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Remember When: Johnny Cash Performed on ‘Sesame Street’ and Was Called “Johnny Trash” and “Johnny Clash”
In 1973 Johnny Cash made his first appearance on Sesame Street during the fifth season of the educational children’s series. During the episode, Cash performed four songs in different segmen...
Kenny Loggins and Huey Lewis Talk Taking Over Prince’s Li...he World,” the 40th Anniversary of ‘Footloose,’ and More
By the 1980s, Kenny Loggins was “The Soundtrack King,” writing and performing hits for Caddyshack (“I’m Alright”), and Top Gun (“Danger Zone”), he was writing songs with Jim M...
On This Day: The Ramones Played Their First Show as a Three-Piece
On March 30, 1974, three-fourths of The Ramones performed their first show to a small group of friends and associates at the Performance Studios on 23 East 20th Street in New York City, a makeshi...
https://americansongwriter.com/on-this-day-the-ramones-played-their-first-show-as-a-three-piece/
A Q&A With January/February 2022 Lyric Contest Winner Rich Deans
Rich Deans scored 1st Place in the January 2022 American Songwriter Lyric Contest for his song “Blue September Morn.” American Songwriter caught up with Rich to get the scoop on the lyric�...
https://americansongwriter.com/a-qa-with-january-february-2022-lyric-contest-winner-rich-deans/
January/February 2022 Lyric Contest Winners
Congratulations to all our January/February 2022 Lyric Contest winners! CLICK HERE to enter the March/April contest. 1st place “Blue September Morn” By Rich Deans When we came up from the s...
https://americansongwriter.com/january-february-2022-lyric-contest-winners/
The Zombies’ Colin Blunstone Built a Solo Career ‘One Year’ at a Time
At first, Colin Blunstone just wanted to play the guitar. The young burgeoning British-born musician just liked the instrument. He kept it by his side ever since he got his first one around 12 ye...
https://americansongwriter.com/the-zombies-colin-blunstone-built-a-solo-career-one-year-at-a-time/
Britney Spears is Free, Still “Scared” to Return to Music
The conservatorship that held Britney Spears in a tight hold for nearly 14 years has ended, giving the artist freedom over her personal life, finances, and her career for the first time since 200...
https://americansongwriter.com/britney-spears-is-free-still-scared-to-return-to-music/
Introducing the 2022 American Songwriter Lyric Contest Judges
The judges for the 2022 American Songwriter Lyric Contest have been announced, and this year’s panel of jurists includes some of the best singers/songwriters in the game today. Read about our t...
https://americansongwriter.com/introducing-the-2022-american-songwriter-lyric-contest-judges/
The Best Lyrics from Taylor Swift’s 9 Studio Albums
Taylor Swift was quickly dubbed “America’s Sweetheart” after her breakout success on the country music scene. Soon after her self-titled debut album, the acclaimed singer/songwriter showed ...
https://americansongwriter.com/best-taylor-swift-lyrics-nine-albums/
Miranda Lambert Takes Country Radio by Storm with New Single “If I Was a Cowboy”
On Friday, Oct. 15, country star Miranda Lambert unveiled her latest single: “If I Was A Cowboy,” a dreamy, back-roads track celebrating the image of America’s most-treasured cultural avata...
Paul McCartney: ‘Eroticism Was a Driving Force Behind Everything I Wrote’
In an excerpt of his forthcoming new memoir provided exclusively to The Times UK of London, famed Beatles frontman Sir Paul McCartney said that “eroticism was a driving force behind everything�...
Off The Record Live: Tyler Farr Talks Classical Chops, George Jones, & The Story Behind His New Single
When the country artist Tyler Farr was young, he discovered that he had a natural gift for something: singing. “When my mom saw that I could sing—that it came real natural to me—she got me ...
Jeremy Shada Goes Track by Track on New Album ‘Vintage’
With his debut album Vintage, released on Oct. 1, 24-year-old Jeremy Shada is paying tribute to love and romance in the modern age. “Vintage is really something special not only because it’s ...
https://americansongwriter.com/jeremy-shada-goes-track-by-track-on-new-album-vintage/
A Q&A With November/December 2021 Lyric Contest Winner Chuck Thomas
Chuck Thomas scored 1st Place in the November/December 2021 American Songwriter Lyric Contest for his song “Don’t Waste The Rain.” American Songwriter caught up with Chuck to get the sco...
https://americansongwriter.com/a-qa-with-november-december-2021-lyric-contest-winner-chuck-thomas/
November/December 2021 Lyric Contest Winners
Congratulations to all our November/December 2021 Lyric Contest winners! CLICK HERE to enter the January/February contest before the Early Bird Special ends. 1st place “Don’t Waste the Rain...
https://americansongwriter.com/november-december-2021-lyric-contest-winners/
Maggie Rose Opens American Songwriter’s September/October Issue as Guest Editor
Written by Maggie Rose, 2021 September/October Guest Editor I was an eager, hopeful teenager who had recently moved to Nashville from Maryland to launch my music career when I first flipped throu...
Death Cab for Cutie Mark 20th Anniversary of ‘The Photo Album’ with 35-Track Reissue
In celebration of the 20th anniversary of Death Cab For Cutie’s The Photo Album, released Oct. 9, 2001, the band and Barsuk Records will release a 35-track deluxe reissue of the band’s third ...
The Top 10 Pink Floyd Songs
There were a handful of different iterations of the band over the course of 15 studio albums in multiple decades, yet one thing remained a constant—there has never, and will never, be another b...
Off The Record Live: Muscadine Bloodline Talks New Music, ‘Porch Swing Angel,’ Eating Healthy on Tour, and More
When Gary Stanton and Charlie Muncaster of Muscadine Bloodline started putting together the arrangement for their song “Porch Swing Angel,” they knew they had something good… but they had n...
Dave Grohl Plays Drums to Nirvana, Recounts Life and Music at Book Talk
The first sound Dave Grohl claims he heard when he was born was applause. On Jan. 14, 1969, a group of young doctors were on staff and started clapping when baby Grohl was finally birthed. “It ...
Who Was Rocker Tina Bell? And Why It Matters
In Seattle, an important, perhaps genre-defining conversation has been going for the past six months about one local artist more than any other. That person is not Macklemore or Ryan Lewis, Ann o...
https://americansongwriter.com/who-was-rocker-tina-bell-and-why-it-matters/
One Song, Three Ways: “Fancy”
Hello! And welcome to a new series here at American Songwriter: “One Song, Three Ways”. Similar to how a chef might prepare a single ingredient three ways, we wanted to showcase how three dif...
John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ Turns 50
In honor of the 50th anniversary since the release of the John Lennon-penned ode to peace, “Imagine,” and the album of the same name, the song has been certified triple platinum by the RIAA f...
https://americansongwriter.com/john-lennons-imagine-turns-50/
Bruno Mars’ Top 5 Songs
Bruno Mars is one of the most compelling artists on planet earth. The Hawaiian-born artist’s feature on the song, “Uptown Funk,” was maybe the biggest vocal performance on planet earth when...
Reba McEntire Releases 30 Songs, Set to Drop “Does He Love You” Video with Dolly Parton
As the legendary Reba McEntire makes the rounds to promote the release of her three-disc collection of music, Revived Remixed Revisited (out Oct. 8), American Songwriter caught up with the famous...
Neil Young’s 9 Greatest Hits
Musicians jumping between different bands and solo careers were not uncommon in the rock ‘n’ roll scene of the late 20th century, but few did this dance as well as Canadian-born singer/songwr...
Robert Plant, Alison Krauss Share “High and Lonesome”
Robert Plant and Alison Krauss revealed their new single “High and Lonesome,” off their upcoming album Raise The Roof (Rounder Records), out Nov. 19. Marking the duo’s first album together ...
https://americansongwriter.com/robert-plant-alison-krauss-share-high-and-lonesome/
Off The Record Live: Jelly Roll Talks Weed, Rap, Redemption and New Album ‘Ballads For The Broken’
Born and raised in Antioch, Tennessee, Jelly Roll grew up in the shadow of Nashville’s legendary country music industry… literally. “I was driving down Briley Parkway today and looked up at...
LISTEN: Tyler Childers Covers John Prine’s “Yes I Guess They Oughta Name a Drink After You” for Tribute Album
In 2010, a group of industry icons including the late Justin Townes Earle, the Avett Brothers, Sara Watkins, and Drive-By Truckers compiled a collection of John Prine classics to honor the li...
Top 10 Johnny Cash Songs
Few artists have left as big of an imprint on American country and rock music as the Man in Black, Johnny Cash. Born in Arkansas and raised on gospel, music was in Cash’s blood. He broke onto t...