Well we made it to December, and here is the last Top 20 Pick Hit Chart of the Year for 2020. Although we may be glad to see an end to this year the good part about artists being stuck at home is many of them were smart enough to use the time to release new product and some of it is brilliant.

Here is our latest take on the Top 20 Cashbox Pick Hit Chart – with our usual mandate in place putting iconic artists on with indie artists – something we are very proud of doing right here at Cashbox Radio.

A little history of where the name Cashbox came from - the name of Cashbox Magazine (originally two words – Cash Box) was named after the actual ‘cash box’ inside the jukeboxes of America. When customers put their money in and played for example - A1, the money dropped down into a specific spot in the cash box and this is how the original Cash Box Charts were derived from collecting that information.

Composer/musician/producer Brian Banks & Canadian author/playwright/journalist Erica Ehm (MuchMusic!) team up for new children’s multi-platform digital series, ‘Outta The Books’.

Each award-winning in their own right, American composer and producer Brian Banks and Canadian author, playwright and ex-MuchMusic VJ Erica Ehm have harnessed the power of music and story with the release of a new children’s series, Outta The Books — including Chapter 1: “A Wicked Competition”.

Check it out here:
Outta The Books: Chapter 1 - A Wicked Competition

Reimagining classic fairy tales in a modern, meaningful way, Outta The Books creates a fun and fresh musical take on long-loved fables by showcasing storylines from some unexpected characters — the “extras,” if you will.

The 54th annual Country Music Association Awards were presented on Wednesday, country music's biggest prize. Reba McEntire and Darius Rucker hosted the show from the Music City Center in Nashville.

Miranda Lambert led nominations going into the event with seven, followed by Luke Combs with six. The show also featured performances by Dan + Shay with Justin Bieber, Keith Urban and Ashley McBryde. The coveted Album of the Year award went to Luke Combs and Entertainer of the Year was awarded to Eric Church.

Here is the complete list of winners.

New Artist of the Year
Jimmie Allen
Ingrid Andress
Gabby Barrett
Carly Pearce
MORGAN WALLEN *WINNER

Album of the Year
"Heartache Medication" -- Jon Pardi
"Never Will" -- Ashley McBryde
"Old Dominion" -- Old Dominion
"WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU GET" -- LUKE COMBS *WINNER
"Wildcard" -- Miranda Lambert

As many of you know, I started my career in music, radio and retail, I was truly blessed to be one of the very first female Music Directors in Canadian history and I still thank the people in the business who had the foresight to see past the fact I was a woman, and was a person who was passionate about music.

That passion for music has never left me and heading into our 14th year of owning and operating Cashbox Canada, a magazine inspired by the legendary Cashbox Magazine, we are now working hard to bring back radio to where it used to be with our latest venture, Cashbox Radio.

A little history of where the name Cashbox came from - the name of Cashbox Magazine (originally two words – Cash Box) was named after the actual ‘cash box’ inside the jukeboxes of America. When customers put their money in and played for example - A1, the money dropped down into a specific spot in the cash box and this is how the original Cash Box Charts were derived from collecting that information.

Mark Miller celebrated Jazz photographer and writer just released a new book on my favorite guitarist Sonny Greenwich - “Of Stars and Strings”.

I first heard Sonny Greenwich in Loyola University at Radio Loyola in Montreal, on a Radio Canada International recording entitled “Sun Song”: The Music of Sonny Greenwich.

I was hooked by the unbridled beauty. Sonny Greenwich’s, 1994 release, “Hymn to the Earth”,  is my favorite record so far because it takes me to a beautifully spiritual place of  John Coltrane “ A love Supreme”,  Pharaoh Saunders “ Healing Song”,  “The Creator has a master plan” or Santana “Welcome “.All these artist touch you on a higher plane or attempt to take you there…

I immediately called Mark Miller for the book and to ask three questions.

Photo Credits: Fiona@Studio22Photography

The Country Music Association of Ontario held its 8th Annual Awards Show, despite the lockdown and restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, in a safe and responsible way. Billed as the First Live Drive In Country Awards Show the event was held on October 4, 2020 at The Raceway at Western Fair District, London Ontario and despite a little rain early in the day, it was a music and entertainment filled event showcasing the incredible talent in Ontario Country Music.

Presented by Slaight Music, with support from Ontario Creates, the CMAOntario Awards acknowledge the talent and achievements of Ontario’s country music industry across 17 categories.

Hosted by the ever entertaining Jason McCoy and  featuring the amazing Western Swing Authority as host band  and Hall of Famer Wendell Ferguson.

Included were performances by Tim Hicks, James Barker Band, The Reklaws, Jade Eagleson, The Abrams, Eric Ethridge and Kalsey Kulyk, Genevieve Fisher, Kelsi Mayne, Les Rats De Swompe, Nicole Rayy and Ryan Langdon.

Dave Woods has become an integral part of the country music scene in Canada in general and Ontario specifically over the last decade. From his podcast interviews to live stream shows to live events, Dave has provided both indie artists and major label acts a platform to get their music heard.  Dave’s passion for country music and live music is matched only by restaurant and performance venue owner John Marlatt of The Moonshine Café in Oakville, Ontario.

So when you combine the two, Dave with his live shows and John with the venue, it’s a perfect musical marriage. When Dave decide he wanted to feature singer/songwriters in the Nashville style of “in the round” or this case “in the row” he chose the name Stories Songs and Six Strings for the show and picked The Moonshine Café as the ideal location.

Helen Reddy whose star shone brightly in the 1970s due largely to iconic feminist anthem “I Am Woman” has died at 78.

Reddy's children Traci and Jordan announced that the singer/actor died in Los Angeles, California with the following statement:

“It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, Helen Reddy, on the afternoon of September 29th 2020 in Los Angeles. She was a wonderful Mother, Grandmother and a truly formidable woman. Our hearts are broken. But we take comfort in the knowledge that her voice will live on forever.”

Alt-folk Canadiana artist Kylie Fox celebrates the launch of her newest single “Avocado,” a heartfelt, tongue-in-cheek letter-in-song to her friend (and first time mothers everywhere).

Watch and listen to “Avocado” here:

“There is a trend in millennial pregnancies where the process is tracked through an app that describes the mother’s weekly progress,” Fox explains of the song’s context and inspiration. “Usually the videos make an effort to compare the size of the fetus to that of a fruit or vegetable.

“I was lucky enough to catch the screening of the 16-week video which told us that my friend’s child was about the size of an avocado,” she continues. “This song is a letter to a mom-to-be facing the uncertainties and excitements of expecting a first child.”

Canada has lost one of its earliest singing stars Lucille Starr, singer, songwriter who earned her place in music history with for her 1964 hit single, "Quand Le Soleil Dit Bonjour Aux Montagnes" ("The French Song.")

She was born Lucille Savoie in St. Boniface, Manitoba, but was raised in Port Coquitlam in the  Francophone community of Maillardville, British Columbia. She adopted the stage name Lucille Starr and joined a  local group called Les Hirondelles. Using the stage name, Lucille Starr. She became part of a duo Bob and Louise who between 1958 and 1963 released several 45's mostly covers of  songs of everyone from Perry Como to Connie Francis. They had minor success on the North American West Coast and in 1963 they were signed by A&M Records recording as "The Canadian Sweethearts."

Yes, Sweden steps up by announcing a new Showcase Festival in 18 to 20 of February in Norrköping in a statement to make a gateway to Sweden for artists that want to enter the market or develop their international career. Follow the festival on social media to get the news when they open for applications to play.

Facebook, Instagram, Homepage

Discover Sensation has created a completely new platform for music – in an experienced host city.

On 18-20 February 2021, the showcase festival “Future Echoes” will make it’s debut in Norrköping – the Nordic region’s only official music city in the global network UNESCO Creative Cities. The initiative is an innovative initiative to support the recovery after COVID19 by bringing together the music industry, talent development and music cities.

As Canada’s ‘First Family of Fiddlers,’ Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy share hundreds of thousands of albums sold, a GRAMMY win, 14 JUNO nominations and four wins, a Canadian Folk Music Award, 21 East Coast Music Awards, five Canadian Country Music Association wins, a GEMINI win, four honorary doctorates, an induction into the Casino Nova Scotia Hall of Fame, an Academy Award-winning documentary, and a Member of the Order of Canada between them, both as solo artists, frequent collaborators, and Donnell in Leahy alongside his 10 siblings. They also have seven children who, for their part, shine onstage as the MacMaster Leahy Kids.

And now, for the first time ever, they’re opening up to the public a writing opportunity with an invitation to finish a melody they’ve started temporarily called the “COVID Co-Write.”

“Donnell and I have written the first part of a tune,” Natalie says. “We’re inviting anyone — and we mean anyone — with any musicality on any instrument in any style to take a crack at writing the next section for us.”

This includes voice and dance, she adds.

Cashbox Radio is gaining listeners weekly, and we are thrilled to see over 1,500 listening in Russia, India, Brazil, Great Britain, Germany, Sweden, Canada and the USA, so we are achieving our goal to prove that music is universal and we are making radio the way it used to be.

With the launch of our latest venture, http://www.cashboxradio.ca,  we have brought back one of those legendary charts, The Cashbox Top 20 Pick Hits – a monthly chart adjudicated by our radio hosts Don Graham, Michael Williams, Murry Robe, Paul Saunders, Grace Puluczek, Peter Astedt and myself, Sandy Graham.

March 1st was the first the launch of this Chart, and it is  a monthly submission both here on the magazine and will give those 20 chosen artists what is considered high rotation on the station (6 times a day minimum).

Here is the Top 20 Pick Hit Chart for July 2020!

In honour of Canada Day 2020, internationally acclaimed vocalist trio ViVA Trio have assembled an incredible all-Canadian cast of talent to perform their rendition of “O Canada” virtually this June 25th and July 1st.

“O Canada” will be featured as an Original Arrangement and Presented in English and French

Thursday, June 25th @ 8pm EST via YouTube, Facebook & Instagram
Wednesday, July 1st @ 8pm EST via YouTube, Facebook & Instagram

The multi-date performance will feature ViVA Trio’s sopranos Anna Bateman & Katya Tchoubar and mezzo-soprano Erin Fisher — a stunning set in their own right.

The trio is joined by multi-JUNO Award-nominee Gavin Hope (The Nylons), JUNO Award-winning and GRAMMY Award-nominated MET Opera regular and Officer of the Order of Canada Russell Braun, JUNO Award-nominated tenor Mark Masri, The North of Nashville Star winning singer and actor Graham Scott Fleming, and female vocalist and star of Stargate: Atlantis Rachel Luttrell.

White Rock, BC’s Blue Frog Studios has announced their exclusive early-Summer live concert lineup — including Jim Byrnes, The Kingpins, and more!

The homegrown ‘first-and-only of its kind’ series of live-streamed concerts from the British Columbia-based broadcast and recording theatre are an experience for the ages, and feature everything audiences traditionally enjoy from a live show: premium production, incredible acoustics and stunning visuals.

Jim Byrnes
Saturday, July 4th @ 7pm PST / 10pm EST

The Kingpins
Saturday, July 11th @ 7pm PST / 10pm EST

Ladies Sing the Blues
Saturday, July 18th @ 7pm PST / 10pm EST

Tickets for Blue Frog Live Streams

“This is a way for audiences to support and enjoy live music from their comfy couch,” Blue Frog Studios co-owner Kelly Breaks says. “We connect Canadians with performers and immerse them in the best concert sound they’ll ever experience at home.”

JUNO Award-nominated and chart-topping Canadian all-girl teen pop supergroup Girl Pow-R have reimagined their hit single “This Is Us” into a visionary, uplifting anthem expressing immense gratitude for frontline workers during COVID-19. “Thanks To You” is available now!

“COVID-19 has changed everyone’s life,” says the band, “but more than anyone else, it is the frontline workers who have been there, making sure we have access to the care and services we need. We’ve created this remix of our song ‘This Is Us’ to reflect our support and thankfulness for these brave individuals.”

Ranging in age from 11 - 17, the members of Girl Pow-R are Canadian history makers in motion; as one of the youngest artists ever to be nominated for a Children’s Album of the Year JUNO Award, their late-2019 debut album This Is Us has garnered the group well over 1+ Million social streams, and countless media features in print, web, television and radio, including SiriusXM, Breakfast Television, CityTV, CP24 Breakfast, YTV, TVO Kids, eTalk Canada, Girls’ Life, Tiger Beat, J-14, Celeb Secrets, Fresh 95.3, and more.

Watch and listen to Girl Pow-R: “Thanks to You” here:

JUNO and CFMA-nominated Canadian singer/songwriter Craig Cardiff knows how hard it can be for young students to tell their stories or express their feelings as it is — let alone now, during a year like this one.

It’s one of the reasons the gold-selling artist continues to hold his highly sought after songwriting workshops, including pivoting online to accommodate COVID-19 restrictions.

He even set up a newly minted record label — Quarantine Collaborations / Workshop Label — for the students in the process.

With his current crop of workshops hosting hundreds of students in grades 7 - 12 throughout the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board, Cardiff has and continues to be at the craft for more than a decade, providing similar experiences for students across Canada, the United States, and Hong Kong in and around his usually busy tour schedule.

“I don’t care who you are — everyone has a song inside,” Cardiff says. He’d know: he’s released 16 albums over his 20+ year career, and counting.

“Each one of us has a song that got us through a hard time.”

Watch “To Be Safe, Loved & Home” - Craig Cardiff (Official Music Video) here:

The Jazz Advocate calls him “Mr. Personality.” The Montreal Gazette slates him as a “must-see live act.” The Record says “listening to Michael Kaeshammer play live is like looking through a window into one of the greatest musical minds in the world today.”

And now — and more timely than ever — audiences can revel in a taste of six-time JUNO Award-nominated and internationally acclaimed singer, songwriter, pianist and producer Michael Kaeshammer on stage with the release of his newest album — Live In Concert — anytime.

First aired as the hour-long live special Boogie On The Blues Highway on American Public Television throughout March 2020, Live In Concert delights as it delivers Kaeshammer and his band’s signature style, effortlessly weaving classical, jazz, blues, stride, pop, and — of course — boogie-woogie into a one-of-a-kind, immersive experience track by track.

Watch MICHAEL KAESHAMMER - American Public Television (Trailer 2020) here:

Canadian health arts organization Room 217 Foundation has released their extensive library of highly innovative non-pharmacological palliative care collections for digital streaming — plus a comprehensive user guide for care providers and family members alike.

Initially designed as a cost-effective comfort tool in the resource kits of nursing and care staff, volunteers, hospices, palliative care units, long-term care and assisted living homes, Room 217’s increased availability via online streaming is offering community members increased access for home and personal use within their families.

A world leader in music care, Room 217’s expanded digital availability adds to already more than 45,000+ copies sold worldwide, and is set to include this Spring’s newest releases: Collection 3: Diverse Sounds, Collection 4: Boomer Tracks.

With over 700,000+ streams across Spotify and YouTube, award-winning Canadian pop artist Christee Palace steps into “Danger” with her newest single.

“‘Danger,’ for me, is a song about conscious self-defiance,” the Windsor-born, Toronto-based singer/songwriter says, offering context surrounding the track. “It’s about understanding full well what you are doing, and knowing it has the potential to have serious emotional consequences.

“In this specific situation, I knew what the end result was going to be, but I felt like I was persuaded into staying in that position.”

The video — sitting at ~ 40,000+ views and rising — is a stunningly intimate cinematic peek into Palace’s mindset. “I think the video really takes you on an emotional journey,” she says. “It gets the audience into my headspace and takes you through each phase of emotions I went through.

Watch and listen to “Danger” here: