Brett Eldredge is unusual among country music artistes. The 30-year-old singer, guitarist and songwriter does not hail from one of America’s southern states, the traditional heartland of country musicians. He was born and raised in Paris, Illinois.
“There aren’t too many of us,” Brett smiled. “Almost every country star I can think of comes from somewhere in the south or at least from the southern mid-west. But I’ve always loved country music. I enjoy other stuff too but country was the only kind of music I ever really wanted to play.”
His musical passion might be rooted in the American south but Brett’s allegiance is very much to his home state. He is a rabid fan of the Chicago Cubs baseball team. The Cubs finally won the World Series last October, their first triumph in the Fall Classic since 1908.
“I think all us Cubs fans are still celebrating. We hadn’t even been in a World Series for 71 years. We were always seen as the lovable losers who kept saying wait until next year. Well, next year finally arrived.”
Brett’s love for the Cubs is clearly illustrated in the video and sleeve cover for his smash hit single, Wanna Be That Song. The video was filmed in Wrigley Field, the Cubs home stadium, while the cover photograph depicts Brett sitting alone in the outfield bleachers with the iconic Wrigley Field scoreboard in the background.
“I really wanted to film the video in Wrigley Field. Wanna Be That Song says everything about me as an artiste and everything I want to be to my fans. I wanted to link this with the baseball team which is the love of my sporting life.”
The song evolved from a moment just before Brett took the stage to perform a concert at the Kansas Speedway.
“I was talking to my friend and frequent songwriting partner Scooter Carusoe at the side of the stage and just said to him I wanted to write a song called Wanna Be That Song. My idea was to make something which said everything I wanted to say about love and about the artiste I’m trying to be.
“I wanted to be a vital part of my fans lives. I wanted to create the song that means so much to them. The song that takes them back to a special place or time in their lives. The song that makes them laugh. The song that makes them cry when they need to cry and dance when they need to dance.
“Nothing happened for about three months. Then Scooter told me he’d been thinking about what I’d said and reckoned he’d come up with a way of encompassing everything I wanted to say in one song. We got together in a writing session with Ross Copperman, who was producing my album, and created Wanna Be That Song.”
Brett acknowledges the track as his favourite song on his chart-topping second album, Illinois. Surprisingly, it is the third single taken from the LP.
“I thought it would probably be the lead single but other very wise people have their say on which songs should be released as singles. I can’t complain, Lose My Mind and Drunk On Your Love both reached number two on the Hot Country Songs chart and Lose My Mind hit top spot on the Country Airplay chart.”
Wanna Be That Song currently holds pole position on the Country Airplay chart. It represents amazing popularity for a track which was initially made available as an album preview single well before Illinois was released in September, 2015.
“It actually reached number 34 on the Hot Country Songs chart despite just being a preview single rather than a proper release. Fans have been able to hear and download Wanna Be That Song for about 18 months so for it to still be so enormously popular and sell so well is really incredible.”
The parent album, Illinois, proved hugely successful. Brett’s 2013 debut album, Bring You Back, marked him out as a star. It reached number 11 on the Billboard 200 and number two on the Top Country Albums chart. But Illinois topped the latter and peaked at number three on the Billboard 200.
“I count myself as very fortunate to have such a great relationship with my fans. It started during my early days long before I got my record deal. I think people really appreciate how much I enjoy playing my songs for them and how grateful I am for all their support.”


in 
brief


Marie Miller


Marie Miller was born in Dallas, Texas, spent the first nine years of her life in California before doing most of her growing up in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. She is the third of ten children born to Joseph and Roxanne Miller.
Music was always part of the Miller household. Marie plays mandolin, guitar, piano and bouzouki joining her family band at the age of 12. Although the Millers played music festivals and were popular on a local level, only Marie has gone on to earn her living as a singer/songwriter.
Now 27, her self-titled debut solo EP was released 11 years ago. She was immediately tagged as an artist to watch. But despite considerable critical acclaim and well-received singles such as Cold, 6’2 and You’re Not Alone, Marie has never achieved significant mainstream chart success.
Her latest attempt to do so is with her new single, This Side of Paradise. Co-written with Ian Fitchuk and Peter Groenwald, the official lyric video can be seen at www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfUqWnmQ4cw
An acoustic version of the song is available on Marie’s own YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/channel/UCH4S88m5gbZtMRaldCfZByQ 
Also here are a selection of videos for some of her other singles, acoustic performances and interviews. Click on videos to access the complete list.


Sundara Karma


Indie-rockers Sundara Karma have been attracting critical acclaim and a solid fan following over the last two years. Tracks such as Diamond Cutter, Loveblood and Flame saw the band touted as rising stars on the UK music scene.
The Reading-based quartet have now released their debut album, Youth Is Only Ever Fun In Retrospect. The band are promoting their LP through not one but two UK concert tours over the next few months. Lead single, Flame, is a re-release of an older track which many believe to be their best song to date.
Singer/frontman Oscar Pollock, who initially billed himself as Oscar Lulu, is the only band member to appear in the video for Flame. The visuals were inspired by Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. It can be viewed at www.youtube.com/watch?v=vddTMB8vOt8
More complete songs, plus excerpts from others, are posted at (no www.) soundcloud.com/sundara-karma 
Live performances and official song videos are available to watch at www.youtube.com/channel/UCPMi2f__yiQPG0GOh35Bj4w


Rick Parfitt


The recent death of superstar singer George Michael overshadowed that of Status Quo legend Rick Parfitt.
Rick died on Christmas Eve, one day before George. No British newspapers were published on Christmas Day. By the time Rick’s passing would have made headline news, the vast majority of column inches were devoted to George.
Unlike George, Rick’s death came as no great surprise. Health issues had forced his retirement from Status Quo. He had already suffered a series of heart attacks and undergone quadruple heart bypass surgery. Rick had actually died for several minutes after his latest heart attack last summer. He collapsed in his hotel room after performing a concert with the band in Antalya, Turkey.
How ironic it is that he did not die from heart failure. A fall had left Rick with a shoulder injury. Complications arising from this saw him admitted to hospital while in Marbella, Spain. He died there two days later having contracted what was described as a severe infection. He was 68.
Although Rick was no longer with Status Quo, he had not quit the music business. A solo acoustic album was lined up for 2017. Rick was also in the process of writing his autobiography. 
The songs Rick had already recorded may well still be released. But the extent of his autobiographical writing has not been revealed. Sadly, he may not have written enough for a book.
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