Cracker Barrel Old Country Store(R) Releases Exclusive Charlie Daniels Band CD of Patriotic Songs

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store(R) Releases Exclusive Charlie Daniels Band CD of Patriotic Songs

1,000 CDs being donated to American troops stationed overseas

LEBANON, Tenn., Oct. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. ("Cracker Barrel") has added another exclusive CD to its growing collection of specialty music. Beginning today, fans of the legendary Charlie Daniels Band can purchase and enjoy Country Stars N' Stripes, a collection of the band's patriotic favorites and other well-known songs including "In America" and "The Devil Went Down to Georgia." Retailing for $11.99, the exclusive CD is being sold in all 537 Cracker Barrel locations and online at crackerbarrel.com.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051025/CLTU015)
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050712/CLTU015LOGO-b)

"Cracker Barrel and the Charlie Daniels Band is a great combination," said Charlie Daniels. "You only have to walk through the Cracker Barrel door to see that they are about as American and patriotic as they come, and so is our new CD."

Country Stars N' Stripes strengthens Cracker Barrel's commitment to offering quality music to its guests by featuring a patriotic theme throughout this release. The company's growing collection of specialty music is led by the Alison Krauss & Union Station Home On The Highways CD, which has sold more than 200,000 copies since its May release. Joining the collection later this year will be an exclusive CD by multi-platinum recording artist Sara Evans. Due out in December, the Evans release will include previously unreleased versions of her hits "Born To Fly" and "No Matter How Far."

Regarding the partnership with Cracker Barrel, Daniels noted the importance of connecting with fans. "Cracker Barrel customers are just the kind of family people we make our records for," said Daniels. "Having our CD available in the Cracker Barrel retail store just makes sense for them and us."

To commemorate the release of this CD, Cracker Barrel has donated 1,000 Country Stars N' Stripes CDs to the 101st Airborne Division and Tennessee National Guard. The donated CDs will be placed inside care packages being sent to soldiers currently serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. During a nine-day tour earlier this year, the Charlie Daniels Band performed concerts for more than 15,000 soldiers stationed in Iraq, Afghanistan and Kuwait. In addition to nightly concerts, the band performed several "surprise" shows for soldiers they met throughout the tour.

Cracker Barrel has sold more than 1.2 million CDs since creating its exclusive music label in 2003. The Cracker Barrel assortment of music also features the Grand Ole Opry(R) Live Classics series, the American Legends collection, the Heritage Music collection, and the Now Playing CD, which includes nostalgic songs and jingles played inside all Cracker Barrel locations.

"This collection continues to establish Cracker Barrel as a leading retailer of specialty music," says Chris Tomasso, vice president of marketing at Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. "We're adding titles and artists that catch the attention of our guests. They appreciate the convenience of browsing through our music collection after finishing their meal."

About Cracker Barrel

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of the publicly held CBRL Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:CBRL). Cracker Barrel was established in 1969 in Lebanon, Tenn.

Each Cracker Barrel Old Country Store(R) unit is modeled after a 1900-era country store, featuring old photographs, authentic antiques, memorabilia and a real wood burning fireplace with a stone hearth to add a warm cozy touch to the dining room. The restaurant serves up classic comfort foods such as meatloaf and homemade chicken n' dumplins as well as made-from-scratch biscuits using an old family recipe. The retail store has more than 2,700 gift items including accessories for the home, old-fashioned candies, books on audio, nostalgic items, and children's games and puzzles, including classic favorites such as Raggedy Ann(R) & Raggedy Andy (R) and Slinky(R).

Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. operates 537 company-owned locations in 41 states. Every Cracker Barrel unit is open seven days a week with hours Sunday through Thursday, 6 a.m. - 10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 6 a.m. - 11 p.m. For more information, visit www.crackerbarrel.com.

Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051025/CLTU015
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050712/CLTU015LOGO-b
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc.

CONTACT: Jim Taylor, Manager, Marketing Communications of Cracker Barrel
Old Country Store, Inc., +1-615-444-5533, x. 4082, or
jtaylor@crackerbarrel.com; or Holly Chambers, +1-404-877-5533, or
holly.chambers@mslpr.com, or Anne Reeves, +1-404-870-6831, or
anne.reeves@mslpr.com, both of Manning Selvage & Lee, for Cracker Barrel Old
Country Store, Inc.

Web site: http://www.crackerbarrel.com/

NOTE TO EDITORS: still photos and video of Charlie Daniels visiting with soldiers from 101st Airborne Division is available. E-mail Jim Taylor at Jtaylor@crackerbarrel.com for information.

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