Music News

Jamey Johnson to take the stage at Farm Aid 2011

By Patrick Luce Aug 11, 2011, 15:50 GMT

The Guitar Song. is a 25-song, double album with thematically linked sets of songs dubbed the "Black Album" and the "White Album." "The original idea was always to do a double album," says Jamey. "The album is a tale. The first part of it is a very dark and sordid story. Everything after that is progressively more positive, reassuring and redemptive." The "Black" ...more

Mercury Nashville singer/songwriter Jamey Johnson has announced plans to perform at Farm Aid 2011 at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan., on Saturday, Aug. 13, and will be joined by country music icon and tour mate Willie Nelson. The event will also feature a number of other performers and Farm Aid founders to support our nation’s family farmers.
 
Farm Aid is the longest running benefit concert series in America, raising more than $39 million to help family farmers thrive all over the country while inspiring millions of people to learn about the Good Food movement.
 
In a press release, Johnson stated: “When I was a kid, we had a little bit of land and just about every bit of it was farm. We would grow peas over here, a little bit of corn over there, and squash and figs. I can’t even name for you everything that we grew from this land. But the fact that we couldn’t make enough money to sustain it meant that we had to eventually move off of it and let it go to someone else.”

Johnson also stressed the importance of Farm Aid and its focus on the family farmer. He is also a supporter of Farm Aid’s practice of showcasing HOMEGROWN concessions, featuring local, organic or family farm-sourced ingredients at the event.

In the release, he stated: “It makes no sense to cater in a meal from a frozen food or something like that when you’ve got people right up the road that grow the same product and actually grow a superior product. The thing you’ll see at Farm Aid is people who practice what they preach. They want you to see the fruits and vegetables of their labor.”

Johnson recently completed the Country Throwdown Tour with Willie Nelson and he’s now touring the nation with his own shows. On Sept. 1, Johnson will serve as the first official performer at the Grand Opening of Track 29, Chattanooga, Tenn.’s new premiere entertainment venue.
 
He is scheduled to perform at the 5th Annual ACM Honors, which will be held at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium on Sept. 19.  He will pay tribute to his good friend, singer / songwriter Hank Cochran, who passed away in 2010.
 
Johnson is also in the process of writing and recording songs for his new album, the follow-up to his gold-certified double album, ‘The Guitar Song,’ which was nominated for two Grammys, including Country Album of the Year. It was also nominated for Album of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards.
 
The Nashville Scene’s 11th Annual Country Music Critics’ Poll named ‘The Guitar Song’ the best album of 2011 and named Johnson Artist of the Year, Best Male Vocalist and Best Songwriter. Both Rolling Stone and Spin ranked the album No. 5 on their lists of the Best Albums of 2010 and “Macon” was ranked No. 23 on Rolling Stone’s Best Singles of 2010.