Grand Ole Opry 11/5 & 11/6

With Saturday night Grand Ole Opry show #5,000 out of the way, the Opry shows this week look more like we have seen over the past year, with eight artists scheduled for both nights, half of them Grand Ole Opry members. 

The Friday Night Opry will feature members Jeannie Seely, Riders In The Sky, Dailey & Vincent and Connie Smith. Two of those (Connie Smith and Dailey & Vincent) are back on Saturday night, joined by John Conlee and Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press. 

Interesting that a couple of the guest artists scheduled this weekend have been brought up as future Opry members. T. Graham Brown certainly would fit in with the current theme of bringing on veterans who have supported the Opry in the past, and with over 150 guest appearances, Charles Esten is a name that has come up time to time. It will be interesting to see if there is another member added before the end of the year. 

There was a time when Tracy Lawrence was mentioned as a potential Opry member. A few years back, Tracy was on the Opry quite a few times, although that number has gone done since Covid hit. I think he would make a good fit as a veteran with a great country sound. I mention Tracy as, along with T. Graham Brown, he is scheduled for Friday night. Also guesting is Charlie Worsham and making his Opry debut, Breland. 

While Breland will be debuting on Friday night, Frank Ray will be hitting the Opry stage for the first time on Saturday night. Besides Frank and the previously mentioned Charles Esten, Saturday's show also has Priscilla Block and comedian John Crist listed on the schedule. 

Friday November 5
7:00: Jeannie Seely; Riders In The Sky; T. Graham Brown; Dailey & Vincent
Intermission
8:15: Connie Smith; Breland; Charlie Worsham; Tracy Lawrence

Saturday November 6
7:00: John Conlee; Priscilla Block; Charles Esten; Connie Smith
Intermission
8:15: Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press; Frank Ray; John Crist; Dailey & Vincent

What I have shared is the posted line-up from the Opry. However, they also have listed Del McCoury, Henry Cho and Travis Denning as appearing on Saturday night, yet those names are not listed on the schedule posted. While those three are listed, John Conlee and Connie Smith are not. Once I receive an official clarification from the Opry, I will update as needed. 

There will be no live Circle TV this weekend as instead of a live show, Circle will be showing Luke Combs, Asleep At The Wheel and Old Crow Medicine Show, in a show that was taped on the Tuesday Night Opry several weeks past. 

As mentioned, this will be the Opry debut for Breland and Frank Ray. 

With the arrival of his PLATINUM-certified debut single “My Truck,” singer/songwriter/producer BRELAND emerged as a bold new force on today’s music landscape. Originally from New Jersey, BRELAND moved to Atlanta after graduating from Georgetown University, kicking off his songwriting career by scoring cuts with artists like YK Osiris and Ann Marie. Soon after releasing “My Truck” in late 2019, he saw the Hip-Hop and Country hybrid hit #1 on Spotify’s Global Viral 50, with a remix featuring Country hitmaker Sam Hunt landing on best-of-the-year lists from NPR and The New York Times. The song’s success paved the way for his signing to Bad Realm Records/Atlantic Records, leading to collaborations with heavy-hitters from the Country, Pop, and Hip-Hop worlds (including Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts, Nelly, Blanco Brown, Lauren Alaina, and Chase Rice).

BRELAND’s 2021 single “Cross Country” further reveals his passion for transcending boundaries, continuing his mission of breaking down genre barriers in Country music. The Nashville-based artist made his national TV debut with “Cross Country” on The Kelly Clarkson Show, where she surprised him with a PLATINUM plaque for “My Truck.” Now at work on the follow-up to his 2020 self-titled debut EP, he enlisted superstar Keith Urban for the dynamic collaboration “Throw It Back.” 

Frank Ray was born and raised in New Mexico (just north of the Mexican border), with stints in El Paso and San Antonio. Making his debut for BBR Music Group/ Stoney Creek Records, he has already achieved two No. 1’s on the Texas Country Regional Radio chart.  A versatile artist who turned to music as a stress buster for the pressures of being a police officer, Ray put together Border Ave, a band that played everything from Emo Pop to R&B but leaned into the Strait, Tracy Lawrence and Tim McGraw-inspired ‘90s Country-style songs Ray wrote and consumed. It worked in ways he couldn’t have imagined. Before long, they won a battle of the bands, earning an opening slot for Keith Urban.

Promising to get Ray on Texas radio and into a proper studio, they struck a deal and started chasing a dream. Another Battle of the Bands brought contact with noted musician and Songwriters Hall of Fame member Steve Dorff. After listening to Ray sing, he not only took him in the studio, Dorff opened up his vault of late son Andrew’s songs. Suddenly, the magic was happening. A major Los Angeles Times profile proclaimed of his live show, “Ray’s voice has quick power. It can dip deep and fly, and with the twist of a syllable, he can sound like a grown-up Backstreet Boy or Vicente Fernández, the Mexican king of Ranchera music. He roamed the stage as if set loose at recess. The crowd swayed beneath the American and New Mexican flags. Their faces — white, Latino and Native American — were a different portrait… living at the border’s edge, a mix of cultures and rhythms bound and tempered by dust storms, day laborers and children fleeing violence in Honduras and Guatemala.”

Having spent the last few years growing his career, touring the nation and sharing stages in support of artists like Kane Brown, Brett Eldredge, Luke Bryan, Kip Moore, LANCO, Old Dominion, and Hunter Hayes and signing with some of the top players in the game, the high energy performer is ready to take things to the next level. _____________________________________________________________________

Now from 50 years ago, Saturday November 6, 1971: 

1st show
6:30: Stonewall Jackson (host); Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper
6:45: Jim and Jesse (host); June Stearns; Jerry Smith
7:00: Charlie Louvin (host) and Diane McCall; Stringbean; Ernie Ashworth; Joe and Rose Lee Maphis
7:30: Roy Drusky (host); Willis Brothers; Louie Roberts; Crook Brothers
8:00: Roy Acuff (host); Stu Phillips; Jeanne Pruett; Brother Oswald
8:30: Porter Wagoner (host); Dolly Parton; Jack Reno; Fruit Jar Drinkers

2nd show
9:30: Stonewall Jackson (host); Willis Brothers; Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper; Jerry Smith
10:00: Jim and Jesse (host); Stringbean; June Stearns
10:15: Charlie Louvin (host); Joe and Rose Lee Maphis; Diane McCall
10:30: Roy Drusky (host); Louie Roberts; 
10:45: Roy Acuff (host); Crook Brothers; Onie Wheeler
11:00: Porter Wagoner (host); Dolly Parton; Fruit Jar Drinkers; Sam McGee
11:30: Stu Phillips (host); Jeanne Pruett; Jack Reno

One name from that night that some might not be familiar with is Jack Reno. Jack was from Bloomfield, Iowa and was noted as a singer and guitarist. At one time he was a regular on the Ozark Jubilee.  His best-known single was ‘I Want One’ for Dot Records, but he also charted with country versions of pop hits, ‘Hitchin’ a Ride,’ ‘Do You Want to Dance?,’ ‘Beautiful Sunday,’ and ‘Let the Four Winds Blow,’ with his last chart entry, ‘Jukebox,’ in 1974. His awards include the Country Music Association’s Disc Jockey of the Year in 1978, but his career was curtailed by Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He recovered and began recording duets with his daughter Sheila in 1986. Before his death in 2008 from a brain tumor, he was involved in management and production.
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Looking back, it was on Saturday November 6, 1993 that Grand Ole Opry member David Houston made his final appearance on the Opry. 

Born and raised in Bossier City, Louisiana, country singer David Houston  became a regular on The Louisiana Hayride as a teenager. Apparently his soaring tenor voice wasn't totally appreciated; he found trouble getting work in the music business, and ended up as an insurance underwriter. But record producer Billy Sherrill brought Houston into the fold when Epic Records was still a young label (the early '60s), and Houston brought the company its first real hit with "Mountain of Love." In 1966 he broke through to major status with "Almost Persuaded," which netted a pair of Grammy Awards and brought pop recognition as well. 

A member of The Grand Ole Opry since 1971, he racked up 28 hit records over a decade, including duets with Tammy Wynette and Barbara Mandrell. In November 1993, Davis suffered a ruptured brain aneurism and remained in a coma for five days until his death on November 30.

Here is the running order from November 6, 1993: 

1st show
6:30: GHS Strings
Del Reeves (host): Bells of Southern Bell
The Whites: Pins & Needles
Del Reeves: A Dozen Pair of Boots

6:45: Country Music Hall of Fame
Grandpa Jones (host): What'll I Do With the Baby-O
The 4 Guys: How Married Are You Mary Ann
Bill Carlisle: Knothole
Grandpa Jones: Little Old Cabin By the Stream

7:00: Shoney's
Jimmy C Newman (host): Diggy Liggy Lo
Jeannie Seely: Don't Touch Me
Charlie Walker: Pick Me Up on Your Way Down
Jean Shepard: Why Don't You Haul Off & Love Me/Second Fiddle
David Houston: My Elusive Dreams
Jimmy C Newman: Cajun's Dream/Alligator Man

7:30: Standard Candy
Bill Monroe (host): Why Did You Wander
Skeeter Davis: The End of the World
Hank Locklin: Please Help Me I'm Falling
Brother Phelps: Let Go; Baby/Playing House
Bill Monroe: Walk Softly on My Heart/Bluegrass Breakdown

8:00: Martha White
Bill Anderson (host): Southern Fried
Oswald: Mountain Dew
Jack Greene: Statue of a Fool
Connie Smith: Once a Day
Opry Square Dance Band & The Melvin Sloan Dancers: Golden Slippers
Bill Anderson: Still

8:30: Kraft
Jim Ed Brown (host): Looking Back to See
Charlie Louvin: Think I'll Go Somewhere & Cry Myself to Sleep
Jan Howard: Oh, Lonesome Me
Mike Snider: Soldier's Joy/Angeline the Baker/Old Molly Hare
Jim Ed Brown: The 3 Bells

2nd show
9:30: Dollar General
Grandpa Jones (host): Apple Jack
Stonewall Jackson: Ol' Chuck of Coal
Wilma Lee Cooper: Wreck on the Highway
Bill Walker: A Million & One
The Whites: Doing it By the Book
Ray Pillow: Someone Had to Teach You
Grandpa Jones: My Little Old Home Down in New Orleans

10:00: Little Debbie
Bill Monroe (host): Love, Come Home
Roy Drusky: Homesick
Bill Monroe: Just a Little Talk With Jesus/Old Dangerfield

10:15: Tennessee Pride/Sunbeam
Bill Anderson (host): Family Reunion
Mike Snider: Snuff Dipper
Bill Anderson: Deck of Cards

10:30: Piccadilly
Jim Ed Brown (host): Morning Comes Too Early
Jean Shepard: Bouquet of Roses
Jim Ed Brown: A Child is Born

10:45: Opry Book
The 4 Guys (host): In the Middle of the Night
Jimmy C Newman: Thibodaux & His Cajun Band
Opry Square Dance Band and The Melvin Sloan Dancers: Liberty
The 4 Guys: May You Find Yourself in Heaven

11:00: Coca Cola
Charlie Walker (host): A Way to Free Myself
Connie Smith: The Deepening Snow
David Houston: Living in a House Full of Love
Nashville Bluegrass Band: On Again; Off Again/I've Got a Newborn Soul
Charlie Walker: Smoke; Smoke; Smoke

11:30: General Jackson
Jack Greene (host): Your Love Takes Good Care of Me
Jan Howard: Rock Me Back to Little Rock/Evil on Your Mind
Charlie Louvin: I Don't Love You Anymore
Johnny Russell: Ain't No Reason Now for Going Home
Jack Greene and Martha Carson: Satisfied

I will admit, I was a big fan of David Houston. Sadly, he did suffer some voice issues toward the end of his career but when he passed away suddenly, I was saddened. He's another of those Opry stars that few remember today. 

That covers it for this week. As always, thanks for reading and commenting and I hope everyone enjoys the Grand Ole Opry, and Saturday night show #5001 this weekend.