Keith Urban, The Band Perry, Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton and Hank Williams will be represented in the Los Angeles Annenberg Space For Photography exhibit Country: Portraits Of American Sound. The photographic exhibit presents images of the pioneers, poets and icons of country music. Open May 31-Sep. 28, admission is free; more  here.

 

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The Band Perry and Kenny Rogers are among the performers scheduled for Muhammed Ali’s Celebrity Fight Night XX April 12 in Phoenix, this year honoring Robert De Niro. Emceed for the ninth year byReba, the black-tie event benefits the Muhammed Ali Parkinson Center and other charities. More here.

 

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NEW YORK (AP) – Although he’s been gone more than a decade, a new Johnny Cash video has just been released. It’s for the recently discovered Cash recording “She Used To Love Me A Lot.” The song is part of a previously unreleased Cash album called “Out Among The Stars,” due out March 25. You can see the video at http://smarturl.it/JCash_video .

 

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Miranda Lambert has taken nearly three years to go “Platinum.” And we don’t mean it was a very slow dye job. “Platinum” is the title of her new album – and by time it drops in June, it will have been two years and eight months since her last project. Lambert says she wanted to take her time with this project, coming off an extended concert tour. She says it always seems that no matter how much time you take to do an album, you always feel rushed. She says she wanted to make sure that once the album was done, she would “never have a moment where you go, I wish we could change that or I wish we had a different song.” Lambert has Carrie Underwood joining her for one tune on the album, “Something Bad.” She says singing with Underwood is a little intimidating because she’s such an amazing singer.

 

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Get-well wishes are extended to Mel Tillis following heart surgery over the weekend in Nashville. “He’s doing fantastic and is expected to make a full recovery,” says daughter Pam Tillis. “In typical Mel Tillis fashion, he’s already cutting up and cracking jokes with the nurses. Your thoughts and prayers are appreciated.” Follow his recovery here.

 

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) – John Denver never lived in West Virginia. But his song that name-checks the state is now one of West Virginia’s official state songs. The state legislature has adopted the 1970s hit “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” The song has been a part of West Virginia’s psyche for decades. Oddly enough, the effort to make Denver’s song a state song was launched by the widow of “Gilligan’s Island” actor Bob Denver – but the two Denvers aren’t related.

 

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Martina McBride, Charley Pride, Larry Gatlin & The Gatlin Brothers, Lorrie Morgan, John Anderson, Aaron Tippin, Darryl Worley, Asleep At The Wheel, Restless Heart, Wade Hayes, Bryan White and others will perform on Holland America’s MS Eurodam for the 2015 Country Music Cruise Jan. 18-25. Lorianne Crook returns as official host. Daily concerts, a wide array of new artist based events, activities, dining, and stops in Nassau, St. Thomas, St. Croix and the private island Half Moon Cay are included. More here.

 

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Congratulations to Dierks Bentley,UMG/Nashville and the entire Capitol team for topping the country album chart with Riser, which sold more than 63,400 copies in its debut week, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The album is Bentley’s fifth to reach the pinnacle.

 

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – A lot of stars own planes. But for Dierks Bentley, it wasn’t some status symbol – it was a necessity to help him stay close to family. He had his pilot’s license for a while – but didn’t think about buying a plane until he realized that he could get more time at home if he could fly to some of his performances instead of taking a bus. He says while he couldn’t “afford to sit in the back right seat of a jet,” he could afford “to sit in the front left seat of a prop plane.” He says if that helps give him an extra night with his kids once in a while, it’s worth the investment. Bentley has a new album out now, titled “Riser.”

 

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LONDON (AP) – It’s Britain’s leading rock festival. But it will have a little bit of country flavor this year. Organizers say Dolly Parton will be performing at Glastonbury Festival in June. A festival organizer tells the BBC having her on the bill is “something we’ve been wanting to happen for a long time” – and Parton has finally agreed. Glastonbury is Britain’s most prestigious summer music festival. About 120,000 tickets for the June 25-29 event sold out before any acts were announced. Arcade Fire is also signed on to do the festival.

 

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Josh Turner will release his first book Man Stuff: Thoughts On Faith, Family And Fatherhood April 29. “In this book you’ll learn a little bit more about how God has shaped and continues to shape me,” Turner says. “You’ll also learn about my wife, my boys and the family I grew up in. I hope you see that the everyday small things in this life really do add up to matter a great deal in the long run. And I hope you’ll smile – even laugh – and gain a little wisdom along the way. Maybe even a lot.” Duck Dynasty‘sJase Robertson will provide the forward. More here.

 

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