This album is getting great reviews so far. Hopefully I'll get to see them in Columbus.

http://dixiechicks.msn.com/default.aspx

Accidents and Accusations World Tour (Appropriately titled, lol)

If you purchase the Dixie Chicks’ new CD Taking the Long Way at Target stores in the United States beginning on May 23, it will include a passcode to purchase up to four Dixie Chicks concert tickets. All shows will go on sale to the general public in early June. Check back to dixiechicks.msn.com for further updates as they are confirmed.

Date City Venue

July

21 Detroit, MI Joe Louis Arena

22 Pittsburgh, PA Mellon Arena

23 Columbus, OH Schottenstein Center

25 Philadelphia, PA Wachovia Center

28 Albany, NY Pepsi Arena

29 Boston, MA Banknorth Garden

August

1 New York, NY Madison Square Garden

4 Washington, DC Verizon Center

13 Milwaukee, WI Bradley Center

15 Chicago, IL The United Center

18 Minneapolis, MN Target Center

20 Kansas City, MO Kemper Arena

22 St. Louis, MO Savvis Center

23 Indianapolis, IN Conseco Fieldhouse

24 Des Moines, IA Wells Fargo Arena

26 Fargo, ND Fargodome

September

3 Phoenix, AZ Glendale Arena

6 Fresno, CA SaveMart Center

8 Sacramento, CA ARCO Arena

9 Oakland, CA Oakland Arena

14 Los Angeles, CA STAPLES Center

16 Las Vegas, NV Mandalay Bay

23 Omaha, NE Qwest Center

24 Denver, CO Pepsi Center

26 Oklahoma City, OK Ford Center

27 Memphis, TN FedEx Forum

29 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center

30 Houston, TX Toyota Arena

October

1 Austin, TX Frank Irwin Center

3 Nashville, TN Gaylord Entertainment Center

5 Tampa, FL St. Pete Times Forum

6 Jacksonville, FL Veterans Memorial Arena

7 Ft. Lauderdale, FL BankAtlantic Center

17 Atlanta, GA Phillips Arena

20 Knoxville, TN Thompson-Boling Arena

22 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum

27 Ottawa, Ontario Scotiabank Place

28 Toronto, Ontario Air Canada Centre

November

4 Edmontgon, Alberta Rexall Place

5 Calgary, Alberta Saddledome

8 Vancouver, BC GM Place

9 Portland, OR Rose Garden

11 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome

A few reviews:

Dour Dixie Chicks ‘Taking the Long Way’ back

Trio's playfulness gives way to somber reckoning on new album

SOUND BITES: AUDIO REVIEWS

The Associated Press

Updated: 5:08 p.m. CT May 19, 2006

The Dixie Chicks return from a period of hibernation by flashing anger and a more grown-up, rock-influenced sound on the "Taking the Long Way," their first studio album since 2002's Grammy-winning "Home" and the controversy that erupted after singer Natalie Maines criticized the president during a London concert in March of 2003.

The righteousness might have been expected; after all, the Texas trio built their reputation with bold lyrics and an uncompromising attitude and musicality. The change in direction isn't a surprise, either; the Chicks have always been adventurous, and besides, after being rejected by country radio and booed at country music award shows, the band announced it would record in Los Angeles with renowned rock producer Rick Rubin and a host of L.A. rock stalwarts.

But what isn't expected is how dour they sound. In the past, Maines and her bandmates, sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Robison, used cheeky humor and playful sense of abandon to address everything from leaving home to abusive husbands to sexual freedom. Now their songs are weighed down in bitter appraisals and somber reckoning.

At times, they rock harder than ever, especially on the ferocious "Lubbock or Leave It," a two-barreled blast at small-town hypocrisy and narrow-mindedness titled after Maines' hometown. They also occasionally prove as masterful at injecting a personal Texas spin into melodic rock as they were at enlivening modern country music in the past. The new "Voice Inside My Head," in particular, is a rousingly effective pop song powered by Maines' soaring voice and the harmonies and instrumental talents of Maguire and Robison.

But even with all the top-notch help — including Gary Louris of the Jayhawks, Dan Wilson of Semisonic, and Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench of Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers — the Chicks don't quite raise the kind of ruckus that made them such a force to be reckoned with in the past.

— Michael McCall

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/12872782/

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Billboard album reviews: Dixie Chicks

Fri May 19, 6:03 PM ET

NEW YORK (Billboard) - The Dixie Chicks lost many fans -- and the support of country radio -- after singer

Natalie Maines declared in 2003 that she was embarrassed to come from the same state as fellow Texan

President Bush. The group has re-emerged stronger, more defiant and more creatively ambitious than ever. The first-time pairing with producer Rick Rubin has resulted in a surprisingly cohesive mix of country and rock tunes, including co-writes with

Sheryl Crow and Neil Finn. While many former fans remain critical of the group for its outspoken political views, tracks like "The Long Way Around," "Everybody Knows," "I Hope" (highlighted by a

John Mayer guitar solo) and the chillingly sad "Voice Inside My Head" are sure to earn the group at least some of its fans back.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060519/...lbums_dc_1

----------------------------------

Posted on Fri, May. 19, 2006

ALBUMS

Unrepentant CD does Dixie Chicks proud

[email protected]

• POP

DIXIE CHICKS

Taking the Long Way

Open Wide/Columbia

*** ½

When Dixie Chicks singer Natalie Maines said she was ashamed to come from the same state as our president in 2003 in response to President Bush sending troops to Iraq, she encountered a polarizing fallout.

Maines addresses the incident on the powerful Not Ready to Make Nice, the centerpiece of the Chicks' first new CD since her comment. It's a stunning piece of pop music and a testament to the brilliance of producer Rick Rubin. Every note, every instrument counts. Not Ready to Make Nice is as close to perfection as a pop song gets.

Taking the Long Way (in stores Tuesday) is intensely personal, and the first of the Chicks' seven albums to feature songs all co-written by the trio, but surprisingly it is not a partisan album. Not Ready to Make Nice is not anti-Bush, doesn't comment on his policies, or name any individual. Rather, it addresses narrow-minded intolerance and hatred. Maines is unrepentant, It's too late to make it right / I probably wouldn't if I could, and she's shocked at how low some would go:

It's a sad sad story when a mother will teach her daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger / And how in the world can the words that I said / Send somebody so over the edge / That they'd write me a letter / Sayin' that I better shut up and sing / Or my life will be over.

Stung by the ban of their music on country radio, and unapologetically stubborn, the trio rips the threads out of the straitjacket parameters of Nashville and offers the barest hint of country through 66 minutes of music. Rubin enlists members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Heartbreakers, the Jayhawks, Semisonic and Bonnie Raitt for a gritty pop/rock flavor.

Lubbock or Leave It flirts with hard rock; Lullaby is a stark acoustic guitar ballad. The Long Way Around, with its sun-kissed '70s Southern California-inspired harmonies and hook, feels like a lost cut from the ''white'' Fleetwood Mac LP.

The defiance is admirable but latter tracks Baby Hold On, I Like It and So Hard are lightweight by comparison and sound like Sheryl Crow songs. We could easily lose them.

A sharp-written country song, or two, would have beaten the close-minded community at its own game. The CD could use some patented Chicks sense of humor.

As a result, Home, the CD at No. 1 at the time of Maines' outburst, remains the Dixie Chicks' overall masterpiece. But with the bold Taking the Long Way, the Chicks prove they are in line to become among the all-time greats.

Pod Picks: Not Ready to Make Nice, The Long Way Around, Lubbock or Leave It.

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiheral...607226.htm

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CD Spotlight: Dixie Chicks' 'Taking the Long Way'

Posted: May 18, 2006

The "incident" hovers over much, maybe all, of "Taking the Long Way" (Sony), the Dixie Chicks' first new album since, as they put it, "the top of the world came crashing down."

Two years has not mellowed the Chicks or softened their stance. Several songs directly reference their fall from grace in the country music community following Natalie Maines' statement that she was ashamed to be from the same state as President Bush. "Not Ready to Make Nice," is every bit as combative as the title suggests.

"Taking the Long Way" is a deliberate parting of ways with country music.

The album is produced by Rick Rubin, who famously produced the final work of another celebrated country music expatriate: Johnny Cash.

The list of collaborators includes Keb' Mo', Gary Louris from the Jayhawks, Sheryl Crow and Pete Yorn, and the sound is a kind of late '60s orchestral folk. This is also the most personal and, at times, vulnerable album the Chicks have made. "Silent House" is how we become the caretakers of the memory of a person afflicted with Alzheimer's. "So Hard" is about a subject that rarely, if ever, comes up in popular music: infertility.

Advertisement

Both Emily Robison and Martie Maguire had children using in vitro fertilization.

Collectively this is the finest work of the Chicks' career.

The emotion behind it is naked, even discomforting, but it is by all appearances honest and hard-won.

- Dave Tianen

http://www.jsonline.com...24809

------------------------------

DIXIE CHICKS: "Taking The Long Way"

By Fred Shuster, Staff Writer

*** 1/2

(Open Wide/Columbia) In just a decade, the Dixie Chicks have been called heroes, renegades, superstars, villains and moms — and there's still no fear of frying. Here, in collaboration with producer Rick Rubin, country-pop's defiant darlings explore personal and political themes in a much-anticipated set that's both urgent and surprisingly intimate. Along with the A-list harmonies and refreshing melodies of chick trio Natalie Maines, Emily Robison and Martie Maguire, a top-notch group of session ringers — including Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, Heartbreakers keyboardist Benmont Tench and guitarist Mike Campbell — bring a loose, adventurous vibe to 14 winning tracks. One standout sure to cause some fur to fly is "Not Ready to Make Nice," which deals with the flap surrounding Maines' comments in 2003 about George W., resulting in a number of country stations dropping the Chicks from their playlists.

Equally tuneful, sharply observed tunes include "I Hope," penned with blues master Keb' Mo'; "Everybody Knows," which explores the psychology of celebrity; and "Lubbock or Leave It," which addresses small-town stupidity. In "Taking the Long Way" (released Tuesday), the Dixie Chicks aren't backing down.

http://www.dailynews.com...38726

-------------------------------

Friday, May 19, 2006

Pop Life column: The best Dixie Chicks album few may buy

The Dixie Chicks' long-awaited fourth album is their best and most bravely honest. But who's gonna buy it?

By BEN WENER

The Orange County Register

Let's for a moment set aside the outspoken overtones of the Dixie Chicks' much-anticipated fourth (and best) album, "Taking the Long Way."

That's what most pundits and pop scribes will focus on, at the exclusion of anything else - like the profoundly intimate and label-defying music itself. "60 Minutes" already joined the fray, recently profiling the embattled trio and rehashing the furor that sprung up over Natalie Maines' off-the-cuff put-down of the president three years ago.

I realize Maines and fellow Chicks Emily Robison and Martie Maguire aren't shying away from this still-tense topic. More than a few tracks on the new album (in stores Tuesday) address fallout from "the incident," as they term it.

You may have heard the obvious example by now. Or perhaps only heard about it, seeing as a perusal of playlists at most country stations proves hardly any of them are spinning the Chicks' considered yet contentious first single, "Not Ready to Make Nice."

Its opening salvo: "Forgive/ Sounds good/ Forget/ I'm not sure I could." Its fierce chorus: "It's too late to make it right/ I probably wouldn't if I could/ 'Cause I'm mad as hell/ Can't bring myself to do what it is you think I should."

Or the bridge: "How in the world can the words that I said/ Send somebody so over the edge/ That they'd write me a letter/ Sayin' that I better shut up and sing/ Or my life will be over?"

OK, so I didn't really set aside outspoken overtones.

But that much I expected from this turning-point effort. Anything less than the bravest honesty would have been a cop-out. Much to their credit, the Dixie Chicks do not back down; if anything, they're apt to incur even more enemies (or indifferent ears) for refusing to retreat into the safety of pretty but empty country pap.

Notice that on KZLA's Top 20, "Not Ready to Make Nice" is nowhere to be found, though the tamer "Everybody Knows" (about "the psychology of celebrity," as Maines has noted) clocks in at No. 16. The lesson: Get jingoistic (like Toby Keith), and radio will play your up-with-America jingles incessantly. Be contrary and you better start looking elsewhere for media support.

So Roxanne and I have been wondering just who makes up the Dixie Chicks' fan base now, and whether "Taking the Long Way" will be the big crossover sensation it deserves to be.

Understand, while I'm just a recent Dixies convert, Roxanne has been a die-hard from "Wide Open Spaces" onward. I received an advance of the new disc two weeks ago, but I hadn't much seen the thing until three days ago. Rox immediately absconded with it, listening to it a dozen times.

Her initial reaction: It retains the warmth of the authentic country feel of 2002's "Home." That much I attribute not to the Chicks themselves (who for the first time co-penned every cut) or their writing partners (a first-rate array led by Semisonic's Dan Wilson but also including the Jayhawks' Gary Louris, Sheryl Crow, Neil Finn, Keb' Mo', Pete Yorn and Linda Perry).

I figure that warmth is due to a superior backing group (featuring a few Heartbreakers and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith) and, most of all, the instincts of producer Rick Rubin, gifted at capturing an immediacy that leaves you feeling like you're eavesdropping on the artists.

He brings the same spirit to this that he brought to Tom Petty's "Wildflowers," doing away with compact polish, allowing instrumentation room to breathe, letting the Chicks' vocal maturity shine through and get bolstered by resonant American country-rock.

That's really what this is: great, melodic, thought-provoking American music that incorporates strains from several genres until it's beholden to none. If anything, it's an extension of the SoCal rock tradition put forth in the '70s by the likes of Stevie Nicks and Linda Ronstadt, only infused with far more heartfelt commentary, spanning topics as standard as long-term love and as diverse as dealing with Alzheimer's and infertility.

It's startling progress that makes earlier Chicks records seem simplistic. They have evolved into something realer and deeper - as opposed, Rox says, to Faith Hill, who went pop with syrup poured on top.

"I could really hear this on Star 98," I told her as we listened again the other night.

Not a chance, she thinks. "It's still too country for that."

And she may be right. Star hasn't gone near the single, instead spinning lame fluff like "You're Beautiful" and "Bad Day" ad nauseam. Nor has KBIG picked up on the Dixies.

Nor is there really an overtly country cut to push on the KZLAs and CMTs of the airwaves. Consider "Lubbock or Leave It." Musically it sounds like a sop to Toby Keith fans, but the lyrics are pure venom spewed at the narrow-mindedness of Maines' hometown, which still won't play her records. Likewise, the gospel-infused "I Hope" isn't likely to please some church folk, as its first verse tackles the conflict of adhering to "thou shalt not kill" yet supporting war.

It's said that when the outcry of three years ago began, a new (primarily pop) audience came running to the Chicks' defense. Yet will they remain? And buy in big numbers?

I have no doubt "Taking the Long Way" will debut at No. 1 and become another breakout moment for the Chicks, who should solidify some new audience. But I also have no doubt that this won't sell as many copies as its predecessors.

That's what comes with being uncompromising: smaller returns, dismayed fans, greater self-satisfaction.

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/ent...147232.php

Entertainment weekly:

The Dixie Chicks don't wait very long to remind us of the dustup surrounding their Bush-bashing remark of three years ago. On ''The Long Way Around,'' the opening salvo from Taking the Long Way, Natalie Maines recalls the time she ''fought with a stranger'' (Toby Keith?) and admits, ''I could have made it easier on myself.'' The next tune, ''Easy Silence,'' finds her searching for refuge in a world where ''anger plays on every station.'' If you wonder whether they have regrets about the Incident, ''Not Ready to Make Nice'' makes it clear they don't. When Maines gets to the part about all the death threats, her voice rises and the strings well up; it's a true pop-money-shot moment.

Those first songs also demonstrate the Chicks aren't terribly interested in reconciling with red-state country fans. (On ''The Long Way Around,'' Maines cattily sings that her teen friends married their school beaus and now reside ''in the same ZIP codes where their parents live.'' Take that, CMT viewers!) But it's also apparent that the Chicks are thinking outside the Nashville box in more ways than writing defensive lyrics. The album, produced by the ubiquitous Rick Rubin, is a little bit country, a little bit rock & roll — but also a little bit power balladry, alt-country, and roadhouse boogie. Along with the comments that got them into their recent mess, it's the least wimpy thing the group's ever done.

For that, you can also thank a guest roster that makes the album feel like a support-the-Chicks rally. With Neil Finn, they come up with ''Silent House,'' a lovely downer that brings out the best in the trio's layered harmonies; Gary Louris' input gives ''Everybody Knows'' the rainy-day jangle of a song by his band the Jayhawks. The Chicks are unabashedly, gloriously pop on ''Voice Inside My Head,'' penned with unlikely collaborators Dan Wilson (Semisonic) and Linda Perry (Christina Aguilera). Everyone from Bonnie Raitt to John Mayer also pops up, yet the record rarely sounds like an overcrowded party. With Maines projecting more passionately than ever, Taking the Long Way remains intimate and personal; perhaps she should tick people off more often.

The album also rectifies something that's long been confounding about the Dixie Chicks. For all their feistiness and rebel-yell image, their records have been comparatively meek — the work of coffeehouse folkies rather than outlaw-country bad girls. On Taking the Long Way, most of that dichotomy vanishes along with quaint mandolin solos. Finally, they put their music where their opinionated mouths are. Grade: A

I'll definitely buy it. I've bought their last 3 cds. They're the best country group ever IMHO. I respect them even more for telling it like it is about W and his war.

I'm definitely getting their album, they're one of my favorite country groups

I'm not a huge fan of their music, but I love their attitude.

Yup, I'm the kind that gets in trouble at work all the time.

I've learned to keep my mouth shut.

Now I just vent about TPTB in my livejournal.

I won't work there forever. Nothing is ever permanent anyway.

But I agree that people should always be allowed to speak their minds, up to a point.

I'm like you Meredith. Their music is not my cup of tea (seems good enough though and they're obviously talented) but I feel like buying the CD just to support their attitude. Who knows? I might end up really liking it.

Well The Chicks debuted at #1 and already went Gold with 526,000 albums sold!

For the third time in their career, the Dixie Chicks roost on the top of The Billboard 200. The Columbia album "Taking the Long Way" tallied 526,000 copies in its first week of U.S. sales, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the trio's best-selling week since 2002's "Home" debuted with 780,000.

And while country radio has remained cool to the group in the wake of a 2003 boycott following comments group member Natalie Maines made about President Bush, "Taking the Long Way" also nabs the No. 1 spot on the Country Albums chart, bumping Rascal Flatts' "Me and My Gang" (Lyric Street/Hollywood) down to No. 2 after seven weeks at the top.

Well The Chicks debuted at #1 and already went Gold with 526,000 albums sold!

For the third time in their career, the Dixie Chicks roost on the top of The Billboard 200. The Columbia album "Taking the Long Way" tallied 526,000 copies in its first week of U.S. sales, according to Nielsen SoundScan, the trio's best-selling week since 2002's "Home" debuted with 780,000.

And while country radio has remained cool to the group in the wake of a 2003 boycott following comments group member Natalie Maines made about President Bush, "Taking the Long Way" also nabs the No. 1 spot on the Country Albums chart, bumping Rascal Flatts' "Me and My Gang" (Lyric Street/Hollywood) down to No. 2 after seven weeks at the top.

Well, there goes Bill O'Reilly's assumption he made on his show that the DC's wouldn't be successful with this album due to the Bush fallout.

If anything, this album will be a hit because they still have fans who agreed with them, and that people will buy it just to hear what they have to say.

I do like "Not Ready to Make Nice" and I think that country music today is full of narrow-minded DJ's and fans. I agree with Emily Robison when she said on 60 Minutes she doesn't like this attitude that some of the modern country artists have now. I'm sure she meant Toby Keith when she said it. When he came out with Courtesy of the Red, White, and Blue, talking about America putting a boot up other countries' asses, I was embarrassed because America is not the white trash, redneck, hick, violent country that some of these singers make it out to be.

Love the Dixie Chicks! I watched them on Larry King yesterday and they were fantastic (as always).