Music & More

5 Freshmen

The St. John's Red Storm men's basketball team pulled off an upset this past Wednesday evening, defeating West Virginia at Madison Square Garden, 78 - 62.  OK, it wasn't a major upset like knocking off Duke or Kentucky. But it was a big win. West Virginia was 5 - 2 in the Big East and 15 - 5 overall. After routing Providence in their Big East Conference opener, the Storm proceded to lose 6 of their next 7 games. Their conference record now stands at 3 - 6, 9 - 11 overall. It's about to be 9 - 12 since they travel to Duke today.

The Johnnies were led by Moe Harkless with 23 points and 13 rebounds, D'Angelo Harrison with 19 points, Phil Greene with 11 points and 8 assists, Amir Garrett with 11 points and 7 rebounds and Sir'Dominic Pointer had 8 points. Off the bench, juco transfer God's Gift Achiuwa got 7 rebounds and junior Malik Stith, the only holdover from last year's team, had 4 points. The starting five consisted entirely of freshman. Up until the West Virginia game, Achiuwa had been starting almost all of the games. According to the SJU website, the last time St. John's started 5 freshman was in the 1927-28 season, a team known at SJ as the "Wonder Five". Freshmen were inelible to play varsity sports from the early 1950's up to 1972.

In stark contrast, last year's Red Storm was more likely to start 5 seniors. In coach Steve Lavin's debut season, the team won 21 games and lost 9. While they made it to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2002, they were eliminated by Gonzaga University in the first round. No member of the 2010-2011 team got drafted by an NBA team. Coach Lavin is still recovering from prostate cancer surgery so this year's Storm has been led by assistant Mike Dunlap. Lavin attempted to coach the team early in the season but was unable to continue.

St. John's has been playing only 7 players all year so depth has been a problem in addition to inexperience. Size has also been a problem. Harkless, from Queens, NY is 6'8" as is Achiuwa, a Nigerian. Garrett, 6'6" is from L.A and, in adition to basketball, has been signed as a pitcher by the Cincinnati Reds. A lefty, he throws over 95 mph. Detroit product Pointer stands 6'5". Harrison from Texas is 6'3" and Phil Greene from Chicago is 6'2". Stith from Hempstead, LI is 5'11". Harkless set a record in the Big East opener against Providence when he scored 32 points. The previous record for a freshman in a Big East debut had been 30 points by Alan Iverson and Troy Murphy.

The rest of the SJU season includes a home game against UCLA and 9 more conference games, 5 on the road. To be realistic, the team's chances of making the NCAA tournament are slim. With the development of their freshman, next year should be a lot better. Hopefully, the program under Lavin will soon be able to recapture the success enjoyed under Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Lou Carnesecca. A potential problem is that their best player, Harkless, will almost surely leave for the NBA after his sophomore season. Hope he doesn't go sooner.

 

 

 

 

 

They Didn't Make It Big, Part 3

In the first two parts of this series, I covered Yankee Grey, Big House, Jamie O'Neal, Pinmonkey, Mark McGuinn and Kevin Sharp, all very talented folks. Here are three more country singers I thought would be big stars:

When I first heard Oklahoma born Kellie Coffey, I thought wow we have another Trisha Yearwood caliber singer in country music. She had a very good debut cd with "When You Lie Next to Me", which led to her winning a Top New Female Vocalist Award at the 2003 ACM's. Her uptempo single, "Texas Plates", reached # 24 in '03 - loved the video too - and she followed it up with a great cover of the Luther Vandross song, "Dance With My Father", which Vandross co-wrote with Richard Marx.

Kellie's second album, "Walk On", was self-released in 2007 and failed to chart. The album's only single, "I Would Die for That", met the same fate chartwise. The song, written by Trina Harmon, James Slater and Kellie, dealt with the issue of infertility.  She would die to have a baby. "With every test and checkup, we're told not to give up, he wonders if it's him, I wonder if it's me".  The album also included great uptempo songs "Bandwagon" and, my favorite, "It". Give "It" a listen to see what it is. 

Kellie didn't just show up and sing on her albums. She co-wrote 7 of the 11 tracks on her debut cd and 11 of the 12 tracks on "Walk On". Perhaps the lack of success for the second cd can be partially attributed to the fact that she never toured in support of it. With two young children she may have decided to pack it in, at least temporarily. The news section of her website hasn't been updated since July of '08.

My Sappy Songs post of 9/29/08, included two hits from Tammy Cochran. She had a #9 hit in 2001 with "Angels in Waiting", written by Jim McBride, Stewart Harris and Tammy. In '02, "Life Happened", written by Kerry Kurt Phillips and Patrick Matthews, made it to #20. Two other songs made the top 40 but she's had nothing significant in the way of chart success since. The line in "Angels" that always gets to me is "They always knew they wouldn't grow old, sometimes the body is weaker than the soul". Her two older brothers, Shawn and Alan, died of cystic fibrosis.

Her last two albums were on independent labels. "Where I Am" in '07 and "30 Something and Single" in '09, failed to produce any hit singles. On the last album, she co-wrote all but one song (a cover of "Stand By Your Man"). Three songs were written with Gary Harrison, the title track, "It's All Over But the Leaving" and "He Really Thinks He's Got It". Love the line from the last about unwanted attentions from "Mr. 1979", "I'll bet you've tasted pepper spray a time or two". There was also a song called "Half the World Away (Shawn's Song)" about her adoption of a boy from Guatemala whom she named Shawn Alan.

Although Tammy's still without a major record label deal and her website hasn't been updated in almost two years, she does still perform occasionally. I saw her at the Bluebird Cafe four months ago and she sounded great.

Michael Peterson's country music career got off to a great start when his first 3 singles cracked the top 10. In 1997, "Drink, Swear, Steal and Lie" made it to #3 and "From Here to Eternity" hit the top spot. In 1998, "Too Good to Be True" reached #8 but "When the Bartender Cries" peaked at #37. He had a few minor hits in 1999 to close out the century, but nothing in the top 40 since then. If you're new to his music, a good start would be to buy the Warner Brothers Nashville Super Hits Volume 5 album, Michael Peterson. (It's available on i-Tunes.) Besides the hits, there are two excellent duets, "I Finally Passed the Bar" with Travis Tritt and "Two of the Lucky Ones" with Bekka Bramlett.

I saw Michael at the Bluebird Cafe here in Nashville twice. He's a great singer and songwriter and has a good sense of humor. You can see him perform his funny song about living life in reverse, "From The Grave to the Cradle", on You-Tube. As a songwriter, in addition to co-writing most of his own hits and album tracks, he's penned such great songs as "My Heart Is Bethlehem" for John Berry and "Right About Now" for Ty Herndon, the first a solo writing effort, the last with Darrell Brown.

Peterson has traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan nine times to perform for the troops. In addition, he's been involved with the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival and is creating a music project for the Military Child Education Coalition.

 

River of Doubt

Although I'm probably one of the least adventureous guys around, - no motorcycle riding or downhill skiing for me - I really enjoyed reading "The River of Doubt, Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey" by Candice Millard. Published in 2005, it's about 350 pages in my paperback edition from Anchor Books. I never heard of Candice Millard, a former writer and editor for National Geographic, and I got two of her books for Christmas. The other is a book with the intriguing title of "Destiny of the Republic, A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President". I love alliteration. Maybe more on the three M's book at a later date. I haven't read it yet.

Back to the River. Teddy had recently lost his attempt to win back the Presidency as a progressive against the incumbent republican, his hand picked protege William Howard Taft, and the democratic challenger Woodrow Wilson. Former Dakota rancher and Rough Rider, TR craved adventure. He was not a man built for retirement, staying home with the wife and doting on grandchildren.

This tale of Teddy's trip to the Amazon rainforest region of South America began in 1913. TR, 55 at the time, was accompanied by son Kermit. The expedition leader, Candido Rondon, was Brazil's most famous explorer. The  5'3" Rondon hoped to map the River of Doubt, a rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. There were a few obstacles: piranhas, snakes, deadly insects,  hostile natives and raging rivers, heat and heavy rain, just to name a few things that reduced the men to near starvation and for TR, a life threatening illness as well. We get some insight into TR's character, as well as Kermit's, Rondon's and others, through Millard's description of how they handled their adversity. "River of Doubt" is a great read. But don't take my word for it. Read the many reviews on-line.

The edition of the book I have included 8 pages of photos of TR, Kermit, Rondon, etc. They appeared between pages 178 and 179. The same photos appeared in reverse order between pages 226 and 227. It appears that  different photos were meant to be included in the second group since the credits listed on page 408 mention 16 pages of photos and their source. I'll have to check out the hard cover edition in my local library to see the other photos.

Other books I've read by or about TR:

"Ranch Life and the Hunting Trail" - Theodore Roosevelt (originally published in 1888, it covers the years 1884 - 1886 in the Dakota territoy.)

"TR, The Last Romantic" - H.W. Brands (full bio of TR published in 1997)

 

Christmas Truce

I was looking into the music of lyricist Joe Henry recently in conjunction with writing a post on the Gary Burr cd, "Lime Creek". Best known for his song writing collaborations with John Denver, Joe co-wrote all the songs  with Gary on Lime Creek. He also wrote a song with Garth Brooks about a Christmas Day truce during World War I. The song was "Belleau Wood", the last track on Garth's "Sevens" album. During the night of the truce with the snow falling over the men in their trenches, a German soldier began singing a song the Americans recognized as "Silent Night". They stood up and joined in the singing. But once the clock struck midnight, all hell broke loose again.

Did this touching story in "Belleau Wood" actually happen? I can believe that it did. Soldiers stressed out and weary of all the death and destruction could certainly be looking for consolation in a Christmas hymn and even enemies could be brought together in song by their common human needs. I know of an event that actually did occur during a Christmas truce and it also led to a soldier breaking out in song.

On Christmas Day of 1968 in Viet Nam there was a truce. My unit, Charlie Company of the 1st Battallion, 28th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division (the Big Red One) was somewhere out in the boonies north of Saigon. Since we were away from our temporary base with its bunkers and concertina wire as well as artillery and mortar support, we had set up a defensive perimeter for the day. A week earlier our company lost a few very good men killed in an ambush so this truce was especially welcome. Our leaders wisely decided not to count on a silent night. The men at each position took turns at guard duty and LP's - Listening Posts - were sent out just before dark.

Each Listening Post consisted of 3 men who alternated on guard. There were generally four LP positions, roughly equidistant outside the perimeter and 100 meters beyond it. Each position was equipped with a PRC-25 radio, fondly known as the "prick 25". The purpose was to provide early warning of a possible attack. When we first joined the company, we were warned about the dangers of falling asleep on guard. A story was told of an LP who fell asleep and woke up to find his two guard buddies with their throats slit.

That Christmas night, one of the LP's fell asleep. The company RTO - radio operator - kept trying to contact the position, repeating "LP1, LP1, if you have a negative sitrep (situation report), break squelch twice". (The LP was supposed to hit the squelch button on the radio rather than talk so as not to give away his position.) The sergeant in the command post was not happy. If there was no response, someone would have to go out and check on the status of the position. The entire perimeter would have to be alerted that one of our own was going out so that he wouldn't be mistaken for an enemy.

At my squad's position, I'm monitoring my radio and thinking please God, I hope it's just that someone fell asleep, when over the radio I heard one of the guys from another position start to sing. To the tune of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight", he sang "In the Jungle, the Mighty Jungle, the LP Sleeps Tonight". Since the sarge in the CP immediately expressed his displeasure in no uncertain terms, I didn't get to hear any more of the song. Luckily, there were no violations of the truce that day, at least in our area of operations.

The most famous version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" is by the Tokens.  According to Songfacts.com, the song hit the top of the charts 50 years ago, during the 1961 Christmas holidays. The Lion song has an interesting history going back to the 1930's so if you want to learn more, get googling.

 

 

They Didn't Make It Big (Part 2)

In my post of November 22nd, I mentioned some very talented artists who didn't make it big - Yankee Grey, Big House and Jamie O'Neal. Here are some other acts that I thought would be very successful:

The group Pinmonkey, formed by lead singer Michael Reynolds, had a great debut song, cool with attitude. "Barbed Wire and Roses", written by Tia Sillers, Mark Selby and Sean Locke, reached #25 in '02. The song was from their 2nd album, "Pinmonkey" on BNA. Their debut album was "Speak No Evil", released on an indy label, Drifter's Church. A Matraca Berg/Gary Harrison single, "That Train Don't Run", from their 3rd and last album, "Big Shiny Cars", failed to chart in 2006. I saw them open for Lee Roy Parnell at B.B.King's Blues Club in NYC in March of '06. They sounded great. Here's the cool chorus from BW&R:

"Barbed wire, barbed wire and roses
Cut me so deep you don’t even know
Every time I take a step closer
I wind up tangled, it’s all over
Ain’t worth the pain of tryin’ to hold ya
You’re like, barbed wire, barbed wire and roses"

There must be an interesting story as to how the group chose the name "Pinmonkey". A "pinmonkey" was the person who reset the pins in a bowling alley after each frame. My first experience with bowling was around 1960 and even then all the lanes I patronized had automatic pinsetting machines.

A soccer player from North Carolina, Mark McGuinn had a #6 song in '01 with the uptempo "Mrs. Steven Rudy". His third single, "She Doesn't Dance", peaked at #29 in '02. Both were from his self-titled debut album. The latter song tells of a man who catches his wife in a bar with a stranger and tries to convince himself that it couldn't be her - she doesn't dance ...  great country story song.

The scene is set in the first four lines of the opening verses:

"She was in the middle of an empty dance floor
Wrapped up in a tall dark stranger's arms
They didn't see me slip in through the shadows
And sit down at the end of the bar"

McGuinn's second album, "One Man's Crazy", was released in '06 and failed to produce any hit singles. It included a 9/11 tribute song, "More Beautiful Today".

Cancer survivor Kevin Sharp's 1996 debut cd, "Measure of a Man", included a cover (didn't know it was a cover at the time) of R&B artist Tony Rich's "Nobody Knows". It went to #1. Follow-up singles, "She's Sure Taking It Well" made it to 3 and "If You Love Somebody" to 4. After such a promising start, Kevin's country music chart success came to an abrubt halt. His next two albums and the singles from them went nowhere.

My favorite Sharp song was not a single. The title track, "Measure of a Man", really grew on me. The song was written by Larry Boone and Rick Bowles. Here's the chorus of this mid-tempo tune:

"It ain’t how far you go
It ain’t how much you make
Son, it’s what you give
Not what you take
It’s being strong and true
To those counting on you
It’s lendin’ a hand, makin’ a stand
That’s the measure of a man."

Kevin is a motivational speaker and spokesperson for the Make A Wish foundation. Sounds like he measures up just fine.

I never got so see the last two artists in concert or even hear them sing live on TV so I can't comment with any certainty on their vocal ability or their ability to connect with an audience. If they excelled at both, it would still be no guarantee of commercial success.

 

 

Past Repeated - Daddy's Oldsmobile

I was watching 60 Minutes last night. The first segment, hosted by Scott Pelley, was called "Hard Times Generation: Families Living in Cars". Sad story. You can watched the segment or read the interview on the 60 Minutes website.

As I watched the show, I almost immediately thought of the great Hal Ketchum song, Daddy's Oldsmobile", from his 1992 album "Sure Love". The past has become the present. A song that was most likely about the Great Depression of the 1930's unfortunately is still relevant today. The second verse sets the scene:

"Four kids can sure fill up a big back seat.
They used to stop and get us something sweet.
Now Mamma says: 'Let's pray for one good meal'.
Here in my daddy's Oldsmobile."

Dad is looking for work in the third verse:

"Another mornin' and we're up and gone.
Daddy says there's work in San Antone.
Two days of ridin', it ain't no big deal,
Here in my daddy's Oldsmobile."

Written by Hal Ketchum and David Mallett, "Daddy's Oldsmobile" was not released as a single. Commercially, it was probably the right decision. 

If released as a single today, I don't think Daddy's O would have done very well. A current song about a dad looking for work has had only moderate success. Ronnie Dunn's second single since the B&D breakup debuted on the American Country Countdown at #36 for the weekend of July 2-3. "Cost of Livin'", written by Phillip Coleman and Ronnie, peaked at #17 and as of last week it had slipped to #19.

Read some of the on-line comments following the 60 Minutes interview. It may provide an insight as to why these socially conscious songs are not as successful as many would expect.

 

They Didn't Make It Big

My guess is that most of us music fans of whatever genre have come across a new group or solo artist that we really think is great. We love their vocals, the music and their material. We think they can't miss having a great career. Maybe we actually saw them in concert so we know they can perform live. Their artistry is not a product of pro-tools. But sometimes it's like the baseball September call ups, who shine for that last month but quickly disappear when the next season begins. Here are some very talented artists who didn't make it big:

Yankee Grey had a few hits around the turn of the century. "All Things Considered" reached #8 in '99 and my favorite song of theirs, "Another Nine Minutes" made it to #15 in 2000. That summer I saw them at one of the World Trade Center lunchtime country concerts. I learned years later on Wiki that vocal problems, certainly not evident at the time I saw them, eventually caused lead singer Tim Hunt to leave the group. A second album followed in '02 with a new lead but it didn't chart and the group disbanded.

"Another Nine Minutes", written by Billy Crain, Tim Buppert and Tom Douglas, is from their 1999 cd "Untamed". From the opening fiddles through the infectious chorus, this is truly a song that will get you going in the morning or dancing in the evening. The chorus:

"For another nine minutes
Let the world stop
Steal a few moments from this old clock
'Cause this is my dream and I want to stay in it
For another nine minutes"

I also saw Big House with lead singer Monty Byrom at the WTC. The group hails from Bakersfield, California and featured a bluesy country sound. "Cold Outside", from their self-titled debut album, made it to #30 in '97, their sole entry into the country top 40. Their first two cds were very good but apparently didn't sell well. Byrom co-wrote almost all the songs. They came out with a new cd, "Woodstock Nation" in '08 but it failed to chart.

Written by Monty Byrom, David Neuhauser, Dennis Knutson and Max Reese, "It's Cold Outside" tells of a man lookin' for some lovin'. "Your kiss is what I miss, a little lovin' after dark, so slide the chain off of this old door that's keepin' us apart."

Back in the fall of 2000, I was blown away by this great song by new artist Jamie O'Neal. The song of course was "There is No Arizona" which Jamie wrote with Lisa Drew and Shaye Smith. It went to #1 as did "When I Think About Angels", another cut from her debut cd "Shiver". I also loved her duet with Mark Wills, "I'm Not Gonna Do Anything Without You". I saw her in concert at the Bloomsburg Fair, a few weeks after 9/11. She opened for Lonestar and wowed the crowd. While overall I wasn't wild about the other material on "Shiver", her performance convinced me that she'd be a big star. It hasn't happened. She went 4 years without another big hit before reaching #3 with "Somebody's Hero" in '05.

"There Is No Arizona" tells of a woman whose man "promised her a new and better life, out in Arizona". He swore he'd send for her once he got things in order. He lied. She sings "If there was a Grand Canyon, she could fill it up with the lies he's told her, but they don't exist, those dreams he sold her, she'll wake up and find, there is no Arizona."

Next: Kevin Sharp, Mark McGuinn and Pinmonkey.

 

 

 

11-11-11

This Friday is Veteran's Day, 11-11-11. There will be parades and ceremonies and some restaurants will be offering free meals to veterans. Maybe this cool looking date, 11-11-11, will spur more than the usual attention and lead to a greater appreciation of their sacrifices.

Since 1973 when the military draft ended, the youth of America has not had to delay getting on with their future by spending two years in the military. The all volunteer military has met our war related challenges. The strain, however, has become apparent in the last few years due to multiple tours of duty in combat areas. In addition to death and dismemberment, cases of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have risen dramatically.

If you ask anyone if they support the troops, it's highly likely that 99% will say yes. If you were able to see how many gave more than lip service, the percentage would most likely be a lot lower. Granted there are many in these hard economic times who are unable to contribute financially and then there are those who have volunteered their time to help disabled veterans. It's certainly possible that the thought of giving to an organization supporting disabled veterans just hasn't occurred to many of our citizens. Maybe 11-11-11 will be a wake-up call to giving.

Here are two of the best known organizations you can contribute to:

Disabled American Veterans - www.dav.org

Wounded Warrior Project - www.woundedwarriorproject.org

Before giving to any organization claiming to aid veterans (or any other charity), you should check them out on Give.org to make sure they're legitimate. To be accredited by the BBB (Better Business Bureau), a charity has to meet 20 standards for charity accountability. The Disabled American Veterans and Wounded Warrior Project have met these standards.

 

 

 

Lime Creek

I just bought an old Gary Burr cd called "Lime Creek" which was released in 1996. I ordered it off his website. It includes nine songs, all written by Joe Henry and Gary Burr and sung by Burr. I had no idea who Gary Burr was in 1996 even though he was ASCAP's Country Songwriter of the Year for 1995. But I did know about Joe Henry since I'm a John Denver fan.

Joe wrote lyrics for quite a few Denver songs, most notably for JD's Windsong album (1975) to which he contributed "Windsong", "Shipmates and Cheyenne", "Love Is Everywhere" and "Spirit". For the album "Spirit" (1976), he co-wrote "Come and Let Me Look in Your Eyes", "Pegasus" and "The Wings That Fly Us Home". Among his other writing credits is "Belleau Wood" with Garth Brooks, a song about a Christmas truce during WWI which appeared on Garth's "Sevens" album. More recently, he wrote "Skin" for Rascal Flatts with Douglas Johnson. (There's also a singer/songwriter and record producer named Joe Henry.)

The cd liner notes say that these Burr-Henry songs were written for "Prelude to Lime Creek", an evening of music and the spoken word which was performed at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, May 9 - June 8, 1996. The Prelude was said to impart the raw gut of life in the Wyoming high country, a rough hewn tapestry of man in search of himself. Anthony Zerbe did the readings and Greg Barnhill sang.

The album is bookended by songs about Lime Creek. "That's the Way Life Is" opens the cd and "That's the Way Life Is" (Reprise) closes. The chorus and first verse are the same. In the first verse, the singer returns to find his childhood home has fallen down and the creek has dried up. The last 4 verses of the first are all different from the last 3 verses of the last. The tempo has been speeded up for the reprise. Play them back to back to get the full effect of the contrast.

The second track, "I Think I'll be a River" is a bouncy mid-tempo tune about coming back to life as a river. When it's his lover's time to go, she can come back as a meadow or a rose and as a river he can help her garden grow.

"The Other Side", track 3, is a ballad about people wanting what they don't have - the other side. "I wonder, oh I wonder, if a pebble sees a diamond, and wishes it could shine, or does a diamond dream of stones, left to hear the river run, never cut, sold or polished, a part of nature for all time".

"Learn How to Fall", track 4, tells us in the chorus that if we want to climb, learn how to fall. "We're born with reaching hands and open eyes". You got to go for it. "And even if we fail again, we fail a little better every time".

In "For Love", track 5, the singer awaits the return of his lover. The chorus concludes, "No matter how far you wander, you never really leave, a part of me goes with you, and a part of you stays with me, for love".

In "I Got the Pony Now", the girl had apparently thrown him over for someone new but he's back on the horse, er pony, in this case. He'll ride until her memory can't hurt him any more.

"I Won't Say Goodbye, track 7, is a ballad of lost love. The chorus concludes "I'll say I love you with my very last breath, but I won't say goodbye".

"Stronger Than Yesterday", track 8, is a mid-tempo song that begins "they say life is hard, well brother so far, mine's living up to his name". He needs to be stronger.

The vocals by Gary Burr are outstanding, which is no surprise. I have his other two albums, "Stop Me If You've Heard This One ..." and "Marianne's", and my wife and I have seen him at the Bluebird Cafe a dozen times in the last two years. The musicians listed on the liner notes included two I've seen perform with Gary, Randy Hart on piano and Bruce Bouton on steel guitar.

Joe Henry's novel, "Lime Creek", was published this year. It was 20 years in the making. Check out Erik Philbrook's June 15, 2011 interview with Joe Henry which can be found at www.ascap.com/playback/archive.aspx. Click on summer 2011 then cursor down to Radar Report and click on Mountain Time.

 

 

 

First Grand Ole Opry Show

Last Friday evening, October 14th, I went to my first Grand Ole Opry show at Nashville's Opryland. It only took me 5 years living in Nashville to get there. I did see a show there two years ago but it was the Rounder Records 40th Anniversay show, not a regular opry show. The Rounder event featured Mary Chapin Carpenter and Alison Krauss. (See my post of 10/14/09.)

My reluctance to take in an Opry show was due to the show lineups more than the ticket prices which range from $24 to $55. You generally get to see 2 or 3 of the current big name singers and the rest are older stars or new acts. Generally, each artist performs only two songs and it may not be one of your favorites. Going because of one particular artist could lead you to be disappointed.

The show is broadcast on radio in addition to being performed for the audience. It's broken down into 4 segments, each with a different sponsor and host. You get to hear commercials in all the segments read by announcer Eddie Stubbs. As we arrived at our seats, there was a woman on stage doing her Minnie Pearl  imitation.  A video about the opry followed, narrated by Carrie Underwood. A few times during the evening, they called out seat or row numbers for some prizes, announced the names of group tours, wedding anniversaries of some attendees, etc.

On this particular night, the first segment was hosted by Jim Ed Brown. He opened with "Pop a Top", a hit for him in 1967 and later for Alan Jackson. I only found out recently that Jim Ed was one of the Browns who were famous for their 1959 hit "The Three Bells". The bluegrass/gospel Whites and Darryl Worley rounded out the first part.

The second segment was hosted by 90 year old Little Jimmy Dickens. I don't recall the songs he sang but he told some funny jokes. Josh Turner was the headliner with "Long Black Train" and a lesser known song for me, "Everything Is Fine". Bobby Osborne & the Rocky Top X-Press completed this group.

The third was hosted by Mike Snider, who appeared with his old time string band. The segment also featured Mandy Barnett, famous for her starring role in the musical "Always ... Patsy Cline" and 81 year old Jack Greene who sang "There Goes My Everything" and "Statue of a Fool". Mandy and Jack sounded great but I didn't catch the titles of Mandy's songs.

I liked Mike's joke about the woman who asked him if he was holding the door for him because of her sex. He said no. It's because of your age. She indignantly replied that her age was her business. He said yes, and I see you've been at it a very long time.

The final part was hosted by an old favorite of mine, Larry Gatlin & the Gatlin Brothers who sang Houston (Means I'm One Day Closer to You) and another song I can't recall. Mark Wills sang a new song, "Crazy Being Home", about soldiers suffering from PTSD, and "19 Somethin'". The Black Lillies, a fairly new group from Knoxville, sang "Two Hearts Down" and "Three in the Mornin'". I liked their sound. Lead singer Cruz Contreras was formerly part of his ex-wife's band, Robinella and the CCstringband.

Will I return to see another Opry show? I would have to say yes. All of the performers were really good, vocally and instrumentally. On the down side, listening to the radio commercials was interesting the first time but got tiresome quickly.