Box Office Results - #1  - Bob Marley   (13 Million)

#2- Demon Slayer

#3 - Ordinary Angels 

New This Week – Dune Part 2

SAG Awards - Oppenheimer won a few more  - Netflix

Big Money - We may see Anyone But You stars Glen Powell and Sydney Sweeney in more rom-coms. It just passed the $200 million mark worldwide

A New Trailer - Has been released for the Huey Lewis and the News musical The Heart of Rock and Roll. The musical starts previews on Broadway March 29th.

The Reboot - Of the Naked Gun with Liam Neeson has a release date. The spoof will hit theaters on July 2025.

Interesting - The first season of Sylvester Stallone's Tulsa King will make be on CBS ahead of Paramount+ release of Season 2

From 1964 - The classic Disney film Mary Poppins now has a PG rating in the U.K. because of some terms are now offensive

This Weekend – Check out my Country Music Memory Lan   (Link)

Also - 50 Most Important Country Songs 1980 – Today #42  (Link) 

March is Women's History Month.  And all March on Thursdays, in my Memory Lane articles I will showcase and revisit some of our greatest female vocalists from my exclusive Mega Star Series. These women are among the biggest stars our format has ever had.

This week let's revisit - 

Reba McEntire

My year long countdown of the 50 Most Important Country Songs 1980-Today is now two months old.  Here is a recap of the songs I featured this month, and a recap of the January songs as well.  I'll do this monthly in case you missed any of my articles.

Grab some ear buds and coffee and let's get caught up.  Thanks for reading and listening every day!

#42  Gunpowder And Lead - Miranda Lambert

#43  Are The Good Times Really Over - Merle Haggard

#44  I Cross My Heart - George Strait

#45  Never Been So Loved - Charley Pride

January Recap

Shenandoah  -  Mama Knows  - 1988 - (Album - The Road Not Taken)

These guys had a nice run of very popular songs during an era where country bands were starting to get a foot hold. The first few songs they had were not so successful, but then there was this. I don't know the actual story, but to my ear this is how it may have played out.  First, this is a very nice song, and these are talented guys.  It's almost like someone suggested, "Hey, why don't we get a song out there where a bunch of really nice country boys are singing about how great mom is, and how much they love her, sound good?"   Now whether that happened or not is debatable, but this song worked. This wonderfully traditional, very easy to listen to song went top 5 and set the stage for them to have a long line of hit songs.  And that includes the next 3 songs from this album going #1.  And to my ear again, this is the best song on this album, and is one of their very best songs ever.  It's great to hear this again. Take a listen.

Last Weeks Selection

My Full Profile On Shenandoah

Shania Twain's success is legendary selling millions of albums and concert tickets, but the road wasn't easy or immediate. The few singles she had, and the album before this had virtually no traction.  The first song from her second album The Woman In Me  -  Who's Bed Have Your Boots Been Under  -  had decent success, going top 15.  But this catchy song, new sound, and super slick video got her noticed in a way none of us could have imagined at the time.  What gives this song significance as to being important is this - this gave us Shania Twain and the rest is history.  You would be hard pressed to find anyone anywhere who doesn't know every word to this song and is willing to sing it loudly whenever it comes on. This is simply a gigantic hit, her first #1 that led to a string of #1's that catapulted her to heights never heard of.  This also personifies that distinct "Shania Sound."  That sound they found that made it crystal clear beyond any measure who was on the radio for those 4 minutes.  Most artists have a big break song, that's just the nature of our biz.  But this took a new artist with very little success and sent her into an orbit to become the record setting star that dominated the country charts and sales for years.  Then eventually becoming a pop star, and a pop culture phenomenon.  How can you measure the importance of a song? When it's 30 years later and it's played on stations all over the country, and still sounds like it fits in. She was ahead of the game.

Last Week #42

My Full Profile On Shania Twain (Mega Star Series)

Sarah and I had a story on the show a couple weeks ago that there are more of us living alone in America than ever before.  Of course, I lived alone for many years and I get that the "food thing" that can happen.  When I lived alone I cooked a lot, and I love leftovers, many times more than the first sitting, but I get it that many don't.

So I found this.  Can help if you are tired of leftovers and live alone.

COOKING FOR ONE?

In case you missed any of my articles this week on WQMX.com here's a recap.  Grab a coffee and let's get you caught up! Thanks for reading and listening everyday!

Planes, Trains & One Time Automobiles

Eat Of The Week

50 Most Important Country Songs 1980-Today - #43

Forgotten Jukebox AP - 86

The Mega Star Series - Lionel Richie

Wynn At The Movies And More

Justin Moore has been on singing songs on WQMX for many years now. You love him and have since his start.  Moore's lastest song, This Is My Dirt is a great example of the reason why.  This is simply terrific in about any way a song can be.  Moore does here what he does a lot.  He sings about what he knows and the kind of lifestyle the bulk of country radio listeners have.  This is spot on.  He writes the lifstyle.

Us Country fans have our own lifestyle and for the most part live in the real world that most people do.  Moreover, we are proud of the life we lead with family, and the things we do and value.  He always seems to know who's listening and that's not as easy as it may seem.  He knows what songs are right for him and his fans and gives it to them.  He celebrates our lifestyle and puts himself and us right in the song.   He's a great story teller -  and that's traditional country and his fans love that about him.

I love that many of his songs are very visual, when you can see yourself right where he's standing at that moment that's golden.  This song "gets it" as this is highly emotive and finds feelings in you that are wide ranging depending on your life and family circumstances.  This does what many GREAT country songs do, "makes 'em cheer up - or makes 'em tear up."

At the end of every year, Sarah and I pick our top five songs of the year.  I know it's February, but this is certainly going to be tough to shove out of mine.  This is just a flat out great country song.  I mean really, really great.

It's hard to believe this was 16 years ago.  The reason this song is so important is simple.  Although not her first single, this Southern Rock inspired cyclone of a country song delivered Miranda Lambert to us.  She was around a few years before this having moderate success, but nothing like this.  This was her first top ten peaking at #7, which I find staggering since it sold about 3 million copies.  There were some misfires after this but this shoved her career into a very high gear.  Even though Kerosene was earlier and a mild hit that fans liked, this was the gas her engines had been waiting for.  Every single thing she did after this was different and noticed.  It's a career record.  She also completely dominated the awards shows through various academies for years, Grammy's, ACM, CMA and others to the tune of 192 nominations, with 78 wins, simply incredible.  For a generation she was the #1 female act in country music by any measure.  She also became a major musical influencer within the format.  This resonated with hundreds of thousands of people who dealt with or are dealing with domestic abuse situations and made many feel far less powerless and gave them the voice, the strength, or the resolve to get out of it.  I feel Miranda is at her very best when she's in jeans and T-shirts with a guitar and a blazing band behind her with a kick-butt song at the mic.  That's what this is, and made everything else possible.

Last Week #43

Well, St. Patrick's Day is a week away, I thought it a good time to talk the food!  We all eat corned beef once a year or so and this is the holiday to do it.  I love it and it's something I would love to eat more often.  Don't be afraid to make a corned beef, it really isn't that hard and it's delicious! 

Just follow the recipe below!

What Is Corned Beef And How To REALLY Make It!