Chuck Cannon Happenings

Shawn Mullins

Sat, 24 Jul 2010 00:40:26 GMT

Hey Y'all ...

Over the past couple of years I have had the pleasure of hanging out with Shawn Mullins. In fact, many of you know of me because of Shawn's generosity in sharing his stage with me ... He has allowed me to open a lot of shows for him and we have written a lot of really cool songs ... but way more than that, we have become close friends and so the songs and the shows are just a bonus to what is the real deal here ...

Shawn will be coming out with a new project this fall and he and I wrote the first single together ... the song is "LIGHT YOU UP" and as it turns out, this will also be the title to his new CD!!

What an honor!!!

Long before I knew Shawn, I was a fan ... WHAT A VOICE!! WHAT A SONGWRITER!!! WHAT AN AWESOME HUMAN BEING!!!!!

And, to a person, ALL THE PEOPLE in his organization are simply decent caring people who all have such a sense of a higher purpose ... And I cannot begin to tell you how refreshing that is!!! In my experience, this is top down in nature ...

For me to have become such close friends and to have played a role in his new project is ... well, pretty dang cool!! (I wish I had cooler words to express what I am feeling here ... )

You will love his new CD ... I guarantee ...

Here's the lyric ... so you can sing along from the get-go ...

LIGHT YOU UP

EVERYBODY WANTS A FLAT SCREEN
EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE SEEN
EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE FAMOUS
EVERYBODY WANTS TO BLAME US

EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE THE REAL DEAL
EVERYBODY WANTS TO COP A GOOD FEEL
EVERYBODY WANTS MORE MONEY
EVERYBODY WANTS A TASTE OF YOUR HONEY

   I JUST WANT TO LIGHT YOU UP
   LIGHT YOU UP
   LIKE A FIRE
   I JUST WANT TO TURN YOU ON
   TURN YOU ON
   TAKE YOU HIGHER

EVERYBODY WANTS TO PICK YOUR GUITAR
EVERYBODY WANTS A RIDE IN YOUR FAST CAR
EVERYBODY WANTS A PUFF OF YOUR PIPE DREAM
EVERYBODY WANTS A LICK OF YOUR ICE CREAM

THE PREACHER WANTS TO TELL YOU HOW TO LIVE RIGHT
YOUR MAMA AND YOUR DADDY GOT YOU UPTIGHT
YOUR LOVER'S GONNA GO AND PICK ANOTHER FIGHT
I JUST WANT TO KEEP YOU UP ALL NIGHT

   I JUST WANT TO LIGHT YOU UP
   LIGHT YOU UP
   LIKE A FIRE
   I JUST WANT TO TURN YOU ON
   TURN YOU ON
   TAKE YOU HIGHER

   THIS OLD WORLD CAN BRING YOU DOWN
   TURN YOUR SMILE INTO A FROWN
   BREAK YOUR HEART AND MAKE YOU SAD
   DRIVE YOU STARK RAVING MAD

   I JUST WANT TO LIGHT YOU UP
   LIGHT YOU UP
   LIKE A FIRE
   I JUST WANT TO TURN YOU ON
   TURN YOU ON
   TAKE YOU HIGHER

(REPEAT CHORUS OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND ...)

Words and Music
SHAWN MULLINS and CHUCK CANNON
Copyright 2009
All Rights Reserved

Peace
~ Chuck

CELEBRATING WITH THE CANNON CONGREGATION

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 05:25:00 GMT

CELEBRATING WITH THE CANNON CONGREGATION
by S. Parks

Hold on to your seats – Chuck’s in the house.

This mega talented and revered Nashville fixture had to work for his birthday, but that was indeed his best gift for there’s nothing he’d rather do. Before a room of his ardent followers, Chuck Cannon welcomed us to the celebration which had to wait more than a month just for him to come back to town after touring.

The much anticipated birthday party for one of Nashville’s most entertaining musicians lit up the 3rd and Lindsley stage as Chuck sang for his cupcakes. His eclectic songs that emerge from his eclectic mind are the most eclectic blend of country, folk, rock, blues, Americana, and R & B with a little swamp mud thrown on as icing. It’s no surprise that he grew up on Beatles, Temptations and Johnny Cash. I see him as the American Ray Davies (founder of the Kinks) who dispenses brilliance in storytelling about just plain folks like Starbucks serves up coffee.

Chuck must have surely picked up his South Carolinian pulpit style from his Pentecostal minister father and grandfather because, in between humorous and inspirational stories, he likes to preach a few mini sermons. The songs make us think, the laughter is abundant, the delivery is truly stunning, songwriters are always asked up to join in and the mutual admiration society between Chuck and his fellow musicians and co-everything wife is truly impressive. What more can we ask from a much-loved singer/songwriter?

Slung over his guitar with his long dark brown curls dangling over the strings, he’s always a photo waiting to happen. When he looks up slyly with a little boy’s grin, we know another clever and amusing comment is about to come forth.

The rave reviews for his current CD, “Love and Money” are standard for this writer. I loved how each and every song has a totally original and often pleasantly haunting instrumental intro, especially on the gritty gospel “Oh My Lord”. His live performances were equally inspiring, especially “Outta This Town” and “Money Doesn’t Matter”. We all waited for our favorite closing song, “Strange” (that would be pre Reba’s hit of the same title). His inspirational album, “God Shaped Hole” is just as stunning and a must have as well.

A previous president of NSAI (Nashville Songwriters Association International) and recipient of numerous (just recently eight at once) BMI “Million-Air” awards for over a million broadcast plays of a song, Chuck is the consummate songwriter. Toby Keith’s “How Do You Like Me Now” and “Dream Walkin’” as well as John Michael Montgomery’s “I Love The Way You Love Me” are just a few of his hit singles.

At a Cannon congregation, you’re likely to see Sarah Buxton, Jedd Hughes, Dave Berg or even Jeffrey Steele. Chuck Jones, whose songs have been recorded by most of our country favorites, was the chosen guest writer to share the stage for two songs, one of which they had written the night before. I must say, Ray Davies was again well-represented as this Chuck bears a certain resemblance to the godfather of British rock.

The event, planned by his equally famous wife and song partner, Lari White, was a show to remember. Lari is a successful singer/songwriter/ producer/ actress who has done it all, including a run on Broadway along with a huge contribution to country music, but she cheats on the side, that is with a soulful R&B alter calling. At an appearance at Muzik Mafia, we were all hooked on “Green Eyed Soul”, an extravaganza to say the least. This seemed to be Lari’s dream as this petite “skinny white girl”, (also her record label name), released her Aretha vocals while joined by a funky soulful brass section and line of Motown-style back up girls. Lari will perform at the same venue on September 25.

A small entourage carried in a hundred equally famous Gigi’s cupcakes. The candles were lit, Lari sang and Chuck made his wish. Our wish was easy - to see this genius again soon, really soon.

http://www.todayscountrymag.com/chuckcannonevent.htm

Check Chuck at http://www.chuckcannon.com/

Lari White at www.myspace.com/lariwhitesongs

Chuck Jones at www.myspace.com/chuckjonessongs

Contact S. Parks at musicmusicmusic100@hotmail.com

On The Road Again ...

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 01:43:18 GMT

I'm back on the road this coming week ... I'll be in Santa Fe at the Santa Fe Brewing Co. Wednesday night the 9th at 7pm ... Yhen I will be spending the rest of the week up in Taos where I'll be performing at Michael Hearne's Barndance ... Then on Sunday night the 13th, I will be at the Abbey Theatre in Durango Co. Hope to see you there ...

Peace~C

It's Chuck's birthday party - and you're invited!

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:45:57 GMT

It's Chuck's birthday party - and you're invited!

Chuck Cannon is celebrating a big birthday and what he wants most is for you to be there! Come to Chuck's All-Star Birthday Jam @ 3rd and Lindsley on Thursday, Sept 3rd, at 9:00pm, to sing, dance, toast, and roast with Michael Rhodes, Tom Bukovac, Tim Akers, and a slew of surprise celebrity guests.

The music's FREE and the bar will be ROCKIN'!

When: 9pm, Thursday, Sept. 3rd
Where: 3rd & Lindlsey | http://www.3rdandlindsley.com

Hope to see you there!
RSVP: themole@artistsunderground.com

Chuck Cannon feature artical at American Music Channel

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:44:12 GMT

By: Emily J Ramey
http://americanmusicchannel.com/features/songwriters_muse/7-2-09/love-songwriting-chuck-cannon

Chuck Cannon ambles down from his house in the woods to meet me, dressed in his finest beach wear, the remainder of a day on the lake with his three children. He shows me to his studio, a building separate from the house that once served as a garage, although you’d never know it: the stuccoed walls, rusted chandeliers, and dark curtains possess an old world, renaissance atmosphere, meant, I’m sure, to be conducive to the kind of flowing artistic talent so common to that era. Cannon offers me a tiny mug of fine espresso, and as we talk, he alternately sips his own cup and steps onto the front porch to puff on a cigar stub, its smoke fragrant and somehow foreign. It didn’t take me long to make up my mind – I like Chuck Cannon.

As a person, Chuck Cannon is decidedly amiable and renders a cool, easygoing charisma that instantly permeates the conversation. As a songwriter, that charisma is concentrated in his profoundly soulful mind to produce expressive songs steeped with grace, simplicity, and depth. Cannon writes incessantly, now just expounding his already massive and esteemed catalog, but the man had to begin somewhere.

Beginnings

Cannon grew up in South Carolina in a family of music lovers and Pentecostal preachers. His initial influences were broad and numerous – anything from The Beatles to Sinatra to Johnny Cash and Isaac Hayes. And as it turns out, Cannon had an early flair for writing as well.

“I wrote poetry as a kid, which was kind of odd because I was a bit of a jock too. You know it’s always odd when jocks doing anything like that. Actually, it got me into a couple of fights with those guys.”

When asked about advice given and impressions made as a burgeoning young songwriter and the development of his own technique, Cannon admits to very little uniformity in his songwriting approach.

“There are a lot of songwriters that are more method-oriented than I am. Sometimes a piece of music will inspire a song. Sometimes a line will inspire a song. I typically spend most of my time, when I’m actively trying to write a song, trying to think of a concept. And after that, a first line… because really, really good [first lines] are rare,” Cannon states. “I learned that lesson actually while I was at Belmont.”

As a music business student at Belmont (then Belmont College), Cannon ended up in the office of producer great Blake Mevis as part of an audio project. But Mevis recognized the songwriter in young Cannon and offered the boy his best advice, which he still remembers:

“He said, ‘Let me tell you about songwriting, because that’s where it starts,’ and I was all ears. He said, ‘What’s the most important line of a song?’ and very quickly I went, ‘Oh, the hook.’ And he went, ‘Wrong. Dead wrong.’ And of course, I was, I think, 20 years old, full of piss and vinegar, and already knew every damn thing; all I needed to do was get all these old guys that were running the town to listen to me for a few minutes,” Cannon laughs. “So, I said, ‘Okay, what is it?’ And he said, ‘Well, it’s the first line.’ And I said, ‘Really... okay, well, give me an example.’ And he gave me the example, ‘It’s the third hardest thing I’ll ever do/Leaving here without you.’

“Now, Emily, what do you want to know? [You want to know] what happens next, and the only way you can find out is to listen to the rest of the song,” Cannon nearly whispers. “If I had to point to one thing – one single piece of advice – that was more informative to me, and more formative as a songwriter, I would have to jump up on the coffee table in front of Bob Dylan and say, ‘That’s it right there.’”

From that moment, Chuck Cannon took off, rocketing into Nashville’s notoriously fastidious songwriters’ realm and making a name for himself with proof of his talent as a wordsmith and musician.

Accomplishments

One of Cannon's first notable compositions was “I Love the Way You Love Me,” a No. 1 hit for John Michael Montgomery in 1993, which Cannon co-wrote with Victoria Shaw. This song also won the Song of the Year award at the Academy of Country Music awards, which is awarded to songwriters. From there, Cannon began working primarily for Toby Keith, including “Me Too,” “Dream Walkin’,” “We Were in Love,” “Getcha Some,” “If a Man Answers,” and “When Love Fades” in the late 1990s, “How Do You Like Me Now?!” in 2000, and “American Soldier” in 2003-2004.

“How Do You Like Me Now?!” was the No. 1 Country Song of the Year according to the Billboard Year-End charts. Both it and “I Love the Way You Love Me” earned Eight-Million-Air Awards from BMI for receiving eight million spins on radio.

Cannon also self-released two albums: God Shaped Hole and Love and Money in 2006 and 2008, respectively, bringing to light his own gritty, soulful voice that resonates within his lyrics – intoning words that come from an enigmatic yet unaffected place. His albums prove that Cannon possesses a rare versatility to write both universally evocative songs as well as his personally significant melodies.

Beyond serving as one of Music City’s leading writers, Cannon has become a voice for his fellow songsmiths. Nashville Underground is a triumph in whose foundation Cannon played a key part. Nashville Underground is a record label designed to showcase the best of Nashville’s hit songwriters performing their own work. NU releases samplers with back-to-back award-winning tracks, and boasts a cast that includes such characters as Bob DiPiero, Stephony Smith, Gary Burr, Beth Nielson Chapman, and Jeffrey Steele, among many others.

When asked about success outside songwriting, Cannon insists, “One of my greatest honors was to be elected President of the Nashville Songwriters Association International.” However in 2003, Cannon denied an amendment to the NSAI constitution which would have allowed him to serve a third term as President. In the end, he said, administration was meant for other people. Cannon still serves on their Executive Board and Legislative Committees, working to “make the world aware of the songwriter,” but he was itching to get back to just writing songs.

Songwriting

“Me – I get up everyday, and I haven’t been able to sleep all night because I’m trying to figure out something to write. I’m trying to get these buzzing songs out of my head, out so that I can sleep. I love the process,” Cannon confesses. “There’s always kind of a mixed emotion at the moment of finishing… Have you ever read a really good book and you start trying to slow down towards the end? I love the process. I love every aspect of the process of writing.”

Cannon is not only extremely fond of the process of writing on his own, but also of writing with other songwriters and does so regularly.

“Probably my go-to guy is Chuck Jones. He wrote, ‘I’ve seen the seven wonders of the world/The moon in all its phases/But your love amazes me.’ I mean, he rhymed ‘phases’ and ‘amazes’ – how genius is that?”

Cannon makes a point of approaching each particular songwriting session with a slightly different attitude, but always with the foremost objective of learning.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been in a co-writing situation where I didn’t learn something. From the most jaded, crusty guy that’s been writing hits since the 50s to the wild-eyed and innocent ‘oh-I-just-want-to-write-a-song.’ I actively seek it out,” Cannon asserts. “I go into writing sessions with ‘What am I supposed to learn here today?’ I honestly think that has been one of the key ingredients to any success that I’ve had.

“… [But] the important thing is listening, being really present, so I can actually help turn what they’re trying to say into lyric and melody. I love songwriters,” Cannon finishes.

Next on the Agenda

Most recently, Cannon is gearing up to set sail through the Caribbean on Cayamo 2010: A Journey Through Song. The festival will be departing from Miami on February 21, 2010, and making stops in beautiful Belize City, Belize and Costa Maya, Mexico. Cannon will be joining a stellar singer/songwriter line-up for this five-day journey.

Cayamo announced some returning artists this year as well as some new faces. Favorites Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris, Brandi Carlile, Buddy Miller, John Hiatt, Darrell Scott, Shawn Mullins, Vienna Teng and Katie Herzig, will board Cayamo alongside newcomers Steve Earle, Robert Earl Keen, Allison Moorer, Stephen Kellogg & the Sixers, Rachael Yamagata, and plenty more artists that will be announced throughout the year. Those updates, prices, and other information about Cayamo can be found at www.cayamo.com.

Cannon is also working on a third album and touring consistently throughout the rest of 2009.

Chuck Cannon is one of those songwriters that will be contributing until his pen gives out, and writing in his head after that, until the day he dies. Like any true Nashvillian, music is in his blood. We as Music City will forever be happy to claim him as one of our own.

Emily J Ramey is a burgeoning young music journalist. Her background includes journalism classes at New York University and a Music Business degree from Belmont University. Emily was a regular staff contributor to Belmont's student newspaper The Vision. Her work has also been published in Nashville-based cult zine The (rabbit) and various other online portals. Emily is on staff at American Music Channel, as well as American Songwriter magazine.

Up Close And Personal Peace Arch News

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:31:15 GMT

Posted 01/29/2009 BRINGING BC’S COMMUNITIES TOGETHER Chuck Cannon to showcase work in two performances at Belle’s Restaurant. Contributed photo Buy Peace Arch News Photos Online PEACE ARCH NEWS Up close and personal with Nashville singer By Alex Browne - Peace Arch News Published: January 29, 2009 There aren’t many country music acts that appear on the Semiahmoo Peninsula, and certainly not many heavyweight talents from Nashville among them. But judging by the response to the upcoming concert by songwriting star Chuck Cannon, there’s definitely a local market for the music. The ‘up close and personal’ performance Thursday, Feb. 5 at 8 p.m., at Belle’s Restaurant (14007 32 Ave.) was virtually sold out less than a week after it was first announced. The good news, said local organizer Gail Terry – a friend of Cannon’s who organized the gig around a trip the keen skier was making to Whistler – is that a second show has been added on Tuesday, Feb. 10 at 8 p.m. She said that, more than simply showcasing his songwriting, including songs from his albums God-Shaped Hole and Love And Money, the live shows will be a chance for Peninsula residents to hear, and be captivated by, his “rich, evocative voice and masterful guitar playing.” Also featured on the bill will be local singer songwriters Jesse Burch and Connor McGuire. It’s an irony that while Cannon has been turning out number one hits for top U.S. country recording stars – people like Toby Keith, John Michael Montgomery and the iconic Randy Travis, Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson – for years, nobody knows his name. “I always say I’m a world-famous songwriter, which means no one knows who the hell I am,” Cannon chuckled, in his distinctively warm South Carolina/Tennessee tones, calling long distance from his home studio in Nashville. They know his songs, however – he was recently presented with a coveted BMI 8-Million-Air award for the 1993 Country Music Song Of The Year, I Love The Way You Love Me and the Toby Keith hits How Do You Like Me Now and Dream Walkin’ (he’s also won several other BMI Million-Air awards). Cannon is proud that I Love The Way You Love Me was popularized around the world by an Irish group Boyzone, outside the traditional Nashville sphere of music-making. He grew up with very eclectic musical tastes, he said – a result of being raised the son of a Pentecostal minister in South Carolina, but in a household where music of all kinds of music were appreciated. “I grew up in church, so I heard a lot of gospel music, but my mom turned me on to The Platters and Dean Martin and a whole lot of other people – while my dad was actually the guy that turned me on to Isaac Hayes,” he said. “I have a really broad range of interests and I draw from all styles of music. I really love blues, really love rock and country, but all genres of music have their issues – you have to get through a lot of mediocre stuff to get to the good stuff.” A president of the Nashville Songwriters Association International for three years, Cannon still sits on its executive and legislative committees, and frequently gives seminars to various chapters around the U.S. He’s also a keen participant in events like the BMI’s recent Songwriters Festival in Nassau, in the Bahamas. Cannon said he loves performing his own music whenever he gets the chance, and is thrilled that the first night at Belle’s sold out – even though this will be his first trip to Canada. “If you talk to my banker and my business manager and – probably – my family, they appreciate it if my songs are recorded by other people. But right now my favourite music is the stuff I’m writing for myself, which is not taking away from the stuff I write that’s designed to be commercial music. “Everyone who fell in love with music fell in love with something they heard on the radio. Why do we keep hearing the same dance song over and over? I have a theory that it’s because every day there’s a fresh crop of 14-year-old kids who are falling in love for the first time.” As a performer, his gritty brand of Southern folk-rock is imbued with lyrics that tell a compelling and entertaining tale about life’s lessons. And it’s true his most provocative work seems to appear on his own self-released CDs, the latest of which, Love and Money, pays tribute to his South Carolina roots, as well as discussing the title topics in songs that instantly resonate with listeners. Songwriting is all about communication, he said, adding that he will sometimes write a song to fit a lyrical idea, but has also had “fully fleshed-out” melodies come to him first. “Fitting words to them makes it a lot harder,” he said. “The beautiful thing about music is that it is the universal language. Everyone got what Paul McCartney was saying with Yesterday, because the melody has a certain melancholy. The best reaction I can get to one of my songs is when somebody says ‘Yes – me too – I hear what you’re saying. That’s the greatest compliment that anyone can pay me.”

Nashville Stalwart Launches New Season, Sings Like Hell

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:29:12 GMT

Nashville Stalwart Launches New Season

Another Season in Hell

By Brett Leigh Dicks / Santa Barbara Independent

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Spanning two seasons that incorporate 12 concerts each year, Sings Like Hell throws forth the very best in both emerging and established singer/songwriters. For years, these artists existed mostly in the liner notes on your favorite albums, but through series like Sings Like Hell — and a recent wider embrace of music in its purest form — these troubadours have surged to the forefront. And perhaps there is no better reflection of an artist who embodies the singer/songwriter aesthetic than Nashville heavyweight Chuck Cannon.

Cannon has penned numerous hits for artists like Toby Keith and John Michael Montgomery and is a songwriter of the purest persuasion. And no matter whose hands his work falls into, his songs all seem to stem from the same place — his heart. For Cannon, it’s the song and its message that is important, not the destination. And while that might sound rather obvious, in a city like Nashville, where songs are commonly authored by committees, Cannon’s refreshingly realistic approach seems to truly resonate with his listeners.

After bouncing around the East Coast beach circuit for a number of years in the mid ’80s, Cannon moved to Nashville. A couple years later, he became a staff songwriter, and then started his own publishing company. Cannon has long been active in the songwriting community. He served as president of the Nashville Songwriters Association International and is now on its board and legislative committees. Inspired by musicians like Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, and Bob Dylan, one can only wonder how Cannon feels the craft has changed since the days when music truly defined a decade.

“I personally think that’s the function of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which allowed a few large conglomerates to own all the radio stations,” offered Cannon. “From that, we ended up with a homogenized view of music and we lost all the local flavor. You hear the same stuff no matter where you are. And it’s my hunch they want us thinking that everything is just fine, so we don’t get much in the way of songs that deal with social issues. There isn’t much music in the commercial realm that’s taking issue with what’s going on in the world.”

While serving songwriting on the administrative stage is something that is important to Cannon, so too is serving his art at a grassroots level. He frequently gives seminars to various chapters of the National Songwriters Association International around the country and participates in events such as BMI’s upcoming Atlantis Songwriters Festival. It was one such event — the annual Durango Songwriters Expo in Santa Ynez — that previously brought Cannon to Santa Barbara. And such experiences seemingly serve him as much as they do the aspiring writers to whom he speaks.

“The songwriting community is pretty much filled with an eclectic bunch of people,” offered Cannon. “In general, I find songwriters to be some of the most articulate and interesting people there are to know. And I really enjoy seeing a bunch of people who are interested in learning the art and craft of songwriting. I really enjoy seeing them work really hard at being better at what they do. But above everything else, I just love hanging out with songwriters!”

Cannon’s next visit to town will be on October 20, when he joins The Avett Brothers to kick off a new season of Sings Like Hell. And it is a season that also offers an esteemed selection of his fellow songwriters. On November 17, Eliza Gilkyson and Cydney Robinson take to the Lobero stage, while December 8 sees local Tom Russell joined by Eilen Jewell. The New Year will be welcomed in on January 19 with JT and the Clouds and Anais Mitchell, and Kelly Willis and Chuck Prophet drop by on February 16. The season will be closed in no uncertain terms on March 22 by Jake Armerding and The Stringdusters. And, like all of this season’s visitors, Cannon is relishing the opportunity of unleashing his music on the Sings Like Hell audience.

“Quite honestly, I can’t imagine a better situation in which to play,” enthused Cannon. “I really love turning people on to what I do musically. I tell people all the time that I’m a world-famous songwriter, which actually means pretty much nobody knows who the hell I am. One of my favorite things is to walk onto a stage where no one has ever heard of me or knows my music. I have been fortunate to write some songs that a lot of people like, but what is far more important to me is my own music and sharing that with a new audience.”

Chuck Cannon and BMI Celebrate 8 Million Performances

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:27:31 GMT

Chuck Cannon and BMI Celebrate 8 Million Performances

Chuck received a bit of due recognition recently: Close friends and family of the hit songwriter gathered in the back room of the Park City Café to join BMI in toasting Cannon’s eight million broadcast performances for songs including “I Love the Way You Love Me,” “How Do You Like Me Now” and “Dream Walkin’.”

BMI article:

Pictured showing off the new BMI Million-Air certificates are (l to r): BMI’s Jody Williams, Marshall Morgan, Curb Records’ Doug Johnson, Scott Paschal, Becky Pommer-Jones Administration’s Becky Jones, and BMI’s Mark Mason, with Chuck Cannon and wife Lari White kneeling in front. Photo by Elisabeth Dawson

BMI: Chuck Cannon Country hitmaker

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:20:23 GMT

Posted 04/30/2000 http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/233586 Hotter than ever on the heels of the Toby Keith number one hit, "How Do You Like Me Now," Chuck Cannon is blasting his way to the top of the country songwriter profession. The in-your-face number, co-written with Keith, was inspired by non-believers and football players. During their first writing session, a TV set in the background showed jarring collisions between football players. "Somebody got off a good hit and Toby, who used to play football, told me that the tackler is telling the guy on the ground, 'How do you like me now?'" A creative light bulb went on and Chuck asked, " 'Do you think there's a song there?' We worked it down to being about a girl telling you that you aren't ever going to do very well - and you end up doing very well." Past naysayers prompted Chuck to craft the song. "I've had people that meant a lot to me that really tried to discourage me from doing music as a career," he says. "I guess I drew emotional elements from that. It's kind of like giving the musical finger to somebody." Cannon has two more songs on the current Keith album, a cut on the next album by the red-hot group Lonestar, and new recordings by Mark Wills and Collin Raye. A South Carolina native, Chuck was influenced early on by black spirituals, Appalachian folk, Elvis Presley, Merle Haggard, the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Elton John and Johnny Cash. After performing on the beach circuit, he moved to Nashville to study Music Business and Finance at Belmont University and later honed his songwriting craft. Another venture for Chuck and wife Lari White: a new label for hit Nashville songwriters. "We're now mixing our first sampler for Nashville Underground Records," he notes. Besides Chuck, the writers include Pam Rose, Victoria Shaw, Stephony Smith, Gary Burr and Chuck Jones. Written by Gerry Wood http://www.bmi.com/news/entry/233586

American Country Songwriter Spotlight: Chuck Cannon

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:17:21 GMT

Posted 07/12/2004
American Country Songwriter Spotlight: Chuck Cannon
American Country Magazine spotlights Chuck Cannon in May '04 issue,
by Ken Churilla.

Songwriting is a craft, make no mistake about it. That being said, Chuck cannon is a master craftsman. In addition to his most recent hit he wrote with Toby Keith, American Soldier, Chuck is responsible for song like John Michael Montgomery's I Love The Way You Love Me and a whole slew of other hits like We Were In Love, Dream Walkin', and Getcha Some to name a few.

We sat down with Chuck to peek into his head a bit about his latest hit, his songwriting process and anything else he wanted to offer.

AC: Tell me where "American Soldier" was born.

Chuck: I was a Toby's house a few days before we actually went to war with Iraq. A picture came on TV of these soldiers loading on the C-141. They were walking down this line and one guy had a little boy in his arms that looked about 4-years old. He was trying to put the boy down and he was just holding on to his Daddy's neck. You could read the little boy's lips saying"...don't go, don't go.? The soldiers' wife was standing there too and she had an infant in her arms. What really moved us was that guy trying to put his little boy down. Realize the gravity of that moment. Can you imagine being that soldier putting your boy down knowing it could be the last time you ever see him? That's so overwhelming.

AC: Much of Toby?s music are songs that you write together. What is it that clicks between the two of you as writers?

Chuck: We don't bullshit each other. We've just always been really honest with each other. If I throw out a line and he doesn't like it, he'll tell me and vice versa. I think Toby Keith understands his audience as well as or better than any artists / writer that I've every worked with. He speaks their language. He does not do much censoring when he is writing which to me is over-the-top refreshing. So many times writers end up editing a song and make it not say anything. Whenever I sit down with Toby, I know we're gonna have something to say and we're not gonna give too much of a damn of what people think. Toby and I just happen to kind of hit it off. I mean the first thing we ever wrote was How Do You Like Me Now. Our second song was s song called Me Too.

AC: Are you a reality-based writer, always writing from experience or can you conjure up a story and then wrap music around it?

Chuck: It's all reality based but not often very specific as to the situation I'm going through. I think you always draw from your personal experiences but there's no way you can live all of the things that you need to touch on in songwriting. I can write a cheating song, but I've never cheated on my wife. I can write a leaving song but I ain't planning on leaving. There are situations in my past or in my co-writers' past where we'll draw from those. I'm also a voracious reader. I read about 150-200 books a year. I always have 4 or 5 books going so I draw from that as well.

AC: when you write, do you write with a specific artist in mind?

Chuck: Absolutely not. I call that target writing and I caution AGAINST that. When you try to write for an artist, you're writing to what they most recently did and you have no idea if that artist has decided if they want to grow from that place. I'm sure that there are some songwriters that are successful with that, but I just try to write the best song I possibly can. Once it's done, that's when I try to cast it.

AC: What is the job of a songwriter?

Chuck: To make the listener empathize and feel. I've always said one of our main jobs as songwriters is to get people to hear a song a say "...yeah, me too."

AC: does each writer have their own unique stamp to them or do most pretty much rehash each other?s ideas?

Chuck: I think all writers have their own voice and their own language if you will. If you read Shakespeare from play to play, he covers a lot of the same material. I remember when Steven King wroter under the name Richard Bachman. I picked up that Bachman book, got about 20 pages in, and figured out it was him. You can tell a writers voice. Gary Burr has a very distinctive voice in the songs he writes. Mike Reid, don Schlitz, Don Gibson, Hank Williams, all of them have very distinct voices. You can tell the difference if you pay attention.

AC: What comes first when you sit down to write a song: is it the music or the story?

Chuck: whichever way woks that day. I try to write a first line and from there. The next logical thing is the hook. Sometimes I'll build around a guitar riff. It's not my preferred method to write to a title because you never know what a song is going to tell you to do. When Toby and I wrote Me Too we wrote the entire song before we looked at each other and Toby said to me, "...what was the thing you said to girl when you were 17 and she said I love you?" I looked at him and went, "...me too." So we put it in there.

AC: Do you have a certain quota that you try to write per week or per day?

Chuck: I'm not disciplined as numbers go, but I write everyday. It might be just coming down to my writing space and reading a book. I might pick-up a guitar and strum around until one of them starts talking. That's all writing to me. I used to hold myself to two songs a week and but I seemed to end up with a lot good songs with great lines in them. I don't write as much as I used to and I don't write as much as I could. It's not so important to me to write a song, as it is to write a great song.

Chuck as panelist on Jim Lehrer

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 07:14:36 GMT

DOWNLOADING MUSIC
September 9, 2003

The Recording Industry Association of America on Monday filed lawsuits against 261 people for allegedly downloading thousands of copyrighted songs via popular Internet file-sharing networks. Two musicians debate the merits of the RIAA's move and its effect on the music industry.

RAY SUAREZ: Some reactions now to the lawsuits and the industry's actions from two men who are writing and making the music. John Flansburgh is a singer and guitarist for the rock-pop duo They Might be Giants. Their Web site features songs by the band that can be downloaded for free. And Chuck Cannon is a songwriter in Nashville whose work has been recorded by such artists as Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, and Trisha Yearwood. He is the president of the music publishing company Wasissa River Music.

Chuck Cannon, let's start with you. What is your reaction to the RIAA's decision to sue individual down-loaders?

CHUCK CANNON: I think it's sad that the RIAA has had to do that to basically serve as a deterrent for people who are stealing music online.

Read the full transcript at PBS.org:
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/law/july-dec03/music_9-09.html