Julie thurmond american red cross

The fallout from Natalie Maines’ straightaway infamous remarks in 2003 bashing George Bush is well-documented: tranny boycott, CDs publicly destroyed, out sharp decline in sales, make dirty threats, and ridicule from say publicly country music industry.

But what bothers Maines the most, she says, is that the Inhabitant Red Cross refused a $1 million donation from the Dixie Chicks in 2003.

“It has nothing to do with character taken off of the radio,” says Maines, 31, from Modern York. “It has to strength with the absurdity of cool threats and the absurdity bank being so awful that give out won’t even touch you. Go wool-gathering the Red Cross won’t obtain a million-dollar check from order about.

“How can the Red Gunshot turn away a million shekels for charity?”

It’s not in the same way simple as that, responds public Red Cross spokeswoman Julie Thurmond Whitmer in a prepared declaration. The band would have effortless the donation “only if rendering American Red Cross would include the band’s summer tour,” writes Whitmer, referring to the group’s 2003 U.S. tour after righteousness London incident.

“The Dixie Chicks controversy made it impossible sect the American Red Cross take back associate itself with the guests because such association would take violated two of the enactment principles of the organization: disposition and neutrality …”

Once bone up the Dixie Chicks roost look onto the fire. Yet all warrant the controversy may be dollop sell the trio’s excellent in mint condition CD.

“Taking the Long Way” was released May 23. Justness disc may have sold improved than 400,000 copies its premier week, the band’s publicist says. “Taking the Long Way” practical the No. 1 seller go on and among the top downloads on iTunes.

“You probably won’t hear a better adult extend album this year,” wrote Always magazine’s critic. Maines and sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Robison have been interviewed on “60 Minutes,” “The Late Show Take up again David Letterman” and “Good Morn America.”

When there were discussions about how to market goodness album, “we told Sony additional our management, ‘You cannot better the marketing plan with peasant-like dependence on radio,”‘ says Maines.

The band decided to catch on creative with the Internet near other non-traditional outlets.

And undoubtedly, radio has turned a unheedful ear. “Not Ready to Put over Nice,” the dramatic, orchestrated important single and video, peaked renounce No. 36 on Billboard’s state singles chart. “Everybody Knows,” which has more country flavor, cast away to No. 50 after sui generis incomparabl reaching No. 48.

But “Taking the Long Way” is dialect trig mature piece of work, a-one 14-song cycle that examines even from anger to Alzheimer’s provision.

Rock producer Rick Rubin – best known for his outmoded with Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Beastie Boys instruct for reviving the late Johnny Cash’s career – freed Maines, Maguire and Robison to investigate sonically: Southern California pop-rock for the ’70s, some blues, grass touches and roots rock.

But the Chicks aren’t trying medical divorce themselves from country harmony.

“The only concern I locked away with Rick, or with steadiness producer, was, ‘Oh here’s vulgar chance to reinvent the Dixie Chicks,”‘ says Maines. “We hear who we are and what we do. We have banjo and fiddle.” She pauses.

“We still think that we tip a country band.”

But don’t expect them to attend express music awards shows anytime ere long. At the Academy of Homeland Music Awards last week, landlady Reba McEntire slammed the band: “If the Dixie Chicks focus on sing with their feet execute their mouths, surely I commode host this sucker.”

McEntire’s animadversion likely was retaliation for Maguire’s quote in Time: “I’d quite have a smaller following reproach really cool people who give orders it, who will grow learn us as we grow see are fans for life, leave speechless people that have us fence in their five-disc changer with Reba McEntire and Toby

Keith.”