Early in 2013, Parmalee will be hitting the road for the "Country Gone Wild" tour. Joining them will be Bush Hawg and special guest Zach Lockwood. The tour will take them to eight different cities spread out over four weeks and will be a chance for fans to see them in an intimate setting, playing their special brand of guitar-driven, harmony-enriched, country-rock. If you're anywhere near any of these venues, do not pass up this opportunity to see an amazing show!
2012 has been a great year for Matt Thomas, Barry Knox, Josh McSwain and Scott Thomas, the exceptional country rock band also known as "Parmalee." With the new year just a few days away, this is a good time to look back on the past year. Whether you were here for all or just part of the ride, you can be sure of one thing. As great as this year has been, the new year - with a new single and new CD - promises to be even better.
Parmalee's first single on Stoney Creek Records was released on February 21, 2012. The song, "Musta Had a Good Time," became an instant hit on satellite radio, sitting at Number 1 on The Highway Country for four consecutive weeks before spreading across terrestrial radio. It became a regular on daily fan-voted countdown shows from coast to coast, hitting Number 1 on stations from North Carolina to California. The song has a five star rating on iTunes and became the band's first song to hit the Top 40 on the country music charts.
In
April, the band shot the music video for MHGT. The video shoot took
place at Deep South The Bar in Greenville, NC, on April 27th, and locals
were invited to take part. Since its release, the video has been a
staple on the CMT Pure 12-Pack Countdown, where it hit Number 1on its
twelfth consecutive week on the show. The video was world premiered on AOL's The Boot on August, 29th, with an article featuring the Top 5 moments from the video shoot published the preceding day.
In June, Parmalee was featured as a Billboard "Bubbling Under" artist, was one of Clear Channel's NEW! Artist to Watch, and saw their party anthem MHGT listed among CountryMusicIsLove.com's Top 15 Songs of Summer. The next month, the band was on Fox Nashville's "Tennessee Mornings" show. The band was interviewed and played two songs, including an acoustic version of "Carolina."
Parmalee played at various industry events throughout the year. In October, they played the International Entertainment Buyers Association Conference. Later that month, they played the 3rd annual BBR Pre-CMA party at the Hard Rock in Nashville.
Taylor Hill/Getty Images North America
In November, they attended the Country Music Association awards show and were interviewed by some country radio stations and media sites beforehand.
In its October 8th issue, Country Weekly introduced its readers to the band in a great article, aptly entitled, "Introducing Parmalee." There was also a companion video interview with the band which was released in September on Country Weekly's website here. Later in the year, Billboard.com's Chuck Dauphin shined "The 615 Spotlight" on the band in a December feature article, entitled, "Parmalee Thriving Two Years After Near-Tragedy."
The band also played four Stage It shows, one a month starting in September. The first show was "live from the tour bus," the second was "help Parmalee pick the songs for the album," the third was "songs they were thankful for," and the fourth was "live from the studio" where the band is currently laying down tracks for their upcoming album. Each of the four songs garnered a large audience of enthusiastic fans enjoying some familiar favorites while being introduced to some new songs.
During the third Stage It show, Matt announced the news that their next single would be "Carolina" and that it would be released on February 4, 2013. They have been working on their debut for Stoney Creek Records, which is expected out the first half of 2013. Some of the songs that might make the album were played during the December Stage It show, which you can read about here.
As 2012 comes to a close, Parmalee's concert calendar is starting to fill up for next year. They've already been announced as part of a number of major country music festivals as well as headlining their own "Country Gone Wild" Tour with Bush Hawg and Zach Lockwood. They will finish the album they're currently working with producers New Voice Entertainment.
In December, Roughstock.com included Parmalee among their annual year-end list of new artists to watch in the coming year. In the article, 13 for 13: Ones to Watch, Roughstock said of Parmalee, "Parmalee's First Top 40 single "Musta Had A Good Time" announced their arrival. Look for "Carolina" to make them stars." That's the best way to sum up this year, as we look towards the new one.
Parmalee's fourth Stage It show was held tonight, 12/18/12, and this one was live from Sound Stage Studios on Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee, where the band has been laying down tracks for their upcoming CD due out next year on Stoney Creek Records. The show gave the fans a sneak peek at what songs were being recorded and might make their way onto the band's highly anticipated 2013 release.
A portion of the proceeds from tonight's show will go to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and those in attendance were very generous with their "tips." If you'd like to make a donation to St. Jude on behalf of Parmalee, you can do that by clicking here.
After first sending out condolences to the families who had suffered terrible losses in Newtown, Connecticut, the band focused on bringing the music they had been working on in the studio directly to the fans and sharing the holiday spirit. The first song they played was a brand new one, the autobiographical "Back in the Day," which they said they had just recorded. We happen to have a video of the first public performance of the song from their show at the Royal Palace Theatre last week in Roanoake Rapids, North Carolina.
Next, they sang another new song which has quickly become a fan favorite, "Already Calling You Mine." Matt said that they had tracked it yesterday and added that he was also "loving it right now." So are we! This was played acoustically tonight, but last week we heard it plugged in for the first time:
After that, was another beautiful song, "Another Day Gone," which Matt said they had also tracked yesterday. He discussed the song as one that "says a lot about us...about taking advantage of the day you have in front of you and not letting a moment slip by" which is a particularly appropriate message. Here's a version of the song from an appearance at radio station WFUS in October:
They next played a request from the Stage It chat room for "Day Drinking." Afterwards, Matt mentioned that he hoped to be doing a little of that when they got back to eastern North Carolina in a few days. The whole band seemed to be looking forward to getting out of the studio and back home! Here's a video of Day Drinking from a similarly intimate setting, just before their performance at the Market Street Saloon in North Charleston.
Matt introduced the next single, "Carolina," which will be going to radio on February 4, 2013. But before playing it, he thanked all the fans who had helped make "Musta Had a Good Time" a success and the fans in the chat room all shared their love for the new single and their plans to request the heck out of it! Here's an acoustic version from last month in Overland Park.
Matt called the next one a "pretty song" and told us it might be one that Josh will be playing piano on. Unfortunately, we don't have any video yet of the romantic "I Think You Oughta Know." But we do have video of a live performance of the next song they performed, "Empty Streets." When introducing the song "about small towns," Matt mentioned that it had been written a year ago in the basement of their place in Nashville. The video we have is from an extended live version eight months ago.
During the encore portion of the show, the guys took another request from the chat room, this one for "Gasoline." While we were treated to a great, acoustic version, here's an electric version from a show in Myrtle Beach in 2010.
They finished off with the song that has started this new adventure for them, brought us all together and is leading them to what should be a spectacular 2013, "Musta Had a Good Time." Here are the guys all decked out as Elvis for a recent Halloween show showing everyone a good time.
There will be two more Stage It shows, so make sure to subscribe to Parmalee's official website, follow the band on Twitter @parmalee and like them on Facebook, so you never miss another show. If you want to meet other fans, we have a Facebook page and a Facebook group that you can join. Make sure to also follow us on Twitter @parmaleefans for all your Parmalee news.
Parmalee fans in Roanoke Rapids, NC were treated to an amazing, electrifying set at the Royal Palace Theatre last night. Matt, Barry, Josh and Scott debuted a new song, the autobiographical "Back in the Day," and played some songs plugged in that we had only heard acoustically in the past. They also played the first song they ever wrote together, "Broken Records." The crowd even heard a new mix of their hit single "Musta Had a Good Time."
Photo by Crystal Causby Hill
The reaction from the crowd was overwhelmingly enthusiastic. The Royal Palace Theatre tweeted: "they did an outstanding job- @parmalee has become a lot of Ro.Rap folks new favorite group!" Others tweeted: "Ya'll rocked the house last night in NC! Thanks for a awesome show as always! <3" "If you didn't come see @parmalee and @JMCOfficial tonight at the Royal Palace .. YOU MISSED A DAMN GOOD SHOW!! They rocked the house!!!" "Very impressed! parmalee just ROCKED the stage. Go see them!" "@parmalee y'all were awesome tonight hope y'all have a good time while y'all are back home. I know I'll be saying I #MHGT tomorrow."
Thanks to long-time fan Crystal Causby Hill, we have most of their set on video. So enjoy!
There must have been something in the air last night at the KSD Santa Jam held at The Pageant in St. Louis, Missouri. The reaction from the fans in attendance to Parmalee's acoustic set was off the charts! Tweets and Facebook posts poured in from fans wowed by what they'd just heard:
@chriscagle
@craigcampbell @parmalee great show tonight!! Thank you very much for what you guys
do! Great music, great fun, great guys!!
After hearing
@parmalee tonight, my heart is won!! Best acoustic performance, EVER!!!!
@parmalee did y'all
write your set list on a paper plate and throw it in the crowd tonight? If do I
caught it! Y'all were badass tonight!
@parmalee loved you
tonight at #santajam!! Where can I buy your day drinking song?!
@ Pageant watching Parmalee.
We want T-shirts and Cd's. The guy at the booth said we're the 19th person to
ask! Parmalee Rocks!
Great concert
tonight! Buying your music tonight! @craigcampbelltv @parmalee
@parmalee You guys
rocked Santa Jam!! Would love to buy your album. When's it coming out? Awesome
job! You're all smokin hot! #mason&remy
First picture of
@parmalee in STL before they're HUGE! #MHGT pic.twitter.com/0fYi6j10
@parmalee just
rocked it at the pageant in st Louis
Parmalee was
awesome!:)
I'm already calling
you mine. #parmalee
AMAZING show @The
Pageant in STL last night....had never heard you guys before & am now a
HUGE fan!
You did a great job
at Santa Jam!!!!
Just saw u guys at
SANTA JAM!!! U were GREAT!!!
I think I feel in
love with the whole band tonight so good :-):-):-):-)
We had a few photos tweeted from the show as well:
@Mae_Grove: Parmalee!
Katelynn Street: First picture of @parmalee in STL before they're HUGE!
Billboard.com posted a great article today about Parmalee written by Chuck Dauphin. The article, entitled, 615 Spotlight: Parmalee Thriving Two Years After Near-Tragedy, highlights the history of the band, Scott's near-fatal injuries, and the great things that have happened to the band since that fateful September night. As the article succingtly put it, "2012 has been a great year for Parmalee, and 2013 - with the release of their debut album, looks to be even better." Check out the article here.
Photo by Jon Currier Photography
Elsewhere, Country Music Rocks published a fantastic review of Parmalee's set at last weekend's KUPL Santa Jam. Recapping the fantastic, energetic show, where the band showed off both its fun and serious sides, the review beautifully captured the essence of a live Parmalee show. And we couldn't agree more with the reviewer who added, "Parmalee is one to keep your eyes on and ears tuned-in to. They are Ones to Watch in 2013." Check out the entire review here.
"@parmalee: I'll be on Twitter in 15 min. answering Q's"
Matt took to Twitter today to answer fans' questions, as each member of the band has been doing on a regular basis. Today he mentioned that the band is currently working on their new album, due out early next year. The album is being produced by New Voice Entertainment, comprised of members of Jason Aldean's band and David Fanning (the same production team behind Thompson Square's self-titled debut).To keep up on the latest and to chat with them next time they're on, follow the band @parmalee.
The biggest news for Parmalee this past week was the music video for Musta Had a Good Time landing the top spot on the CMT Pure 12-Pack Countdown on its twelfth consecutive week on the show! Here's a screen cap taken by Barry's dad, the man who broke the news that MHGT was #1 on Facebook last Friday night:
In other news, Parmalee played literally from coast to coast last week, going from The Emporium in Patchogue, NY to the Rodeo Club in San Jose, CA. Radio station KMLE took some great photos, which you can check out on their website here.
Photo by KMLE
Country Music Rocks took photos during the band's show at the Roseland Theatre in Portland, OR, which you can find on their Facebook page here.
Photo by Country Music Rocks
We also have video of MHGT from their show at Denim and Diamonds in Mesa, AZ.
This coming week, Parmalee has a packed schedule. On Wednesday, 12-12-12, they'll be playing the Q93 "End of the World" party at Cotton Eyed Joe in Knoxville, Tennessee. Thursday, they'll be in St. Louis, Missouri, playing the 93.7 New Country Santa Jam at the Pageant. Friday takes them to Silver Springs, Maryland, for the WMZQ Christmas Show at the Filmore. Then Saturday, they finish up their four-in-a-row with a trip back to their home state of North Carolina, where they're playing the Royal Palace Theatre in Roanoke Rapids.
If you don't get a chance to catch Parmalee at any of their shows this coming week, have no fear! They are scheduled to do their fourth Stage It! show "Live from the Studio" on Tuesday, December 18th, at 6P/9E. This show will be live from the Black River Studios during the band's
first session of recording the new album. They will be donating a portion of the proceeds to St Judes Childrens Research and
hope to have some special guests drop by to say hi to everyone while were doing the show. Get your tickets for this intimate, up-close-and-personal, every seat is the best seat in the house, show right HERE.
Finally, Roughstock is having a year end poll of its readers, asking for their favorite single of 2012. If you'd like to vote for Musta Had a Good Time, go here.
Wednesday night, Parmalee held their third Stage It show for an appreciative virtual roomful of family, friends, and fans. Coming just a little bit after Thanksgiving, the theme was "Songs We Are Thankful For" and the guys explained a little about each of the songs they chose for this special theme.
First was "Broken Records," which Matt described as having special meaning because it was the first song that they ever got fans from. Elaborating, he explained that this was the one that they wrote that helped them realize that they "had something going on." Matt called it their baby ... written out in the now-famous old barn in Parmele, NC. Their second song of the night was also an older one, a song they wrote in Nashville around 2008-2009, that became the title track of their record "Complicated."
Matt introduced the next song as one that he and Josh -- being guitar players -- had a special affinity for. He mentioned that one of their idols is Stevie Ray Vaughan (Josh showed the camera his rather epic SRV tattoo) and Matt recalled when he was a little kid, just starting to play the guitar, this was a song his father turned him on to and that later, when he met Josh, he found out that Josh had a similar experience and influence. They then launched into "Pride and Joy."
The band then mentioned how they were about to go back into the studio to cut some more tracks for their upcoming CD. Matt said they'd been writing for the past eighteen months since they got to Nashville. The song they played next was a "brand new one" that they were thankful for -- one that got them fired up -- called "Already Calling You Mine." While we don't have video from the Stage It show, here's video of this amazing new song from a recent concert:
Josh introduced the next song by saying "This is what I'm most thankful for." He went on to explain that the song was written in one night "in desperation of really bad things, hoping Scott was gonna recover." As far as thankfulness goes, the guys agreed "this is number one right here." With that, the band played the poignant "September." Here's a rare video of the song, uploaded almost two years ago:
After that emotional moment, the band lightened things up with a fun song, dedicated to a friend who was sitting there in the basement during the concert, the fan favorite "Day Drinking." After that was a song that Matt said he was most thankful for (after "September"). Matt has a personal connection to the song, he explained, "It teaches you how to live, it teaches you how to love," it taught him how to sing, how to be on stage...it taught him a lot of things. Josh chimed in that he shouldn't tell us everything it taught him. Then they jammed to Marvin Gaye's "Let's Get it On."
Matt described the next song as one that they wrote because it was a real song about an actual situation, not necessarily because it fit in any particular style or genre. Barry presented them with the idea of a song about a girl who "left heaven for San Diego"- moving from Greenvile to the Sunny Southern California town. Matt explained how the song came together, how a producer in California heard it and told them they had to record it, and how the song ended up being the gateway to getting them to Nashville. "This was us writing a song and feeling good about it," was how he summed up "San Diego."
The last two songs were their first hit single, "Musta Had A Good Time" and their upcoming single "Carolina" which they announced -- in our scoop of the night -- would be coming out February 4th! They explained the writing behind MHGT -- a song written on a whim about their lives that unexpectedly turned into a Top 40 song. They thanked everyone for all the help they'd given the band and shared their deep appreciation for the support they've been given. And then they finished up the 45-minute set with a heartfelt, impassioned version of "Carolina."
If you saw the Stage It show, I hope this recap brings back some good memories. If you missed it, make sure you catch the next one! Follow Parmalee on Twitter @parmalee for news about the next Stage It show and all the latest news about the band!
Right after Thanksgiving, Parmalee was back up on stage playing for enthusiastic home-town crowds. First up was a show at Coyote Joe's in Charlotte, NC. Radio station WSOC New Country 103.7 posted this review of the concert along with some great photos courtesy of Daryl Nelms Photography:
We also have photos from fans in attendance:
Photo by Nanci Furr
The next night, Parmalee was at the Blind Horse Saloon in Greensille, SC. Check out this video of "Musta Had A Good Time" from the Saturday night show.
Here's a photo posted on Facebook by Christy Benton, with the caption "This is a great band":
Parmalee is back home in North Carolina for the Thanksgiving holiday. But after spending time with family and friends, they'll be ready to get back to what they do best -- rocking out on stage. And Thanksgiving weekend gives family, friends and fans in the Carolinas two chances to see them play.
The band will be playing Coyote Joe's in Charlotte this Friday. Radio station 103.7 WSOC is giving away Meet and Greet passes and tickets to the show!! Follow DJs Charlie and Debbie HERE and the radio station HERE to get the name of the Hot Hit of the Day. When you hear it, between 4:30 and 5:30, call in to 704-570-1037 to win! If you don't win tickets, the cost is the $10 cover. CLICK HERE to purchase your tickets today. 18 and over welcome (21 and over to consume alcohol). Doors open at 7pm and Out Of The Blue kicks off the show at about 8pm.
Then Saturday, they'll be playing The Blind Horse Saloon in Greenville, South Carolina. Tickets for this show are the $10 cover. CLICK HERE to purchase your tickets today. The venue is 18 and over (21 and over to consume alcohol). Doors open at 7pm and Out Of The Blue kicks off the show at about 8pm.
Parmalee played an acoustic set at a free listener appreciation show sponsored by radio station WDAF 106.5 The Wolf last night at the Kanza Hall in Overland Park, Kansas. According to a review of the concert posted by Concert Clint on his blog http://concertclint.blogspot.com/, the band confirmed that "Carolina" will be their next single. Thanks for the scoop!! Check out Clint's entire recap here.
Clint took some video from the show. This may be the first video of a very new song "Already Calling You Mine," which the band introduced during their last Stage It show.
Here's the acoustic version of the next single, "Carolina."
Clint also recorded the last song of the night, their first single "Musta Had a Good Time."
And if you're wondering how the reviewer enjoyed the show, he ended his recap: "It was a great night and it was fun to see Parmalee for the first time.
I think they have a bright future ahead of them and I look forward to
hearing more music from them..."
The radio station posted an album of photos from the show which you can check out on their Facebook page here. In addition, during the show last night, those in attendance were tweeting photos:
@jennditto76 Amazing!!! :) Love you guys!!! Xoxo
@bpointermusic: Parmalee playing a capacity show at Kanza Hall oneblocksouthkc
@mark_withaC
Barry Pointer @bpointermusic @parmalee rockin some Marvin Gaye!
Parmalee was recently interviewed by Nashville Country Club's Leslie Armstrong at the Stoney Creek Records office and they discussed the writing process and success of their new single, their experience making the music video and their Twitter interactions with fans. Watch the interview here:
During CMA Awards week, Parmalee was interviewed by Danger Show Froggy of Froggy Radio Pittsburgh and he shared that "Musta Had a Good Time" was his current favorite song. Watch their impromptu a cappella version and the rest of the fun interview here:
Before the band played at Sliderz in Decatur, Illinois, they were interviewed by Trish of QCountry 95Q. It's a great interview if you don't mind the lack of lighting. Check out the guys discussing the real life origins of MHGT, Scott's unintended "gangsta" status and what's in store musically for the band.
Matt was interviewed by phone with Jaclyn Graves of WBKR a day before their concert at the Covered Wagon in Cannelton, Indiana to discuss the origins of the band and their path to Nashville. You can listen to the interview here
The whole band was interviewed by Markos Papadatos for Suite101 about their lives, their music, and their fans. On the topic of fans, the band was quoted as saying, "Thank you so much to the fans for your support. We are working on new
music for everybody and we just want to meet our fans and say ‘hey’ and
welcome them to the Parmalee family." Check out the entire interview here.
Over the weekend, Parmalee played shows in Decatur, IL, Madison, WI and Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN. The response from fans in attendance was overwhelming and while it's cliche to say everyone "Musta Had A Good Time," that sure seems to be the case!
We have some video from the show at the Badger Bowl in Madison and photos from all the venues:
Videos courtesy Sue Prinsen:
Bring the Music
Musta Had a Good Time
Night Moves
Photos from Cabooze
@ChrisKoenig6: Parmalee put on a hell of a show tonight. Next big thing in country!
Photo by @TereseQuarberg
Photo by @SchultzMichelle
More from Cabooze, courtesy of Cole Young:
From Badger Bowl:
Sue Prinsen put together a great slide show from the concert, which you can see here.
