This past weekend was another good one for me, and I am happy to have gotten to do most everything I had wanted to. On Friday my friend Ryan came over to hang, and we did some mountain biking in my woods, among other stuff. It was great to get some physical activity in whilst having fun, and as the weather cools off I intend to get back into biking more often. I felt uncomfortable on some of the really steep hills and on the jumps, but that's pretty much a constant for me regardless of how long it has been. 

Anyways, Friday night, I went over to my girlfriend's place. The evening prior, we attended the Jake Owen concert, and we were both whooped resultingly. It was nice to just get some Netflix-and-Chill time in, and I'd be surprised if I was up past 9pm. That early night helped me to recharge for Saturday, and on that day I did quite a bit. 

My Saturday began on a good note, as we decided to get some breakfast at the local joint, Molly Brown's Country Cafe. I tore up a coffee, some scrambled eggs, a big ol' slab of ham, some hash potatoes, and some toast. It was delicious, and I think I have been sleeping on this place for sure. There are a few options on breakfast places in my area, but I'm thinking Molly Brown's might have won me over. 

After breakfast, I headed back towards my place to ready my boat. The big plan for the day was to be out on the lake, and alongside three of my friends, I spent the afternoon putting around having a good time. Something about being out there on the water beneath the sun makes me so tired, and with my sleep deficit from the week before, I was ready to drop by mid-afternoon. We ended up making a stop at a lakeside bar to get some lunch, and soon thereafter returned to the boat launch to call it a day. 

After boating, I needed a nap. I got a good two hours in and jumped right back into a weekend of fun. My friends returned to my place to join me in a bonfire, and the weather that night was practically perfect.  I could not have asked for a better time, and as the night progressed, my buddy Jesse asked me if I would like to come back over to his place. I obliged, and we ended up staying up for hours playing video games, before crashing around 4 or 5am. 

In the morning, I went back home and had some more delicious coffee. Sundays tend to be the day I do chores and rest for the upcoming week, so I really did nothing noteworthy aside from watching a little week one NFL football. Let's go Brownies! I'm so proud. I love my hometeam and will root for them up until the point it conflicts with the interests of my favorite team. I'm a Dolfan, and have rooted for the 'Phins my whole life. Truthfully, I have mostly just rooted against the Patriots forever. Of course, as soon as Brady left and they fell from the top, the Bills had to become a powerhouse, but this may be a topic for another blog. 

I just wanted to share with you a little synopsis of my weekend, as it really was a good one. I even saw the Goodyear blimp over the lake whilst boating! My only complaint is that the time flew by so quickly, but I guess that's how it is when you're having fun. I hope you had a good weekend as well, and if you're looking for plans this upcoming weekend, WQMX has got some for you! Sarah Kay will be at the Dusty Armadillo Friday night from 9-11pm for their Friday Night Live, and she'll be back on Sunday from 3-5pm for another Sunday Funday, with prizes and Dusty tickets for both. 

There are also three seperate concerts happening Saturday. Brandi Carlile is playing Blossom, Hardy is performing alongside Lainey Wilson at the Covelli Centre, and Chris Cagle will be hitting the stage at the Dusty Armadillo as part of their concert series. You can snag tickets for that last one and see who's all playing there this fall on their website, DustyA.com. On top of all of this, Jason Aldean's makeup date for Blossom is also this weekend, on Sunday. It's bound to be another nice weekend, and I hope you have a great week until then!

Think back to your childhood. What did you call your grandparents? Did your maternal and paternal set have different names? the same? A new survey looked at the most popular names for grandparents across the country and by each state.

Here in Ohio, apparently they are "Mamaw" and "Papaw". The most common overall in the country are "Nana" and "Papa". I think can definitely be a regional thing too - like the soda/pop argument.

Am I the weird one? On both sides, I called my grandparents "Grandma" and "Grandpa". When I needed to, I added the last name. Read the article about the study in the Plain Dealer here.

Tyler Hubbard announced that his next single to country radio is "Back Then Right Now". It follows back-to-back No. 1 singles “5 Foot 9” and “Dancin’ In The Country”, and is an ode to living wild and free, embracing life’s simplicity and memory-making moments.

 

 

 

 

 

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“Back Then Right Now” is the first of Hubbard’s new music since releasing his self-titled debut in January of this year, and more new songs are expected in the coming months.

I've been looking forward to the Jake Owen show in Cleveland for months now, and Thursday evening, it finally happened. Let me tell you, it was an awesome concert that was well worth the wait! He did not disappoint me one bit, and the crowd seemed to carry the same sentiment and excitement as I did. 

Doors were opened around 6pm, and we made it up to the Agora around 6:45 or so, and I am thankful that we did. The opening act was called Dave's Highway, and they were super cool. It was a trio of three siblings (two sisters and a brother) who sang beautiful melodies paired with a single acoustic guitar played very well by the brother. They sounded bigger than they looked on stage, if you know what I mean. I'll be looking into their music more, as I liked what I heard!

Next up was Tyler Booth, and he came in hitting hard with his song 87 Octane. Compared to the first band, this act was loud and had the energy cranked up. Tyler was dancing around the stage clearly having fun, and the crowd soon thereafter was also compelled by the music, just buzzing with excitement. I could see this band playing somewhere like The Dusty Armadillo and just blowing the roof off the place. They played for roughly the same amount of time as the first act, for about 30 minutes each. Tyler Booth was a perfect warmup for Jake Owen, and the audience was more than hyped for the headliner come the end of their performance. 

Jake Owen was as good as they get in concert. He played all the songs I wanted to hear, and the band sounded great. He did stop the show at one point to explain how he has been under the weather and almost had to cancel the event, but up until that point I didn't notice any issues with his vocals. Sick or not, Jake Owen was on point singing. My favorite one of the evening had to have been Down to the Honkytonk, but they really did not play a bad song. (Not that he even has any.)

The Agora was a super cool venue and it was my first time there. I'd say it is similar to the Goodyear Theatre here in Akron, if you're familiar. It was easy to get to, and the traffic in Cleveland was a breeze with it being a Thursday night without any other major events like a ball game going on. I'd definitely go back, and if you would like a chance to see a show there, you're in luck! WQMX is giving away tickets to see Warren Zeiders perform on September 21st with our Winner's Weekend. Keep it tuned through Sunday night for your chance to snag a pair of tickets, and be listening for your cue to call in to win! 

I am a believer in letting everything have its time to shine in the spotlight. It seems as though that idea has been lost as seen with Pumpkin Spice showing up in August this year, even before Labor Day! I feel the same way with Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas - let each of those holidays have their own stand alone time where we don't mention the next one yet.

Take right now for example. We are exactly THREE DAYS after Labor Day, and I am seeing Halloween decorations up all over the place. I get it, it's warm and you want to get those up while it's still nice to do so. But at the same time...it's only September 7th! More than a month and a half away from Halloween. I just feel it's too early until October 1st. Then we can start with the bird on November 1st, and the jolly guy in the red suit (and the seasonal music) on November 24th.

I know not everyone feels this way, but that is what I think. If you feel differently, you do you. I don't actually spend time thinking about this seriously. I thought it would be a fun topic to write about since I'm seeing a lot of Halloween decorations going up. Since that's the case, I guess it's not too soon to say: Happy Holidays ;). LOL

I enjoy writing my longer blogs, but for this one, I figure it would be cool to do a little ranking. If you like this, maybe I will do a top ten on a different topic each week. I think what inspired to make this list was an out-of-the-blue craving for Skittles on my way into work tonight, and thankfully there's some in the vending machine here.

For a little side note as you go down, if you are curious as to why there is no chocolate on this list, it is because I don't like it. Yeah, I know... how? Well, the best I can figure is that it was in response to something that happened when I was a small child. Allegedly, I stuck an M&M up my nose and sucked it in. The hospital told my mom to just let it melt down my throat, and looking back, I don't think that was a fun time. Anyways, here is the list!

 10. Skittles

9. Big League Chew 

8. Sour Patch Kids (Grape)

7. Bigfoot Blue Raspberry Chews 

6. Life Saver Big Ring Gummies

5. Airheads

4. Starburst GummiBursts

3. Hi-Chew

2. Chewy Spree

1. Welch's Fruit Snacks (Concord Grape)

I was saddened to hear on my first day of vacation that Bob Barker had died at the age of 99. Like so many of us, growing up I would always spend those days home from school either sick or because of a school holiday with the TV on CBS at 11AM to catch Bob and Rod Roddy on The Price is Right. It was also a staple during Summer vacation, and of course when I went off to college!! I was sad when Bob decided to finally retire in 2007 after 35 years, but I knew he deserved it. 

I am also so happy with all of the tireless work he put into animal rights and activism. I love how he always closed out the show with his message about doing your part to help control animal populations. He knew where he stood and he wouldn't budge - he even quit hosting the Miss USA Pageant when they refused to no longer award fur coats. 

Based on how he hosted The Price is Right and how he interacted with the contestants, I would place him as the #1 game show host in television history. There will never be another like him. RIP.

LANCO will release a new six-song EP Run, Run Baby on October 6th. It'll be their first on their new record label.

Run, Run Baby EP Tracklist:

"Sound of a Saturday Night "
"Leaving Looks Good on You"
"Lasso"
"Good With It"
"Making More Of"
"Honey I Lost My Job Today"

 

 

 

 

 

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LANCO also returns to the Grand Ole Opry on October 11th.

  When Montgomery Gentry hit the charts, country was in the middle of unparalleled success and popularity. This duo had its work cut out for them as we had a bevy of big stars ruling the charts, plus Brooks And Dunn was by far the dominant duo in our format.  But what MG did very well was flashlight for that niche and capitalize on it while finding a different sound and image that would be a separator from the fierce competition. They did it, and had a great run on the charts for a number of years assembling a huge and and exceedingly loyal following along their trek.

First Hit Single  - Got Them Noticed

But success was not immediate.  The first number of songs did not get a lot of traction, including a single called Hillbilly Shoes, which I loved.  It was a bit different, BUT there were those that called it their favorite song at that moment.  But it only went to #13. Lonely and Gone was next and went top ten. Then there was a series of misfires and their future seemed partly cloudy.  But interestingly enough that debut album, Tattoos And Scars, sold a lot of copies even without a massive hit from it. Fans wanted to like them and did.

First Top Ten Song

Then as I saw it from my seat behind the mic, they found their footing thanks to a big hit song. The next album, Carrying On and the single, She Couldn't Change Me  which was a top five hit, but for them it was bigger than that.   As much as any act I can recall after all these years, that song instantly defined them from that moment on.  It gave them a real identity that had been missing.  A terrific story song with a thump and a happy ending.  I feel that highly relatable record completely connected with fans, and in the grand scheme of things, we now had lot better idea of who they were and we liked it.  They were not Brooks And Dunn, they were authentically their own act and it's thanks to that single.

This Song Changed Everything

That was 2001, and the gateway had been jimmied opened to far greater success. Over the next eight years MG ran off a long list of big songs that were real fan favorites.  There were a few missteps as far as singles were concerned here and there but they chalked up a bunch of number one songs and a lot of other top tens and were real fan favorites.  Even a few undeniable country "anthems"  like My Town, Hell Yeah, and Something To Be Proud Of were hugely popular.

Hell Yeah!

Of course you more than likely know that Eddie Montgomery is John Michael Montgomery's brother, who left his brothers band to form MG with Troy Gentry and go their own way.  You may also know that Gentry was suddenly killed in a helicopter crash in September 2018, just days before they were to perform at the Wayne Country Fair, a show that I was hosting, he was 50.

My Town (Huge Hit With Fans)

Over their run they won CMA's, ACM's, and People's Choice Awards.  They have several million selling albums, some 40 singles and 5 number one songs.  They were very successful and extremely popular with fans but sadly their big run ended far too early.  After about 2010, their charting success was far less.  But as I have stated before, no one is guaranteed a 20 year run. 

One Of My Favorites From Them

But for their time, they were a big deal. Montgomery Gentry  - well done guys - well done.

Stations May Play This Song Forever

I'll Try - Alan Jackson - 1996 - (Album - Greatest Hits)

I heard Alan Jackson interviewed on a countdown show when this song was a very popular number one.  He was in the middle of a long run of big hits with dozens of number one songs.  He was asked why he wasn't really into writing many "love songs".  He answered just the way you might think he would. He said something along the lines of, many were "fake" and "corny" and not based in reality and that wasn't him.  So, he decided to write this song which is an Alan Jackson "love song."  The reason this song was so big was it was so real, honest and adult.  Someone stating that he's going to do the best he can, and will try to do it forever.  He has faults, he's not perfect and "he'll try."  Man, how relatable is that?  That was Jackson's trademark. Songs we could all understand because it sounded like our lives.  He's right, so many "love songs" are some vision of love that is not based in any reality, but more like a movie, or a romance novel and that's fine, just not real.  Many feature flowery words that set expectations too high for anyone to live up to for a lifetime.  This song is perfectly written and sung by a fallible guy who lives in our real world.  Simply timeless -  fantastic.