They have updated this weekend's Grand Ole Opry line-ups. Del McCoury has cancelled out for all 3 shows this weekend, with Dale Ann Bradley added in their place. Also, Matt Kennon has been added for Friday night to fill the empty slow in the 7:30 slot and Jamie O'Neal was added to fill the slot available in the 8:15 segment. The line-up listed below has been updated.
The Grand Ole Opry has announced its line-ups for this weekend's shows. I originally had tickets for this weekend's shows and was planning to go down to Nashville for the shows. But, after the line-ups were announced, I called the Opry ticket office and had my tickets changed to a later date. (It's always a good thing to know a few folks at the Opry ticket office in order to make last minute changes). To be honest, the Friday night line-up is pretty weak, and at $54.00 per ticket, I want to see more than 11 acts. While the Saturday night line-up is better with Charlie Daniels and John Anderson, it is still not particuarly strong. Originally, Marty Stuart was to be on this weekend, and he is not, and there was some thought that Vince Gill might be on, but that didn't take place.
I don't want to beat a dead horse, but this continues to be an issue at the Opry. The line-ups have got to get stronger, especially at the ticket prices that are being charged. At this point, it really doesn't matter if they are Opry members or not, there has to be some established stars there.
Last weeks shows were pretty good and did have some great artists, such as Trace Adkins, Vince Gill, Pam Tillis, John Conlee, Marty Stuart and Ricky Skaggs. But, that has to be sustained each week. Let's all hope that they can improve upon things. Oh, and in talking to the ticket office this morning, if I had wanted another ticket for Saturday night's first show, I could have had the middle section, Row A. Not good if prime tickets like that are available 3 days before the show.
Now, here are this weekend's line-ups:
Friday March 26
7:00: Jeannie Seely(host); The Whites; Dale Ann Bradley
7:30: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jesse McReynolds & The Virginia Boys; Matt Kennon
INTERMISSION
8:15: Riders In The Sky(host); Jan Howard; Jimmy C. Newman; Jamie O'Neal
8:45: Mike Snider(host); Jack Greene; The Quebe Sisters Band
Saturday March 27
First Show
7:00: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jimmy C. Newman; John Anderson
7:30: Mike Snider(host); The Whites; Jordyn Shellhart
8:00: Jeannie Seely(host); Connie Smith; Dale Ann Bradley; Opry Square Dancers
8:30: Jim Ed Brown(host); Jean Shepard; Bar D Wranglers; Charlie Daniels Band
Second Show
9:30: Jimmy Dickens(host); Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press; John Anderson
10:00: Mike Snider(host); Jordyn Shellhart; Charlie Daniels Band
10:30: Jim Ed Brown(host); Jack Greene; Alison Brown; Opry Square Dancers
11:00: Jean Shepard(host); Connie Smith; Dale Ann Bradley
Yeah, I was really surprised how weak the Friday show is. Looks like they will add at least one other act at 7:30, but that Friday show at first glance is weak. Saturday is not too bad, though. It is interesting to see the difference in the quality of the lineup from one night to the next(we see this a lot) for the same ticket price. A Charlie Daniels can sure make a big difference in the looks of a lineup. It is hard to believe that they couldn't find a marquee name or two for Friday. Maybe they will yet.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I wondered who Jordyn Shellhart, who is on Saturday, is. Found her website. She reads like Taylor Swift II. She is 15 years old, writes or co-writes all of the songs on her Sony album, and even sounds a little like her(although the cuts on the website sound a lot, lot,lot better than Taylor live. It will be interesting to see how this girl actually sounds live without the tricks that can be played on recordings a.k.a Taylor Swift).
Some of the old lineups you have posted, and some that I have posted, certainly weren't so good as some others. But this really is ridiculous. The longtime top editor of The New York Times, Abe Rosenthal, used to say what made his newspaper great was that in tough times, other newspapers added water to the soup but The Times added tomatoes. The Opry is watering the soup.
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ReplyDeleteIt could get real interesting in the next few weeks. On upcoming Saturdays, all that is really booked on the website so far is Vince Gill for next Saturday and the following Saturday, Joe Diffie for April 24, Charley Pride for a Saturday in June and that is pretty much it.
ReplyDeleteDel McCoury cancelled his Opry appearances this weekend due to the death of his mother-in-law.
ReplyDeleteThis is just my opinion but I was always under the impression that the Friday Night Opry was suppose to be a more low-key presentation with perhaps one or two "marquee" names while the Grand Ole Opry presentation on Saturday nights commanded the stronger line-up. The March 26th line-up was probably not a weak line-up for those who like Bluegrass and are familiar with the names.
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