Grand Ole Opry 6/3 & 6/4

I am going to start off with something non-Opry this week: 

This past weekend, I attended the 50th anniversary of the Ralph Stanley Hills of Home Festival and it was an amazing weekend of music and meeting old and new friends. The music was outstanding, featuring Ricky Skaggs, Jim Lauderdale, The Grascals, Ralph Stanley II, Nathan Stanley, Joe Mullins & The Radio Ramblers, Larry Stephenson, Larry Sparks, Po' Ramblin Boys, Nothing Fancy, Chris Jones and so many others. Too many to mention, and four days of music for just over $100. Many of these acts have appeared on the Opry and it was wonderful to hear and see them perform full sets. 

This has been one festival that has been on my list to attend for the past few years. With the 2020 and 2021 festivals canceled due to Covid, the calendar worked out this year. There were many highlights, including meeting Jimmie Stanley, Ralph's widow, along with Ralph Stanley II, Nathan Stanley, Joe Mullins and Larry Efaw, who I discovered lives just a few miles from my home in Canton. An additional treat was seeing and hearing Jim Lauderdale rehearing Wednesday afternoon in the hotel breakfast area where I was staying. He didn't seem to mind letting me stand in the hallway watching. 

Besides the music, one of the main reasons for heading down this year was to meet my friend Freddie Phillips. Freddie has been involved with this festival for decades and he did an outstanding job as one of the MCs, and thanks to him I was able to visit backstage, and actually to be introduced on stage to the crowd. Freddie and I have communicated for years, and he kept inviting me down to the festival, promising me that it would be a fun weekend. It was. I also want to point out that Freddie is a great fan of the Opry and spent years working with Porter Wagoner and Ralph Stanley, and special thanks to him for introducing me to some of the artists. 

While there was rain and mud for most of the festival, it did not dampen the enthusiasm of the crowd, which I estimated to be several thousand. It was well organized; everyone was friendly, and all of the acts took the time to meet and greet the fans. Hopefully, I will be back next year and already have it marked on my calendar. For those who are bluegrass, or Stanley Brothers fans, this is one festival you need to attend. 

One final note: If you are in the area of Clintwood, Virginia, I highly recommend that you visit the Ralph Stanley Museum. At $10, it is an incredible bargain. The museum covers not only the careers of Ralph and Carter Stanley, but also recognizes others who came from that area, including Jim and Jesse McReynolds and The Carter Family. I spent a couple of hours in the building and was amazed at how well it was organized and set up. 
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Now, looking at the Grand Ole Opry this weekend, which is the weekend prior to the start of the CMA Music Fest, the Opry will be running its usual Friday and Saturday shows, with multiple shows during the coming week, including a Tuesday Night Opry appearance by Carrie Underwood. More on that later but let us take a look at what the Opry has on tap for this weekend.

There are a couple of Opry members who will be appearing both nights this weekend: Jeannie Seely and John Conlee. Those two will be joined on Friday night by members Riders In The Sky and Dailey & Vincent. Saturday night has Mike Snider back, along with Hall of Fame member Ricky Skaggs. 

Guesting both nights will be comedian Gary Mule Deer. Brooke Eden, John Berry and Nate Smith are scheduled for Friday night, while Drew Baldridge, Ingrid Andress and very popular and frequent Opry guest Charles Esten are on the Saturday schedule. 

Friday June 3
7:00: Jeannie Seely, John Berry, Nate Smith, Riders In The Sky

Intermission
8:15: John Conlee, Brooke Eden, Gary Mule Deer, Dailey & Vincent

Saturday June 4

7:00: Opry Square Dancers, Jeannie Seely, Drew Baldridge, Mike Snider, John Conlee

Intermission

8:15: Ingrid Andress, Gary Mule Deer, Opry Square Dancers, Charles Esten, Ricky Skaggs

While I was not at the Opry last weekend, I did listen to the replay and read many of the online comments regarding The Beach Boys, and they were overwhelmingly positive. The did many of their hits, did a duet with Lorrie Morgan, and a couple of songs with LOCASH. The crowd loved them. While I know there were many who questioned the appearance, I thought they showed a lot of respect to the Opry and those attending appreciated the experience. I am actually looking forward to watching Opry Live when they air the show. 

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While those who attended the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday June 4, 1988 were not aware of it at the time, they were witnessing  the final Opry appearance by one of the Opry's "originals," as Herman Crook performed on the show that he loved for the final time, and the Crook Brothers, as a group, were listed in the Opry program for the final time. 

Here is the running order from that night, 34 years ago: 

1st show
6:30: Bonanza

Jack Greene (host): Walkin' on New Grass
The 4 Guys: What'll You Do About Me
Jack Greene: You Are My Treasure

6:45: Rudy's
Billy Walker (host): Down to My Last Cigarette
Jeannie Seely: Yours
Billy Walker: Wild Texas Rose

7:00: Shoney's
Porter Wagoner (host): Dooley
Wilma Lee Cooper: No One Now

Jan Howard: You Don't Know Me

Charlie Louvin: See the Big Man Cry/You Are What Love Means to Me
Porter Wagoner: I Thought I Heard You Calling My Name
The Right Combination: Turkey in the Straw

7:30: Standard Candy
Roy Acuff (host): Wabash Cannonball
Hank Locklin: Danny Boy

Jeanne Pruett: Satin Sheets

Michael Johnson: I Will Wisper Your Name/The Moon is Still Over Her Shoulder

Dan Kelly: Sally Goodin

8:00: Martha White
Bill Anderson (host): The Corner of My Life

Del Reeves: The Great Chicago Fire

Jean Shepard: Someone's Gotta Cry

Roy Drusky: Blues in My Heart

Crook Brothers and The Melvin Sloan Dancers: Sally Goodin

Bill Anderson: Golden Guitar

8:30: Music Valley
Hank Snow (host): Between Fire & Water

Connie Smith: Did We Have to Come This Far to Say Goodbye

Stu Phillips: I Think I'll Go Somewhere and Cry Myself to Sleep

Del Wood: Piano Roll Blues
Charlie Walker: Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind

Hank Snow: Old Shep

2nd show
9:30: Dollar General

The 4 Guys (host): How Married Are You Mary Ann

Bill Carlisle: Is Zat You Myrtle

Lorrie Morgan: Crazy

Jim Ed Brown: Pop a Top/The 3 Bells

The 4 Guys: Fox on the Run

10:00: Little Debbie

George Hamilton IV (host): I Saw the Light/I'll Fly Away
Skeeter Davis: I Ain't Never

George Hamilton IV: A Farmer's Dream Plowed Under

10:15: Sunbeam
Roy Acuff (host): Night Train to Memphis

Jack Greene: I Need Someone Bad Tonight

10:30: Pet Milk
Roy Drusky (host): Mississippi
Charlie Louvin: In The Pines
Roy Drusky: The Last Farewell

10:45: B.C. Powder
Del Reeves (host): Two Dollars in the Juke Box/A Dime at a Time/Looking at the World Through a Windshield

Jeanne Pruett: Satin Sheets

Crook Brothers and The Melvin Sloan Dancers: Durham's Bull

Del Reeves: She's Still the Only Girl I Can't Forget

11:00: Coca Cola
Hank Snow (host): Tangled Mind

Jean Shepard: I'll Sail My Ship Alone

Justin Tubb: Thanks Troubadour, Thanks

Hank Locklin: Send Me the Pillow You Dream On

Hank Snow: She Wears My Ring

11:30: Creamette
Charlie Walker (host): Deep Water

Connie Smith: Walk Me To the Door

Stu Phillips: Great El Tigra

Johnny Russell: Kawliga

Charlie Walker: Take Me Back to Tulsa

(Herman Crook only appeared with The Crook Brothers on the first show that night, as did Porter Wagoner, who was scheduled for the second show but cancelled. Ernie Ashworth was scheduled for both shows and canceled, while a number of Opry members only appeared on one of the shows that night). 

The following is from the New York Times, June 11, 1988: 

Herman Crook, a harmonica player who was the oldest member of the Grand Ole Opry, died today of a heart attack at Park View Medical Center. He was 89 years old.

Mr. Crook was the last remaining charter member of the Grand Ole Opry, founded in 1925. He returned to the Opry last weekend after a nine-week absence because of health problems.

Mr. Crook, orphaned early in life, was reared in Nashville by brothers and sisters, from whom he learned songs. In 1926, he led a country music string band on the Saturday Night Barn Dance and went to the Opry in 1927. The band is the only act left that represents the original tradition of the Opry; it plays for cloggers, who perform traditional mountain dancing.

Mr. Crook was among the Opry musicians who participated in Nashville's first recording sessions in 1928. By the 1960's, the Opry had become a modern, highly professional program, and the traditional sound of Mr. Crook's group, called the Crook Brothers Band, became a less prominent part of the show.

Herman Crook first appeared on the WSM Barn Dance on July 24, 1926, which if my math is correct, he was a part of the Opry for 61 years and 10+ months.

As mentioned in the obituary, Herman Crook passed away the following week, on June 10. On the show the following night, June 11, Larry McNeely played "Amazing Grace,", which was Herman's favorite song, in the slot during the first show in which the Crook Brothers would have traditionally appeared. The following week, in their place, the Opry program would list the "Opry Square Dance Band" as the name of the group that would accompany the square dancers. 

There you have it for this week. As always, thanks for reading and commenting and I hope everyone enjoys the Grand Ole Opry this weekend, and the coming week.