After a very quiet week in Nashville, The Grand Ole Opry closes out 2021 this weekend and welcomes in 2022 with two very nice shows to close out the final night of the year and to open the first night of the new year. While there are no superstars listed, there is some good variety both nights with something that should please everyone.
Grand Ole Opry members scheduled for both nights include Jeannie Seely, Bobby Osborne and Mandy Barnett. While no other Opry members are scheduled for the Friday Night Opry, Rhonda Vincent will be performing on Saturday night. On a personal note, isn't it great to be listing Mandy Barnett under the heading "Opry member" and so nice to see Bobby listed for both nights. He is certainly carrying on the bluegrass tradition in fine style.
Elizabeth Cook is guesting on Friday night and if my records are correct, she is now the non-member who has appeared on the Opry the most times. The number is well into the hundreds (actually close to 500), as she has been appearing on the Opry over the past 20 years.
Also scheduled for Friday is one of the bright young songwriters/singers in Nashville today, Erin Enderlin. Linda Davis, The Steel Woods and Hall of Fame member Don Schlitz completes the schedule.
Don is also scheduled for Saturday night, joined by fellow Hall of Famer Charlie McCoy, along with Drew Baldridge, and the designated comedian for this week, Brian Bates.
Friday December 31
7:00: Jeannie Seely, Erin Enderlin, Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press, Elizabeth Cook
Intermission
8:15: Linda Davis, The Steel Woods, Mandy Barnett, Don Schlitz
Saturday January 1
7:00: Opry Square Dancers, Jeannie Seely, Drew Baldridge, Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press, Mandy Barnett
Intermission
8:15: Charlie McCoy, Brian Bates, Don Schlitz, Rhonda Vincent
_____________________________________________________________________
Now from 50 years ago, New Year's Day January 1, 1972:
7:00: Shoney's
Billy Grammer (host): I Saw Your Face in the Moon
Ernie Ashworth: Wanted Man
Tommy Overstreet: Take Me Home Country Roads
Billy Grammer: Detroit City
Ernie Ashworth: Jesus Was a Soul Man
Tommy Overstreet: Gwen, Congratulations
Billy Grammer: He Touched Me
7:30: Standard Candy
Roy Acuff (host): Wabash Cannonball
Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper: Nobody's Darling But Mine
Stringbean: Old Joe Clark
Onie Wheeler: Mother Prays Loud in Her Sleep
Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper: Turn Your Radio On
Stringbean: Battle of New Orleans
Howdy Forrester: Sally Goodin
Roy Acuff: I Saw the Light
8:00: Martha White
Lester Flatt (host) w/Uncle Josh, Roland White and Haskel McCormick: It's Mighty Dark for Me to Travel
Grandpa Jones: Raining on the Mountain, Now, My Love
George Morgan: Easy Loving
Crook Brothers: Ida Red
Lester Flatt: I Can't Tell the Boys from the Girls
Grandpa Jones: Mountain Dew
George Morgan: The Gentle Rains of Home
Uncle Josh: Fireball
8:30: Stephens
Stonewall Jackson (host): Muddy Water
Charlie Louvin: To Take Up Where Goodbye Began
The 4 Guys: Cottonfields/Mariah
Stonewall Jackson: Don't Be Angry
Charlie Louvin: I Placed a Call
Harold Weakley: Where No One Stands Alone
Stonewall Jackson: Waterloo
9:00: Luzianne
Bill Monroe (host): Love, Come Home
Lonzo and Oscar: There's a Hole in the Bottom of the Sea
Barbara Mandrell: Satisfied
Fruit Jar Drinkers: Fire on the Mountain
Bill Monroe: My Little Georgia Rose
Lonzo and Oscar: Out of Hand
Barbara Mandrell: Rocky Top
Bill Monroe: Bluegrass Breakdown
9:30: Kellogg's
Tex Ritter (host): Jealous Heart
Willis Brothers: I Can't Help It/You Cheatin' Heart/Cold, Cold Heart/I Saw the Light
Bill Carlisle: Knothole
Marion Worth: I Really Don't Want to Know
Tex Ritter: Fall Away
Bill Carlisle: What Kinda Deal is This
10:00: Fender
George Morgan (host): Easy Loving
Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper: Coming Down from God
Stringbean: Pretty Polly
George Morgan: Walking Shadow; Talking Memory
10:15: Union 76
Roy Acuff (host): Meeting in the Air
Billy Grammer: Gotta Travel On
Tommy Overstreet: The Games People Play
Roy Acuff: The Great Speckled Bird
10:30: Trailblazer
Lester Flatt (host): Will You Be Loving Another Man
Stonewall Jackson: Me & You & A Dog Named Boo
Grandpa Jones: The Valley of the Never Do No Good
Lester Flatt: Is Anybody Going North to Cincinnati
10:45: Beechnut
Bill Monroe (host) and James William Monroe: I Haven't Seen Mary in Years
Charlie Louvin and Diane McCall: I'm Gonna Leave You
Bill Carlisle: Same Ole Tale that the Crow Told Me
Crook Brothers: Arkansas Traveler
11:00: Coca Cola
Tex Ritter (host): Wayward Wind
Willis Brothers: I Still Do
Barbara Mandrell: Tonight My Baby's Coming Home
Fruit Jar Drinkers: Hickory Leaf
Tex Ritter: High Noon
Willis Brothers: Bob
Kirk McGee: Railroad Blues
11:30: Elm Hill
Marty Robbins (host): Lovesick Blues
Marion Worth: Burning Bridges
Lonzo and Oscar: Ol' Slewfoot
Marty Robbins: I Walk Alone/Begging to You/Don't Worry/My Woman; My Woman; My Wife/Wedding Bells/Big Boss Man/They'll Take Her Love From Me/Dear Lord, Forgive
Tommy Overstreet was on the Opry this particular evening and I mention it because there have been reports over the years that Tommy had been asked to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry and turned down the invitation.
Born Sept. 10, 1937, in Oklahoma City, Tommy Overstreet came by his talent naturally. His cousin Gene Austin (who he called his uncle) was a prominent entertainer starting in the 1920s.
He moved to Nashville in 1967 to manage the Music City operations at Dot Records. Though he enjoyed his work, the singer never gave up his dreams of the stage, electing to become a recording artist for the label.
He first charted with 1969's "Rocking a Memory (That Won't Go to Sleep)," which peaked at No. 73 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. It wouldn't take long for him to eclipse that peak, with 1971's "Gwen (Congratulations)" making it all the way to No. 5. That would be the first of 23 appearances in the top 40. His biggest hit was 1972's "Ann (Don't Go Runnin)," which narrowly missed the top of the chart, settling in at No. 2.
His rich voice, combined with his muscular build and movie-star looks, helped propel him into the spotlight as a frequent guest on the top TV variety shows of the day, such as Hee Haw and The Midnight Special. His final appearance on the charts came in 1986 with "Next to You," which made it to No. 74.
In the late 1980s, the singer became one of the first country performers to base his operations in Branson, Mo., which became a haven for artists who still had devoted fanbases. He said it was love from the start.
"I had a friend who had moved there, and he said, 'Tommy, you've got to come see this place.' He had become a little disenchanted with Nashville. I fell in love with the area, and we lived there for about seven years."
It was a slower pace for the singer, who admitted that his fast pace of the 1970s might have cost him. "There were 329 one-nighters, then 36 days in Nashville in a year's time," he said. "I also recorded two albums and did a European tour for 18 days. Unfortunately, my ex-wife and I separated and divorced. The music business and what we do in that career is not great for relationships. You're gone too much. I wouldn't encourage anyone to work that hard. I shouldn't have. I should have stopped and smelled the roses and spent more time with my family. But you learn those things in hindsight. Hindsight is 20/20. As you go down this road, you do what you think is the best thing at the time, and I did. Unfortunately, it cost me some heartbreak and disappointments, but that's how life is."
Things ended on a happy note for the singer, who remarried and had two more children. "Life is dear to me," he said. "I've had a wonderful time, met some interesting people, and had some success along the way. I've had a blessed life, and I can't complain at all."
Tommy Overstreet passed away in November 2015.
I personally always enjoyed Tommy and I have a couple of his albums in my collection.
There you have it as 2022 gets underway. As always, thanks for reading and commenting and I hope everyone enjoys the Grand Ole Opry this weekend.
Interesting. Friday night show almost sold out, Saturday's show good tickets at usual prices.
ReplyDeleteByron:
ReplyDeleteDo you have any information or could you tell me a little bit about T. Tommy Cutrer. I have the 15 volume Opry set from Time Life, and he is in many of the volumes presenting acts. Thanks!!!!
Here is the biography of T. Tommy Cutrer from AllMusic. He wasn't with the Opry for a very long time, but as you can see, he was an all-around talent.
Deleteb. Thomas Clinton Cutrer, 29 June 1924, Osyka, Mississippi, USA, d. 11 October 1998, Gallatin, Tennessee, USA. Cutrer’s hoped-for career as a footballer was ended during his high school days by osteomyelitis. He spent months convalescing, during which time he decided to pursue a career in radio. He did menial tasks at stations in New Orleans and Jackson before gaining an announcer’s post with KARK Little Rock in 1943. He relocated to Memphis around 1945, where he worked on both WMC and WREC. He had some experience as a singer and in the late 40s, he formed his first band, the Rhythm Boys. In the early 50s, he worked on stations in Houston, before moving to KCIJ Shreveport in 1952. In 1954, while on his way to Nashville to work for WSM, he was involved in a serious accident that led to him having a leg amputated. He quickly recovered and worked on WSM as a disc jockey and also as an announcer on the Grand Ole Opry. Cutrer held the distinction of being the first disc jockey ever to play a record of Johnny Cash on air and during his career, he once worked as the announcer for Cash’s networked television show. In 1957, he was voted America’s top disc jockey and he appeared in the 1965 filmMusic City USA. He made recordings for several labels in the 50s, including Capitol Records, RCA Records, Victor Records, Mercury Records and Dot Records. He gained no chart entries but his material varied from honky tonk to gospel. He may be heard on the 1975 Starday releaseOpry Time In Tennessee and he also recorded an amusing version of ‘Temptation’ with June Carter and a pleasant cut of ‘Wonderful World’ with Ginny Wright. In 1976, he turned his attentions to politics and stood for Congress, being beaten by Al Gore. He then successfully gained election to the State Senate, where he served until 1982.
I only knew the name. Thanks Byron!
DeleteT. Tommy also did Jimmy C. Newman's pioneering "Folk Songs of the Bayou Country" album as the announcer and straight man, and I think HE may have been the one to call him Jimmy C. in the first place.
DeleteAbout this weekend: I wonder how Jett Williams is doing. For several years after the determination that she really is Hank's daughter, she did the last Opry show before the new year, or New Year's night, and often The Potato would introduce her, since he was the last performer on there who had been close to her father.
I did a little checking and Jett Williams doesn't seem to be very active on social media. Not sure what her relationship, if any, is with the Opry currently and it seems that it has been a number of years since she last appeared on New Year's or New Year's Eve. But yes, at one point, you could count on her being at the Opry on those nights. And yes, I hope she is doing well.
DeleteWe all owe Jett a debt of gratitude. She worked HARD to find and release a whole bunch of Hank's early stuff that was thought be lost forever.
ReplyDeleteI always enjoyed her singing. When she hunkered down behind the microphone, it sent chills up my spine. Reminded me a LOT of her daddy.
Jett Williams appeared in August of this year in Nashville at the "Tomato Art Festival." Backed up by some of Nashville's best pickers including Superlative Kenny Vaughn on guitar, and John McTigue III on drums. There are days I think I need to move to Nashville just to pick up on all the local shows.
DeleteMy mother grew up listening to country music--she remembered the night Jett's dad tore the place apart. Anyway, the first time she saw Jett, in a story related to her lawsuit, my mother said, "Oh, God, that's his daughter. Hank, Jr., should give up now."
DeleteWhile it is not yet posted on the Opry schedule, I have been told that Don Schlitz has cancelled both his Opry appearances this weekend and has been replaced on both shows by Charlie Worsham.
ReplyDeleteShort comments on several things being discussed here.
ReplyDeleteTommy Overstreet seemed to be all over the radio in the early 70's when I would take my transistor radio (no not blue) to school and listen at recess time. I sure remember Gwen and Anne getting a lot of airplay. He stopped by the powerhouse country station in Terre Haute sometime in the 90's and my brother got to meet him and he was very pleasant.
If I remember correct, T. Tommy was on one of the Family Reunion series that included disc jockey's including Eddie Stubbs and Hearil Hensley. He worked with Flatt & Scruggs and I have a bunch of Pet Milk Opry shows where he announced and did routines with the artists as they did the commercials together.
Keep in mind that Keith Adkinson, Jett's husband that passed just in the last year or two had a lot to do with her success and probably the release of some of those radio shows. He was a layer as I recall.
I was shocked earlier today while watching some national news that Stonewall Jackson was mentioned in their long list of people we lost in 2021 and the actually played about 5 seconds of him doing "Muddy Water"!
Jim
Knightsville, IN
Jim, I share your shock at the acknowledgment of Stonewall!
DeleteI remember Tommy Overstreet having a hit, "Fadin' In, Fadin' Out." It begins,
Well I was foolin' round toolin' down Interstate 40,
Listenin' to my favorite country show
He also recorded versions for radio stations. Our country station in Las Vegas then was KRAM, so he changed it to Interstate 15, listening to KRAM radio, for example. I wonder if he did that everywhere!
I really really like Jett Williams! For one thing, in an interview, she went out of her way to mention that her book was available in one of the libraries for the blind. Most writers are not aware of this but she was very proud of the fact! I then went and read it! For another thing, I hope very much that she's a nice lady! In 2005, I saw Hank Jr in concert. I got a police officer to take me back to where he came off stage. The officer asked if he'd just shake my hand. He said no! I love ole Hank, and would like to believe his daughter would have been kind to me! Plus those radio shows are truly amazing if you've never heard them!
ReplyDeleteE.Z., I've never been a fan of Hank, Jr.'s music, but I do sympathize with him--his mother dressing him as his father and having him imitate him was awful. That said, he never struck me as warm and fuzzy. There are other artists like Bill Monroe and Hank Snow who I never would have dreamed of, say, going up to and hugging, but I can't imagine them being that way toward a fan.
DeleteI saw Hank Jr. as a teenager. Came to the Anderson Indiana county fair. Brought his Dad's band, never sang anything except his Dad's songs. I wish I had the courage then to tell Jr. some of us were there to hear HIS early stuff, which was hard core country. I mean, really hard core. Wish he had decided early to do his own brand of traditional country. I think when he "broke free" of his Dad's name, he broke free in a BIG, wild, and drastic way! :)
DeleteNat, I certainly could understand him wanting to be different. But I prefer the older stuff too!
DeleteHis earliest country recordings were wonderful classic Country music. I just wish he had kept that up.
DeleteErin Enderlin has posted that she is doing the Opry tonight as a replacement. I sent her a message asking her who she was replacing and she did not know.
ReplyDeleteRhonda Vincent, I guess.
DeleteUnusual for her to cancel. Hope she and her family are okay.
DeleteJim
Thanks for the info on T. Tommy Cutrer
ReplyDeleteI don't know if any of you listen to the block after the Saturday show called "Stars of the Opry." but it's amazing! Nothing but live stuff from over the years!
ReplyDelete