DIERKS AND JIMMY JAMMIN'

Found this little gem on musicrow.com.

Jimmy Wayne takes a camera with him everywhere he travels, and this week his label Valory Music Co. launched a weekly series spotlighting some of his favorite photos from the road. See below.

INSIGHT INTO ECHO AND DIERKS BENTLEY'S WEBSITE DEMISE

If you really want some insight into what's going on in Music City relative to the shutdown of echo, check out the June 12th article by Craig Havighurst from the String Theory Media blog. Although Dierks Bentley's new website is going through some major challenges right now--two different websites, unsavory/unmoderated posts, login issues, etc.--it could be worse. DB could have been one of the artist's who faced "darknet", or no website at all.

I heard from DBC reps who talked to Dierks at the Kansas City show, that Dierks is making sure the two new sites turn back into one "dierks.com" website. Thank you, Dierks! The sooner the better!

darknet: echo artist clients face imminent web shut-down

When news broke in April that Echomusic of Nashville (popularly known as echo) was being closed by parent company Ticketmaster Entertainment, it was reported (all too briefly) as a story of some 60 lost jobs on Music Row. What hasn’t been reported is that early next week, on June 15-18, between 100 and 200 echo clients – most of them small or mid-level, independent or indie-label bands and artists – will see their websites go dark with no refunds and no ability to transfer their sites seamlessly to another host.

The echo platform, touted by the company for years as a unique integration of web site, e-mail list, merchandise sales and fan connection tools, was built on an architecture so proprietary and one-of-a-kind that sites “powered by echo” must be re-built from scratch. This is according to current and former Echo employees, as well as artist managers who are currently scrambling to rescue their artists’ vital presence on the web.

Click here for the entire article and interesting comments by former echo employees.

FAN-CLUBBERS BOND AT FREE BENTLEY SHOW

Dierks Bentley fan-clubbers/DBC reps are a tight-knit family. That closeness was validated at the July 2 Kansas City, MO show that Dierks performed for free. And good things happen to those who help others.

Eleven Missouri girls: Takara, Leigh, Jackie, Stephanie, Bonnie, Kim, Whitney, Georgia, Jamie, Jayme, and Stacey all saved spots at the rail of the stage. Some had Meet & Greets, some didn't--but they all looked out for each other--that's what the DB Congress family of fan-clubbers does.


Whitney hails from Glasgow, Missouri, where Dierks Bentley's dad grew up. So when the opportunity arose to see Dierks for "free" in Kansas City, MO, the two-hour-DRT (Dierks Road Trip) was a done deal. Friends Georgia (also from Glasgow) and Stacey & Jackie (Jefferson City) made the trek with lots of Dierks music and matching T-shirts:

Front: Missouri girls want to Feel That Fire; Back: Dierks is everything we want and more! (L to R: Jackie, Stacey, Whitney, Georgia)

"I actually didn't have a fan club Meet & Greet that night," explain Whitney. "Well actually, I had gotten two from Budlight but gave them to Jackie and my friend Georgia because I have had two fan club Meet & Greets before. It was hard to give them up, but since I just had the opportunity I wanted to give one to someone else."

It must have been tough to decide who to give them to, right?

"Stacey had gotten a FC Meet & Greet. I went through everyone that was there and those who had been the longest or hadn't met him I gave the passes to! Plus Jackie and Georgia were my DRT road trip partners so that made it easier! Several had just met him at Last Call Ball. Jackie hadn't had a meet n greet since 2007 and Georgia hadn't met him at all. If I had another it would have gone to Bonnie because it has been a long time for her too!"



"One of those M&G's for Whitney was just two weeks ago in St. Louis. And the other was a year ago in Kansas City. "In my M&Gs, Dierks and I have talked about how his dad is from Glasgow. I told him he needs to come back through soon and I would give him a tour! My grandmother actually used to work with his dad at the bank in Glasgow years ago. So she made a baby afghan when Cassidy was pregnant with Evie and I gave it to him last year with a little note explaining who made it, and the connection to my grandma. She was so proud that I was able to give it to Dierks!"

The group had lots of Dierks sightings, before, during and after the concert that day. While waiting by the stage, the band started sound check and they were allowed to stay and watch. Jayme's pics:

They did 2 songs, 'I Wanna Make You Close Your Eyes' and an "oldie" that has been a fan favorite for years, 'Domestic, Light and Cold.'



"During the show, Dierks asked me for the sign we made. He took it, held it up, and talked about Glasgow, then propped it up in front of him! Dierks called us four 'Glasgow Girls' all day so even though Jackie and Stacey are from Jefferson City, they are honorary Glasgow girls! He also mentioned his dad and Glasgow right after singing My Last Name," says Whitney.

Good things happen to those who help others. Well, Whitney may have given up her M&G, but she gained a very special DB experience instead. Thanks to Kim who thoughtfully took these pics of D singing to her friend.

"He was singing, How am I Doing. I couldn't even tell you what was going through my mind.... I'm thinking something like... OMG is this really happening? Then I just started singing along with him. After all of that and the song ended I looked to both sides and said I hope you girls got pictures!" Yep, Kim covered you!

What goes around comes around. So, let's recap. Whitney helped Jackie and Georgia. Kim helped Whitney, and Jackie helped Kim by taking this pic:

And that's the story of how the DB Congress stick together and form a bond--not to be broken. We hold each other together and Dierks is our strength.

DIERKS BAILS OUT BIG WHITE

Dierks Bentley posted a few videos on his You Tube channel. Check out the 30 second clip where he spent a little too much time on Lower Broadway one night and ended up having to to go find his trusty friend, "Big White."




Also, Rhapsody's 30 second ad on "Country fans get it" includes our very own DB Prez, and his dog Jake.