NashvilleGab - Country music news and Nashville celebrity gossip

Someone's in a heap of trouble...charges filed in 2009's deadly Alberta stage collapse

Picture via the Calgary herald

Remember back in 2009 when one of Billy Currington's band members was badly injured and one fan was killed in the freak stage collapse at the Big Valley Jamboree in Camrose, Alberta, Canada during a severe windstorm?  Well it looks like it's time for those in charge to finally pay the piper for not taking every precaution they should have.  

On Friday, Premier Global Production, the company responsible for the stage that collapsed, and event organizer Panhandle Productions had 27 charges filed against them, mostly for failing to ensure the health and safety of workers (and fans I'd think).  A contractor who was working for Premier Global also faced an additional six charges for failing to comply with OHSA (Occupational Health and Safety Act) regulations.

All three companies are due in court September 28th.   

In total, 75 fans attending the Jamboree as well as members of Modern West and Billy Currington's band were injured and one lady, 35-year-old Donna Moore, was killed in the mayhem. The two companies and the contractor are facing $524,200 and/or six months in prison for each charge if convicted.  

On top of the criminal charges the companies face, the sons, 10 and 16, of the fan who was killed had a lawsuit filed on their behalf last week.  The City of Camrose, the concert's promoter, the company responsible for security and several companies that built the stage are all named as defendants.  No word on how much the suit is seeking, but for the sake of the boys I hope it's a pretty penny, especially if it's proven that the Jamboree people are at fault. 

This year's Jamboree started on Thursday and features Gary Allan, Jason Aldean and Toby Keith.  Let's just hope the weather stays sunny and warm and especially freak windstorm free this year.  

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Attention: One of the Duke boys has died

Very sad.  I would have been more sad had it been one of the main Duke boys, but still, this is sad.  

The Dukes of Hazzard was one of my favorite shows growing up and I always swore I was going to marry Bo when I grew up...well until C.B. Barnes came along in Starman, then I was going to marry him.

Then came Wesley on Star Trek: The Next Generation, I definitely always planned on marrying him.

Well until Beverly Hills 90210 and Dylan came along.

Yeah, I planned on marrying a lot when I was a kid. 

Anyway, where was I?  Oh yeah, the Dukes of Hazzard.  Christopher Mayer, the tall, dark, and handsome replacement Duke who played Vance in '82/'83 while the original Hazzard stars were haggling over their contracts, has passed away.   

THR reports that Mayer died July 23 in Sherman Oaks.  He was 57.  I've looked around and so far no word has come out about how he died, but his exwife Eileen Davidson (Ashley on "Young and the Restless") said, "Chip was a troubled soul, but he had a hilarious sense of humor and a big heart." 

Sad.  R.I.P. lesser known Duke Boy.  

Warning to dumb reporters....Miranda Lambert will tweet about your dumb ass

Has anyone ever told you that Miranda Lambert doesn't take any crap from anyone?  

Yeah, I think most of us are well aware of this fact. 

Well everyone except one reporter from the Ottawa Citizen that is.  

Little Miss Spitfire will be performing in Canada August 11th and 12th and so like most artists do, she spoke with a local reporter or two to drum up interest in her upcoming concerts.  

Well it appears that Miranda may have gotten one reporter who didn't quite know who he was dealing with. 

Miranda took to her Twitter after the interview to vent her frustration.  She says: 

Dear mr writer at Ottawa citizen: next time u interview me, let's keep it about the music and not about your view on my stance on guns...

And then:

I don't talk politics period. I'm Not sure all Canadians would like to Be put in your category. Speak for yourself not your country. Thx!

Wow.  Can't wait to read or hear that interview when it hits the web. I have a feeling it may be a bit...uhmmm....uncomfortable.  

Let's talk about some of the changes around here

Good morning, Children of the Gab, you've probably noticed I've made a few changes around here lately, nothing major, just sprucing it up a bit.  

First thing I've noticed, though, is that something is slowing the site way down when you first visit.  I'm trying to figure out what it is that I implemented that's new that may be making it take a minute before the content pops up.  I'm working on it so hopefully I'll get it pinpointed soon. 

Next, if you comment you will probably notice that your comments wont post immediately any longer. No worries, I'm not going to start playing dictator and only letting the good comments go through. No, instead I'm going to try and weed out all the comments that are actually advertisements.  There are all these drug companies, knock off fashion companies, jewelry companies, etc. who like to write a comment and then include a link to buy something.  I hate that and don't want those around anymore so comments will be monitored and I will delete the advertising ones before they ever hit the site.  Any other comment that's actually relevant and from a real person will go through, regardless of what your opinion is.  I like hearing everyone's opinion, even if it's something that says I'm an idiot, so comment away, just don't try and advertise. 

Keep reading after the jump...

Loretta Lynn's Van Lear Rose to be released on vinyl

Listen up all you retro folks out there that love a good record....Loretta Lynn's critically acclaimed Van Lear Rose is coming out for the first time on vinyl.

From The Audio Perv...

The inaugural vinyl edition of Loretta Lynn’s Van Lear Rose is mastered directly from the original analog masters, pressed on heavyweight 180-gram vinyl and coupled with a vibrant Stoughton tip-on sleeve. There will be a limited edition blue vinyl pressing of 300, 100 copies of which will be sold at Third Man Records in Nashville on Aug. 9th from 12 noon. Details re: where the rest will be sold to follow.

Sounds like it's may be a limited release so if you're a record collector you might want to hurry to get your copy.  You can preorder yours here. 

Taylor Swift versus Jane Austen....it's a lovelorn lady showdown

Well, well, well Taylor Swift fanatics and bookworms alike, have I got a game for you. 

The Daily Beast has thrown down a challenge. Can you tell the difference between a Taylor Swift lyric and an excerpt from a Jane Austen classic such as Pride and Prejudice or Sense and Sensibility.

Snort not, my dear readers, it's not as easy as you might think.  Go ahead and give it a try here.  

So did you happen to catch that marriage proposal during Chris Young's Jimmy Kimmel performance?

Earlier today I had a post about Chris Young's performance on Jimmy Kimmel last night, but what I failed to notice was that the performance also included a marriage proposal. 

Okay, I didn't fail to notice since I didn't actually watch the video all the way through. 

I know, shameful. 

Anyway, thanks to the sharp eagle eyes of one of my readers, we can see that Chris' guitar player, Steve, was wearing a t-shirt that said Missy Marry Me on it. 

Awwww. 

Chris took to his Twitter to let everyone know that Missy had said yes. 

How sweet.  Steve definitely gets a gold star for creative marriage proposal of the day.  

Jamey Johnson and LeAnn Rimes make some rowdy and beautiful music together

LeAnn Rimes is so often in the tabloids and all over the internet for her skinny body and itty bitty bikinis TwitPics that it's sometimes easy to forget that she's got one hell of a set of pipes on her. 

Here's a happy little video to help us remember. 

LeAnn and Jamey Johnson sang together for the very first time (or at least that's what the video description says) at the Myrtle Beach House of Blues recently and pretty much brought the house down.

Enjoy.

Introducing the shortest album release information post ever

Toby Keith. 

October 25th. 

"Clancy's Tavern" - named in honor of the Fort Smith, Arkansas nightclub his grandma ran when he was a kid.

The End...

Hey, look who's back...it's sexy Shania!!!

Remember back when Shania showing her stomach in public was such a big deal and everyone was like, "Oh my goodness, what is country music coming to? Does she think she's Britney Spears or something?"

Sigh.  Those were good times.  I miss Shania's belly.

Well guess what?  Shania's belly is back!  Yep, sexy, belly-baring Shania is a reality once again.  

Okay, so it's just a corner of her belly on the cover of July's Gaming magazine, but come on, she is a mama after all...have to take these things slowly.  

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