The OFFICAL BLUESTONE TICKET BOX OFFICE
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https://www.ticketmaster.com/the-bluestone-tickets-columbus/venue/41852
Chris Cagle will return to The Bluestone on Thursday, October 16th as part of the WCOL Miller Lite Concert Series.
Ray Scott and Wyatt McCubbin will be opening the show.
VIP Admission: VIP Table Purchases do NOT include admission tickets to the show. You must purchase your concert admission tickets separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage
- Includes six bottles of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP waitress
- Exclusive Private Bar access
- Buckets (six bottles) available for purchase all night for $24
-
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes six bottles of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP waitress
- Private Bar Access
- Buckets (six bottles) available for purchase all night for $24
*All VIP tables located in the loft area
*Table purchases do NOT include admission into venue
Country music artist, Josh Thompson, will be performing live at The Bluestone on Thursday, October 9th as part of the WCOL Miller Lite Concert Series. Tickets for admission into the show are $15.00 pre-sale.
Openers: Rick Monroe and Zach Linley and the Rebel Daredevils
Tickets on-sale Friday, August 15th at 12pm
VIP Admission: VIP TABLE PURCHASE DOES NOT INCLUDE ADMISSION TICKETS TO THE SHOW. Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage
- Includes six bottles of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP waitress
- Exclusive Private Bar access
- Buckets (six bottles) available for purchase all night for $24
-
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes six bottles of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP waitress
- Private Bar Access
- Buckets (six bottles) available for purchase all night for $24
*All VIP tables located in the loft area
*Table purchases do NOT include admission into venue
Will Hoge will be performing live at The Bluestone on Thursday, September 18th. Doors will open at 7pm.
Opening Artist include: Clare Dunn
VIP Admission: VIP Tables do NOT include admission into the show. Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage
- Includes six bottles of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP waitress
- Exclusive Private Bar access
- Buckets (six bottles) available for purchase all night for $24
-
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes six bottles of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP waitress
- Private Bar Access
- Buckets (six bottles) available for purchase all night for $24
*All VIP tables located in the loft area
*Table purchases do NOT include admission into venue
Josh Abbott Band with Carly Pearce will be performing LIVE at The Bluestone on Thursday, March 10th
PURCHASE HERE
Tickets: $10
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Opening artist: Sam Grow
This is an All Ages Event
VIP OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE
VIP TABLE PURCHASE DOES NOT INCLUDE ADMISSION TICKETS TO THE SHOW.
Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage!
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP Server
- Exclusive Private Bar access
-
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP Server
- Private Bar Access
- May be Obstruction in View
*All VIP tables located in the loft area
Sam Grow will be performing at The Bluestone on Thursday, June 23rd
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Opening Artist: Bootleg Whiskey Band
Tickets are $7 in advance and $10 day of show
PURCHASE TICKETS
On-Sale Tuesday, May 17th at 4:30pm
It’s back and bigger than ever! WCOL Country Jam 2016 will take place once again at Legend Valley Music Center located near Buckeye Lake. (7585 Kindle Road Thornville, OH 43076).
Campgrounds will open Thursday, September 1st at 10am, all spaces are first come first serve! . All campers must have an admission ticket to the show.
Show Located at Legend Valley Music Center near Buckeye Lake
WWW.LEGENDVALLEYFESTIVALS.COM
Friday, September 2nd: Gates for the show will open at 5pm.
LINEUP:
ALL ARTISTS WILL BE PLAYING FULL SETS
CHRIS YOUNG JUSTIN MOORE
The Charlie Daniels Band
Cliff Cody
Saturday, September 3rd. Gates for the show will open at 4pm
LINEUP
HANK WILLIAMS JR
Chris Stapleton
Aaron Lewis
Kacey Musgraves
Maren Morris
*Artists Lineup Subject to Change
Two Day Admission Tickets ($92 during presale, after presale $125): Include admission into the concert venue Friday and Saturday. Tickets do not include re-entry (leaving the venue to go to campgrounds and back in venue) on the same day.
Friday GA Ticket ($65): Admission into concert Friday, September 2nd. Ticket does not include re-entry (leaving the venue to go to campgrounds and back in venue).
Saturday GA Ticket ($85): Admission into concert Saturday, September 3rd. Ticket does not include re-entry (leaving the venue to go to campgrounds and back in venue).
Friday Pit Pass ($125): Includes admission into the show and Pit Area located in front of the stage Friday, September 2nd Only. (see map). Pit Pass INCLUDES re-entry from Campgrounds to venue throughout the day unlimited times. Pit Pass print at home tickets will be redeemed on-site at the Box Office prior to entering the venue to receive your admission and pit pass wristband.
Saturday Pit Pass ($145): Includes admission into the show and Pit Area located in front of the stage Saturday, September 3rd Only. (see map). Pit Pass INCLUDES re-entry from Campgrounds to venue throughout the day unlimited times. Pit Pass print at home tickets will be redeemed on-site at the Box Office prior to entering the venue to receive your admission and pit pass wristband.
CAMPING INFORMATION
Spend the weekend with WCOL Country Jam 2016!
Campgrounds open Thursday, September 1st at 10am.
Get setup and start your weekend early! Join us at the Campground Pre-Party Thursday evening in the GA campgrounds
(Valid Camping Pass is required)
Don’t miss this one week only pre-sale offer!
Half price General Admission Camping with purchase of 2 day pass
PRE-SALE PRICING ONLY (March 11th-19th)
General Admission Tent Camping: $32 (after pre-sale $65)
General Admission RV Camping: $62 (after pre-sale $125)
Premium Tent Camping: $100
Premium RV Camping: $200
Only one Camping pass per vehicle is required
Camping passes are valid September 1st at 10am – September 4th at 12pm
Any vehicle staying overnight requires a camping pass
General Admission Tent Camping: $32 (after pre-sale $65) includes one 10×20 space to park one vehicle and one tent. Each space allows as many guests as you would like in that tent but each pass will only park one vehicle overnight. General Admission camping is located on the west side of State Route 13 (map link). You will receive a confirmation of your purchase right away, and Camping Passes will be sent to the mailing address you provide during checkout. Camping passes will ship approximately 2-3 weeks before the show.
General Admission RV/Camper Camping: $62 (after pre-sale $125) includes one 20×40 space to park one RV. Pull behind campers will be allowed one camper and one vehicle per camping space. Each space allows as many guests as you would like in that RV but each pass will only park one vehicle overnight. General Admission camping is located on the west side of State Route 13 (map link). You will receive a confirmation of your purchase right away, and Camping Passes will be sent to the mailing address you provide during checkout. Camping passes will ship approximately 2-3 weeks before the show.
Regular Camping Prices (begins March 20th)
General Admission Tent Camping: $65
General Admission RV Camping: $125
Premium Tent Camping: $100
Premium RV Camping: $200
Only one Camping pass per vehicle is required
Camping passes are valid September 1st at 10am – September 4th at 12pm
Any vehicle staying overnight requires a camping pass
General Admission Tent Camping: $65 includes one 10 x 20 space to park one vehicle and one tent. Each space allows as many guests as you would like in that tent but each pass will only park one vehicle overnight. General Admission camping is located on the west side of State Route 13 (map link). You will receive a confirmation of your purchase right away, and Camping Passes will be sent to the mailing address you provide during checkout. Camping passes will ship approximately 2-3 weeks before the show.
General Admission RV/Camper Camping: $125 includes one 20 x 40 space to park one RV. Pull behind campers will be allowed one camper and one vehicle per camping space. Each space allows as many guests as you would like in that RV but each pass will only park one vehicle overnight. General Admission camping is located on the west side of State Route 13 (map link). You will receive a confirmation of your purchase right away, and Camping Passes will be sent to the mailing address you provide during checkout. Camping passes will ship approximately 2-3 weeks before the show.
Premium Tent Camping: $100 includes one 10 x 20 space to park one vehicle and one tent. Each space allows as many guests as you would like in that tent but each pass will only park one vehicle overnight. Premium camping is located on the east side of State Route 13 (map link). You will receive a confirmation of your purchase right away, and Camping Passes will be sent to the mailing address you provide during checkout. Camping passes will ship approximately 2-3 weeks before the show.
Premium RV Camping: $200 includes one 20 x 40 space to park one RV. Pull behind campers will be allowed one camper and one vehicle per camping space. Each space allows as many guests as you would like in that RV but each pass will only park one vehicle overnight. Premium camping is located on the east side of State Route 13 (map link). You will receive a confirmation of your purchase right away, and Camping Passes will be sent to the mailing address you provide during checkout. Camping passes will ship approximately 2-3 weeks before the show.
VIP packages and admission tickets are sold out.
We’ve added a limited amount of VIP Packages that include admission to the SOLD OUT Old Dominion Show at The Bluestone!
Each Package INCLUDES one admission ticket to the show! Package also includes an exclusive soundcheck experience, a Meet & Greet / photo opportunity with Old Dominion, a limited edition poster designed by Old Dominion, a commemorative laminate, crowd-free merchandise shopping time, and an on-site concert host.
Old Dominion will be performing LIVE at The Bluestone on Thursday, November 17th
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Opening Artists: Steve Moakler and Clayton Anderson
This is an all ages show
This show is SOLD OUT
PURCHASE TICKETS
TABLE SEATING
VIP TABLE PURCHASE DOES NOT INCLUDE ADMISSION TICKETS TO THE SHOW.
Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage!
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP Server
- Exclusive Private Bar access
-
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP Server
- Private Bar Access
- May be Obstruction in View
*All VIP tables located in the loft area
Craig Morgan will be performing live at The Bluestone on Thursday, January 12, 2017
Opening Artist: Drew Baldridge
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Tickets: $25 in advance (day of show price will increase to $30)
Tickets go on-sale Friday, October 14th at 10am
PURCHASE HERE
VIP OPPORTUNITY AVAILABLE
VIP TABLE PURCHASE DOES NOT INCLUDE ADMISSION TICKETS TO THE SHOW.
Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of the stage!
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP Server
- Exclusive Private Bar access
- Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- VIP Server
- Private Bar Access
- May have an obstructed view
*All VIP tables located in the loft area
*all sales are final
“I have friends who are very artistic people, sometimes oddly so, and I never wanted to be that guy, to be so artistic that I’m odd,” he says smiling. “But it’s good to know that I’ve evolved musically and, with this new record, I’ve created something with longevity.
Indeed, Morgan’s A Whole Lot More To Me, co-produce
Morgan uses the honesty of the concert stage as an analogy for how he assembled what will be his seventh studio album. “It would look funny if you went to one of my concerts and I stood out there in skinny jeans. I’m not 21 years old, and I shouldn’t pretend to be,” he says. “But I also know this music will fit right in on country radio today. I’m singing music that is real and believable
And Craig Morgan knows exactly who he is, a man with many sides. Along with being an entertaine
He’s a busy man with a knack for attention to detail. Carefully choosing each lyric on this album is no exception.
The most obvious bridge to Morgan’s back catalog is the spirituall
“It has a very charismati
Morgan says the song, as well as album tracks like the emotionall
Another standout on the project is “Hearts I Leave Behind,” which features Morgan’s gritty and poignant vocals with the soulful Christian rock band Third Day’s lead singer, Mac Powell.
The hard-touri
“It’s such an emotional song, one that I can see being played at weddings for a long time,” he says. “I feel something in my chest when I hear it. It moves me — and that’s what music is supposed to do.”
Especially
“As a country singer, we sometimes get stereotype
And in Morgan, those folks have no better messenger.
Russell Dickerson will be performing live at The Bluestone on Friday, February 17th, 2017
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Opening artist: TBA
Tickets are $15
Tickets on-sale Friday, November 4th at 10am
PURCHASE TICKETS HERE
Country Artist, JOE NICHOLS, will be performing LIVE at The Bluestone
on Thursday, September 14th
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Opening Artist: McCoy
Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 day of show
Tickets will go on-sale Friday, June 16th at 10am
PURCHASE HERE
RESERVED LOFT TABLE SEATING
RESERVED TABLE PURCHASE DOES NOT INCLUDE ADMISSION TICKETS TO THE SHOW.
Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage!
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- Server
- Exclusive Private Bar access
-
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- Server
- Private Bar Access
- May be Obstruction in View
*All Reserved tables located in the loft area
ALL SALES ARE FINAL
DAVID NAIL will be performing LIVE at The Bluestone
on Friday, November 17th, 2017
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Opening Artist: Jimmie Allen
Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 day of show
Tickets will go on-sale Friday, August 18th at 10am
PURCHASE HERE
RESERVED LOFT TABLE SEATING
RESERVED TABLE PURCHASE DOES NOT INCLUDE ADMISSION TICKETS TO THE SHOW.
Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage!
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- Server
- Exclusive Private Bar access
-
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- Server
- Private Bar Access
- May be Obstruction in View
*All Reserved tables located in the loft area
ALL SALES ARE FINAL
ABOUT
During the making of his fourth MCA Nashville album, David Nail underwent a transformation – and so did his music. Fighter is the most vulnerable, personal record the Missouri native has ever made, and it signals the beginning of a new phase in his career.”
“Six months ago, people would ask me about the record and I would jokingly say ‘It’s my love-making record,’” Nail explains. “But what it meant to me then and what it means to me now are completely different. … Having been a father for about five months, it definitely changes the dynamic of things.”
Following the birth of he and wife Catherine’s long-hoped-for children (twins born in December 2015), the singer-songwriter found his world turned upside down. The mark he wanted to leave and things he wanted to say had changed, and despite an early version of Fighter being already finished, he decided to record four new songs, completely changing the project’s tone.
In short, Nail decided to get real in a way he never would have allowed himself before. Already known for powerful, emotionally-charged vocals, he took the same approach to choosing Fighter’s 11 tracks (seven of which were written or co-written by Nail himself), celebrating life’s victories but also exposing the knock-downs he’s endured – and it wasn’t always flattering.
“[I was] like, ‘Am I ready to sing this? Am I ready to tell this story?” Nail says. “[But] they come from a genuine place that you can kind of say, ‘Okay, I’ve said that. I’m at peace with that.’ I think that’s what this record is.”
Writing and singing in courageous personal detail, Nail confronted some of his deepest troubles, revealing the clarity he’s achieved about his hometown, the true struggle depression caused in his marriage, the answered-prayer of his children’s birth and the things he never told his own father.
Meanwhile, producer Frank Liddell (who also guided Nail’s first three albums, I’m About to Come Alive, The Sound of a Million Dreams and I’m a Fire) made sure Fighter’s musical tone was just as authentic, backing Nail’s volcanic vocals with a melting pot of Mississippi-delta sounds — a mix of classic-country balladry and sweaty Memphis soul, with touches of in-the-moment modernity sprinkled throughout.
“I grew up listening to all this music that my father listened to,” says Nail. “A lot of it was classic, huge songs and artists from the ‘60s and ‘70s – and even the ‘80s – so I think there’s always part of me that just falls toward that type of sound, rather than fighting it and trying to say ‘Whoa! No-no-no, we need to stay 2016.”
Big-name collaborations abound, with Nail inviting Vince Gill, Brothers Osborne, Lori McKenna and Logan Brill to help tell his story, as well as Bear and Bo Rinehart of NEEDTOBREATE.
“When I’m making a record I selfishly want to push my buttons so I try to approach it as my swan song, it could be the last piece of music I make. I want to fulfill some life goals in the process and one of my biggest influences in the word is Vince Gill so I’m thankful he said yes”
Brothers Osborne kick the project off in star-crossed revelry on “Good at Tonight,” McKenna joins “Home” to quietly uncover Nail’s love/hate relationship with his hometown, Gill adds stunning harmony vocals to the country-soul “I Won’t Let You Go” – a promise to David’s wife Catherine – and the Rineharts help close the album in tender admiration with “Old Man’s Symphony,” an overdue thank-you note to Nail’s dad.
Along the way, he toasts to the passion of youth in the upbeat hit “Night’s On Fire,” pledges romantic relief in the raw Chris Stapleton co-write “Ease Your Pain,” delivers a desperate double entendre in the indie-rocking “Lie With Me” and crafts a loving, rock-a-bye origin story for his new family in “Babies” – an instant classic.
Then there’s the project’s title track, “Fighter,” a heartfelt ‘80s-country throwback ripped from Nail’s real life that holds his wife up as an unshakable supporter – even when he was at his worst.
“’Fighter’ is about as honest as I’ve ever been in a song,” Nail admits. “I mean, when you’re quoting your wife saying things that are not pleasant [about you], you know it was our story. … But it also, I think, tells the story of me.”
Nail and Catherine have had to fight their whole lives, he explains – for his career, for their marriage, to battle back inner demons and to conceive their beautiful kids – but their ultimate success in those battles has led them to a better place. And it also gave the album a mission.
Fighter is more than a bookmark in Nail’s life and career – it’s a period on the final sentence of a difficult chapter. Penned during dark times that have given way to a new sunrise, these are some of the most meaningful and personal songs he’s ever recorded. And now that they exist for all to hear, he can finally move on.
“I feel like I’ve told the main aspects of my career, and my life, up to this point,” he explains. “So I really think whatever we do in the future, we’ll be able to start just completely fresh. It’ll be a new story, a new part of my life.”
-Chris Parton
Whiskey Myers
live at The Bluestone
Thursday, December 7th, 2017
Doors for the show will open at 7pm
Opening Artist: Goodbye June
Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 day of show
Tickets On-Sale Friday, June 9th at 10am
PURCHASE HERE
RESERVED LOFT TABLE SEATING
RESERVED TABLE PURCHASE DOES NOT INCLUDE ADMISSION TICKETS TO THE SHOW.
Admission tickets must be purchased separately.
- Loft Lower Tier: $250 (seats four people-no exceptions)
- Prime view of stage!
- Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- Server
- Exclusive Private Bar access
Loft Upper Tier: $200 (seats four people-no exceptions)
Includes first bucket of Miller or Coors Light
- Server
- Private Bar Access
- May be Obstruction in View
*All Reserved tables located in the loft area
ALL SALES ARE FINAL
It would be an understatement to say that a lot has happened since Whiskey Myers was last in the recording studio. Over two whirlwind years, the gritty Texas band hit #1 on the iTunes Country Chart with their breakout third album ‘Early Morning Shakes,’ earned raves everywhere from Rolling Stone to USA Today, and toured the US and UK relentlessly, slaying massive festival crowds and sharing stages with Lynyrd Skynyrd, Hank Williams Jr., Jamey Johnson, and more along the way. You’d be forgiven, then, for expecting things to work a little differently this time around when the band reunited with acclaimed producer Dave Cobb for their stellar new album, ‘Mud.’ But as it turns out, success doesn’t change a Southern gentleman, and they don’t come any more Southern than Whiskey Myers.
Fueled by larger-than-life performances honed tight from countless nights on the road, ‘Mud’ finds the band scaling new heights of songwriting and musicianship, with searing guitars, soulful vocals, and indelible hooks. While their approach to the music and humble, hard-working attitudes may not have altered, there have been developments in the Whiskey Myers world, most notably with the arrival of new faces. For the recording sessions, the band’s five founding members—Cody Cannon on lead vocals and guitar, Cody Tate and John Jeffers on guitars, Gary Brown on bass, and Jeff Hogg on drums—fleshed out their sound with the addition of fiddler/keyboard player Jon Knudson and percussionist Tony Kent, who are both now full-time members. “They bring a great energy, and I think it’s really helped our sound and makes the band more versatile,” explains Cannon. “There’s less room onstage now, but sometimes a family grows.”
Jon Langston
March 3, 2022 7 PM
at The Bluestone
Columbus, Ohio
Bio: Jon Langston grew up in Loganville, GA, listening to music by his heroes Alan Jackson and the Eagles. He played football, eventually earning a Division 1 college football scholarship. Jon always thought football would a part of his life, but after his sixth concussion left him blind for fifteen minutes, his football career ended abruptly. So, he picked up his guitar which he hadn’t touched since the eighth grade and re-taught himself how to play. Playing open mic nights and working on his songwriting eventually lead to the 2013 release of self-penned, “Forever Girl,” the first song he ever wrote. That release kicked off his music career which has culminated in sold out shows across the country and over 500 million career streams. Jon opened for Luke Bryan on his Farm Tour in 2017, which was a full circle moment having attended as a spectator of the Farm Tour only a few years before in Athens, GA. He was invited to perform on the tour again in 2018 and joined Luke in support of his Sunset Repeat Tour in 2019. Jon signed a publishing deal with Sony ATV, management with KP Entertainment, and is the first artist signed under Luke Bryan’s new Label 32 Bridge Entertainment with EMI Records Nashville. Jon released his highly-anticipated EP, Now You Know, featuring six original songs all written by Jon. Jon’s debut major label single, “When It Comes To Loving You” reached No. 1 on the all-genre iTunes Chart and his single “Now You Know reached the Top 30 on the radio charts. Jon released a pair of new songs, “Happy Ever After” and “Try Missing You,” both of which highlight Langston’s songwriting and his classic country influences.
COVID-19: The Bluestone does not require COVID Vaccinations to enter our venue. We follow all local guidelines and cleaning procedures. The current Columbus “Mask Mandate” for an indoor event does not apply to anyone who is “ACTIVELY EATING OR DRINKING.” We kindly ask that you enter the building with a mask on. You can keep it on or remove it as long as you are actively EATING OR DRINKING! This will be a full capacity show, and it is an “ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK EVENT.”
Top of the World Tour
LAUREN ALAINA
Presented by maurices
March 25, 2022 7 PM
at The Bluestone
Columbus, Ohio
Tickets $20
Artist Biography
Lauren Alaina | Sitting Pretty on Top of the World
Ten years into her Nashville career, Lauren Alaina is in the upper echelon of country music’s most authentic voices, beloved personalities, and open hearts. She’s earned a reputation as one of the genre’s most compelling storytellers by boldly incorporating her struggles and heartache into her critically acclaimed first two albums. Lauren’s third studio collection, Sitting Pretty on Top of the World, is an artful evolution of immaculately penned, unflinching reflections of the mountains and valleys on her journey.
Sitting Pretty on Top of the World opens with the telltale sound of a needle dropping down on a record, and with that, Lauren sets the tone for some of the most captivating music of her career. Lauren was inspired to lean into the tenets of classic country music for this project and on the albums lead track, “It Was Me,” she offers a timeless country ballad filled with heartsick self-reflection. Lauren’s voice emotionally soars through the aching, introspective lyrics: “It wasn’t you I didn’t love, it was me.”
“The other person isn’t always the bad guy,” Lauren concedes. “On ‘It Was Me,’ I’m taking full ownership of being in the wrong. It was really hard to admit that I was the one at fault and to realize that I didn’t love myself enough to allow someone else to love me.” But the vulnerable “It Was Me,” co-written with Hillary Lindsey, is a song Lauren considers to be one of the best she’s ever written.
Lauren takes pride in the exposed transparency of her songwriting on this project, and though most writing sessions took place via Zoom, Lauren was crafting verses and choruses alongside the likes of award-winning songwriters including Liz Rose, Lori McKenna, Hillary Lindsey, Emily Weisband, David Garcia, Jordan Reynolds, Ben Johnson and Kennedi Lykken. She co-wrote 14 of the album’s 15 songs, much of it inspired from recent life experiences including two impactful break-ups, the loss of her stepfather, and like much of the world, Lauren struggled with despondency as she adapted to life in the pandemic.
The album’s title track “On Top of the World” delves into the dark reality behind polished facades. Writing the song with Jordan Reynolds and Sasha Sloan after the pandemic forced her to stay home for the first time in a decade, Lauren, in a heightened emotional state, revealed how she felt enveloped in loneliness and sadness.
“I’ve been on the road and touring for 10 years and having that taken away so suddenly felt like an abrupt stop to everything I’ve been working for, and that was a really scary thing for me,” she says, “but the whole world stopped for everybody, and I needed to find new ways to connect with people.”
Lauren applies that same honest vulnerability throughout the album from the harrowing ballad “What Do You Think Of?” featuring Danish Pop Star Lukas Graham, to the pensive flow of “I’m Not Sad Anymore,” to the beautiful simplicity of “Good Ole Boy” with its scaled back production that truly allows Lauren’s vocals to shine.
“This whole thing [album] is about loving yourself and being brave and being strong,” Lauren says. “I was faced with all these trials, and I hope people feel themselves in these songs. I think we all live the same stories with different characters. And maybe people realize new beginnings can be good.”
“Getting Good,” a duet with Trisha Yearwood, is the only song Lauren didn’t write on the album. Penned by Weisband, the song is a poignant truth-telling about choosing to be happy. Drawn to the concept, Lauren says, “Life is all about perspective, and you sometimes you have to shift your perspective.”
Lauren punctuates the lovelorn with the playful yet forthright “When the Party’s Over” and with the propulsive yet nostalgic “Run.” She also teamed up with Emily Weisband and the album’s producer Paul DiGiovanni to write the lighthearted, here-for-the-fun, rebound tune, “Getting Over Him,” featuring country star Jon Pardi. Lauren rounds out the album with the beautifully hopeful “Change My Mind,” which she co-wrote with Seth Ennis and Cameron Bedell.
Then with the familiar crackle of a vinyl record nearing its end, the album comes to a close. A journey from start to finish. Lauren explores life in these unique times and Sitting Pretty on Top of the World is the salve and the soundtrack for anyone traversing their own personal quest for hope and new beginnings.
Whitey Morgan and the 78’s
with Alex Williams
April 10, 2022 7 PM
at The Bluestone
Columbus, Ohio
About Whitey Morgan:
In a career spanning 15 years, Morgan has released five studio albums and a live recording from his hometown of Flint, Michigan. Additionally, he has toured relentlessly averaging over 125 shows annually. Rolling Stone has described him as a “Waylon Jennings acolyte.. modern day outlaw [with a] hard hitting blue-collar brand of music” while NPR Music hailed, “Staying close to the sound and subject matter of classic outlaw artists like Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard and David Allan Coe, Morgan is poised to lead this hand-worn brand of country to the next generation.” His most recent LP, Sonic Ranch (2015), was released to critical acclaim and praised by Detroit Free Press as, “a bold well-crafted album that doesn’t forsake the gritty undercurrent running through Morgan’s stuff.”
Whitey Morgan and the 78’s anticipated new album, self-produced by Morgan, was recorded in the Neve Room at famed Sonic Ranch Studios in Tornillo, Texas. Featured on the record are collaborations with acclaimed songwriters Travis Meadows and Ward Davis plus a cover of ZZ Top’s “Just Got Paid.” Alongside Morgan, the 78’s consist of Brett Robinson (pedal steel guitar), Joey Spina (guitar), Alex Lyon (bass) and Eric Savage (drums).
Of the recording, Morgan shares, “It’s not like my vision happened overnight. I’ve been chipping away at it forever. It’s slowly evolving and it’s going in a little bit different direction. It’s not so straightforward anymore. This record definitely has a wider path, it’s broader, but it still sounds like a Whitey Morgan record.” With grandparents from Tennessee and Kentucky and hometown roots in Flint, Michigan, Morgan’s family geography has factored into his approach to music.
Ian Munsick
with Ryan Charles
May 13, 2022 7 PM
at The Bluestone
Columbus, Ohio
ABOUT IAN MUNSICK
Breathing fresh Rocky Mountain air into the Nashville music scene, Ian Munsick is pioneering a new brand of country. The Wyoming-born singer / songwriter’s upbringing was a mix of working the ranch and working crowds. Under the tutelage of their fiddle-playing father, Munsick and his two older brothers grew up playing everything from bluegrass to The Beatles. Incorporating elements across genres, he has now begun to establish himself as a progressive artist with an old soul. Captivated by traditional lyrical truth and the modern soundscape, Munsick followed his ear to Music City.
In 2017 he released a self-titled EP, winning iHeartRadio’s Rocky Mountain Song of the Year for the rootsy “Horses Are Faster” and becoming the only artist who simultaneously qualified two tracks as finalists in the NSAI/CMT songwriting competition. Since then, Munsick has signed a major label record deal with Warner Music Nashville, earned more than 100 million global streams and been named one of Spotify’s inaugural Hot Country Artists to Watch. His debut album Coyote Cry features his mile-high tenor underscoring self-penned songs that conjure equal parts epic adventure and down-to-earth wisdom. The record marks the dawn of western pop-laced country, pulling a thread straight from Chris LeDoux through Post Malone. Munsick hit the road in the fall alongside labelmate Cody Johnson and his own sold-out, headlining dates. He wrapped the year with his Grand Ole Opry debut and is starting 2022 strong as a MusicRow Next Big Thing artist. Fans are finding that with Ian Munsick, western country is reborn.
About Ryan Charles
Western rapper Ryan Charles hails from the valley of Buffalo, WY. Similar to his hometown, once referred to as the most lawless town in America, Charles brings a style all his own — meshing the cowboy lifestyle with flow of 2000’s rap. A natural-born entertainer, Charles quickly became one of the most skilled freestyle rappers on the school bus, eventually making the move to Seattle, WA to pursue his music career more seriously. As an artist, Charles has released a few singles, including the jiggy buckaroo bop “Gettin’ Western” in 2020 and most recently, “Old Dirt Fancy” in 2021. Known for his signature fashion sense, light hearted twang and high-energy live shows, Charles continues to work on new music in Nashville, TN.
Paul Cauthen
May 19, 2022 7 PM
at The Bluestone
Columbus, Ohio
Want to get a bead on Paul Cauthen?
Good freakin’ luck — especially on his third album, COUNTRY COMING DOWN.
Suffice to say that the singer, songwriter and proud son of Tyler, Texas — steward of a rich, resonant, bass-leaning tenor dubbed Big Velvet — covers a lot of ground and embodies a lot of characters. He’ll tell you right off the bat that he’s “Country As Fuck,” throwing down a wad of “Fuck You Money” and heading into the night to “Cut a Rug.” His “Country Clubbin'” has as much to do with swinging as his swing. But a song or two later dude’s vowing to be loving his wife “Till the Day I Die” and, in COUNTRY COMING DOWN’s title track, dreams of living in “a cabin in the country, far away from the city lights” where “life is slow and easy.”
The fact that all of that exists within the same guy, who’s full of good humor, sharp wit and a heart as big as his home state is what makes Cauthen someone who’s easy, and exciting, to spend 10 songs with.
“Y’know, you got your bangers and you got your ballads,” Cauthen acknowledges. “You got your meaningful songs where you’re opening up more of your vulnerable side, and then you’re putting on a fucking show — all in one album. And it’s all honest, I’ll tell ya that. Everything on there is something I’ve felt or thought before.”
COUNTRY COMING DOWN has been in motion awhile, actually. The title track, one of several co-writes with good Nashville pal Aaron Raitiere, has been around since before Cauthen’s dark sophomore album ROOM 41. Its sense of campfire calm and “damn near off the map” idyll set a bar, for both music and lifestyle, that Cauthen aspired to, while the rest of the new album, recorded at Modern Electric Sound Recorders in Dallas with regular collaborators Beau Bedford (Texas Gentlemen) and Jason Burt (Medicine Man Revival), shows that Cauthen was able to get there without losing any of the playful “hot dog holly golly dagnabit” good-time spirit that rolls off his tongue like a tumbleweed in the west Texas panhandle.
As he promises in “Country As Fuck,” “I ain’t gotta sell my soul. If I want it then I grab it.”
“I’m having fun,” Cauthen says. “I’ve finally figured it out. I’m more settled and comfortable. I know I’m good at making records and great at entertaining. That’s my gift more than anything, to be able to get up there and deliver these songs to people.”
That gift is part of Cauthen’s DNA, of course, from a family deeply steeped in music. Texan on both sides, his paternal grandfather went to school with Hank Williams while his maternal grandpa, who worked with Buddy Holly and the Crickets during his youth, introduced Cauthen to singing. His grandmother taught him to play piano, while his grandfather and great uncle were the song leader and preacher, respectively, of the local Christian Church of Christ.
“Yeah, I had no choice, really” Cauthen says now. “(Music) is what I call my birddog trait; You don’t have to tell a birddog to jump in the river and grab the duck and bring it back to you. And you don’t have to tell me to get up on stage and perform. That’s what I’m supposed to do. My family enjoyed watching me perform when I was a kid; I would get up in front of everybody at Christmas with my guitar and play ‘Jackson’ with my grandmother. I learned my trade, y’know?”
Cauthen pursued that trade into young adulthood, showcasing at Cheatham Street Warehouse in San Marcos and forming the duo Sons of Fathers, whose early albums were produced by Lloyd Maines. After the group ran its course, Cauthen set off on his own in 2016, recording MY GOSPEL partly in Muscle Shoals, AL.; The album made Rolling Stone’s list of Top 40 Country Records that year. 2018’s HAVE MERCY EP began his association with Bedford and featured contributions by other members of the Texas Gentlemen, and also led to Cauthen’s Grand Ole Opry debut as a solo artist on June 22, 2018.
The critically acclaimed ROOM 41, meanwhile, chronicled and exorcised a rough period in Cauthen’s life, marked by a romantic breakup, substance abuse, depression and anxiety issues. “My growing years were like going to college,” Cauthen confesses. “I just got screwed so many times by so many different people on this whole freakin’ journey. I had this void I was trying to fill in my heart, with booze or any type of, just, abuse. I made every stupid mistake you can make in the business, and in life, in order to learn ’em all.
“I don’t feel that hurt anymore. I’ve changed.”
Marriage helped, he says. So did cleaning house and restructuring the business operation that surrounded him. That allowed Cauthen to plunge into COUNTRY COMING DOWN with a lighter heart and wicked humor — one that allowed him to find the profound meaning in a “schmoozie bougie brouhaha.”
If you want to know what that sounds like, tuck into the album’s sonic array, an austere, sinewy attack that puts Cauthen’s vocals dead center in the ride. “We’ve really unleashed Big Velvet in this situation, which I love,” he says. Nowhere is that more true than “Country As Fuck,” with a taut groove and loping gait tailor made for a 21st century honky tonk. Cauthen, Bedford and Burt play with that template throughout COUNTRY COMING DOWN, punctuating “Caught Me At a Good Time” with a sharp guitar solo, “High Heels” with a tasteful Wurlitzer break and the satiristic “Country Clubbin'” with a disco beat and chorus of female backing vocals.
But just when you buy in — and happily convert — to Cauthen’s brand of unapologetic hedonism, the soul comes out. “Till The Day I Die” smoothes his raw heart with the promise of true and lasting love, while the stock-taking “Roll On Over” takes a wistful look in his rearview mirror. And “Country Coming Down” realizes a dream of calm — although not exclusive of the next sojourn with “Champagne & a Limo.”
I’m always on a quest, sonically,” Cauthen explains. “I was wanting to go at this just serving the song, more, ‘What does this call for?’ rather than worrying about genre or sonic palette or any certain sound. I had a lot of these songs brewing for a long time, and we just let them grow on their own.”
His muse fully engaged, Cauthen is looking towards doing more of that in the future, with a few conceptual ideas up his sleeve about what he might do next. No matter what direction he takes, however, he won’t be abandoning that cabin in the hills or the “Country Clubbin'” life; Cauthen will just be adding more to the mix he’s stirred together.
“It’s just about looking at yourself in the mirror and knowing that what you’ve done to this day has been in good standing, with good morals and a good compass in life, driven the right way,” he says. “Legacy is all we have — that, and try to be a good person as well. If you get all that together, then you can do whatever the fuck you want and it’ll be alright.”
