Sunday news: sweet surprise in Baltimore, fun in Florida and more (updated with photo links)

Bucky Covington on stage in Allentown, 12/7; photo by our talented friend Aikenseeker, who had a fantastic time--thaks so much for sharing this great shot! Bucky Covington's debut CD is in stores now, and his music video for "It's Good to Be Us" is available for online viewing at CMT.com and Yahoo Music. You can buy Bucky's album at Amazon, Best Buy , iTunes, WalMart Music and Target, hear his music atCMT and GAC, or enjoy samples of songs from the CD at Bucky's official MySpace. A copy of Bucky Covington can be ordered at his official site or via his official fan club.

Bucky Covington, Jason Michael Carroll and Cole Deggs & the Lonesome wrapped up their incredibly successful Raisin' the Bar tour last night at Ram's Read Live in Baltimore...and what a night it was! A bit from the "now it can be told" news category--Bucky's gracious fans presented him with a beautiful custom-made Redneck Guitar, and he played his new gift on stage for a couple of numbers during last night's show. A very sweet moment for all who were there--kudos to the kind gift-givers who made it all happen!

While this tour may be a wonderful memory (and we hope Bucky, Jason and Cole find a way to grace the same stage again very soon--the Platinum Cowboyz rocked) Bucky's adventures on the road roll on. He'll be taking a short break before heading to sunny Florida for shows in Bradenton and Tallahassee this coming weekend. Here's a quick look at what's ahead:

Friday, 12/14/07, 7 p.m.
Joyland IV
5520 14th St W
Bradenton, FL 34207

Website: http://1065ctq.com/
Ticket info: Tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at the door at the WCTQ studios, Carl Black GMC, Joyland, Granny's Motorsports and Metro PCS.
Directions: Mapquest
Other info: This show is sponsored by WCTQ in Sarasota; tune in for more info.


Saturday, 12/15/2007
Floyd's Music Store
666-1 W. Tennessee St.
Tallahassee, FL
(850) 222-3506

Website: http://www.floydsmusicstore.com/events.htm
Ticket info: Tickets are $25 general admission; buy online at TicketWeb or locally at CD Warehouse or Vinyl Fever.
Directions: Available at venue site
Other info: This is an all-ages show sponsored by 94.9 TNT in Tallahassee; join their Loyal Listener club here for a chance to win tickets.

Rocky and Bucky Covington on stage at the Crocodile Rock in Allentown, 12/7; photo by the very kind Aikenseeker. Click the image to visit Rocky Covington.com. Thanks, Aikenseeker!

After that, Bucky returns to Billy Bob's Texas for the 99.5 The Wolf 12 Man Jam on Sunday, 12/16; he'll be part of an all-star lineup including Chris Cagle, Lee Ann Womack, Halfway to Hazard, Tracy Lawrence, Mark Chesnutt, Zona Jones, Ashton Shepherd, Eric Church, Stoney Larue, Chuck Wicks, and Jason Michael Carroll. Listen to KPLX or visit their site for your chance to win tickets to this Texas treat!

Bucky Covington's "It's Good to Be Us" is sitting pretty at #28 on both the weighted and Top 500 Mediabase charts again this morning--and yes, that big-bullet suspense is killing us, too. It's pretty clear that a leap upward is going to happen--it's just a matter of when, y'all. We'll work hard to help it along--keep requesting "It's Good to Be Us" at your favorite local or streaming country stations and remember those "Top X at X" countdowns this week, as well. Bucky's sweet and exuberant spin on "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" did its leaping overnight--it's up four spots to #96 on the weighted chart this morning. Nice going, Bucky! To snag this digital single for keeps, stop in at WalMart Music, Yahoo Music or iTunes.

On the TV front, you can catch Bucky tonight on GAC at 8 p.m. ET, when Christmas at the Tennessee gets an encore airing. And of course, his video for It's Good to Be Us" could pop up any time--watch the video at CMT, and vote for it at GAC's Top 20 Country Countdown, at CMT's Top 20 Countdown and at CMT's Pure Country Pure 12-Pack.

Finally--if you haven't stopped in at the Bucky Truck Stop at Rawkhands lately, now's a great time to pull over and sit a spell! Sunscreen's got some beautiful updates for you--including a fresh and fun shot of Bucky and Jason Michael Carroll to mark Jason's co-hosting spot on this week's Country Countdown USA. (The show's site has a handy station finder, if you'd like to listen in locally or online...)

Edited to add links to a great album from last night's exciting Baltimore show--hop over here for lovely Ram's Head images by KareninMD. Big thanks to Karen for sharing the fun--more photo links on the way later today!

More soon--enjoy your Sunday...