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Despite the fact that sales for their new album, "Taking the Long Way", continue to impress the Dixie Chicks Accidents & Accusations tour is being rerouted because ticket sales in some cities are reportedly poor.
Group spokeswoman Kathy Best, indirectly conceding that there were problems, is reported to have said, "The tour is not being postponed or canceled at all. There is a reshuffling of dates and as soon as rerouting is confirmed, we will be able to announce the changes…. There will be some cancellations due to rerouting and additional dates being added."
In the first week following its launch Taking the Long Way opened No.1 on the Billboard charts selling 526,000 copies. Last week, it’s second since launch, the sales performance of the album continued to be impressive with 271,000 copies sold.
The dichotomy between the sale of album and tickets could stem from the fact that conservatives, piqued by lead singer Natalie Maines denouncement of Bush in 2003, are now prepared to listen to their music but not willing to stand up and be counted with them.
Natalie had told fans at a concert in London in 2003 that the group was ashamed Bush was from their home state of Texas. Natalie's indiscretion had resulted in a ruthless anti-Chicks campaign by die hard conservatives and US country music stations that resulted in their music being banned or burned and even death threats.
A more unlikely explanation for the dichotomy was suggested by columnist Eugene Robinson in the Washington Post who suggested that the albums were possibly being bought "by non-fans who are using their credit cards in support of free speech"
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