I have not posted much lately regarding the mid-week Opry shows and I really should. When looking at the past Tuesday Night Opry line-ups, and the ones scheduled for the future, there are really some good quality line-ups, in many cases much better then the Friday or Saturday shows. This Tuesday is no exception as Rascal Flatts is scheduled for a return visit, along with Opry members Montgomery Gentry and Craig Morgan.
Tuesday May 10
7:00: Montgomery Gentry; David Nail
7:30: Jeannie Seely; Craig Morgan
Intermission
8:15: Mandy Barnett; Dustin Lynch
8:45: Rascal Flatts
Opry Country Classics continues the spring run at the Ryman Auditorium on Thursday night with Larry Gatlin as the host and Dailey & Vincent as the spotlight artists. Additional performers include Jeff Bates, T. Graham Brown, The Gatlin Brothers and Holly Williams.
Enjoy!
Byron: off the subject question. Was the Wilburn Brothers made Opry members in 1940 when Roy Acuff brought them to the Opry? If so was Lester and Leslie Wilburn included in that? I know little if nothing on the latter two brothers. Are they still living? If so could they be considered former Opry members?
ReplyDeleteMost does not just realize the work and impact Doyle and Teddy had on Country Music. They need to be in the Hall of Fame.
David, I have the Wilburn Brothers becoming Opry members on November 10, 1956 but in the Opry's history, they have 1953 listed as the year. I kind of question the 1953 date as Teddy died in November 2003, which would have made him a 50 year Opry member, but I don't recall any mention by the Opry of Teddy reaching 50 years as a member. I know he was in declining health at the end of his life, but I am sure the Opry would still have mentioned it. In one of the earlier editions of the Grand Ole Opry Picture History Book, it states that "The Wilburn Children became regular members in 1940. However, due to the extreme young ages of the children and the show's late hours, the pressures from a child labor organization forced the Opry to terminate the children's stay after only six months. They returned home and played small radio stations and gatherings." At the time, the group included Teddy, Doyle, Lester and Leslie, along with their sister Geraldine. After returning home, she got married and left the act. The four brothers joined the Louisiana Hayride in 1948 and stayed until 1951, when Teddy and Doyle left to join the Army due to the Korean War. After getting out of the Army, Teddy and Doyle started working with Webb Pierce and according to the Opry's book, were back on the Opry by 1953. But like I mentioned, the November 1956 date seems the correct one.
ReplyDeleteI have no recent information at all on Lester and Leslie and I don't believe they are considered former Opry members as in the Opry's list of inductees between 1935 and 1944, The Wilburn Children are not listed. There is a new biography on the Wilburn Brothers that will be coming out in the coming months that I have heard great things about and can't wait to read.
Byron - Here's some info on the "other" Wilburn Brothers: In addition to being musicians, Leslie and Lester were brought in to help run the many businesses, including their publishing company, Sure-Fire Music. Lester Loyd Wilburn (5-19-24 to 9-2-90) Leslie Floyd Wilburn (10-13-25 to 1-15-05) and their sister, Wineti Geraldine Wilburn (Grisham) (5-6-27 to 4-4-11) - from Frank Apperson
DeleteThanks Frank
DeleteYou're welcome Byron
DeleteFred, Bismarck:
ReplyDeleteThe Wilburn Brothers are a good example of acts that were overtaken by changing times in country music and never realized their musical potential. Their version of "Knoxville Girl" (1958) makes your mouth water at the thought of what they could have laid down if they had come along 20 years earlier. (Best version of that song I've ever heard -- by anybody, before or since!)
As it is, they were quickly watered down in the studio; and, although they had some radio hits, all right, they subsequently recorded little of lasting interest, in my opinion. I'm happy for them that, on the business side, they did much better.