I'm looking forward to hearing the songs!!!!

Time for another blog for Ol Uncle Rock, first off....get those vocal cords ready for Monday morning (4/28/08), we'll be starting to take calls for you to sing your songs to win that BIG OL TRIP TO NASHVILLE FOR THE CMA MUSIC FESTIVAL!!!! I would personally like to thanks Thornhill GM Superstore for making the event possible. Which leads me to the best thing since BBQ Ribs.....COUNTRY MUSIC!!!! Lady Antebellum's self-titled CD debuts at No. 1 on the Billboard country albums chart this week with first-round sales of 43,384 units. Making this sunny achievement all the more remarkable is the fact that the Capitol Records trio has yet to score a Top 5 single to give its album a big airplay boost. "Love Don't Live Here," Lady Antebellum's first single, currently sits at No. 9 after 29 weeks on the chart. On the songs list, George Strait racks up another chart-topper with "I Saw God Today," which reaches the summit just 11 weeks after its release. The only other new album this period is Yonder Mountain String Band's Mountain Tracks: Volume 5. It enters at No. 67. Joe Nichols' Real Things returns to the chart at No. 70. There are five new songs to report, all of them rather low on the chart. Chuck Wicks' "All I Ever Wanted" bows at No. 50, followed by Darius Rucker's "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" (No. 51), Eric Church's "His Kind of Money (My Kind of Love)" (No. 55), Rissi Palmer's "Hold On to Me" (No. 59) and Kevin Fowler's "Best Mistake I Ever Made" (No. 60). Trailing Lady Antebellum within the Top 5 albums are Strait's Troubadour, Taylor Swift's eponymous juggernaut, James Otto's Sunset Man and Carrie Underwood's Carnival Ride, in that order. Parading directly behind Strait's top song are Trace Adkins' "You're Gonna Miss This," Otto's "Just Got Started Lovin' You," Swift's "Picture to Burn" and Phil Vassar's "Love Is a Beautiful Thing." That's the buzz for now. Until next time,

Uncle Rock
--"if you wanna make it, you can't fake it...you gotta LIVE IT!!!"

BIG OL NEWS MONDAY MORNING ON THE BIG OL MORNING SHOW

Howdy Coal Country! It's time once again, for another blog from Ol Hop Along Rock. Just a couple of things before I get into the country music news...Be sure to check out the Big Ol Morning Show this Monday (4/21/08) for a huge announcement about the CMA Music Festival! I'm not at liberty to say a whole lot about it, but it's HUGE...so be sure to tune in for the big announcement! Also, I would like to thank the staff at Dollywood for being so kind to my co-host Tia last week. She went down for the tribute to Porter Wagoner, she brought back some great pictures and even a couple of things that you are going to be hearing during the Big Ol Morning Show. You will see pictured about Miss Dolly Parton and her huge......talent! Moving right along to Hillbilly Days, I have lived in Southern West Virginia all of my life but I never made the trip to Pikeville for Hillbilly Days. If you have never been, I highly recommend it. Good food, good music and PURDY women! What more can a man ask for? Now on to what makes the world go around... COUNTRY MUSIC!!! All hail, King George! George Strait's Troubadour tops both Billboard's country and all-genres album charts this week with first-week sales of more than 166,000 copies. That's quite an achievement for a guy who first began charting 27 years ago. Trade Adkins looms on the peak of the song chart for the second straight week with "You're Gonna Miss This." In so doing, he holds Strait's "I Saw God Today" at bay in the No. 2 niche. Five other albums make their first visit to the charts this period. Entering at a very impressive No. 4 is Josh Gracin's We Weren't Crazy, followed by Aaron Watson's Angels & Outlaws (No. 28), Willie Nelson's One Hell of a Ride (No. 46), Kathy Mattea's Coal (No. 64) and the various-artist assemblage, The Very Best of Outlaw Country (No. 65). Nelson, by the way, has been charting since 1962 and Mattea since 1983. Only two new songs crack this week's listing -- former Trick Pony member Heidi Newfield's "Johnny & June" (No. 46) and Lonestar's "Let Me Love You" (No. 60). After its quick on-and-off debut, Dolly Parton's "Jesus & Gravity" returns at No. 56.Among the week's remaining Top 5 albums, Taylor Swift's self-titled CD simmers at No. 2, Alan Jackson's Good Time at No. 3 and Carrie Underwood's Carnival Ride at No. 5. Trailing Adkins and Strait within the Top 5 songs, in descending order, are Chris Cagle's "What Kinda Gone," James Otto's "Just Got Started Lovin' You" and Swift's "Picture to Burn." Until next time,

Uncle Rock
--"if you wanna make it, you can't fake it...you gotta LIVE IT!!!"

PS Don't forget about the BIG ANNOUNCEMENT Monday morning on The Tri-States Coal Country & More 965!!!

The Biggest Fans Of The Big Ol Morning Show

Howdy Coal Country! It's time for another blog to get you up to date on the wonderful world of country music...but first I have to fill you in on the Biggest Fans Of The Big Ol Morning Show. We had a great time at the Tug Valley Chapter of The American Red Cross Auction. Together we raised tons of money for the Red Cross and one lucky bidder even walked away with the "Man Coat"! I encourage all of you to get involved with the Red Cross. We have had so many horrible floods in our area and the Red Cross is always there when we need them the most! Pictured above you will see "The Biggest Fans Of The Big Ol Morning Show" and the new owner of the "Man Coat". Now lets get on to my favorite thing...COUNTRY MUSIC! After a debut sales surge that kept it at No. 1 for two weeks on Billboard's country albums chart, Alan Jackson's Good Time is pulled back to No. 2 this week by Taylor Swift's long-reigning self-titled CD. Talk about momentum! Swift's album continues to have plenty of steam 74 weeks after its release.Jackson, however, maintains his perch on the peak of the songs charts with "Small Town Southern Man."There are six new songs and one new album to report. The lone album is a multi-artist package jawbreakingly titled Original American Classics: Truckin' Country Classics, which bows in at a humble No. 74.First-time tunes include Kenny Chesney's "Better as a Memory" (No. 47), Gary Allan's "Learning How to Bend" (No. 51), Garth Brooks' "Midnight Sun" (No. 53), Sugarland's "Life in a Northern Town" (No. 57), Dolly Parton's "Jesus & Gravity" (No. 58) and Crystal Shawanda's "You Can Let Go" (No. 60). The Sugarland track also features Little Big Town and Jake Owen.Re-entering the albums chart are Diamond Rio's 16 Biggest Hits (No. 69), Cross Canadian Ragweed's Mission California (No. 70) and The Very Best of Tracy Lawrence (No. 74).Counting down the Top 5 albums after Swift's and Jackson's, we find Carrie Underwood's Carnival Ride, Rascal Flatts' Still Feels Good and Brooks' The Ultimate Hits, in that order.The remaining Top 5 songs, top to bottom, are Trace Adkins' "You're Gonna Miss This," Chris Cagle's "What Kinda Gone," George Strait's "I Saw God Today" and Underwood's "All-American Girl." In closing, I can't let the cat out of the bag yet...but be sure to tune in The Big Ol Morning Show for some HUGE news about the CMA Music Festival (formerly known as Fan Fair)....that is all I am at liberty to say right now, but trust me it's going to be HUGE!!! For more info on the CMA Music Festival you can check out cmafest.com Until next time,
Uncle Rock
--"if you wanna make it, you can't fake it...you gotta LIVE IT!!!"

Who's egg is prettier?

Well its all up to you Coal Country! Be sure to leave a comment on the blog and let us know who you think has the prettiest egg.....and I'll go ahead and fill you in on whats happening in the world of county music! Alan JacksonAs Music Row has been predicting, Alan Jackson's Good Time sold enough copies this past week -- just over 119,000 units -- to top both Billboard's country and all-formats album charts. This is an especially significant achievement for Jackson since he wrote, single-handedly, all 17 songs on the new collection.For the second week, Carrie Underwood's "All-American Girl" reigns as America's No. 1 country song.Jackson's surge pushes Taylor Swift's self-titled album back to second place. But that's still a pretty good position for a project that's been out 72 weeks.Jo Dee Messina's "I'm Done" is the highest-charting new song. It breaks in at No. 56. The other first-time song entries are Clint Black's cover of the 1972 Hollies hit, "Long Cool Woman" (No. 58), Luke Bryan's "Country Man" (No. 59) and Cross Canadian Ragweed's "Cry Lonely" (No. 60).Had it not been for Jackson's splash, Ashton Shepherd's widely-praised debut album, Sounds So Good, would have been this week's big news. It bounds onto the chart at an enviable No. 16. Also making its bow is Carlene Carter's potent package, Stronger, which comes on at No. 69.Albums re-entering are Steve Earle's Washington Square Serenade (No. 72), Joe Nichols' Real Things (No. 74) and Jack Ingram's This Is It (No.75).Trailing in order behind Swift within the Top 5 albums list are Garth Brooks' The Ultimate Hits, Underwood's Carnival Ride and Robert Plant and Alison Krauss' Raising Sand.The No. 2 through No. 5 songs are Jackson's "Small Town Southern Man," Kenny Chesney and George Strait's "Shiftwork," Rodney Atkins' "Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)" and Trace Adkins' "You're Gonna Miss This." Until next time....

Uncle Rock

--"if you wanna make it, you can't fake it...you gotta LIVE IT!!!"

Welcome to March...

Howdy Coal Country! Welcome to another blog here on coalcountry965.com! It's been a busy week for Ol Uncle Rock...had the pleasure of being the keynote speaker at the Williamson Rotary Club meeting this past Tuesday. We discussed the webstream on coalcountry965.com as well as the 100,000 watt power increase to WXCC. Also, Thursday I was the host of the Gilbert High School pep rally! We had a blast sending those guys and gals off to the WV State Tournament in Charleston! Well enough about me and my week lets move on to the reason we are all here....COUNTRY MUSIC!!! Carrie Underwood smacks down Rodney Atkins while Taylor Swift trips up all her competition to reclaim dominion over the album chart. Bubbling up, too, are five first-time songs and three new albums.Underwood's "All-American Girl" leapfrogs from No. 5 to No. 1, shoving Atkins' "Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)" back to No. 2 after its two-week stay on top. Among the albums, Swift's self-titled package takes back the throne that Chris Cagle momentarily usurped last week with his newest CD, My Life's Been a Country Song. It falls to No. 9.This round's new songs are Julianne Hough's "That Song in My Head" (climbing into the ring at No. 51), Tim McGraw's "Kristofferson" (No. 53). Emily West's "Rocks in Your Shoes" (No. 54), Toby Keith's "She's a Hottie" (No. 56) and LeAnn Rimes' "Good Friend and a Glass Of Wine" (No. 59).(Now let's see: Taylor Swift records a song called "Tim McGraw" -- and then Tim McGraw has a song called "Kristofferson." All that remains is for Kris Kristofferson to write a song called "Taylor Swift" to bring all these adulatory impulses full circle.)Re-entering the song chart this week are the Lost Trailers' "Holler Back" (No. 48) and Mica Roberts and Toby Keith's "Things a Mama Don't Know" (No. 58).Albums making their first chart bow are the Blake Shelton's Collector's Edition (No. 30), Trent Willmon's Broken In (No. 33) and the SteelDrivers' self-titled collection (No. 57). Making a comeback are the Isaacs' Big Sky (No. 63), Emerson Drive's Countrified (No. 70) and Rhonda Vincent's Good Thing Going (No. 71).Following "All-American Girl" and "Cleaning This Gun" in this week's Top 5 songs list are Alan Jackson's "Small Town Southern Man," Kenny Chesney and George Strait's "Shiftwork" and Chuck Wicks' "Stealing Cinderella."Rounding out the Top 5 albums, also in descending order, are Dolly Parton's Backwoods Barbie (which vaults to No. 2 from No. 48), Garth Brooks' The Ultimate Hits, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss' Raising Sand and Underwood's Carnival Ride.It was widely predicted at the just-concluded Country Radio Seminar in Nashville that Alan Jackson's Good Time, released Tuesday (March 4), will top both Billboard's country and all-genres tabulations next week. Sounds VERY possible to me!! Until next time

Uncle Rock
--"if you wanna make it, you can't fake it...you gotta LIVE IT!!!"

YOU COULD OWN A PIECE OF HISTORY "THE MANCOAT"

Can you believe that it's almost March? Wow, where does the time go? Well I guess time has gotten away from Ol Hop Along Rock, it's been a busy month with the 100,000 watt news on Coal Country and I have moved to a new house! So it has been an eventful month for me! I want to remind you that the Tug Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross will be having their Auction on March 27th in Williamson at the Fire Department. Tia and I are going to take some fans of the "Big Ol Morning Show" to the auction and dinner as our special "VIP" guests and you have a chance to own a piece of history, "THE MANCOAT" will be up for auction and all proceeds go to the Tug Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross! Keep checking coalcountry965.com for details on how you can win! Now on to the best thing since individually wrapped cheese slices....COUNTRY MUSIC!!! Rodney Atkins' "Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)" finally topples Brad Paisley's "Letter to Me" from the top of Billboard's song chart this week. But tenacious Taylor Swift's self-titled CD still holds the No. 1 album slot, where it's been for eight straight weeks. The Grammy awards show on Feb. 10 has had no discernible effect on the charts, other than the fact that the one new album entry this week is Ultimate Grammy Collection: Contemporary Country, a multi-artist package. It edges in way down at No. 70. Also, just one new song breaks through. It's Montgomery Gentry's "Back When I Knew It All," which bows at No. 49. Albums coming back onto the chart are Steve Earle's Washington Square Serenade (at No. 68), Lyle Lovett and His Large Band's It's Not Big It's Large (No. 74) and Jake Owen's Startin' With Me (No. 75). The lone returning song of the week is Sarah Johns' "He Hates Me," resurfacing at No. 56. Immediately following Swift's album, in order, are the Eagles' Long Road Out of Eden, Garth Brooks' The Ultimate Hits, Robert Plant and Alison Krauss' Raising Sand and Carrie Underwood's Carnival Ride. Swimming along in Atkins' wake are Gary Allan's "Watching Airplanes," Paisley's "Letter to Me," Kenny Chesney and George Strait's "Shiftwork" and, making its first appearance in the Top 5, Alan Jackson's "Small Town Southern Man."

Until next time....

Uncle Rock
--"if you wanna make it, you can't fake it...you gotta LIVE IT!!!"

Valentines Day Pictures & Country Music News

Hey Coal Country, I hope that you all had a great Valentines Day! I can honestly say that this was the best Valentines Day ever for Ol Uncle Rock...I had the great pleasure of having a Valentine lunch with a beautiful young lady named Jessica (all thanks go to Tia) and Tia loved her FLARES!!!! There are pictures above of my beautiful date and myself, as well as Tia and her Flares! We have had such a busy month on the Big Ol Morning Show! We have given away so many prizes and it has been a blast. Well, I guess I need to get you up to speed on my favorite thing since sliced bread.....COUNTRY MUSIC! Welcome again to The Brad and Taylor Show. Those crazy kids just won't let up. For the third straight week, the hot-wired Mr. Paisley boasts Billboard's No. 1 country song, "Letter to Me," while the relentlessly self-examining Ms. Swift sees her self-titled debut CD spend its sixth uninterrupted week atop the albums chart.Willie Nelson's Moment of Forever, the project Kenny Chesney and Buddy Cannon co-produced, is the week's highest-charting new album. It comes on at No. 8. Also making first-time bows are Billy Ray Cyrus' Love Songs, a second harvest from his earlier recordings for Mercury Records, which arrives at No. 63, and the multi-artist collection, Best of Country, splashing in at No. 72.Keith Anderson claims the top new song, "I Still Miss You" (No. 44). The three other newcomers are Mica Roberts and Toby Keith's "Things a Mama Don't Know" (No. 57), Jason Michael Carroll's "I Can Sleep When I'm Dead" (No. 59) and Sarah Johns' "He Hates Me" (No. 60).Songs re-entering the chart are Clay Walker's "She Likes It in the Morning" (No. 53) and the Eli Young Band's "When It Rains" (No. 56).Four songs have taken sizable leaps to land in the Top 10: Alan Jackson's "Small Town Southern Man" (from No. 11 to No. 7), Carrie Underwood's "All-American Girl" (No. 12 to No. 8), Chuck Wicks' "Stealing Cinderella" (No. 13 to No. 9) and Craig Morgan's "International Harvester" (No. 15 to No. 10).The other Top 5 songs of the week, bunched up in order directly behind Paisley's, are Rascal Flatts' "Winner at a Losing Game," Gary Allan's "Watching Airplanes," Rodney Atkins' "Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)" and the Kenny Chesney-George Strait duet, "Shiftwork."Completing the Top 5 albums, also in descending rank, are Garth Brooks' The Ultimate Hits, Sugarland's Enjoy the Ride, the Eagles' Long Road Out of Eden and Rascal Flatts' Still Feels Good. Keep listening to the Big Ol Morning Show for your chance to win all kinds of great prizes! Until next time,

Uncle Rock

--"if you wanna make it, you can't fake it...you gotta LIVE IT!!!"