Today's Country Tidbits

Martina McBride and Faith Hill are performing for babies in Nashville on October 26th. Wait - not an audience filled with babies, they'll performing a benefit concert for babies born at Baptist Hospital. It's a fund-raiser to help renovate the hospital and provide new equipment for the neonatal intensive care unit. Tickets are available now.

Yesterday was Faith Hill's 43rd birthday and she spent it in Australia with her daughters and with hubby Tim McGraw, who's doing a series of concerts there. Australian tv did a story on how they celebrated - with Tim and Faith on stage together, singing "I Need You."

If you want to see Jason Aldean in concert in October and also want to do something charitable, Jason's got a deal for you. An eBay auction to benefit Vanderbilt Childrens Hospital in Nashville includes two tickets and two meet & greet passes to any of his shows in October. The auction closes today, so bid quick!

Luke Bryan celebrated the success of "Rain is a Good Thing" yesterday in Nashville at his #1 party for the song. The timing of the hit was a little off - it was climbing the charts just when the floods hit Nashville, prompting Luke to quip, “I guess it kind of taught me to never do a song again that could possibly have a natural disasters to it. So I won’t I won’t have any songs with hurricanes in it.”

Randy Houser was up early Tuesday morning to be part of Good Morning America on his album release day.

Jack Ingram's Acoustic Motel series continues on YouTube. This week, the song is Guy Clark's "Stuff That Works."

The video for Carrie Underwood's "Mama's Song" will debut on Friday, exclusively on VEVO. People.com has an article about the video, which stars Carrie, her Mom Carole and features hubby Mike Fisher. Carrie's favorite part about making the video? Having Mike share a part of her world for the day.

Taylor Swift is making a cameo in another movie. "Todd vs. High School" is filming now, and Taylor was spotted on the set wearing a red and white basketball uniform. Team name? Squirrels. Taylor's uniform number? 13, of course!

Kenny Chesney's "Invitation Only" episode premiers Monday night, just before the release of "Hemingway's Whiskey." That drops Tuesday, when Kenny starts his day on Good Morning America.

The tweet of the day is from James Otto: "So many good records coming out. Bout to go buy my boy RandyHouser's new one & zacbrownband too. Good month for country music."

Today's Country Tidbits

The ACM Honors award show was last night in Nashville. Martina McBride, Randy Travis, Kenny Rogers, John Rich and Buxton Hughes all performed during the evening. The night is a relaxed party for the winners of the non-televised Academy of Country Music award-winners, and has been held in Nashville for the past four years, in spite of the fact that the ACM is based in southern California.

We now know the stars who'll be featured in the Nashville school re-build on "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition." Carrie Underwood we already knew about, but add Keith Urban and a singer more famous for her tabloid escapades than for country music lately, LeAnn Rimes. Leigh Anne Tuohy of "The Blind Side" fame was part of Ty Pennington's design crew, and they all spent last week in Nashville for the build. The episode is tentatively scheduled for November 7th, just before the CMA Awards air on the 10th.

Wanna fly across the country from New York to LA with Taylor Swift on the day her cd drops? You can, with her "Speak Now"contest. Come up with 40 or fewer perfect words to win...good luck!

Just get set to ice down your credit card - today, there's new music available from Zac Brown Band, Billy Currington and Randy Houser. Next Tuesday, Kenny Chesney's "Hemingway's Whiskey" and Montgomery Gentry's greatest hits package are released, in two weeks, Toby Keith unloads with "Bullets in the Gun" and in three weeks there are new releases from Trace Adkins and Darius Rucker. A month from today, Sugarland is out with a new cd, then the following Tuesday is Taylor Swift's turn. The first Tuesday in November, Jason Aldean and Brad Paisley have elected to release new projects, then it's Reba's turn, Rascal Flatts and Keith Urban on the 16th and Alan Jackson on the 23rd of November. Told you your credit card would be smokin'!!

Congratulations to Lady Antebellum, who have the number one country song again this week with "Our Kind of Love."

Happy birthday to Faith Hill, who turns 43 today.

The tweet of the day is from James Otto, responding to Miranda Lambert's lavish praise of his show: "Love @Miranda_Lambert for her kind words but I still really wanted that gig. Miranda I promise to suck next time."

Today's Country Tidbits

When the Carrie Underwood tour hits the road with Billy Currington on the bill, there'll be a little bit of dog hair backstage. Carrie travels with her rat terrier, Ace, and Billy travels with his chocolate lab, Pace. Despite the size difference, the boys will probably get along famously...hope so, anyway, with those rhyming names! Wonder if Carrie and Billy will write a song together about their dogs?

Last night, the Zac Brown Band streamed their concert from Red Rocks live on their website, causing a slight internet meltdown. If you tried and failed to log on, no worries - it'll be available soon as a dvd, in all likelihood.

Everybody's going country, it seems. The Eagles' Don Henley has been working on a solo project which he describes as a country album. It doesn't have a release date yet. And Michael Waddell, co-host of the Outdoor Channel's show, "Bone Collector," has teamed up with Rhett Akins and Dallas Davidson to record a country cd that he promises will be an "album that every hunting enthusiast will want in their collection." The project hits stores a week from tomorrow.

Congrats to Big Kenny Alphin and his wife Christiev on the adoption of their baby boy. Dakota joins four-year-old brother Lincoln.

Randy Houser will be on Good Morning America tomorrow morning and on Jimmy Kimmel Live a week from tonight.

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride: "Ive discovered as long as u have ripe tomatoes,fresh basil,good olive oil,& a little salt u will not go hungry!Bonus if theres crusty bread"

Today's Country Tidbits

Today, the Zac Brown Band will play a special concert in Texas. Is it at a stadium? No. A huge arena? No. It's actually in a school auditorium. Zac Brown Band teamed up with Campbell's Soup in their "Labels for Education" competition, with the school collecting the most labels winning a meet & greet plus a show by the Zac Brown Band. The students at Bynum School have a surprise for the band, though - the kids will perform a song they've created just for them.

Want to own a piece of history? NASH2O, a Nashville-based charity founded in the wake of the spring floods, has collected ruined instruments from Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, Vince Gill and many more and will put them up for auction starting October 12th. There will be a launch party in Nashville that day, with many of the artists in attendance. The instruments have been cleaned and are being sold as collector's items, not as musical instruments because of the damage they've sustained.

Jason Aldean's "My Kind of Party" drops on November 2nd, but he threw a launch party for industry types this week at the barn on his Nashville property. Now, don't think cows and horses - Jason's barn has a shuffleboard court, a pool table, full kitchen and big screen tv. Now that's a man-cave!

Can you wait until next week? September 22 is the day the world will learn who the new American Idol judges will be. Steven Tyler of Aerosmith has declared himself a shoe-in, rumors are that Jennifer Lopez has sealed a $12 million deal, and Shania Twain, Harry Connick Jr., Elton John and Chris Isaak have all been batted around as strong possibilities. If Shania wants it, hope she gets it. It would be good to have some country represenation on that show.

This year's "We're All for the Hall" concert, organized by Keith Urban and a benefit for the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, will be October 5th at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Tickets go (or went, depending on when you read this) on sale at 10 this morning.

Here's your advance warning - you're going to want to drop some bucks at the music store on Tuesday, so pick up an extra job or two over the weekend to cover it. Zac Brown Band, Randy Houser, Billy Currington, Walker Hayes and Mel Tillis all have new cds out Tuesday. Randy Houser has a simple solution for fans who are torn between buying Zac's cd or his: "We've been telling people that whenever you go to the store to buy his, make sure you pick up mine," he says. "Or when you go buy mine, make sure you pick up his. We don't give a damn. We're all family. We're all just as proud of one another as we are of ourselves."

Speaking of the Randy one, hear all of the tracks from "They Call Me Cadillac" before it comes out Tuesday.

Catch Trace Adkins on Anderson Cooper's AC360 tonight on CNN.

Happy birthday to Jeff Bates and Trisha Yearwood on Sunday.

The tweet of the day is from Kellie Pickler: "I am so excited! Just got my grandpa Ken a oneway flight. He's coming on tour with me tomorrow. Might kidnap him and not let him go home. :)"

Today's Country Tidbits

More bling for Bentley...Dierks Bentley, that is. He'll have to find space for another shiny award, as he hauled home the ASCAP Artist/Songwriter of the year title at Tuesday's gala. Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood of Lady Antebellum shared Song of the Year honors with their co-writer, Josh Kear, for "Need You Now." During his acceptance speech, Josh thanked Charles Kelley's wife Cassie for letting him attend their songwriting session on her birthday. Nice gift...wonder if she gets to decide where that trophy goes?

Rascal Flatts new video for "Why Wait" is inspired by "The Hangover" and is tons of fun. How could it not be, with Ron White pretending to be one of the boys? See if you can pick out all the stars who appear in this video.

Rascal Flatts More CMT Music More CMT Music Videos

Nickelback played Nashville this week, and Joe Nichols joined them on stage to help them sing "Rockstar." Got it here, but please note - there's some rough language on it...

Wow...what a fun night this will be! Willie Nelson and Woody Harrelson are hosting "Willie & Woody's All-Star Texas Hold 'Em Charity Tournament at the Hustler Casino Los Angeles on September 27th. Dinner, a silent auction and of course poker are just part of the fun...you know Willie will pull out his guitar. There's only space for 50 spectators and 200 players, so if you want in, better hurry!

Loretta Lynn gets a huge salute on October 12th at the Ryman. The Recording Academy's Salute to Country Music Honoring Loretta Lynn will be hosted by Reba, who will be joined onstage by Martin McBride, Gretchen Wilson, Lee Ann Womack and more country stars, serenading Loretta with her hit songs.

Merle Haggard has canceled 10 concert dates due to chest congestion. He was diagnosed with lung cancer a couple of years ago and wants to take it easy instead of pushing through a possible complication.

In case you care, LeAnn Rimes tells why she cheated.

Darryl Worley's Tennessee River Run kicks off today in Savannah, TN.

Happy birthday to David Bellamy of the Bellamy Brothers...he turns 60 today.

The tweet of the day is from James Otto: "So all day yesterday my baby Ava was quite & sweet & and a perfect angel & all night long was a holy terror. Already acting like her dad."

Today's Country Tidbits

Kenny Chesney continues to roll out music from his upcoming "Hemingway's Whiskey." The cd drops on September 28th, and today's offering is on RollingStone.com and also here. This is "Me and Tequila," a duet with Grace Potter. If you're on Facebook, be sure to like Kenny Chesney's page - he's sharing parts of songs there, too.

Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman were in Toronto, Canada for the International Film Festival. Nicole's latest movie, "The Rabbit Hole," debuted there and the two were on hand to sign autographs and greet fans during the red carpet event.

Yesterday was a momentous day for Alan Jackson. He received the prestigious Founders Award at the 48th Annual ASCAP Country Music Awards, honoring his contributions to both music and his fellow musicians, and he also changed managers. For 10 years, Howard Kaufman in Los Angeles has handled his management, but as of yesterday, he's back with Nancy Russell, who stepped away from artist management about three years ago but is re-establishing her Nashville-based company.

Tim McGraw, Faith Hill and their girls are all in Australia. Tim's booked a few shows, but he and Faith are being sure their kids get a good look at Oz. They've been spotted at the Circular Quay and the Opera House, plus took the advice of Keith Urban and checked out a special gelato place for dessert. Tim's concerts start tonight and run through next Tuesday.

If you're a Tim McGraw fan and you have some money to throw around, here's an event made for you. "An Evening with Tim McGraw and Friends" happens November 12 & 13 in Napa Valley, California as a benefit for several local and national charities. The weekend features a private "Songwriters & Storytellers dinner at the Gargiulo Vineyards, the groundbreaking for the Foundation's headquarters, dinner at an award-winning restaurant, and an awards celebration complete with a Tim McGraw performance. If you want to just attend the concert, that'll set you back a grand a ticket. If you'd like one of the packages that get you into everything for the whole weekend, plus lodging, those range from $3500 to $4000.

Out of the mouths of babes - Darius Rucker has three kids, Cary, Dani and Jack. Jack, who is 5, has decided he wants a new name. According to Darius, “He said, ‘Why don’t you guys just call me Darius?’ ‘Okay, really?’ ‘Yea, call me what you call daddy.’ ‘Okay, you’re Darius.' Coming from the person who is the dad, that is pretty precious.”

Here are the dates for Luke Bryan's Georgia Farm Tour, sponsored by the NRA. Tickets are available now.

September 28th - Coffee Weed Plantation, Valdosta, Ga.

September 29th - Hurricane Branch Plantation, Statesboro, Ga.

September 30th - VFW Fairgrounds, Carrollton, Ga.

October 1st - Luther Williams Field, Macon, Ga.

Jason Aldean has a different theory on selling cds - give fans more songs. “If you can give people more songs at a discounted price, you can give them 15 songs for 12 bucks or they can go to iTunes and get 15 songs for 17 bucks. It’s like, hopefully they’ll be more willing to buy the physical album. You’re going to see a lot more stuff like that I think.” His "My Kinda Party" comes out November 2nd.

There'll be a special edition of Taylor Swift's "Speak Now" cd on release day, October 26th. Target will have a deluxe edition with three bonus tracks, three remixes and a 30-minute dvd, plus the cd cover is different - instead of having a purple dress on, Taylor will be wearing Target red.

Catch Trace Adkins on Jimmy Kimmel Live tonight.

The tweet of the day is from Martina McBride: "Today is the first day of the best is yet to come. Beyond excited!"

Today's Country Tidbits

"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" is filming in Nashville this week. The makeover is on a private school just outside of town that was hit hard by the spring flood. Country stars - so far, unnamed by ABC - are helping with the rebuild, and the family that runs the school is shown touring around Nashville, enjoying the sights and sounds of Music City. Part of the show will be this Thursday's Grand Ole Opry performance. Wait, you say, there's not a Thursday performance of the Opry. There is this week, to accomodate the shooting schedule for the show. Carrie Underwood is the featured performer, and is also involved in the school rebuild. No air date has been released yet for this episode.

There's new Kenny Chesney music in a couple of places on the internet. People.com has Kenny's new song "Reality" and from his CMT "Invitation Only" taping, here's another new song from "Hemingway's Whiskey." It's called "Coastal."

Kenny Chesney More CMT Music More CMT Music Videos

The CMA nominations were revealed over a two-day period, and a bunch of stars were involved. Here's a behind-the-scenes peek at it all.

The Lifetime channel is working on a movie based on Garth Brooks' classic song, "Unanswered Prayers." The movie, which will premier in November, follows a happily married man who is faced with a tough decision when his high school sweetheart comes back into his life. Bet the movie ends just like the song does...happily.

Miranda Lambert, Craig Morgan and Patty Loveless are stateside after spending the weekend in Gstaad, Switzerland. They were invited to play the annual, two-day "Country Night" concert.

A little closer to home, Darius Rucker, Troy Olsen, Luke Bryan, Jeanette McCurdy and Walker Hayes will play the third annual Capitol Nashville street party on October 13th. The music starts at 6 on Demonbreun Street.

Jack Ingram's Acoustic Motel continues - here's his new song, "Over You."

Told you last week about the Loretta Lynn tribute album that's been in the works. Today I can show you the track list:

1."Don't Come Home A Drinkin' (With Lovin' On Your Mind)" — Gretchen Wilson

2."I'm A Honky Tonk Girl" — Lee Ann Womack

3."Rated X" — The White Stripes

4."You're Lookin' At Country" — Carrie Underwood

5."Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man" — Alan Jackson and Martina McBride

6."You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)" — Paramore

7."Love Is The Foundation" — Faith Hill

8."After The Fire Is Gone" — Steve Earle and Allison Moorer

9."If You're Not Gone Too Long" — Reba

10."I Know How" — Kid Rock

11."Somebody Somewhere (Don't Know What He's Missin' Tonight)" — Lucinda Williams

12."Coal Miner's Daughter" — Loretta Lynn, Sheryl Crow and Miranda Lambert

Congrats to Lady Antebellum, who's "Our Kind of Love" is the #1 song this week on the country charts. It's the third single from "Need You Now" and the third straight #1 song from that cd, which is also #1 on the country album charts this week.

Watch the Judds on the Oprah show today, and Trace Adkins on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno tonight.

New music in stores today - Jamey Johnson's "The Guitar Song," James Otto "Shake What God Gave Ya," Joey+Rory "Album Number Two" and Savannah Jack's self-titled debut.

The tweet of the day is from the Zac Brown Band: "Alright, folks. Nothing to tweet here. Move along."