COUNTRY QUICKIES: 1/1/13

~~Faith Hill, Tim McGraw and Keith Urban have been announced as presenters for 55th Grammy Awards. The show takes place Feb. 10 on CBS-TV.

~~Randy Travis pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of driving while intoxicated in connection with a one-car accident near his home in Tioga, Texas. Randy was sentenced to 24 months of probation, a $2,000 fine and a 180-day suspended jail sentence. He avoided a maximum sentence of up to two years in jail and a $4,000 fine.

A state trooper arrested Travis after law officers received a call about a naked man lying in the road. Leaving the courthouse Thursday, Travis told reporters, "I'm glad to have this behind me, and I'm looking forward to going out and making some music."

His next concert is scheduled on March 1 in Biloxi, Miss.
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~~Steve Earle will release his new album, "The Low Highway", on April 16. It features his live band, The Dukes, and is Steve's 15th studio album since his 1986 debut project, "Guitar Town".

The project is Steve's ‘road record' as he explains in the album liner notes.

ALSO:  On February 19, Steve will release a limited edition 7-inch of the album tracks "Burnin' It Down" and "That All You Got?" in support of Independent Music Stores.  The record is available on red vinyl and is a limited edition pressing of 1,000.  Each cover has been hand-signed by Steve and is hand-numbered.

Steve has also signed a two-book deal with Twelve, an imprint of Grand Central Publishing/Hachette Book Group. The first book will be a memoir,  focusing on meeting Townes Van Zandt and their complicated friendship, the second on reaching rock bottom in Nashville and his time in prison and the third on his recovery and return to music. The second book will be a novel.

~~The home of country star Loretta Lynn was damaged by the severe thunderstorms that swept through Tennessee early Wednesday.

Loretta's pal, Poison frontman Bret Michaels, broke the news in a post to his official website.  He wrote:

"Our thoughts and prayers go out to the many friends, families and fans who have been affected by the violent storms that hit earlier this morning in the southern states. We are thinking of you as the recovery and restoration begins to your lives, including my dear friend Loretta Lynn and her family whose property was severely damaged in the wake of these storms."
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