Blake Shelton’s recently re-released holiday album, Cheers, It’s Christmas, features 17 tracks, including two new songs, “Two Step ’Round the Christmas Tree” and “Christmas Eve.”
“Christmas Eve” is a song co-penned by Blake’s girlfriend, Gwen Stefani, who included a version of the tune on her 2017 holiday album, You Make It Feel Like Christmas.
As Blake told Nash Nights Live co-hosts Elaina Smith and Shawn Parr, when he heard Gwen sing “Christmas Eve” for the first time, he “freaked out” and knew he wanted to include it on his re-release.
“It’s crazy because Gwen was working on her Christmas album, and she comes out to the ranch in Oklahoma,” says Blake. “She loves going out there and getting lost in the woods. She went for a run one morning—which I didn’t go on [laughing]—and she came back really quick and she was like, ‘Where’s my phone, where’s my phone?’ She grabbed her phone and had basically written a song on this jog, or at least a chorus. She finished the song later that day and she sang it for me. And I freaked out. I thought, ‘Wow, that sounds like a Christmas classic already.’ So she cut it for her album, and I knew I was supposed to re-release my Christmas album with some new tracks on it and I asked her, ‘I know you’re putting this on your Christmas album that’s coming out, but would you care if I cut it too for my Christmas album?’ So I cut the song Gwen co-wrote for my Christmas album.
“And then we re-cut that old Michael Martin Murphey song that Suzy Bogguss wrote called ‘Two Step ’Round the Christmas Tree.’ I always loved that one, so we put that one on there too.”
Listen to Blake’s version of “Christmas Eve” below, as well as Gwen’s recording.
early mornings with his three kids, Takoda, Ryker and Trulee
his five-month-old daughter, Trulee
releasing his self-titled studio album on Nov. 3
why he decided to self-title the album (the Metallica effect)
building the album on an organic level via the instrumentation
putting every bit of “Lee Brice” into the album
co-producing the album
co-writing 11 songs on the album with the likes of Ross Copperman, Dallas Davidson, Rhett Akins and more
co-writing “Story to Tell” with Edwin McCain, a song that features Warren Haynes on guitar
current single, “Boy,” and what his two sons think about it
making the video for “Boy”
recording “The Best Part of Me” for his daughter
spending family time in South Carolina this winter
hitting the road in January
Quote Worthy:
Lee Brice: “Edwin McCain was my hero growing up. He’s from South Carolina. Growing up it was him and Garth . . . they were two of my biggest influences. I was able to get in touch with [Edwin]. I called him up . . . and he came to Nashville. We wrote two songs that night. It was like I’d known him my whole life. And then I decided that one of the songs [“Story to Tell”] was for sure going on the record, so I asked him if he would come sing on it . . . he’s so talented and so smart and so funny. It was crazy to be able to go make music with one of my heroes.”
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee wraps its regular-season road schedule on Saturday when the Vols head to Columbia to play Missouri at Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium. The game will feature a 7:30 p.m. ET kickoff on SEC Network.
Tom Hart (play-by-play) and Jordan Rodgers (analyst) will be in the booth and Cole Cubelic will report from the sidelines. Vol Network radio affiliates will have a live audio broadcast with Bob Kesling, Tim Priest and Brent Hubbs. Sirius Channel 157 and XM Channel 191 will also carry a live audio broadcast.
Tennessee (4-5, 0-5 SEC) is coming off 24-10 Homecoming win over Southern Miss on Nov. 4. The UT defense forced two-big third-quarter turnovers – an interception by senior Emmanuel Moseley and a strip sack redshirt sophomore by Darrell Taylor– to control the game in the second half. Junior running back John Kelly rushed for two touchdowns in the win.
Missouri (4-5, 1-4 SEC) is coming off a 45-16 home win over Florida. The Tigers used a balanced attack and finished with 455 yards of offense. Junior quarterback Drew Lock finished 15-for-20 for 228 yards with three touchdowns and one interceptions. Freshman Larry Roundtree III rushed for 83 yards and three touchdowns.
Tennessee-Missouri History
Tennessee is 2-3 all-time against Missouri with both wins coming in the last two years. The Vols are 1-1 against the Tigers in Columbia.
In 2016, the Vols took a 63-37 win over Missouri in an offensive slugfest that featured Joshua Dobbs rushing for 190 yards and two touchdowns and throwing for 223 yards and three scores.
The first-ever meeting between Tennessee and Missouri in 2012 went to four overtimes and the Tigers came out with a 51-48 win in Knoxville. It tied for the third-longest game in UT history.
Air Attack
Saturday’s game will feature Tennessee’s stout pass defense taking on Missouri’s high-octane passing attack.
The Vols are allowing only 150.0 passing yards per game – tops in the SEC and No. 4 in the nation.
Missouri is averaging 314.9 passing yards per game, which ranks second in the SEC and 14th nationally.
Tigers quarterback Drew Lock leads the country with 31 touchdowns, but Missouri ranks last in the SEC and 118th in the nation in turnover margin (-9).
Smith Continues To Impress On O-Line
When Trey Smith started at left tackle against Southern Miss on Nov. 4, he became Tennessee true freshman to start at left tackle in at least the last 30 years. Smith totaled six pancakes and anchored an offensive line that featured a pair of redshirt freshmen who were making their first career starts in Ryan Johnson (right guard) and Devante Brooks (right tackle).
Smith is a frontrunner for Freshman All-America, All-SEC and All-America honors as he leads the Vols with 41 knockdowns. He is the second-highest grade Vol on the offensive line behind only senior Jashon Robertson.
Smith started the first eight games of the season at right guard. He enrolled at UT in the spring of 2017 and was the nation’s No.1 overall recruit in the class of 2017 according to ESPN.
Kelly Shines As Dual-Threat RB
Junior tailback John Kelly is one of just four players in the nation who leads his team in both rushing and receptions.
On the season, Kelly has rushed 145 times for 694 yards (4.8 average) and eight touchdowns. He has 27 catches for 250 yards (9.2 average). Kelly’s 118.0 yards from scrimmage per game ranks second in the SEC and 25th nationally.
Daniel Making Case for Ray Guy Award
Redshirt senior punter Trevor Daniel is one of 78 final candidates for the Ray Guy Award, which is given to the nation’s top collegiate punter.
Through nine games this season, Daniel has 55 punts for 2,603 yards and a 47.3-yard average, which ranks second in the SEC and fourth in the nation. Daniel’s 22 punts inside opponents’ 20 and 27 punts of 50 or more yards lead the nation. His 22 punts inside the 20 also rank fourth among Power Five schools.
His 45.8-yard average is the best in Tennessee history and are tied for second active NCAA punters, regardless of division.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee basketball program begins its 108th season on Friday night when it welcomes Presbyterian to Thompson-Boling Arena for a 7:01 p.m. ET tip.
Friday’s game does not feature a television broadcast, but fans can catch all the action online through SEC Network + (WatchESPN). Visit WatchESPN.com or download the WatchESPN app to view the game on a computer or mobile device. Mick Gillispie (play-by-play) and Vincent Yarbrough (analyst) are on the call for Friday’s opener.
Fans can also listen live on their local Vol Network affiliate to catch Bob Kesling and Bert Bertelkamp describing the action.
Tickets are still available and can be purchased online through AllVols.com.
Friday is the season opener for both Tennessee and Presbyterian and marks the third meeting between the two programs. The Vols are 2-0 in the series, including a 90-50 win against the Blue Hose last season in Knoxville.
Up next, UT will host High Point on Tuesday, Nov. 14 (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network +). Then, Tennessee will travel to compete in the Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas, opening with Purdue on Nov. 22 at noon.
THE SERIES
• Overall: UT leads, 2-0
• In Knoxville: UT leads, 2-0
• In Clinton: No meetings
• Neutral Sites: No meetings
• Current Streak: Tennessee has won two straight
• Last Meeting: UT won, 90-50, in Knoxville, 12/6/16
• Rick Barnes vs. Presbyterian: 1-0
• Rick Barnes vs. Dustin Kerns: No meetings
RIGHT NOW
• Rick Barnes has led his teams to 15 consecutive wins in season-openers/home-openers.
• UT’s average attendance in home-openers at TBA is 16,745. Attendance for last year’s home-opener vs. Chattanooga was 14,483 (Nov. 11, 2016).
• This is Tennessee’s 31st season in Thompson-Boling Arena, where the Vols are 27-3 in lidlifters.
A WIN WOULD…
• Stand as Rick Barnes‘ 400th career home win as a college head coach.
• Give the Vols a 28-3 record in home-openers at Thompson-Boling Arena.
• Extend Tennessee’s home winning streak against non-conference opponents to seven games. That streak dates to last season’s win over Appalachian State on Nov. 15, 2016.
ABOUT PRESBYTERIAN
• Founded in 1880 and located in Clinton, South Carolina, Presbyterian College is a member of the Big South Conference.
• First-year head coach Dustin Kerns takes over the reins at PC following the retirement of longtime head coach Gregg Nibert. Nibert led the Blue Hose for 28 seasons, guiding the program through its transition from NAIA all the way up to the NCAA Division I ranks.
• A native of Kingsport, Tennessee, Kerns is a first-time head coach, arriving at his new post after spending the last four seasons as associate head coach at Wofford. His coaching résumé yields a brief stint on Rocky Top, as he spent the 2003-04 season at Tennessee as a graduate assistant under then-head coach Buzz Peterson.
• PC assistant coach Tommy Brown is a native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, and received his master’s in Physical Education from UT.
• Presbyterian’s roster is highlighted by senior guard Reggie Dillard (9.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 3.5 apg) along with sophomore guard and Big South All-Freshman performer Jo’Vontae Millner (10.8 ppg, 5.6 rpg, .483 FG%), who lead the team in scoring and rebounding last season.
• The Blue Hose added some key transfers during the offseason in junior guard Montenia Nelson and junior forward Francois Lewis. Nelson was fourth in the NJCAA Division I scoring last season (23.7 ppg). At 6-9, Lewis (10.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg) adds much-needed size to PC’s squad.
• Tennessee and Presbyterian are meeting for the second consecutive season.
LAST MEETING VS. PRESBYTERIAN
• Guards Lamonté Turner and Jordan Bowden each posted career-highs for scoring—with 24 and 21 points, respectively—and Tennessee tied the school record with 16 made 3-pointers to storm past Presbyterian for a 90-50 win on Dec. 6, 2016, at Thompson-Boling Arena.
• The Vols shot 16-of-33 from 3-point range, tying for the most 3-pointers made in program history and UT’s most since making 16 against UNC Asheville on Nov. 17, 2009. It was the sixth time in program history that Tennessee made at least 16 triples.
• The Vols’ 40-point margin of victory was their largest since defeating Division II Tusculum College, 98-51, on Jan. 4, 2014. It was their biggest win over an NCAA Division I opponent since topping UNC Asheville, 124-49, on Nov. 17, 2009.
• UT limited Presbyterian to 36.0 percent shooting while the Blue Hose committed 22 turnovers. PC made 18 total field goals in the game (while UT made 16 3-pointers).
• Turner was 8-of-12 from the floor and 7-of-11 from beyond the arc and collected three rebounds and three assists. Bowden was 7-of-13 and went 5-of-10 on 3-pointers to go with five boards, two assists and two steals. Robert Hubbs III added 14 points and Grant Williams posted nine points and a team-high eight rebounds.
• Six different Vols made a 3-pointer. The 16 treys were UT’s most under coach Rick Barnes.
TWO VOLS QUESTIONABLE
• Two players on Tennessee’s roster remain questionable for Friday’s season opener.
• Junior guard Chris Darrington, a juco transfer, is nursing an ankle injury.
• Redshirt freshman wing Jalen Johnson, who underwent a procedure to address a chronic stress fracture in his left shin in July, was recently cleared by team medical staff for full participation, but he is gradually working his way back to full speed.
• Neither Darrington nor Johnson played in UT’s exhibition wins over Carson-Newman and Clemson.
SIX WEARING VOLSCHOLAR PATCH
• A program-record six Vols have earned the privilege of wearing a “VOLScholar” patch on their game jersey: Kyle Alexander, Jordan Bone, John Fulkerson, Lamonté Turner, Grant Williams and Brad Woodson
• To be eligible to wear the patch, Tennessee student-athletes must achieve a 3.0 GPA in either of the two previous semesters, or they must own a cumulative 3.0 GPA (freshmen are not eligible for the patch).
TENNESSEE IS FIFTH-YOUNGEST TEAM IN DIVISION I THIS SEASON
• Bowling Green State University basketball SID James Nahikian painstakingly compiled a list of the youngest teams (based on class/eligibility) in college basketball this season, and Tennessee was one of three SEC teams to make the top five.
• With 10 underclassmen and only one senior, Tennessee is tied with Wofford and Toledo as the fifth-youngest team in Division I.
• Kentucky (12 underclassmen, no seniors) is the nation’s youngest team, and Auburn is the second-youngest (12 underclassmen, one senior).
WELCOME TO YEAR NO. 31
• Thompson-Boling Arena is hosting its 31st season in 2017-18.
• The Vols have won nearly 75 percent of their games in Thompson-Boling Arena.
• The Vols have ranked in the top 10 nationally in average home attendance 12 times at TBA and own an active streak of 12 consecutive seasons ranked in the top 20.
Since dropping his debut studio album in 1990, Alan Jackson has been keeping it country—selling nearly 60 million albums worldwide and ranking as one of the 10 best-selling country artists of all-time.
As you probably imagined, Alan will be keeping it country in 2018 during his 28th year in the biz with the extension of his Honky Tonk Highway Tour, which kicked off in January 2017 and ran through November 2017.
More dates will be announced soon.
Alan Jackson’s 2018 Honky Tonk Highway Tour
January 19
Lexington, KY
Rupp Arena **++
January 20
Little Rock, AR
Verizon Arena ^^++
February 8
Independence, MO
Silverstein Eye Centers Arena ^^
February 9
Indianapolis, IN
Bankers Life Fieldhouse ^^
February 15
San Antonio, TX
San Antonio Stock Show & Rodeo **
February 16
Grand Prairie, TX
Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie ^^
March 23
Toledo, OH
Huntington Center
May 24
Pittsburgh, PA
TBD
April 27
Baltimore, MD
Royal Farms Arena
April 28
Albany, NY
Times Union Center ^^
May 4
Tuscaloosa, AL
Tuscaloosa Amphitheatre
June 23
Orange Beach, FL
The Wharf ^^
July 27
Central Point, OR
Country Crossing Music Festival **
July 28
Mountain Home, ID
Mountain Home Country Music Festival **
August 16
Vienna, VA
Wolf Trap
August 17
Gilford, NH
Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion ^^
September 15
Charlotte, NC
Spectrum Center ^^
**Date is already onsale
^^Tickets onsale Friday, November 17
++with special guest Lauren Alaina
Check out 36 of our favorite performance photos from the 51st CMA Awards on Nov. 8, including shots of Eric Church, Thomas Rhett, Garth Brooks, Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, Kane Brown, Alan Jackson and more.
Jimmy Kimmel rounded up some of his country music chums for the third installment of his popular late-night bit, Mean Tweets: Country Music Edition.
The premise is simple—and hilarious—as country stars read unflattering tweets about themselves. Check out the new clip, which features Zac Brown Band, Cassadee Pope, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Randy Houser, Old Dominion, Trace Adkins, Darius Rucker, Dan + Shay, Jana Kramer, Chris Young, Florida Georgia Line, Lady Antebellum, Chris Stapleton, Jake Owen, Little Big Town and Justin Moore.
1. WINNERS: Brothers Osborne 2. LOSERS: Florida Georgia Line
Brothers T.J and John Osborne scored two big wins: Vocal Duo of the Year and Music Video of the Year (“It Ain’t My Fault). After upsetting Florida Georgia Line to win Vocal Duo of the Year in 2016, many insiders—including myself—felt that FGL homeostasis would be restored this year. Not the case, even though FGL had a monster year with their tour and No. 1 hits “May We All” and “God, Your Mama, and Me.” Another big win for BO. Another middle finger to FGL.
photo by Jason Simanek
3. WINNER: Chris Stapleton
With the whiskey-soaked voice of a bearded angel, Chris Stapleton burst onto the mainstream scene at the 2015 CMA Awards when he won Album, Male Vocalist and New Artist of the Year. The honeymoon ain’t over. In 2016, Chris won Male Vocalist and Music Video of the Year. This year he scored wins for Album and Male Vocalist of the Year. Unless Chris comes out with a rap album in 2018, expect him to keep his foothold on the Male Vocalist award for years to come. Sidebar: I’d buy Chris Stapleton’ rap album.
photo by Jason Simanek
4. WINNER: Miranda Lambert
Miranda further solidified her spot among the pantheon of country music deities by winning her seventh Female Vocalist of the Year Award. It’s a mind-blowing accomplishment. Since the award’s inception in 1967, no artist has won more than four times (Reba McEntire, Carrie Underwood and Martina McBride). Miranda is not even close to being finished adding to her CMA awards total.
photo by Jason Simanek
5. WINNER: Keith Urban 6. LOSER: Sam Hunt
In 2016, Keith was nominated for Entertainer, Album, Male Vocalist and Musical Event of the Year. He won nothing. In 2017, Keith was nominated four times for Entertainer, Male Vocalist, Single and Music Video of the Year. He managed to win Single of the Year for “Blue Ain’t Your Color.” One win in the past eight nominations ain’t great, but it’s better than going O-fer. On the other hand, Sam Hunt has been nominated five times in the last three years and has nothing to show for it. This year, Sam’s “Body Like a Back Road” was nominated for both Single and Song of the Year. Keep in mind that “Body Like a Back Road” spent a record 34 consecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. And it still wasn’t good enough in the voters’ minds to take either prize.
photo by Jason Simanek
7. WINNER: Garth Brooks
In 2016, Garth won the CMA Entertainer of the Year award for an unprecedented fifth time. In 2017, the G-man extended his record by winning the award for a sixth time. How entertaining is Garth? So much so that he can lip-sync a performance at the 2017 CMA Awards and still win Entertainer of the Year. That’s a fact . . . a sweet, sweet fact.
Before the 51st CMA Awards kicked off at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, the stars walked the red carpet at the Music City Center. Check out our red carpet photo gallery featuring Carrie Underwood, Miranda Lambert, Luke Bryan, Brad Paisley, Thomas Rhett, Cam, Maren Morris, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Brothers Osborne, Keith Urban, Kelsea Ballerini, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town and many more.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee head coach Butch Jones met with the media for the final time this week during his Wednesday press conference at the Ray and Lucy Hand Digital Studio.
Jones talked about the challenges of facing Missouri’s fast paced and high-powered offense, Trey Smith‘s contributions along the offensive line and the quarterback situation heading into this Saturday’s game in Columbia, Mo.
Unstoppable Force vs. Immovable Object
Tennessee’s stingy pass defense – which ranks fourth nationally and first in the SEC, giving up just 150 yards per game – will face one of its toughest tests to date this Saturday night when it takes on the Tigers’ high-octane offense. Missouri enters the game leading the SEC in total offense (484.1 yards/game) while junior quarterback Drew Lock leads the country with 31 touchdown passes.
On the flip side, the Vols have allowed more than 200 yards passing just twice this season and have held six of their nine opponents to 137 yards or fewer through the air.
“I think we have continued to grow, develop and improve from game to game,” Jones said in regards to the Vols’ pass defense. “We will be extremely tested Saturday night. They apply so much pressure to a defense, from the tempo, to the run game, to the RPOs, to the skill sets of their players and their quarterback
“They are a very good football team. We are going to have to play our most complete football game defensively, and as a football team.”
Jones mentioned one of the most difficult things about playing this type of offense is trying to simulate it in practice.
“It’s a great challenge because so much of playing in an up-tempo football team is relying on your discipline and execution,” Jones said. “We’ve done some different things and it’s hard to completely simulate it, but we’ve tried to be creative in terms of how we go about doing it. I think it helps that a lot of these players played against them last year, so they understand the challenges that are associated with playing against this type of offense.”
Smith Continues Solid Play, Maturation Process
You could argue that true freshman offensive lineman Trey Smith has been the most impressive player for UT this season. The Jackson, Tenn., native has lived up to the hype after joining Team 121 as the nation’s top recruit in the 2017 signing class according to ESPN.
Smith is the only Vols’ offensive lineman to start every game this season and became the first true freshman to start at left tackle for Tennessee in over 30 years after doing so in last Saturday’s win over Southern Miss.
“He’s an individual who accepts every challenge,” Jones said. “He’s very competitive, wants to do exceptionally well, works his craft every day. He’s really gaining more and more confidence as the season progresses. He’s turning into one of our leaders.
“It’s different to go inside all season then to go outside. We see him continuing to grow and get better and better, and get more confidence at that position. We’ll see where we’re at from a depth standpoint Saturday night where he plays, but I think it just adds to the flexibility up front now that he’s had the game experience at left tackle.
Jones Confident in QBs Guarantano & McBride
After missing the second half of last Saturday’s win over Southern Miss, Jones said that redshirt freshman quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is probable for this weekend’s contest. However, Jones is also confident in the ability of true freshman backup Will McBride should the need arise for him to step in.
“He has the same temperate every day,” Jones said about McBride. “He has the same disposition. He is never too high or low. He is very consistent. He is very poised. Even when it was time for him to go in the game this last Saturday, there was no difference in his demeanor. He does not get his blood pressure up. He is very calm and collected. I think the players see that.”
McBride played the entire second half of UT’s Homecoming win over Southern Miss, leading a pair of touchdown drives in the third quarter.
Parker Henry Honored for Academic Success
Tennessee redshirt junior Parker Henry was recently selected for the East Tennessee Outstanding Finance Student Award. The Hendersonville, Tenn., native has started all eight games as the Vols’ holder this season and boasts a 4.0 GPA while double majoring in Finance and Political Science. Henry is also up for consideration to be on the CoSIDA Academic All-District team for the second straight year.
![Blake Shelton “Freaked Out” the 1st Time He Heard Gwen Stefani Sing “Christmas Eve,” 1 of 2 New Tracks on His Re-Released Holiday Album [Listen]](https://cdn.socast.io/6616/sites/1446/2017/11/10102220/Blake-Shelton2.jpg#aqua_resizer_image_not_local)
