2008 Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame Inductees 8/7/08 – The Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Inc. has scheduled the 2008 induction ceremony and concert for October 8 at the Muskogee Civic Center, located at 5th and Boston Street in Muskogee, Okla. The induction reception will begin at 5 p.m. and the ceremony and concert at 7 p.m. Five artists or groups will be recognized by the hall of fame this year. The Cherokee National Youth Choir will receive the coveted Governor’s Award, a prestigious honor given only twice before. The choir was founded in 2000 and has recorded six CDs. The choir performs traditional Cherokee songs in the Cherokee language to increase awareness of the Cherokee culture. Chick Rains and the late Bob Childers will be inducted in the songwriters’ category. Songwriters from Oklahoma or writers who write songs about Oklahoma are eligible to be inducted in this category. Chick Rains is a songwriter born in Muskogee, Okla. He has written songs for well-known music stars including the Oak Ridge Boys, Reba McEntire and Johnny Cash. Bob Childers, known as the father of red dirt music, began playing guitar at 16. He emerged on the music scene with his 1979 song, “I Ain’t No Jukebox.” The All-American Rejects are being honored for the significant national attention they have received for their music talents. Announcement of their Rising Star Award occurred at their concert at D-Fest in Tulsa, Okla. The All-American Rejects began in Stillwater, Okla. in 2001 and have recorded three CDs with a fourth being released this fall. The Wichita & Affiliated Tribe will be this year’s inductee into the American Indian Tribal Music Traditions category. With recording of Wichita music made as early as 1902, the tribes’ singers are some of the earliest recording artists in Oklahoma music history. Oklahoma country music singer, Wade Hayes, who took two of Rain’s song to #1 will perform Chick Rains’ songs; members of the Red Dirt Rangers singing Bob Childers’ songs with backup music provided by Tom Skinner and the Science Project. The Cherokee National Youth Choir will perform under the direction of Mary Kay Henderson and The All-American Rejects will conclude with a concert. Members may purchase tickets August 12-20 and tickets will be available to the public beginning August 25. You can purchase tickets from clickinprint.com or the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame and Museum located at 401 S. 3rd Street, Muskogee or by calling their ticket hotline 918-687-0800. VIP tickets are $150 and include VIP parking, buffet reception and VIP seating on the arena floor. Gallery tickets will range from $19 to $39. ABOUT THE OKLAHOMA MUSIC HALL OF FAME & MUSEUM, INC: To date, Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame & Museum, Inc. has honored fifty-three individuals or groups for their talent and contribution to the music industry. Among those awards are forty-six inductees including Vince Gill, Toby Keith, Merle Haggard, Wanda Jackson and more from all genres of music. Also five rising stars have been awarded, including Carrie Underwood, Hinder, Keith Anderson and honored two governor award recipients. Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame has produced more than 20 concerts and has renovated the facility that educates Oklahomans for generations about those innovators and industry icons from the Sooner State who shape music all over the world.

New Woody Guthrie Tribute CD 8/1/08 - Woody Guthrie fans will definitely want to grab a copy of Ribbon of Highway Endless Skyway: The Woody Guthrie Tribute Tour (Music Road Records). A series of live recordings from the Guthrie tribute shows organized largely by Jimmy LaFave, and with narration by Red Dirt Music godfather, Bob Childers, the disc features some of Woody's greatest music performed live by a lot of famous folkies old and new: Pete Seeger, Ellis Paul, Eliza Gilkyson, Slaid Cleaves, Kevin Welch, Ellis Paul, etc. Commenting about the set, on which he appears several times, Jimmy LaFave  writes, "We're trying to showcase all facets of Woody Guthrie. He so many things besides a songwriter; a painter, a philosopher, a soldier, a poet, a supporter of the disenfranchised. His songs were just the tip of the iceberg. He was the spirit of America."

Tulsa Bartender Wins American Idol David Cook, a Missouri native who moved to Tulsa in hopes of furthering his music career, did just that in stratospheric proportions by winning the 2008 American Idol talent competition. The former bartender and front man for Tulsa's Midwest Kings has also signed a recording contract with 19 Records/RCA Records. Already a #1 hit on I-Tunes, Cook's "Time of My Life" is zooming up the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and ten more songs are right behind it on the chart. Cook begins recording his forthcoming album in between road stops on the "American Idols Live" tour, which ends September 13 at the new BOK Center in Tulsa. (Image Courtesy Star Magazine)