Tuesday Night Opry 11/27

On the Tuesday Night Opry, Joe Diffie was scheduled to celebrate his 25th anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry. However, Joe has cancelled his appearance on both shows on Tuesday. At this point, I do not know the reason why as there has been nothing posted on his official Facebook or Twitter pages. Hopefully it is nothing serious and Joe will be back on the Opry soon.

While Joe will not be on either Opry show on Tuesday, as in addition to the evening show there is also a matinee, the Grand Ole Opry's newest member Dustin Lynch is scheduled for both. He will be joined by Dailey & Vincent and Jeannie Seely, while the Whites are set for the matinee show and Bill Anderson the evening one.

Tuesday November 27
Matinee
3:30: Dailey & Vincent; Tyler Rich
4:00: Jeannie Seely; Jason Crabb
Intermission
4:45: The Whites; Chonda Pierce
5:15: Dustin Lynch

Evening
7:00: Dailey & Vincent; Tyler Rich
7:30: Jeannie Seely
Intermission
8:15: Bill Anderson; Jason Crabb
8:45: Dustin Lynch

I would imagine that they would add at least one other act for the evening show in the 7:30 segment.

Joe Diffie is a much-respected interpreter of both traditional and modern country songs. His warm voice and clear phrasing of lyrics have proven to be crowd pleasers, whether he's singing ballads or more rambunctious numbers. With that range, Joe was a dominant singer through the '90s, with four gold and platinum albums, 17 Top 10 hits and more than 6 million in record sales. Those early hits included "If the Devil Danced (In Empty Pockets)," "New Way (To Light Up an Old Flame)," "Home," and "Ships That Don't Come In." Joe later topped the charts with the likes of "Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die)," "Bigger Than the Beatles," "Third Rock from the Sun," and "A Night to Remember."

Born and raised in a musical family in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Joe gave his first public performance at age four with his aunt's country band. By the time he was in college, he'd done stints in a rock group, a gospel act, and a bluegrass band called the Special Edition, signs of the flexibility he would exhibit as a recording artist. After school, Joe perfected his songwriting while working a day job at an iron foundry. He had his first break when country legend Hank Thompson recorded his song "Love on the Rocks." That initial success encouraged him to head for Nashville in 1986.

Between working shifts at the Gibson Guitar warehouse, Joe sang demos on "I've Cried My Last Tear for You" (later a hit for Ricky Van Shelton), "Born Country" (likewise for Alabama) and "You Don't Count the Cost" (Billy Dean). Conway Twitty, Charley Pride, the Forrester Sisters, Tracy Lawrence and Doug Stone all recorded his songs. In 1989, Holly Dunn reached the top five with "There Goes My Heart Again," a song Joe co-wrote. Those successful cuts have continued since Joe started having his own hits in 1990, when "Home" topped the charts. Tim McGraw included one of Joe's songs on his debut album and Jo Dee Messina hit No. 1 with Joe's "My Give a Damn's Busted."

In 2002, Joe and Hank Thompson, the man who gave him his first big break, were inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame simultaneously.

Here is the running order from Saturday November 27, 1993, the night Joe Diffie became a member of the Grand Ole Opry:

1st show
6:30: GHS Strings
Bill Monroe (host): Dear Old Dixie
Wilma Lee Cooper: Poor Ellen Smith
Brother Oswald: Columbus Stockade Blues
Bill Monroe: Christmas Time's A Comin'

6:45: Country Music Hall of Fame
Jack Greene (host): Walking on New Grass
Bill Carlisle: I've Waited Too Long
Jeanne Pruett: Satin Sheets
Jack Greene: Three Goes My Everything

7:00: Shoney's
Jimmy Dickens (host): Take an Old Cold Tater
Skeeter Davis: 'T Ain't Nice
Congressman Collin Peterson: Make the World Go Away
Mike Snider: Foggy Mountain Breakdown/The Fir Coat
Jimmy Dickens: Sleeping at the Foot of the Bed

7:30: Standard Candy
Porter Wagoner (host): Tennessee Saturday Night
Joe Diffie: Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox
Jean Shepard: If Teardrops were Pennies
Alison Krauss: Baby, You Don't Need Me Anymore
Joe Diffie: John Deere Green
Porter Wagoner: Indian Creek

8:00: Martha White
Bill Anderson (host): I Get the Fever
Billy Walker: A Million and One
Jeannie Seely: Tell Me About It
Charlie Louvin: Think I'll Go Somewhere and Cry Myself to Sleep
Opry Square Dance Band/Melvin Sloan Dancers: Sally Goodin
Bill Anderson: Deck of Cards

8:30: Kraft
Hank Snow (host): Ancient History
Jan Howard: Gold Watch and Chain
Jim Ed Brown: The 3 Bells
The Whites: San Antonio Rose
The Four Guys: In the Middle of the Night
Hank Snow: Just a Faded Petal from A Beautiful Bouquet

2nd show
9:30: Dollar General
Porter Wagoner (host): Dooley
Jan Howard: Heartaches by the Numbers
Stonewall Jackson: Old Chunk of Coal
The Whites: Swing Down Chariot
The Four Guys: Let There Be Peace
Billy Walker: Cross the Brazos at Waco
Porter Wagoner: Tennessee Sunshine

10:00: Little Debbie
Bill Anderson (host): Southern Fried
Jean Shepard: Wabash Cannonball
Bill Anderson: Golden Guitar

10:15: Sunbeam/Tennessee Pride
Jimmy Dickens (host): John Henry
Jimmy C Newman: Allons A Lafayette
Jimmy Dickens: Another Bridge to Burn

10:30: Piccadilly
Bill Monroe (host): True Life Blues
Alison Krauss: I Don't Know Why, But I Do
Michael Cleveland: Orange Blossom Special
Bill Monroe: I'm Working on a Building

10:45: Opry Book
Jim Ed Brown (host): Southern Loving
Jeannie Seely: Too Far Gone
Opry Square Dance Band/Melvin Sloan Dancers: Black Mountain Rag
Jim Ed Brown: The Old Lamplighter

11:00: Coca Cola
Hank Snow (host): From A Jack to A King
Joe Diffie: Together Again/Honky-Tonk Attitude
Jeanne Pruett: Temporarily Yours
Mike Snider: "Twas the Night Before Christmas
Hank Snow: Black Diamond

11:30: General Jackson
Charlie Walker (host): Right or Wrong
Charlie Louvin: Less and Less
Jack Greene: The Great Speckled Bird
Johnny Russell: In A Mansion Stands My Love/He'll Have to Go
Charlie Walker: Take Me Back to Tulsa

Congratulations to Joe Diffie upon his 25th anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry and again, sorry to see that he has cancelled his appearances.