Edens Edge has the first alburm released in the Cracker Barrel digital store.
The Cracker Barrel Old Country Store is trying to stay with the times, mixing in digital music with its old fashion candies and knickknacks. The Lebanon-based restaurant chain has opened an online digital download store.
The first Cracker Barrel album available for download is by a new group called “Edens Edge.”
Since 2005, Cracker Barrel has been releasing albums from country and bluegrass artists like George Jones or Ricky Skaggs that include a few exclusive tracks. At least an element of uniqueness is a qualification for anything sold in Cracker Barrel, says marketing manager Julie Craig.
“It’s like the joy of the hunt when you’re in our retail store, so we wanted to make it the same way with our music.”
The downloads are just the next logical step, Craig says, even for a store whose specialty is nostalgia.
“We work hard to keep the brand relevant. Things are at the touch of our fingertips, on our phones and on our computers and laptops and iPads, so we just want to keep up with those changes as we move forward.”
The biggest seller for Cracker Barrel has been a Dolly Parton album, which was released in April and soon achieved gold status. But since it’s a CD/DVD set, only 50,000 units are required to get the gold designation.
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