Cracker Barrel to sponsor Alison Krauss tour

[fogcitygal]

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store to Sponsor Alison Krauss and Union Station 2005 Tour
Friday December 10, 9:00 am ET

LEBANON, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 10, 2004--Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® is going "on tour" with Grammy® Award-winning artists Alison Krauss and Union Station as Presenting Sponsor of the group's 2005 "Lonely Runs Both Ways" tour, which kicks off January 12 in Chattanooga, Tenn. Some of the cities included on the East Coast leg of the tour include Baltimore, Md.; Birmingham, Ala.; Columbia, S.C.; Greensboro, N.C.; Knoxville, Tenn. and Tallahassee, Fla., with more cities to be announced in the coming weeks.

As part of the sponsorship, Alison Krauss and Union Station will perform four times at the Grand Ole Opry® in Nashville. Cracker Barrel also is the Presenting Sponsor of the Grand Ole Opry under a multi-year agreement. Additional elements of the Alison Krauss and Union Station partnership include wrapping the tour bus, consumer Web site and Internet promotions, in-venue signage and on-site marketing opportunities at all venues hosting performances.

"Alison Krauss and Union Station's music provides a strong connection between country music's past and present," said Chris Tomasso, Cracker Barrel's vice president of marketing. "Like Cracker Barrel, the group's style is a relevant and appealing blend of heritage and authenticity not commonly seen or heard. We believe this partnership with Alison Krauss and Union Station will provide a number of opportunities for our guests to appreciate this wonderful American music in the months to come."

"Alison Krauss and Union Station is proud to welcome Cracker Barrel Old Country Store as the sponsor of our 2005 Lonely Runs Both Ways Tour," says bassist Barry Bales on behalf of the band. "We see this as a great fit--we always get excited when we're out on the road and we see the Cracker Barrel signs on the interstate, and then get to eat some great home-style cooking."

[Doug]

Here's a little more info on the Cracker Barrel sponsorship. They indicate that there may be as many as 100 dates on the tour. Also meet and greets.

From au.launch.yahoo.com/050108/11/2w0t.html

Krauss cuts deal with Cracker Barrel
(Variety, Saturday January 8)

NASHVILLE (Billboard) - A sponsorship deal between Alison Krauss + Union Station and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store will link the Lebanon, Tenn.-based restaurant chain with the bluegrass act for all of 2005.

The alliance, which industry sources value in the high six figures, is for the group's Lonely Runs Both Ways tour, which begins Jan. 12 at the Chattanooga (Tenn.) Memorial Auditorium.

Krauss' manager Denise Stiff says much of the money will be put into tour production, including a year-long bus lease. The combo's only other major sponsorship has been with Martha White Flour.


"This is a natural fit with a product we genuinely love," Stiff said, adding that the deal is a rare commercial endorsement for the group. "We're very selective."

The tour supports Alison Krauss + Union Station's new Rounder release, "Lonely Runs Both Ways," and could include as many as 100 dates during the course of 2005.

As part of the sponsorship, Alison Krauss + Union Station (featuring Jerry Douglas) will perform at least four times this year at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Cracker Barrel has a multi-year sponsorship deal with the Opry, of which Krauss is a member.

Additional elements of the deal include a Cracker Barrel wrap for the tour bus, consumer Web site and Internet promotions, meet-and-greets, promotional tickets, inclusion in TV and print promotions, venue signage and on-site marketing opportunities at all venues hosting performances.