Panthers score a hit with original music CD

!The Carolina Panthers have landed some big hits on the field, and fans will soon be able to listen to the team's hits off the field with the release of "Black & Blue: Official Music of the Carolina Panthers."

The seven-song CD offers a diverse collection of original music, all of which celebrates the Panthers' brand. It features hard-driving rock tunes like Sweet Sweet Carolina and reggae-themed music like
CAR-OH-LINA. The music will debut during the home opener versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, and fans will be able to hear it at future games, online and in Panthers' radio and television programming.

"Black and Blue" will be available for purchase on Sept. 26 at Bank of America Stadium when the Panthers host the Cincinnati Bengals, and it will be sold at area Wal-Mart stores soon after. To pre-order the CD, fans can visit Shop.Panthers.com. Fans can also find more information or download the entire CD at PanthersMusic.com.

"We're excited about how this CD came together, and we look forward to sharing these new songs with our fans," said Kyle Ritchie, the Panthers' director of entertainment & PantherVision. "It's been a fun process, and now we can focus on utilizing the music and building out new audio traditions that are completely unique to our team. It will be nice to have some custom Panthers music that our fans will be able to listen to at their homes, tailgate parties or wherever they want."

Charlotte-area bands Paper Tongues and Simplified each appear on the CD. Paper Tongues, which formed in Charlotte in 2007 and released its major label debut on A&M/Octone in March, infuses alternative rock melodies on Gridiron Fight. Simplified, considered one of Charlotte's top local bands, lends its talents to Panthers Tailgate.

The CD was developed and produced in a partnership between the Panthers and music branding agency Banshee Music.