COUNTRY MUSIC CLASSICS
Doug Davis
Owner/Publisher/Manager/Editor/
Writer/Gopher/Chief Cook & Bottle Washer
Thursday August 2nd, 2012
CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE AT www.countrymusicclassics.com
STORY BEHIND THE SONG
Songwriters usually think some of their songs are better than others and sometimes not.
According to Bob McDill, he wasn't too excited after finishing the song that became a 1975 number one for Don Williams titled "Turn Out The Light And Love Me Tonight."
McDill commented," I wasn't excited about the song at all. I thought it was just another little song.
But the guy who was pitchin' songs for our publishing company at the time, Chuck Neese, got all excited about the tune when I played it for him. He kept tellin' me that it was a smash. I didn't think it was that great - but we played it for Don Williams, he liked it, recorded it and Neese was right. The song was a hit!"
Don Williams' ABC/Dot single, "Turn Out The Lights And Love Me Tonight" came on the country charts August 16th, 1975 and was in the top slot the week of November 1st.
It was Williams' 10th charted song and his 3rd number one.
The single was on the charts for 16 weeks.
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A T T E N T I O N: R A D I O S T A T I O N S:
Our short form daily radio feature, "Story Behind The Song" is now available to radio stations. (NOT AVAILABLE TO INTERNET STATIONS)
The feature is available at no charge.
For information, email me at classics@countrymusicclassics.com
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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q: I heard about a new kind of Farm Aid. Is this another Willie Nelson project?
A: Farm Aid has activated its Family Farm Disaster Fund. The money will help farm families whose crops and farmland are being wiped out by the dry conditions. Farm Aid founder and president Willie Nelson stated, "Our farmers and the soil they depend on are crucial for the future of agriculture. Farm Aid works to keep every family farmer on the land, no matter what extreme conditions they face." Farmers seeking assistance can reach out to Farm Aid by calling i-8oo-FARM-AID.
Q: During a concert many years ago, Conway Twitty sang the Merle Haggard tune, "Mama Tried." Did he ever record that song?
A: Conway's version of "Mama Tried" is in his 1968 "Next In Line" album.
Q: I heard on the radio that Dolly Parton is giving away trips to her home. Do you have any details?
A: Dolly Parton will invite six lucky fans to be a part of her "High Rise Hide Away Getaway," which will give fans an opportunity for a personal tour of some of Dolly's Nashville properties as part of a live auction item for the Dr. Robert F. Thomas Foundation's annual "Evening of Elegance" fundraiser on August 11th. Dolly says, " I'm gonna drag this year's winners all over Nashville to some of my private homes, my office, my tour bus plus see some places in Music City that are very dear to me. Dolly will meet the group in a limousine and take them by places of personal interest to her and they will also visit famous Nashville landmarks. Some of those places include the site of Dolly's first apartment, the laundromat where she met her husband Carl Dean and the first house they bought together. The group will also go to "Dolly's High Rise Hide Away" for dinner and spend the night there.
Q: I attended a Johnny Paycheck concert in Missouri years ago and he sang a song about "The Rain Never Falls In Denver." He didn't say if it was one of his records or anything about the song. Did he record it?
A: "The Rain Never Falls In Denver" was a track in Paycheck's 1972 "Someone To Give my Love To" album
Q: I heard on the radio that someone is doing a tribute album to Hank Cochran. Do you have information?
A: Jamey Johnson's next album is a celebration of Hank Cochran's music, including duets with Willie Nelson, George Strait, Alison Krauss. and many others. The album is called "Living for a Song: A Tribute to Hank Cochran." Due out October i6th, the album will include some of Cochran's most well-known hits such as "I Fall to Pieces," performed with Merle Haggard, and "Make the World Go Away," with Alison Krauss. Other stars include Vince Gill, Emmylou Harris, Ray Price, Bobbv Bare, and Kris Kristofferson. Cochran died of cancer in July 2010.
Q: The old song, "Room Full Of Roses" is my all-time favorite. Do you know who wrote that song?
A: "Room Full Of Roses" was written by Tim Spencer
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Your comments, suggestions, gripes, etc. concerning this newsletter---are welcome. Email to:Classics@countrymusicclassics.com
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NUMBER ONE ON THIS DATE:
1945
Oklahoma Hills - Jack Guthrie
1953
Rub-A-Dub-Dub - Hank Thompson
1961
Heartbreak U.S.A. - Kitty Wells
1969
Johnny B. Goode - Buck Owens
1977
It was Almost like a Song - Ronnie Milsap
1985
Love Don't Care (Whose Heart It Breaks) - Earl Thomas Conley
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TODAY IN COUNTRY MUSIC HISTORY
compiled by Bill Morrison
John Cohen of "The New Lost City Ramblers" born NYC 1932.
Hank Cochran born "Garland Perry Cochran" Isola, MS 1935. Inducted Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame 1974.
Blake Emmons born Toronto, Canada 1944.
Betty Jack Davis of "The Davis Sisters" died in an auto accident, 1953.
Marty Robbins released "I'm Too Big To Cry/Call Me Up" 1954.
Jimmy Lowe "Pirates of the Mississippi," born Atlanta, GA 1955.
Merle Haggard recorded "Someone Told My Story" 1966.
Razzy Bailey's "Lovin' Up A Storm" charted 1980.
Reprise Records released Dwight Yoakam's album "Buenas Noches From A Lonely Room" in 1988.
Garth Brooks' debut album "Garth Brooks" certified gold 1990.
The Tractors released their album "The Tractors" 1994.
Joe Allison, age 77, recording industry executive, died in Nashville 2002.
Kenny Chesney's "No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems" charted on Billboard's Top 40 in 2003.
Redd Stewart, age 80, died in Louisville's Baptist Hospital, 2003.
Courtesy Bill Morrison: http://www.talentondisplay.com/countrycalMAR.html
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In response to many requests, YES I am on Facebook and you are welcome to become a friend—UNLESS you are one of those that posts photos of your grandkids or your pet cat every other day. I don't have the time or interest for that. SO—if that's what you do on Facebook.. just forget me !
I'm the Doug Davis with the photos of the guitars.
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MORE BRAIN STATIC.
By: Jack Blanchard
It's probably a character defect, but the Summer Olympics are incredibly boring to me.
I'd rather watch infomercials or eat glass.
When does the hop scotch event come on? Do they play it in the water now?
I used to play water polo, but my horse drowned.
I was listening to the sound on the TV news.
I panicked when they said we're having an invasion of midgets!
Turned out they were midges.
My apologies to vertically challenged people.
Phrases that work for me:
You must be present to win;
If you don't ask, the answer is always no;
When faced with a scary problem, jump in;
The easiest and safest thing for a record executive to say is "No";
If they don't like you, they don't care if your music is good.
One possible shortcut to success in music
is to associate your music or yourself with a popular cause,
political position, religion, or social movement.
I'll bet you can think of a few entertainers who made it that way.
It helps to be good too.
Baptisms do make sense.
Nothing can change a man's opinions like holding him under water.
Arkansas Red writes...
"Beaver lake is real low. So are the streams and rivers.
In fact, one year Beaver Lake got so low that you could see
what was left of the houses of the communities in the White River valley
that were flooded over when Beaver Dam was built."
More from Arkansas Red...
"They've played the flatbed trucks at the county fairs in 105 degree heat
on an afternoon with no shade,
and if they were lucky got their money before the promoter skipped out.
They've worked the high schools and the pie suppers, and the goat ropin's, etc..
They loved what they did,
and even though sometimes there were few or no groceries on the table
and the landlord was stood off for another month or so,
they wouldn't change what they did.
These are the real "heroes" of country music who should have a special Hall of Fame.
There's still some of them out there, but they're hard to find."
I used to eat in a greasy spoon diner every night after working in the paper mill.
I had a weekly meal ticket to save a few bucks,
and stayed in a room upstairs in an old hotel by the week.
I guess I've done it all.
Most of the homes around here are empty, and will be until autumn,
when the snowbirds come back.
Weekends are as much fun as a colonoscopy in the rain.
If you're a guy who's never had the thrill of a kidney stone,
it's a lot like giving birth to a porcupine.
Misty and I like some of all kinds of music, I think.
We play mostly country, jazz, older pop, R&B, and rock & roll.
We have played Latin gigs and ballroom standards.
Folk, hip-hop, and Celtic music are down our list,
but we've heard some of each that we like.
Bring it on. We listen to everything. Except maybe sitar music.
I have to take Dramamine to listen to a sitar.
The Golden Rule of the Music Business:
The less musicians get paid, the less respect they get.
My ignorance concerning political parties is impressing.
I've been asked to join The Donner Party.
Do I get a Donner Party Hat?
I loved my good old 1934 Rickenbacher Bakelite lap steel guitar.
I played this on our recordings.
Got broke one day and sold it to a Nashville music store for $100.
It's worth a small fortune. Ya win some, ya lose some.
I once lived with kerosene heaters for heat, light, and cooking for months after they shut my power off.
I smelled like kerosene for six months after I moved out.
Misty was a poor kid.
She says "I played with other kids for their toys.
And I'm still doing it."
One more nice thing about being rich:
When things go wrong, you can sit on your yacht and sulk.
I'd show you a picture of our mansion,
but our ex-manager's family is living in it,
and they won't tell us where it is.
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TRIBUTE TO PETE DRAKE by C. Bret Campbell
On the 29th day of July in 1988, the Nashville music community lost one its most influential members. Pete Drake - steel guitar legend and renowned producer - left us 24 years ago, and he is still missed by musicians, music professionals and music lovers every day. His mark on the world of music is indelible and his legacy is still growing!
Drake visited Nashville as a teenager and was turned on by Jerry Byrd's playing. He began learning steel guitar in 1951 at the age of 19, and less than a decade later , in '59, had moved to Nashville and was playing as a session musician. He hit the road touring with some of country's most popular artists, and then decided to land in Middle Tennessee for good.
During the early '60s, Pete Drake cut several records and earned the nickname "King of the Talking Steel Guitar" with his hit "Forever." In 1962, he began a successful publishing company, and by 1970 had earned quite the reputation as a producer. Pete founded First Generation Records in '77 with Ernest Tubb, going on to work with Stonewall Jackson, Dottie West, and many more top country stars.
We are talking about the man who introduced the steel guitar into rock music, with Elvis Presley, The Everly Brothers, and Carl Perkins. He gave Peter Frampton his own creation which musicians so aptly call a "talkbox," played on George Harrison's "All Tings Must Pass," and records with Bob Dylan, including "Nashville Skyline." It is a safe bet that if a person has ever turned on a radio, they have heard Pete's playing.
He continues to influence the music world, after all these years. Former steel player for Moe Bandy, Robert Rogers said, "Pete was such an innovator... it's, really, it's hard to put into words... just so much, if he could only know the impact [Pete made]... I'm sure he'd be very proud."
According to Steve Chandler, who was a close friend and recording engineer with Drake for years, the source of Pete's influence was that he was "such an individual," in character, person and musicianship. "No other had the effect [that Pete] had... and everything had a signature sound." Pete Drake had a directness and honesty - never cold, just to the point - that earned him respect, Chandler and others have said, to the point that "well, David Allen Coe called him, 'Sir' ."
As the 29th passes - and our thoughts turn toward Pete Drake, we also think of all the people whose lives have been touched by his. Everyone who ever knew him, all the musicians that felt his work, friends and the people he worked with all still show their respect. Rose Drake and everyone at First Generation and C.D.M.N. want them to know that we appreciate them all! As we move farther into this new millenium, we feel Pete's influence still growing, and we look forward to bringing you many more years of fantastic music and artists with that "signature" sound of love and music.
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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Always keep skunks and bankers at a distance.
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