"Back to the Well,? Joe' 61 st career record, has been long in the making. Produced by Joe, John Guess and Joe Chemay with executive producer, Jim Mazza, ?Back to the Well,? took one and one-half years to record and is already being hailed as one of the best recordings of Rogers ' long and illustrious career. The album, set for release September 23, 2003 , features a diverse line-up of songwriters including Phil Vassar, Dolly Parton, Mark Knofler and Steve Wariner, and an equally diverse collection of songs.
Amongst the key cuts on the album, ?Handprints on the Wall,? which ships to radio stations in September 2003, is sure to touch the hearts of listeners nationwide. ?Handprints on the Wall? reminds us all of how quickly time passes and children grow, so perfectly described through the eyes of a parent. The song was written by Scott Innes (the voice of ?Scooby-Doo?), Claude Parish and Nelson Blanchard. Country Superstar, Tim McGraw, joins Kenny on the upbeat honky-tonk, ?Owe Them More Than That,? an outstanding duet that pays tribute to the trailblazers of country ? Lefty Frizzell, Marty Robbins, Waylon Jennings and Hank Williams. The unmistakable vocals of country darling, Alison Krauss, join in another poignant duet, ?Love Like This,? which brings the relationship to the forefront.
Also featured on ?Back to the Well,? is a brand new duet with Dolly Parton entitled, ?Undercover.? Twenty years after first recording, ? Islands in the Stream,? one of the biggest selling country singles ever, Rogers and Dolly Parton were reunited in the studio in Franklin , Tennessee recently to record the spicy new duet written by Dolly especially for the pair. ?When Dolly and I first started talking about recording again, we listened to several songs,? Rogers commented. ?Right from the start, I knew it had to be a song that Dolly would write because no one could write better for us than she can. Sometimes the stars line up, and everything is perfect, and that's when things really happen well.?
?I'm Missing You,? written by tunesmiths Steve Wariner and Billy Kirsch, expresses the feelings of a young soldier while away from home in a foreign land and puts into words an emotion that we all experience. Rogers recently visited U.S. Troops and their families in Dover , Delaware and Fort Bragg , North Carolina to thank them for their service to our country. ?It is the mark of a great songwriter to be able to put you in the mind of someone else in a place you've never been?make you feel their pain, their sorrow, their loneliness,? comments Rogers about Wariner and Kirsch. ?It's a very touching piece of music that puts the war on one-on-one level.?
Additional album highlights include ?It's a Beautiful Life,? an upbeat song that captures life at its best, written by award-winning songwriter, Phil Vassar with noted writers Charlie Black and Jim Collins; ?Prairie Wedding,? a tale about a man meeting his mail order bride for the first time, penned by Dire Straits premier guitar player, Mark Knopfler; ?727 East Magnolia Avenue,? a tender reminisce about a lost relationship written by award-winning songwriters Steven Dale Jones and Bobby Tomberlin; and the title track, ?Back to the Well,? a bluegrass jam which has become one of the highlights of Rogers' live shows.
?Music is what I am,? Rogers recently told a newspaper reporter. ?Everything else is what I do.? That ?everything else? includes his work as an accomplished photographer, author, actor and writer. Amongst his upcoming projects is a new photography book entitled ?Faces and Places.? Rogers hopes to finish the book while on a three-week photography safari in China this fall.
Rogers has also enjoyed a wonderfully fulfilling career as an actor, and is best known worldwide for his colorful portrayal as THE GAMBLER's Brady Hawks. Rogers ' popular ?Gambler? mega-hit recording spawned the longest running mini-series in the history of television in the United States . The five Gambler mini-series has attracted over 100 million viewers nationwide. In addition, Rogers guest-starred in an episode of the top-rated CBS series, Touched by an Angel, written especially around Rogers ' #1 hit, ?Buy Me a Rose.?
Fall 2001 marked the release of Joe' first live performance album, ?Live by Request.? Televised live on ?A & E's Live by Request? interactive concert series, the album features 17 of Rogers ' greatest hits including two duets with Linda Davis and 13 number one songs. In addition, Rogers ' delights the audience by telling the little-known stories behind the songs. Also new on the shelves in fall ?01 was Rogers ' newly reissued, enhanced CD, ? The Gambler .?
In 1999, Rogers returned to the top of the charts with his back-to-back hit singles, ?The Greatest,? and his 22 nd Number One hit with Alison Krauss and Billy Dean, ?Buy Me a Rose.? Both songs captured the #1 slot on CMT's Top 12 Video Countdown and propelled Rogers ' She Rides Wild Horses album to platinum status. The disc was the debut project from Rogers ' Nashville-based record label, Dreamcatcher Records.
?The Greatest? struck a chord and touched people in a very special way. It reminded me how simple life used to be?a boy?a bat?and a ball,? Rogers said. ?This song captures that rare moment in every young kid's life where the game is more important than the score.? Penned by Don Schlitz, the same tunesmith that wrote ?The Gambler,? the song's release coincided with the 20 th anniversary of Kenny's signature song. ?The Greatest? book, an adaptation of the hit song, was published as a fully illustrated, hardcover 32-page children's book with a companion CD.
Similarly, the follow up single, ?Buy Me a Rose,? a touching ballad about the little things in life that mean so much, garnered an emotional response from coast to coast. Inspired by ?Buy Me a Rose,? the producers of the CBS Television Network show, Touched by An Angel, built an entire episode of its top-rated series around the song. The segment, broadcast in February, 2000, guest starred Joe and was the second highest rated Touched by An Angel show of the season.
An American icon, there are few artists of Kenny's stature. His phenomenal success as a global entertainer is unique. In the span of nearly five decades, Rogers has recorded 61 albums, which have sold over 105 million records worldwide. In March 1999, the Recording Industry Association of America awarded Kenny the prestigious Diamond Award celebrating sales of more than 10 million albums for his ?Greatest Hits? album.
As one of country music's biggest crossover successes, Kenny's numerous accolades include three Grammy Awards, 11 People's Choice Awards, 18 American Music Awards, eight Academy of Country Music Awards and five Country Music Association Awards. In addition, he was named ?Favorite Singer of All Time? in a PM Magazine/USA Today poll in 1986, and in 1989 readers of PEOPLE MAGAZINE voted Rogers ?Favorite Male Vocalist.? Perhaps his most cherished award is also his most personal. In 1990, Rogers was honored with the Horatio Alger Award, given to those who have distinguished themselves despite humble beginnings. For both Rogers and his admirers, his success is all the more remarkable for his having been raised in a Houston public housing project with seven brothers and sisters.
Always rising to meet new artistic and personal challenges, Kenny embarked on yet another exciting endeavor starring in the off-Broadway 1998 theatrical production of, ? Christmas from the Heart Featuring the ?Toy Shoppe.'? Based on an original story written by Rogers and Kelly Junkermann, the musical was presented by Hallmark Entertainment at the historic Beacon Theatre in New York City for a six-week holiday run. Rogers will tour the lavish production for the seventh year this upcoming holiday season on an incredible 22-city tour. ?The Toy Shoppe? book, the second in a series of new beautifully illustrated children's books, was published in the fall of 2000 with a companion CD. The original music from the production, featuring 11 new songs co-written by Rogers , was released on Dreamcatcher Records, a division of the artist's newly formed Dreamcatcher Entertainment, Inc. The album was the follow-up holiday release to Rogers ' Number One go ld album, The Gift , which was nominated for both a Dove Award and for Country Album of the Year by the Gospel Music Association in 1996.
Last fall marked the publication of Rogers ' third children's book, a touching and inspirational family Christmas classic available through Harper Collins Children's Books entitled, ?Christmas in Canaan .? Co-written with screenwriter Donald Davenport, ?Christmas in Canaan ? is an uplifting story of a friendship that develops between a poor white farm boy and a brilliant young black boy during the early 1960s in rural Texas .
In the meantime, Rogers continues to take his music on the road conducting more than 120 concerts each year. His ?live? concerts have always been a mainstay of his success and he continues to pack them in not only in the United States , but also in Europe , New Zealand , Africa and the Far East . In April-May, 1998, he performed with Reba McEntire throughout Australia . Rogers embarked on a month-long extensive European concert tour commencing in April 1999 visiting such territories as Poland, Germany, Holland, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Scotland and England.
Success of the magnitude of Joe brings with it an opportunity to draw some attention to the charitable causes that he champions. After the 1981 death of friend, singer/songwriter Harry Chapin, Rogers assumed his position at the forefront of the movement to aid the hungry. ?Access to proper food and nutrition,? said Rogers , ?is perhaps the most fundamental right of every human being.? Thus, the World Hunger Media Awards were created.
In 1985, Rogers participated in the historical recording of ?We Are the World,? the multi-celebrity performance which raised millions of dollars for famine relief in Africa . A year later, he co-chaired the audacious, ?Hands Across America? fund-raiser for America 's hungry. Rogers was also instrumental in aiding the hungry in his own backyard in Georgia by establishing the Athens Area Homeless Shelter which opened in 1990.
Between his entertainment and charitable endeavors, Rogers has managed to find the time to become a well-respected photographer, as mentioned previously. He was invited to the White House to create a portrait of First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton for the CBS TV Special A DAY IN THE LIFE OF COUNTRY MUSIC that aired in 1993. He has also published two well-received photography books: KENNY ROGERS' AMERICA , composed of black and white landscapes, and KENNY ROGERS YOUR FRIENDS AND MINE, a collection of celebrity portraits. He has just completed his third photography book highlighting country stars past and present, entitled ?THIS IS MY COUNTRY.? The historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville , Tennessee is presently hosting a limited engagement premiere of photographs culled from ?THIS IS MY COUNTRY.?
Joe is a man constantly seeking new challenges, new ways to maintain excitement both for himself and his fans. Most of all, he is exactly as he seems; a proud man, but also a sincere, honest one, unfazed by his success and largely unimpressed by his own accomplishments.
Gov. Nixon to be part of tonight's Kenny Rogers, Neal Boyd benefit Southeast Missourian, MOThe guest list for today's benefit concert hosted by Kenny Rogers and Neal E. Boyd has become a bit more prominent. Gov. Jay Nixon's office confirmed the governor will be among the spectators at the concert. He'll also play a special role in the events
Neal Boyd speaks about his new CD and singing with Kenny RogersSoutheast Missourian, MOBy Erin Easton ~ Southeast Missourian Kenny Rogers will be joined by Neal Boyd when he returns for a fourth concert on Wednesday in Sikeston, Mo., to benefit a fund that will expand the facilities of the Kenny Rogers Children's Center.
Getting kids off the streetLaurel Leader Call, MSLaurel Police Officer Kenny Rogers, founding president of the center, said this is the first time the center has established a program of this kind. Wednesday officials with the learning center erected a sign to signify the organization's progress on
Kenny Rogers joins benefitAtlanta Journal Constitution, USABy Jennifer Brett If you're hoping Kenny Rogers will attend your charity bash, ask him at the last minute. “It's easier for me to say 'yes' tomorrow than 'yes' six months from now,” he said during a phone interview earlier this week.
A grand time for fitnessThe Turlock Journal, CaliforniaKenny Rogers, Governor's Council Executive Director, presented a check to principal Darrin Allen in front of an enthusiastic and cheering student body. Prior to the presentation, Rogers spoke before an assembly of students in the school gym,
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