country music sweethearts Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton, who live in Tishomingo, perform together during the 2010 CMA Music Festival. (Associated Press photos)
The CMA Music Festival hit an all-time record in 2010, selling out each night at LP Field, the venue for the nightly star-packed concerts, sending a strong message that Music City is back in business after the floods that devastated Nashville in May.
“This news is terrific for our community, our industry, and the artists who gave freely of their time over the past week to make CMA Music Festival the biggest and best event since it started as Fan Fair in 1972,” said Steve Moore, chairman of the CMA Board of Directors, in a news release. “After all we have been through, and all the hard work everyone contributed to getting the venues and businesses ready for our fans, this is a huge win for everyone who cares about Music City. This community needed a big win and we got it.”
With the unprecedented sell-out, the festival, which took place Thursday-Sunday, experienced a 16.7 percent increase in attendance at LP Field, including four-day ticket packages, promotional and single night tickets. Average nightly attendance topped 49,000.
The increase was felt throughout the festival, with record numbers in all the free zones, public events, and concert venues, including Riverfront Park, which experienced a daily increase of 6.4 percent over 2009, when the area was opened to the public for the first time.
Estimated daily attendance throughout the festival in 2010 was 65,000 compared to 56,000 in 2009.
“The impact of this year’s CMA Music Festival is more significant than ever because of its timing following the flood,” said Butch Spyridon, President of the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau, in the release. “The fact that this was the biggest and best CMA Fest in Nashville’s history is icing on the cake. It’s proof positive that Nashville is back!”
Oklahoma country music stars were a big part of the successful festival: Checotah native Carrie Underwood performed at LP Field Thursday, the event’s opening night, along with Alan Jackson, Lady Antebellum, Tim McGraw and more.
On Friday, Tishomingo resident Miranda Lambert and Chockie native Reba McEntire were part of the LP Field lineup.
“I remember exactly where I was sitting when I came to CMA Fest,” Lambert said, pointing toward the highest seats in LP Field and remembering her visit as one among thousands of Country Music fans.
Saturday night included performances by Billy Currington, Martina McBride, Zac Brown Band and Rascal Flatts, which includes Joe Don Rooney of Picher.
On Sunday, Tishomingo resident Blake Shelton performed, with special appearances by Lambert, his fiancee, and Chuck Wicks. Shelton also did a duet with Trace Adkins, his fellow “Hillbilly Bone” hitmaker. Others on the Saturday slate included Brad Paisley, Kellie Pickler and Darius Rucker.
“We came to Nashville this time to throw down. It’s time to throw down,” said Adkins. “Thank you for bringing your badonkadonks to Nashville.”
Country Music Hall of Fame member Roy Clark, who lives in Tulsa, was honored Sunday during the 31st annual Sunday Mornin’ Country concert at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center in Nashville, according to CMT.com. Set during the CMA Music Festival, the tribute was to feature fellow Hall of Fame member Charlie McCoy and several of Clark’s fellow “Hee Haw” cast members, including LuLu Roman, Roni Stoneman and the Nashville Edition.
In addition, several country stars, including Lambert and Oklahoma City-bred Vince Gill, played shows and threw parties for their fan clubs during the event.
The festival was filmed for a three-hour television special “CMA Music Festival: Country’s Night to Rock,” hosted by Tim McGraw and scheduled to air at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 1 on ABC.
Until then, check out these Associated Press photos of the Oklahoma stars in action at the CMA Music Festival:
Reba McEntire, who hails from Chockie, belts out one of her hits.
Rascal Flatts guitarist Joe Don Rooney, who grew up in Picher, plays during the fest.
Checotah native Carrie Underwood performs Thursday, the opening night of the CMA Music Festival.
Blake Shelton performs with Trace Adkins.
Miranda Lambert plays her signature pink guitar at the CMA Music Festival. It was a busy weekend for Lambert, who also played at the huge Bonnaroo Music Festival in Manchester, Tenn.
See more photos after the break.
Oklahoma country music “Starmaker” Jim Halsey to be honored in Oklahoma History Center exhibit opening this afternoon
Jim Halsey (Kelly Kerr photo)
The career of Jim Halsey, Oklahoma-based music manager, agent, impresario, teacher and author, is the subject of a new exhibit opening today at the Oklahoma History Center, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive (formerly 2401 N Laird Ave.).
The 1,800-square-foot exhibition “Starmaker: Jim Halsey & the Legends of Country Music” will open with a public signing event for Halsey’s new book, “Starmaker,” from 3 to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
An invitation-only reception for Halsey, hosted by Roy Clark, Wanda Jackson and the Oak Ridge Boys, will take place later this evening, according to NewsOK.
Halsey has been the agent of more than 40 top music stars over the past 60 years and built the largest country music agency in the world, based in Tulsa. He guided — and in many cases discovered — artists such as Clark, the Oak Ridge Boys, Merle Haggard, the Judds, Hank Thompson, Reba McEntire, Mel Tillis, Clint Black, Tammy Wynette, Freddy Fender and Don Williams.
After he sold his company to the William Morris Agency, he founded the Jim Halsey Institute, which focuses on helping others pursue their dreams in the music industry. He continues to manage the Oak Ridge Boys.
The exhibit will display many items from Halsey’s career, from gold and platinum albums marking his clients’ achievements to awards and citations given to Halsey for his contributions to the music industry.
In “Starmaker,” released by Tate Publishing this month, Halsey shares secrets he learned while shepherding stars’ careers.
Halsey still lives near Tulsa with his wife, Minisa.
EXHIBIT OPENING/BOOK SIGNING
“Starmaker: Jim Halsey & the Legends of Country Music”
When: 3 to 5 p.m. today.
Where: Oklahoma History Center, 800 Nazih Zuhdi Drive (formerly listed as 2401 N Laird Ave.).
Admission: Free.
Information: okhistorycenter.org.
-BAM
Roy Clark, Barbara Mandrell, Charlie McCoy inducted into Country Music Hall of Fame
Country music stars Charlie McCoy, left, Roy Clark, center, and Barbara Mandrell meet during a reception before being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tenn. on Sunday. (Associated Press photo)
Tulsa resident Roy Clark, along with singer Barbara Mandrell and musician Charlie McCoy, were inducted Sunday into the Country Music Hall of Fame. The Medallion Ceremony in Nashville, Tenn., was at times emotional as stars paid tribute to the inductees, according to the Associated Press.
The three country icons were honored in a tribute that included performances by Oklahoma natives Garth Brooks and Reba McEntire, George Jones, Alison Krauss, Josh Turner, Michael McDonald, Rodney Crowell and others. With the inductions, the hall boasts 108 members.
Country music star Roy Clark performs after being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tenn. on Sunday. (AP photo)
To honor Clark, guitarist Duane Eddy performed the instrumental “Ghost Riders in the Sky,” one of Clark’s signature tunes. Josh Turner sang “Thank God and Greyhound.” And Garth Brooks praised his fellow Oklahoman, saying Clark inspired him to chase his dream. Brooks described Clark as “a man who never stopped being a man from where he was from,” according to the AP.
Clark, 76, learned to play play the guitar, banjo and mandolin at a young age. He started on the path to fame on Jimmy Dean’s TV show “Town and Country Time” and took over the show when Dean left. He moved to Las Vegas in 1960 and became a regular at the Golden Nugget. Later, he toured and recorded with Oklahoma native Wanda Jackson and was a regular at the Frontier Hotel in Vegas.
In the ’60s he had top 10 hits with “Tips of My Fingers” and “Yesterday When I Was Young.” He also broke into TV, appearing on “The Tonight Show,” “The Jackie Gleason Show” and the “Beverly Hillbillies.”
In 1969, Clark and Buck Owens were picked by CBS to co-host “Hee Haw,” a country version of the series “Laugh-In.” He and Owens, who died in 2006, hosted “Hee Haw” for more than 20 years.
“We love you Roy Clark. We love you,” Grand Ole Opry star Little Jimmy Dickens told Clark as he formally inducted him into the hall. “Everytime you hit the stage you update country music 10 years, and that’s what it’s all about.”
The AP reports that Clark got emotional and said it was humbling to be mentioned alongside many of his musical heroes.
“Just to be associated yourself with the members of the Country Music Hall of Fame and imagine that your name will be said right along with all the list … ,” he said.
Clark entertained the audience with a couple of humorous stories and a song, “Yesterday When I Was Young.”
Country music star Barbara Mandrell speaks after being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tenn., on Sunday. (AP photo)
Mandrell, 60, gave special thanks to her late father and longtime manager, Irby Mandrell, who died in March at age 84.
“Irby Mandrell was my manager as well as being my Daddy over my 38-year career. He taught me and guided me and directed me. It is his name, Mandrell, that I am blessed to have, and it’s the gracious loving public and the fans that made that name known and made it become popular,” she said in what the AP called an emotional speech. “So tonight I thank you with my entire being for putting my and my Daddy’s name into the Hall of Fame.”
According to the AP, Mandrell began her professional career in California when she was 11. She made her national TV debut on ABC with Red Foley’s “Five Star Jubilee.” Her first concert tour was with Johnny and June Carter Cash, Patsy Cline and George Jones.
She charted her first single in 1969, a remake of Otis Redding’s “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long,” and went on to have a long run of country hits including “Midnight Oil,” “Married But Not to Each Other,” “Sleeping Single in a Double Bed” and “I Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool.”
At the height of her career, she acted in TV shows like the “The Rockford Files” and in 1980 teamed with her siblings to host “Barbara Mandrell and the Mandrell Sisters” on NBC, which drew 40 million viewers a week and broadened her exposure beyond country music.
“I adore you with all my heart. You are my other big sister,” Reba McEntire told Mandrell. “I thank you for the things you taught me, not only musically but spiritually.
“And before I start balling like a baby, I’ll start singing,” McEntire said as she began “I Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool” with Jones.
Bluegrass queen Alison Krauss sang “The Midnight Oil,” while Michael McDonald gave a bluesy take on “(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don’t Want to Be Right,” originally a soul song that Mandrell made into a No. 1 country hit. Her sister Louise sang “Sleeping Single in a Double Bed.”
Musician Charlie McCoy arrives to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tenn., on Sunday. (AP photo)
For McCoy, Rodney Crowell led a harmonica-heavy rendition of Roy Orbison’s “Candy Man.” McCoy, 68, is a multi-instrumentalist best known for his harmonica work, according to the AP.
McCoy’s first session was “Candy Man” in 1961. Since then, he’s recorded with Oklahoman Leon Russell, Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson, Gordon Lightfoot, Paul Simon, Ringo Starr, Tanya Tucker and many more.
McCoy, who continues to record and perform, said when he first arrived in town he wanted to be a singer and didn’t know what a “session” was. But he learned fast watching a teenage Brenda Lee record “Sweet Nothin’s” with Nashville’s top studio musicians, known as the “A Team.”
“When I watched those Nashville A Team musicians work I said ‘To heck with singing, I want to do this,’” McCoy recalled.
Check after the break to see more photos of the Medallion Ceremony.
Roy Clark entering Country Music Hall of Fame Sunday
Roy Clark performs in 2006. (Associated Press photo)
Roy Clark, Barbara Mandrell and Charlie McCoy are announced as the 2009 inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame at a press conference hosted by the Country Music Association on in February at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville.
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
Tulsa resident Roy Clark to enter country music hall
Country music icon Roy Clark will be formally inducted Sunday into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
The longtime Tulsa resident, along with singer Barbara Mandrell and musician Charlie McCoy, will enter the institution at the Medallion Ceremony at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tenn. The ceremony takes place during an annual reunion of the Hall of Fame membership.
“I’m honored to be in the Country Music Hall of Fame because I know or knew 90 percent of the people who are in here; they’re my friends. And the rest of them I don’t know are my heroes,” Clark said in February, when his induction into the hall was announced.
Clark, 76, learned to play the guitar, banjo and mandolin at a young age. By age 17, the Virginia native had won two national banjo championships, which earned him his first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry.
He became a regular on Jimmy Dean’s TV show “Town and Country Time” and took over the series when Dean left. Clark moved to Las Vegas in 1960 and became a fixture at the Golden Nugget. He later joined Oklahoma native Wanda Jackson as leader of her band.
In the 1960s and ’70s, Clark charted several Top 10 country singles, including “Tips of My Fingers,” “Yesterday When I Was Young,” and “If I Had It to Do All Over Again.”
He also ventured into acting, first with TV shows such as “The Tonight Show” and “The Beverly Hillbillies” and later in the movies “Uphill All the Way,” “Freeway” and “Gordy.” He finished filming the movie “Palo Pinto Gold” with Mel Tillis and Trent Willmon last year.
In 1969, Clark and Buck Owens were picked by CBS to co-host “Hee Haw,” a country version of the series “Laugh-In.” He and Owens, who died in 2006, hosted “Hee Haw” for more than 20 years.
In his six-decade career, Clark has won a Grammy and many other awards, gained a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and joined the Grand Ole Opry. He and Jackson, a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer, were inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2000.
Clark and his wife Barbara have lived in Tulsa for many years; Roy Clark Elementary School in the Tulsa Union district is named for him.
He will be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in the “Career Achieved National Prominence Between World War II and 1975″ category.
-BAM
BAM’s Country Music Minute: Brooks & Dunn, Dolly Parton, Roy Clark and more
I’m delivering news on Brooks & Dunn, Dierks Bentley, Dolly Parton, Roy Clark, along with a list of the country stars playing Oklahoma this weekend, in today’s BAM’s Country Music Minute.
-BAM
Photo gallery: Roy Clark
”Hee Haw” co-hosts Buck Owens, left, and Roy Clark perform with other cast members during a taping of the show in 1986 in Nashville, Tenn. (Associated Press photo)
Click here to view a NewsOK photo gallery of Roy Clark’s career. On Wednesday, the Country Music Association announced that the longtime Tulsa resident would be added this year to the Country Music Hall of Fame.
-BAM
Biography: Roy Clark
From Thursday’s The Oklahoman.
Country Music Hall of Fame 2009 inductee Roy Clark
Renowned country musician Roy Clark was born April 15, 1933 in Meherrin, Va., the son of two amateur musicians. He learned to play banjo, guitar and mandolin at a young age and often performed with his father as a teen. By age 17, he had won two national banjo championships, which earned him his first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry.
He became a regular on Jimmy Dean’s TV show “Town and Country Time,” taking over the series when Dean left. In 1960, Clark moved to Las Vegas and became a fixture at the Golden Nugget. He later was the leader of Oklahoma native Wanda Jackson’s band.
In the 1960s and ‘70s, Clark notched a series of Top 10 country singles, including “Tips of My Fingers,” “Yesterday When I Was Young,” “I Never Picked Cotton” and “If I Had It to Do All Over Again.”
He also branched out into acting, first with TV shows such as “The Tonight Show” and “The Beverly Hillbillies” and later in the movies “Uphill All the Way,” “Freeway” and “Gordy.” He finished filming the movie “Palo Pinto Gold” with Mel Tillis and Trent Willmon last year.
In 1969, he got the defining role in his career when CBS tapped Clark and Buck Owens to co-host “Hee Haw,” a country version of the series “Laugh-In.” He was the show’s co-host until 1992, when it neared the end of its more than 20-year run.
Over the course of his career, Clark has won a Grammy and numerous other awards, gained a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and joined the Grand Ole Opry. He and Jackson were inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame in 2000.
Clark and his wife Barbara have made their home in Tulsa for many years.
Clark will be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in the “Career Achieved National Prominence Between World War II and 1975″ category.
-BAM
Roy Clark honored to join Country Music Hall of Fame
From left, Charlie McCoy, Barbara Mandrell and Roy Clark are announced as the 2009 inductees of the Country Music Hall of Fame at a press conference hosted by the Country Music Association Wednesday at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville, Tenn. (Photo by John Russell/CMA)
A version of this story ran in Thursday’s The Oklahoman.
Roy Clark ‘honored’ to join Country Hall of Fame
Longtime Tulsan’s career includes a Grammy and several Top 10 singles
Prominent country musician Roy Clark feels honored to be joining what he calls “a very exclusive club”: the Country Music Hall of Fame.
The Country Music Association announced Wednesday that the longtime Tulsa resident will be among the Nashville, Tenn.-based institution’s 2009 inductees, along with singer Barbara Mandrell and musician Charlie McCoy. They will be formally inducted in spring.
“You’re so busy working all the time that you never think about it,” Clark, 75, said. “I’m honored to be in the Country Music Hall of Fame because I know or knew 90 percent of the people who are in here; they’re my friends. And the rest of them I don’t know are my heroes.”
His six-decade career includes a Grammy award and several Top 10 country singles. But the talented banjo, guitar and mandolin player is probably best known for co-hosting the TV variety show “Hee Haw” with Buck Owens for more than 20 years.
“I grew up listening (to) and watching Roy Clark, and what an impact he made on a lot of people’s lives back in the day when he was on ‘Hee Haw” and he and Buck Owens were ‘picking and grinning,’” said Beth Seim, executive director of the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. “What an awesome thing that he is being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. I would say it’s long overdue.”
Clark and Oklahoma native Wanda Jackson were inducted into the state music hall of fame in 2000. Clark was the leader of Jackson’s band in the 1960s, playing on several of the singer’s recordings, including her rock hit “Let’s Have a Party.” Jackson , who lives in Oklahoma City, was selected for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last month.
Theresa Kiger, principal of Roy Clark Elementary School in the Tulsa Union district, said teachers will share the exciting news today with the student body. Last year, Clark played a benefit concert that raised $25,000 for the school’s music department; several students performed as his opening act.
“That money has been spent on after-school programs, specifically on guitar lessons and drum lessons for children. It’s also allowed us to have an after-school program that focuses on arts and drama,” she said. “Mr. Clark has been a strong supporter … and we’re so excited for him.”
-BAM
