Thanksgiving weekend is upon us, and it will be a big night Saturday night at the Grand Ole Opry, as Marty Stuart will be honored upon his 30th anniversary as member of the Grand Ole Opry, and also the 50th anniversary of his first appearance on the Opry, which took place in September 1972 as a member of Lester Flatt's Nashville Grass.
The Grammy®-winner first made his appearance on the Grand Ole Opry at the age of 13, just one week after joining legendary Country Music Hall of Famer and Opry member Lester Flatt’s bluegrass band as a mandolin player. Twenty years later, Stuart was inducted into the Opry family on November 28, 1992.
Joining Marty Saturday night will be Grand Ole Opry members Del McCoury, Riders In The Sky, Don Schlitz and Connie Smith, along with comedian Gary Mule Deer, gospel singer Jason Crabb, and making his Opry debut, Jontavious Willis.
Gary Mule Deer is also on the schedule for the Friday Night Opry, making it a two-show weekend for him. As far as Opry members on Friday night, Jeannie Seely, Rhonda Vincent, Jamey Johnson and Charlie McCoy are listed. In addition to Gary Mule Deer, other guest artists on the schedule include Steve Earle, Ian Munsick and making their Opry debut, Appalachian Road Show.
Friday November 25
7:00: Jeannie Seely, Ian Munsick, Charlie McCoy, Steve Earle
Intermission
8:15: Appalachian Road Show, Gary Mule Deer, Rhonda Vincent, Jamey Johnson
Saturday November 26
7:00: Opry Square Dancers, Connie Smith, Jason Crabb, Don Schlitz, Riders In The Sky
8:00: Marty Stuart, Jontavious Willis, Gary Mule Deer, Del McCoury Band
(The 8:00 hour will be televised live on Circle TV, along with their various streaming services, and isn't it nice that after all of his Opry appearances, Gary Mule Deer will be getting some TV time this week).
For Marty, this will be his first Opry appearance in 2022, which is kind of disappointing as I know all of us have expected more from Marty at the Opry. However, in his defense, Marty has been touring pretty heavily and has been working very hard on his Congress of Country Music Museum and the opening of the Ellis Theater, which is part of his project.
I want to share this recent post from a wonderful site, savingcountrymusic.com. If you are not familiar with this site, or their posts on Facebook and Twitter, I highly recommend you check it out.
Since first announcing his plans publicly in 2014 to create a country music destination in his hometown of Philadelphia, Mississippi, Marty Stuart’s Congress of Country Music has been a dream of the Country Music Hall of Famer. The original impetus for the project was to make a permanent home for some 20,000 country music artifacts Marty Stuart has amassed over the years.
In the 90s, thousands of pieces of country music history were being cast aside as worthless when modern country music was hitting its commercial peak. Whole wardrobes of Nudie suits were ending up in dumpsters. Mementos from some of country music’s most prominent stars were up for grabs in thrift stores and junk shops. Marty Stuart scoured Nashville and beyond to retrieve as many of these pieces as he could and has since become a resource for the Country Music Hall of Fame and other institutions for displays and memorabilia.
But that’s just the beginning. The Congress of Country Music will house and display all of Marty’s artifacts, but it will also comprise an education center and other facilities, as well as a performance space. Completely renovating the historic Ellis Theater in downtown Philadelphia as part of the project, it will be the very first part of the Congress of Country Music to come alive when Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives officially take the stage on December 8th with Connie Smith opening the show.
The performance will be part of a succession of opening performances to help christen the Ellis and help raise funds for the eventual completion of Marty Stuart’s shrine to country music. Other performers on the calendar include Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs, Old Crow Medicine Show, Gaither Vocal Band, North Mississippi Allstars, Hardy, and others (see calendar).
For years, all we’ve had to see of what Marty Stuart had in store with the Congress of Country Music were architectural renderings. But as the Ellis Theater gets ready to open, we’re finally getting to witness just how much love and effort Marty Stuart and many others have put into bringing the Congress of Country Music to life.
Earlier this month, Marty Stuart christened the new Ellis Theater by giving a Hard Hat performance to a lot of the construction crew responsible for the project. This allowed us a first sneak peak of the Ellis Theater, thanks to Congress of Country Music Board of Directors member Douglas Hudson, who took the photos below.
The Ellis Theater was first opened in 1926 as a silent movie venue by Henry Bell Hutchison. The newly renovated space boasts 500 seats with the balcony and VIP boxes, a starlight ceiling, and a circle in the stage right where the headliners stand, similar to the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.
The Ellis Theater is just Phase 1 of the Congress of Country Music. Phase 2 will be a new community center and meeting space that will look very similar to a church, with a huge arching-stained glass window and similar treatments inspired by the Mother Church of Country Music, aka the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Phase 3 will be the education building and the archive for all of Marty Stuart’s memorabilia to be displayed, and where lessons, lectures, presentations, and other events will be held.
The Congress of Country Music has been endorsed by the Grammy Museum, the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, and the Library of Congress, and is expected to draw 28,000 and 49,000 visitors annually to Philadelphia. Private donations are also playing a big part in the financing of the project. In May, Marty Stuart announced the appointment of Dr. Dan Barnard as the Congress of Country Music’s Executive Director. When completed, the project will include some 50,000 square feet in total space.
(I know it was a bit long but I thought well worth the read and thanks again to Saving Country Music. Kyle (aka Trigger) does a fantastic job.
All in all, it promises to be a very good weekend at the Opry, and my lovely wife (who has not been to the Opry since 2014) and I will be in Nashville this weekend and attending not only on Saturday night, but also the Opry Christmas Show on Sunday. This will be the first of a series of Christmas shows that will take place up until Christmas. Each show will be hosted by Larry Gatlin and will feature the Gatlin Brothers, Mandy Barnett, Riders In The Sky and Charlie McCoy. Additionally, there will be a couple of special guests, with Kathy Mattea and Steve Wariner appearing this Sunday night. I'll be very interested, and will share, Miss Nellie's observations and thoughts on the Opry, from the perspective of someone who hasn't seen the show live in a few years.
1st show
6:30: Tex Ritter (host); Bill Carlisle
6:45: Stu Phillips (host); Stringbean; Leona Williams
7:00: Roy Drusky (host); Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper; Grandpa and Ramona Jones; Del Wood
7:30: Roy Acuff (host); Willis Brothers; Karen Wheeler
8:00: Jack Greene (host); Jeannie Seely; Bobby Lord
8:30: Ernest Tubb (host); The 4 Guys; Marion Worth; Fruit Jar Drinkers; Wayne Hammond; Louie Roberts
2nd show
9:30: Tex Ritter (host); Willis Brothers; Stringbean; Bill Carlisle
10:00: Stu Phillips (host); Del Wood; Leona Williams
10:15: Bobby Lord (host); Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper
10:30: Roy Acuff (host); Grandpa and Ramona Jones; Karen Wheeler
10:45: Ernest Tubb (host); The 4 Guys; Crook Brothers
11:00: Jack Greene (host); Jeannie Seely; Fruit Jar Drinkers; Sam McGee
11:30: Tompall (host); and The Glaser Brothers; Marion Worth; Louie Roberts
(Roy Drusky appeared only on the first show and Tompall, Chuck and Jim Glaser only on the second show).
In the history of the Grand Ole Opry, only two female members have been Opry members for 60 years. One was Loretta Lynn, and the other was Jean Shepard.
While Jean joined the Opry on November 21, 1955, her first appearance as an Opry member took place several days later on November 26, 1955.
Here is the posted lineup and running order from that night 67 years ago:
7:30: Federal Fertilizer. Co.
Marty Robbins: Maybelline
Fiddle Tune: Old Joe Clark
Minnie Pearl: Comedy
Don and Rita: Lonely Heart
Fiddle Tune: Grey Eagle
7:45: American Ace
George Morgan: Ever So Often
Goldie Hill: Ain't Gonna Wash My Face
Eddie Hill: Smack Dab in the Middle
George Morgan: Jesus, Saviour Pilot Me
Fiddle Tune: Devil's Dream
8:00: Martha White
Flatt and Scruggs: Theme Song
Jim Reeves: Looking For a Sucker
Hawkshaw Hawkins: Standing at the End of the World
Flatt and Scruggs: Flint Hill Special
Jean Shepard: Satisfied Mind
Moon Mullican: Mean Mama
Possum Hunters: Bile Them Cabbage Down
Jim Reeves: I've Lived a Lot in My Lifetime
Maybelle Carter: Wildwood Flower
Flatt and Scruggs: Bubbling in My Soul
Hawkshaw Hawkins: Car-Hoppin' Mama
Fiddle Tune: Blackeyed Susan
8:30: Prince Albert
Ferlin Husky: I'll Baby Sit with You
Rod Brasfield: Comedy
Louvin Brothers: I Don't Believe You've Met My Baby
Fiddle Tune: Soldier's Joy
Ferlin Husky: Sayeth The Lord
Del Wood: Smoky Mountain Polka
Minnie Pearl: Comedy
Louvin Brothers: In The Middle of Nowhere
Chet Atkins: Avalon
Ferlin Husky: Walking and Humming
Fiddle Tune: Katy Hill
9:00: Royal Crown Cola
Hank Snow: Music Making Mama
Fruit Jar Drinkers: Tennessee Wagoner
Lonzo and Oscar: The Cow Jumped the Moon
Bill Monroe: I Used to Be
Carlisles: Knothole
Marty Robbins: Pretty Mama
Hank Snow: I Can See the Love in Your Heart
Lonzo and Oscar: Snow Deer
Carlisles: Lil Liza Jane
Fiddle Tune: Back Up and Push
9:30: Jefferson Island Salt
Jordanaires: Theme Song
Ray Price: I Don't Want You on My Conscience
Slim Whitman: Tell Me
Anita Carter: Mask on My Heart
Cousin Jody: Dear John
Crook Brothers: Girl I Left Behind
Louvin Brothers: Just Rehearsing
Grandpa Jones: Night Train to Memphis
Chet Atkins: Five Foot Two
Jordanaires: Shaking Bridges
Ray Price: Sweet Little Miss Blue Eyes
10:00: Wall-Rite
George Morgan: Almost
Bill Monroe: Close By
Moon Mullican: Cherokee Boogie
George Morgan: The Best Mistake I Every Made
Fiddle Tune: Buffalo Gal
10:15: Dr. Le Gear
Marty Robbins: That's Alright
Carlisles: I Was on My Way to the Show
Goldie Hill: Why Don't You Leave Me Alone
Marty Robbins: Don't Let Me Hang Around
Fiddle Tune: Devil's Dream
10:30: Hester Battery
Jim Reeves: Looking For a Sucker
R.D. Heardon: To Be Announced
Jean Shepard: Beautiful Lies
Jim Reeves: I'm Hurting Inside
Fiddle Tune: Mississippi Sawyer
10:45: D Con
Hank Snow: Just Keep on Moving
Jimmy Snow: Go Back You Fool
Gully Jumpers: Bully of the Town
Hank Snow: Within This Broken Heart
Fiddle Tune: Bill Cheatam
11:00: W. E. Stephens
Lonzo and Oscar: Theme Song
Ferlin Husky: I Feel Better All Over
Hawkshaw Hawkins: The Love You Steal
Rod Brasfield: Comedy
Lonzo and Oscar: Who Put That Brick Wall in My Way
Slim Whitman: Indian Love Call
Grandpa Jones: Call Old Rattler
Maybelle Carter: Gold Watch and Chain
Crook Brothers: Arkansas Traveler
Ferlin Husky: Cuz You're So Sweet
Fiddle Tune: Old Joe Clark
11:30: Delited
Ray Price: Sweet Little Miss Blue Eyes
Louvin Brothers: When I Stop Dreaming
Eddie Hill: Someday You'll Call My Name
Sam and Kirk: While I'm Away
Cousin Jody: Oh, Wonderful World
Ray Price: Release Me
Dot and Smokey: Contact
Fruit Jar Drinkers: Walking in My Sleep
Louvin Brothers: Just Rehearsing
Ray Price: I'll Be There
Fiddle Tune: Sleepy Lou
Once Jean Shepard joined the Grand Ole Opry she never left. After being recognized upon her 60th year as an Opry member in 2015, Jean retired from performing. Jean passed away almost one year later, on September 25, 2016.
One more item before signing off: T. Graham Brown will be hosting the Ernest Tubb Midnite Jamboree this weekend. Taping is at 10:00 at the Troubadour Theater.
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 as they celebrate Marty Stuart.
Thanks to Marty for his project in Philadelphia, Mississippi, and kudos to the 'Opry for the lineup this weekend.
ReplyDeleteThere is HOPE for traditional country music after all.
Have fun this weekend Byron, should be wonderful.
Above comment by me, Nat Hill IV
ReplyDeleteThis is Mike, a frequent commenter--Google is being insane today.
ReplyDeleteFirst, congrats to Marty, and unless he's living back in Mississippi to do this--and since his lovely bride is around, I have my doubts--he could show up more often. Thus endeth my lecture.
That said, he has been a great Opry member, with an unforgettable debut. It was unforgettable on two levels. One was that week, The King had died, so in a sense, Marty succeeded him on the membership roll. The other was that Marty did "Long Black Veil," and said he wanted to do songs that would appeal to older country music fans. Except he didn't say it that way, and there was a bit of a ruckus. I thought it was hilarious. Even 30 years later, now that I'm pretty much one of those old ahems he was talking about, I think it was hilarious.