The Grand Ole Opry has posted this weekend's line-ups. Now through January, the Opry will be at the Ryman Auditorium in downtown Nashville, returning to the Opry House the first weekend in February. Also this weekend, the Opry is back to two shows on Saturday night. Now, see if this makes sense: For first 4 Saturdays in October, the Opry has 2 shows on Saturday night. Then last Saturday, it was back to 1 Saturday night show. How this weekend, it is back to 2. And looking at the line-up, I find it hard that the Opry could fill both shows this Saturday.
Looking at the artists and performers scheduled, the name that sticks out is Robin Meade, the morning news anchor on HLN. I will admit that she does a good job with the news, but what about performing on the Opry? We'll, Charles Osgood suprised me!! Seriously, I have heard she is talented. Jim Brickman is also scheduled, as is Montgomery Gentry.
Here are the line-ups:
Friday November 5
7:00: John Conlee(host); Mike Snider
7:30: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jeannie Seely; Mountain Heart
INTERMISSION
8:15: Bill Anderson(host); Jimmy C. Newman; Jesse McReynolds & The Virginia Boys; Holly Williams
8:45: Marty Stuart(host); The Whites; Connie Smith
Saturday November 6
First Show
7:00: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jimmy C. Newman; James Wesley
7:30: Mike Snider(host); Jack Greene; Point Of Grace
8:00: Jim Ed Brown(host); George Hamilton IV; Jim Brickman; Victoria Show; Robin Meade; Opry Square Dancers
8:30: Riders In The Sky(host); Montgomery Gentry
Second Show
9:30: Jimmy Dickens(host); The Whites; James Wesley
10:00: Mike Snider(host); Jan Howard; Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press; Point Of Grace
10:30: Jim Ed Brown(host); Stonewall Jackson; Jim Brickman; Victoria Shaw; Robin Meade; Opry Square Dancers
11:00: Riders In The Sky(host); Montgomery Gentry
A couple of other Opry notes:
>It has been reported that Lorrie Morgan has married for the 6th time. She married Randy White on September 15. Good luck to Lorrie.
>Jeannie Seely is engaged to be married. Her marriage will take place November 20 to attorney Gene Ward. Congratulation to Jeannie.
I don't know if anyone else listened to the performance turned in by Opry guest Laura Bell Bundy on last Saturday's Opry show. She performed a song that was a take off of the great Tammy Wynette song, "Stand By Your Man", which I think she called "Just Slap Your Man." If you have not listened to it, you can hear it on the archived Opry show on WSM.com. To put it simply, it was, in my opinion, way beyond the bounds of good taste and what you would expect from a family show. It was filthy and offensive. I am suprised that Pete Fisher would allow this type of performance. The Opry is a family show and this song had the sexual references and bathroom references had no place. Listen to it and let me know what you think. I know what at least one of my readers feels and I agree.
The Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree continues with their 10:00pm taping and this week the host will be George Hamilton IV, who has hosted the show many times in the past and has always done a good job.
Finally, Charlie Louvin is scheduled to be on next week's Tuesday Night Opry. I hope Charlie can make it. Last Saturday night was the benefit for him at Bell Buckle, Tennessee and I have heard that they had a standing room only crowd. Alison Krauss did a great performance, singing only Louvin Brothers songs. The only downer to the event was the Ed Bruce failed to appear as advertised. And the reason for him not appearing is not good. The report is that he took offense to the fact that he was not mentioned in the preview article that ran in the Nashville Tennessean prior to the event and so he decided not to appear. And this was for a benefit for Charlie!! Talk about putting yourself first. A true friend would have been thinking of Charlie first and not worried about the publicity. I think that shows Ed's true motives. Even Charlie had some harsh words for Ed at the event.
Enjoy this weekend's Opry.
Here's hoping Lorrie and Jeannie find a lot of happiness--they have earned it. I know Lorrie really never did get over Keith Whitley. Jeannie had a longtime companion who died a couple of years ago after a long illness.
ReplyDeleteAs for Ed Bruce ... I hope that is really just a rumor and that he's a better person than that. Especially considering that Alison Krauss (who, I think, is derelict in her duties to the Opry) is a hot commodity and gave HER time.
As you know, Byron, I am the reader you are referring to above that agrees with you on Laura Bell Bundy's parody of Stand By Your Man.
ReplyDeleteBeing Halloween weekend last weekend, she was apparently singing the song while in the role of an alter-ego she has been doing recently, an older lady called, Euneeda Biscuit. I don't consider myself a paragon of virtue by any stretch of the imagination, but the sexual and bathroom references in the lyrics of the song were just too direct for me(particularly in the context of the Opry stage and over the WSM airwaves) and the whole thing just came across to me as a listener as nasty and unprofessional. I know it was meant to be funny but it just wasn't classy.
If she chose to do something like this at her own concert, fine. But as an invited guest of the Opry, to me it showed a lack of judgment on her part and a lack of respect for the mother church.
I would think that Opry management knew she was pulling a Halloween dress-up stunt but found out what was in the lyrics of that song parody at the same time we did. You would hope she was asked not to do something that suggestive in the future on the Opry stage when and if she is asked to appear again.
I don't need to check it out but probably will. I have to say that a lot of Opry comics over the years have pushed the envelope a little with double entendres--of course, one of The Potato's big jokes is about how one of those little blue pills causes his stiff neck, but it's also a joke that someone pushing 90 can tell more easily than a younger man.
ReplyDeleteI think of a Rod Brasfield-Minnie Pearl exchange, obviously from a long time ago. Rod talks about whether his girlfriend is "experienced." Then he's going to walk Minnie home and Minnie says, "But Rod, I'm not experienced." Rod replies, "Minnie, you're not home yet, either." Well, that could have been considered risqué in its time, except for who they were and how they delivered their lines. And that, I suspect, is what was wrong with Ms. Bundy.
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ReplyDeleteSorry guys for the deletes. I'm having computer problems. Anyway, Hi Michael. Check her performance out. I would be very interested to see what you think of the song and the lyrics particularly at the beginning of the song just to get a different opinion. I would say that I think Jimmy's Viagra joke and what Bundy did is miles apart though. His joke leaves a little to the imagination and is a double entendre. Her references to sexual stimuation were direct and left nothing to the imagination and the bathroom references were just plain nasty. Besides that, the song was just poorly written and unprofessional overall and really was a waste of one song of her two song set.
ReplyDeleteYou hear talk like this on morning radio like Bob and Tom etc., IMUS etc., and on late night TV, etc., but I just thought it was over the top for the Opry and WSM.
But again, I'd be very interested to see what you think to see if we are overreacting.
I have had a little trouble with the archives but hope to get to this soon.
ReplyDeleteIn the meantime, the Tuesday Night Opry lineup is up, and Charlie Louvin is on it at 7:30 with Rhonda Vincent. It will be great if he can do it. It would also be great if they invited Rhonda to join the Opry.
I am really looking forward to Charlie getting back on the Opry. He has not been on since his surgery, although he was scheduled once and had to cancel. I saw that he is gaining weight and looking better, which is good.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comments regarding Rhonda Vincent.
Good news, indeed, about Charlie.
ReplyDeleteThe Potato sounded bad tonight. I guess we are going to have those good and bad days.