Trace Adkins, LeAnn Rimes Part of Bad-News Parade

LeAnn Rimes photo courtesy of Curb Records.

Sept. 21, 2009 — Trace Adkins, Ronnie Milsap and LeAnn Rimes are all affected by a spate of tough news stories, though none of them are the kind of issue that would make or break a career.

A single recorded by Trace and Ronnie is being hung out to dry in a spat between record companies, while LeAnn had her second minor car accident in a month. In addition, a fire at a long-established Indiana venue leaves a series of artists with cancelled shows.

The stories include:

• Capitol Records issued a cease-and-desist order to Bleve Records demanding it withdraw marketing for "My First Ride," a collaboration between Ronnie Milsap and Trace Adkins, who is signed to Capitol. A Bleve statement indicates funds from the single were to benefit disaster funds for two first-responder organizations. Label execs have decided to continue working the single. The song is from a compilation CD that’s due Nov. 1. The Bleve website does not indicate what other artists are contributing to the album.

• LeAnn Rimes had a minor accident last week leaving the Fred Segal fashion retail shop in Santa Monica. She tapped the back end of another car, a mishap she attributes to being distracted by paparazzi, a representative told People. No one was hurt. LeAnn was also involved in a non-injury accident Aug. 21; that one was so minor she did not know she’d even clipped another car until police showed up at her house to discuss a possible hit-and-run offense. Ultimately, no charges were filed in that incident.

• The Little Nashville Opry was destroyed by a fire over the weekend, according to Indianapolis television station WTHR. The blaze began Saturday night about 45 minutes after a band called Goldwing Express finished its set at the venue in Nashville, Ind. Among the artists who had upcoming shows at the club listed on the Pollstar concert website: Loretta Lynn, Bucky Covington, George Jones, Andy Griggs, Marty Stuart and Asleep At The Wheel.

• A Tim McGraw concert Thursday in Edmonton, Alberta, put a bit of uplifting light on the death of a Canadian fan who was crushed by a speaker in August at a wind-related disaster in Camrose. Some 13,000 fans showed up at Tim’s performance and an unannounced amount of money was raised for the Donna Moore Memorial Trust Fund, which was set up for her two surviving sons. Big & Rich had already raised $55,000 for the fund with a previous concert.