Jeanne Pruett

I would be remiss if I did not make a mention today of Jeanne Pruett, who on Sunday is celebrating her 74th birthday. Jeanne joined the Opry on July 21, 1973. She was the last 'singing' member to join the Opry before its move to the new Opry House in 1974. (Jerry Clower was actually the last Opry member to join while the Opry was still at the Ryman Auditorium).

The story of Jeanne becoming an Opry member is interesting and here is how she described it: "Actually, as it turned out, I had been a member of the Opry for almost a year before I could get inducted. Dolly Parton wanted so badly to introduce me as the new member of the Opry, but her schedule and mine conflicted and we just couldn't seem to find a time to arrange the introduction. Anyway, I finally 'joined' on July 21, 1973. And Dolly did introduce me."

Jeanne was close friends with Marty Robbins and worked for a time as a songwriter for Marty Robbins Enterprises. She also appeared many times on the final segment of the Saturday night shows when Marty was in town hosting those segments.

Although Jeanne retired from performing, she is still an Opry member today and does appear at many music related events in town. Her retirement from performing was actually kind of sudden. In 2000 she performed on the Opry 64 times, and then in 2001, she performed on the show 23 times and then called it quits. In 2006, when she officially announced her retirement from performing, she actually offered to give up her Opry membership to allow room for a younger female artist to join the show, but the Opry management did not take her up on her offer.

Jeanne's last Opry appearance was on Saturday June 9, 2001, when she appeared on both shows. In tribute to Jeanne Pruett, and in wishing her a happy birthday, here are the Opry line-ups from both shows on Saturday June 9, 2001.

6:30: Jimmy C. Newman(host); The Whites; Bill Carlisle; Gail Davies
7:00: Porter Wagoner(host); Jeanne Pruett; Osborne Brothers; David Ball
7:30: Riders In The Sky(host); Joni Harms; Connie Smith; Dan Seals
8:00: Bill Anderson(host); T.G. Sheppard; Opry Square Dance Band; Melvin Sloan Dancers
8:30: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jack Greene; Mandy Barnett

9:30: Porter Wagoner(host); Connie Smith; Osborne Brothers; T.G. Sheppard
10:00: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jeanne Pruett; The Whites; David Ball
10:30: Riders In The Sky(host); Gail Davies; Joni Harms; Hank Locklin; Opry Square Dance Band; Melvin Sloan Dancers
11:00; Jimmy C. Newman(host); Del Reeves; Dan Seals
11:30: George Hamilton IV(host); Ray Pillow; Jack Greene; Mandy Barnett

Grand Ole Opry Line-up 1/28 & 1/29

The Grand Ole Opry is finishing up its winter run at the Ryman Auditorium this weekend in a big way on Saturday night, with 2 shows scheduled. The featured attraction on Saturday night will be Toby Keith, who will be making just his 2nd Opry appearance ever. He will be joined by Trace Adkins, and despite comments made about her last Opry appearance, Laura Bell Bundy returns. Also returning for his 2nd Opry appearance will be Frankie Ballard.

You will notice that there is no Jimmy Dickens this week at the Opry. Don't sweat, he is fine. He actually will be making a personal concert appearance in Texas on Saturday night. Good to see that Jimmy is well enough to be making some appearances outside of Nashville.

Friday January 28
7:00: Jeannie Seely(host); Jim Ed Brown; Brett Eldredge
7:30: Riders In The Sky(host); Jack Greene; Del McCoury Band
INTERMISSION
8:15: Bill Anderson(host); Jimmy C. Newman; Darryl Worley
8:45: Ricky Skaggs(host); T.G.Sheppard; The Whites

Saturday January 29
First Show
7:00: John Conlee(host); Jimmy C. Newman; Frankie Ballard
7:30: The Whites(host); Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press; Laura Bell Bundy
8:00: Bill Anderson(host); Jan Howard; Josh Thompson; Opry Square Dancers
8:30: Trace Adkins(host); Carter's Cord; Toby Keith

Second Show
9:30: John Conlee(host); Jesse McReynolds & The Virginia Boys; Frankie Ballard
10:00: Riders In The Sky(host); Jack Greene; Laura Bell Bundy
10:30: Bill Anderson(host); Stu Phillips; Josh Thompson; Opry Square Dancers
11:00: Trace Adkins(host); Carter's Cord; Toby Keith

Charlie Louvin

As I am sure everyone knows by now, Grand Ole Opry member and Country Music Hall of Fame member Charlie Louvin passed away early this morning. Prayers and thoughts go out to his family as I am sure it must have been very difficult for them during these past several weeks. And I am sure that the prayers for Charlie to be relieved of his pain and suffering have been answered.

I am not going to go through Charlie Louvin's career as all the various news articles have covered that very well. But, I did want to make just some personal observations and thoughts regarding Charlie.

I never saw Charlie give a full concert. I did see him dozens of times on the Opry and also saw him several times hosting the Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree. My one story about Charlie that always brings a smile to my face is in regards to one of the times he hosted the Midnight Jamboree. It was several years back, during the time that Charlie had the Louvin Brother's Museum a couple of spots down from the record shop. It was either in January or February and it was a very cold night. For those of you who have been to the Midnight Jamboree, you will know that they always set up an autograph table in the record shop and after the show, the artists will sign books, pictures, records, tapes, cd's, etc. Well about 11:00 or so, a car pulls up to the front of the record shop and Charlie Louvin gets out. He opens his trunk and carries in a couple of boxes of cd's to sell that night. When he comes in the door, the record shop employee at the register says hi and asks Charlie what he has. Charlie tells the clerk that they are extra cd's that he had at his house, and he brought them to make sure that the record shop did not run out and that there was enough for everyone who wanted one. What I later found out was that Charlie was selling the cd's that he brought for the list price and keeping all the money for himself, while those that were sold from the record shop's inventory, were credited to the record shop, of which they got the money. I just found that humorous and it brings a smile to my face every time I think of it. And in the end, there were only about 100 people there that night for the Midnight Jamboree.

I always thought that Charlie Louvin was really unappreciated by the management of the Opry, specifically the current general manager Pete Fisher. Since Pete took over as the manager of the Opry, Charlie's Opry appearances really went down. And, they did not go down at Charlie's request Charlie, along with Del Reeves and Billy Walker, was very vocal about his lack of appearances at the Opry and even gave an interview to the Nashville Tennessean about it. But, nothing changed. He appeared on the Opry 38 times in 2001 and it went steadily downhill from there, with Charlie appearing on the Opry only 13 times in 2006, 9 times in 2007, 10 times in 2008 and 12 times in 2009 and 10 times in 2010. That averages out to just once per month. I can think of no other Country Music Hall of Fame member and Opry member who was treated more shabbily than Charlie.

As a Hall of Famer, just like Jimmy Dickens and Bill Anderson, he should have been allowed to be on the Opry as often as he wanted. I know that there are always behind the scene politics going on at the Opry and I can only think that Charlie just didn't want to "play ball" with the current management. And speaking of the Hall of Fame, the Louvin Brothers were elected as part of the mass induction of 2001.

I remember a few years ago when the Opry devoted the entire televised segment to the Louvin Brothers tribute album that was done with various artists. They had many of the artists on the show that night, including Ronnie Dunn and others, doing the songs from that album. And where was Charlie? They brought him on and acknowledged him only for the final number. He should have been featured on the whole show!!

The Opry always recognizes Jimmy Dickens as being an Opry member for over 60 years, but as Jean Shepard said in many interviews, nobody had been around the Opry for more consecutive years than Charlie. And, he remained loyal for all those years.

In some ways, Charlie's final years were some of his most productive. He found a nice sound for himself, was back in the studio (I think he must have recorded about 6 or 7 albums including several in the past year), and was making personal concert appearances. He was attracting new fans, and they loved him. Heck, he even played at Bonnaroo a couple of years back.

If the Opry follows tradition, they will devote Friday and Saturday night's shows to Charlie. Pete Fisher will probably start each show with a statement and a moment of silence. It will be interesting in what Pete says. Also, it would be nice if the Opry would devote a segment to Charlie Louvin and the music of the Louvin Brothers. But, I will be surprised if they do. Heck, as of late this afternoon, the Opry's website still had no mention of Charlie's death.

I know it was easy to forget what a great influence that the Louvin Brothers had, not only in country music, but in music in general. After all, it has been since the mid 1960's that any new Louvin Brothers material has been out there. But artists such as Emmylou Harris, Gram Parsons, Chris Hillman, the Byrd's, and so many others were heavily influenced by the Louvin Brothers. And after Ira's death, Charlie had a very nice solo career of his own.

Over the past several years, the Opry has lost many of their legends. Folks such as Hank Locklin, Ernie Ashworth, Charlie Walker, Billy Walker, Roy Drusky, Skeeter Davis, Bill Carlisle and Porter Wagoner. And now Charlie Louvin. The Opry will continue, but as each of these legends die, the Opry spotlight shines just a little less brighter. And it will continue to dim unless many of today's current Opry members step up and support the show. Supporting it like Charlie Louvin did.

God Bless Charlie Louvin. It was a pleasure and and an honor to enjoy your talents.

Opry Stars I Have Met

When I was writing the post about Johnny Russell and my personal experience on meeting Johnny, I got to thinking about the Opry members that I have met over the years. I have met quite a few and I thought that I would share some observations on some of them.

I met Bill Anderson about 20 years ago when he came to town and played at the county fair. Like most country dates, Bill did a meet and greet with the fans after his show. I had purchased his book to sign, which he did. Now, as many of you know, my first name is Byron. After Bill autographed the book, he asked if I had read it yet and I said no. He then went on to tell me that one of the people who helped him in his career was also named Byron and to make sure to read about him in the book. Bill came across as someone who really appreciated the fans.

George Hamilton IV is someone who I have talked to several times. Once was at Opryland, where he signed a birthday card to my wife. We talked for several minutes about his gospel singing and some of the songs that he had recorded. The 2nd time I met George was at the Midnight Jamboree, actually before the show as he was standing outside the Broadway shop just waiting for the Opry to end. Again, he took the time just to chat and he was really personable.

I have told the Jan Howard story several times and how she took the time at the Ernest Tubb Record Shop to spend about 15 minutes sitting on the side of the stage and talking to my teenage daughter. To me, Jan is a real classy lady who cares about her fans. Just to watch her talking to a complete stranger, asking her where she was from, where she went to school, etc., was nice.

Porter Wagoner was something else. Again, I was with my daughter at Opryland, when Porter was doing his television show there. Porter spent more time talking to her than me. He invited her "into his office", which was really a chair at the side of the stage. He was great with pictures and in signing items for us.

Jim Ed Brown has given me mixed experiences. I have seen him at the Opry, walking through the Opry House before the show and talking to fans and very friendly. At other times, I have seen him not want to talk to anyone. Everyone has a bad day, so nothing against Jim Ed.

Ralph Stanley I talked to after a show last year up here in Ohio. He looked pretty rough and then I found out he had just got out of the hospital the day before and still came up to do the show. He seemed a little unsteady, but again, it was a great experience talking to this bluegrass legend.

Marty Stuart I met up here in Ohio and he spent the whole time cracking jokes and just having a great time.

Charlie Walker asked me about a DJ that he knew from Texas and was now living in Ohio. After he found out I was from Canton he was very interested if I knew Jaybird Drennen. when I told him that I did, that was all it took for Charlie to tell me Jaybird stories and to make sure to call Jay and tell him Charlie said hi.

Del Reeves was talking to me between Opry shows at the Ernest Tubb Record Shop. He was hosting that night when it was still downtown and he drove out on his bus from the new Opry House and had to go back. Del was running out the door when I young man in a wheel chair stopped him for an autograph. That was all it took for Del. He knelt down beside the young boy and talked to him for a good 5 minutes. His manager kept telling him they had to go to get back to the Opry, but Del kept saying that the Opry could wait. He was doing something more important. He was talking to a new friend. My respect for Del went up 100% after seeing that.

Grandpa Jones was completely different off stage then on. He was a very serious man who really thought things out before talking. At least, that was my impression. Very nice man.

Stu Phillips was at his winery when I stopped in to see what it was like. Stu was talking to all the customers and fans and he was a joy to talk to. I was impressed that he is a minister and we talked about religion. Sorry to say, that his wine needed a little bit of work, and I did find it strange that a minister would own a winery, but ok.

Jeanne Pruett was always at Opryland hawking her cookbooks. If you wanted to talk about receipes, she was the one to talk to . She was always looking for a new one and she would talk cooking with you.

Charlie Collins shared some great stories about behind the scene activities. And, what a fine guitar player he is. When I told Charlie it was my wife's birthday, he insisted on playing happy birthday to her on the guitar.

Jean Shepard was really down to earth and my wife even said that is someone she would love to have dinner with sometime.

Some of the others have included Wilma Lee Cooper, Bill Carlisle, Hank Locklin, Connie Smith, along with Johnny Russell.

Those are just a few. There have been many others. As a general rule, if I see someone famous, I am not shy about approaching them. But, I make sure that they are approachable. And I never approach them if they are eating or out with their families. And for whatever reason, some entertainers just are not approachable. I will not name those, but there are a few. All in all, I think that the country music legends really appreciate their fans and that they know that they would not be where they are at today if not for them.

Johnny Russell

I just wanted to take a moment and remember Johnny Russell. John would have turned 71 years old on Sunday January 23. He was a great songwriter and recorded several hit records himself. But more than that, Johnny was just a nice person.

I had the pleasure of not only seeing him on the Opry many times, but also saw him in concert and had the opportunity to sit and talk to him. In concert, he put on a great show. He was funny and enjoyable to listen to. I still remember the day I was at Opryland and stopped at one of the food areas for lunch. I was sitting with my daughter at a table in a pavilion when this gentleman asked if he could sit and eat his lunch with us. It was Johnny!! We sat and talked for about 30 minutes and he was the one asking the questions. Such as where we were from, were we enjoying ourselves, etc, etc. He never once came across as a big, Opry star. When we all got up to leave, he was the one thanking us for our time.

I know that John battled a lot of health problems later in his life, many of his own doing due to his weight issues. He had open heart surgery and suffered a stroke, but he always came back to the Opry. After Marty Robbins died, Johnny kind of took over the 11:30 segment. While no Marty Robbins, he really tried to make the segment his own and he did a nice job. He did not do the early Saturday show on a regular basis, but when he did, it was usually to host the televised portion on TNN.

Johnny was the one to first introduce Garth Brooks on the Opry and Garth insisted that Johnny induct him as an official member when the time came. Garth always insisted on appearing on Johnny's segment when he played the Opry.

Johnny joined the Opry in August 1985 and would remain a member until his death on July 3, 2001, from complications while suffering from diabetes. He was only 61 when he did, which was much too young. His last years were not kind and he suffered greatly. Johnny last appeared on the Opry in 2000. After his death, the 11:30 portion of the Opry on Saturday July 7, 2001 was dedicated to Johnny. As was written that night:

"Johnny Russell embodied the spirit of the Grand Ole Opry. He was a friendly, self-effacing professional who loved the camaraderie of the musicians and the laughter and applause of the crowd. And he loved being home on the late show of the Saturday night Opry. Well, Russell, the wise-cracking mountain of a man and brilliant songwriter, died this week after a long battle with diabetes and related ailments. His funeral is today at the Opry House. That's only fitting. Then Johnny Russell goes home one more time when his spirit guides his colleagues through A Salute to Johnny Russell tonight. It's the late show: 11:30-midnight---Johnny Russell time."

As Johnny said ever show, "Can you see me alright?"

Grand Ole Opry Line-Up 1/21 & 1/22--Updated

The Grand Ole Opry has posted the line-up for the shows this weekend. Again, the Opry will be at the Ryman Auditorium for 1 show on Friday night and 1 show on Saturday night. This week, the Friday Night Opry looks like the stronger of the 2 shows, featuring Montgomery Gentry and the Oak Ridge Boys. Ralph Stanley was originally scheduled for this weekend, but as was noted previously, he had a heart pacemaker recently installed and is resting.

Friday January 21
7:00: Ricky Skaggs(host); Jim Ed Brown; The Whites
7:30: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jeannie Seely; Del McCoury Band
INTERMISSION
8:15: John Conlee(host); Bobby Osborne & The Rocky Top X-Press; Montgomery Gentry
8:45: Mike Snider(host); Connie Smith; Oak Ridge Boys

Saturday January 22
7:00: Jimmy Dickens(host); Jimmy C. Newman; Del McCoury Band
7:30: Riders In The Sky(host); Thompson Square; Jesse McReynolds & The Virginia Boys
INTERMISSION
8:15: Mike Snider(host); Jan Howard; Holly Williams; Opry Square Dancers
8:45: Ricky Skaggs(host); Jean Shepard; Jack Greene; The Whites

2010 Grand Ole Opry Appearances

I have completed the list of Grand Ole Opry appearances by Opry members in 2010. In 2010, there were a total of 188 Opry shows. The complete breakdown was 54 Friday night shows, 70 Saturday night shows, 42 Tuesday Night Oprys and 22 Opry Country Classic shows on Thursday night. Just to give everyone some comparison, in 2009, there were 200 Opry shows, with the big difference this year being 11 less Saturday shows, as the Opry has only one show on the majority of Saturday nights. Going back to 2008, before the Thursday shows started, there were 201 Opry show, with 105 of those on Saturday night. So from 2008 to 2010, the number of Saturday shows has dropped by 35!!

In listing the appearances by Opry members, I have them in order from most appearances to the least. Also, in parentheses I have how that number compares to the year before, 2009. Also, I have included all the shows. So, even though Larry Gatlin has a number of Opry appearances, all were on the Thursday night show. Theoretically, more Opry shows spread over more nights is supposed to give Opry members more opportunities to be on the show. But, as you will see, that is not necessarily happening. Also, 2010 did have the flood, which did affect the show greatly as the Opry moved between various sights.

1. 126-Jimmy Dickens(145 in 2009)
2. 99-Mike Snider(121)
3. 82-The Whites(108)
4. 81-Jeannie Seely(81)
5. 79-Jim Ed Brown(95)
6. 78-Jimmy C. Newman(96)
7. 73-Jean Shepard(93)
8. 71-Bill Anderson(96)
9. 70-Connie Smith(98)
10. 68-John Conlee(51)
11. 66-Jack Greene(63)
12. 63-Riders In The Sky(63)
13. 49-Jan Howard(43)
14. 48-Bobby Osborne(47)
15. 45-Jesse McReynolds(53)
16. 39-George Hamilton IV(30)
17. 28-Del McCoury(32)
18. 27-Stonewall Jackson(27)
19. 23-Marty Stuart(34)
20. 19-Ricky Skaggs(37)
21. 17-Vince Gill(32)
22. 13-Diamond Rio(9)
23. 12-Ray Pillow(11), Charlie Daniels(13)
24. 11-Joe Diffie(10)
25. 10-Larry Gatlin(9), Charlie Louvin(12), Craig Morgan(10), Mel Tillis(9), Steve Wariner(13)
26. 9-Blake Shelton(0)
27. 8-Trace Adkins(10), Terri Clark(5), Emmylou Harris(2), Charley Pride(7)
28. 7-Montgomery Gentry(9), Lorrie Morgan(16), Stu Phillips(10)
29. 6-Dierks Bentley)5), Ralph Stanley(10), Pam Tillis(12), Josh Turner(7), Carrie Underwood(10)
30. 5-Roy Clark(3)
31. 4-Loretta Lynn(3), Brad Paisley(3)
32. 3-Martina McBride(6), Dolly Parton(0)
33. 2-Mel McDaniel(16), Ronnie Milsap(3), George Jones(1)
34. 1-Wilma Lee Cooper, Alan Jackson(0), Hal Ketchum(20), Patty Loveless(3), Randy Travis(0), Trisha Yearwood(2)
35. 0-Clint Black(0), Garth Brooks(0), Billy Grammer(2), Tom T. Hall(0), Alison Krauss(5), Barbara Mandrell(0), Reba McEntire(1), Jeanne Pruett(0), Ricky Van Shelton(0), Travis Tritt(0)

Currently there are 67 Grand Ole Opry members. I did include appearances by Wilma Lee Cooper and Mel McDaniel, because they were on the Opry stage during actual Opry numbers. It is hard to believe that only 25 of the Opry's members appeared at least 10 times in 2010.

It was disturbing to see a number of the Opry's popular veterans have reduced appearances in 2010, after really supporting the show the year before. Those would include Ricky Skaggs, Vince Gill, Marty Stuart, Lorrie Morgan, Pam Tillis and Hal Ketchum. I feel some of the reduction had to do with less Saturday night shows as a number of the artists listed mostly appeared on Saturday nights and would do both shows. Also, I think the show moving around did not help. It was nice to see a jump in appearances by Emmylou Harris and John Conlee.

Most of the Opry's legends saw either a slight reduction in appearances or about the same number as the year before. Again with the legends, most of this is by management's choice, not the artists. Most every legend would do every Opry show if they were asked.

All of Blake Shelton's appearances took place before he became a member. And, it should be noted that a number of the Opry members with no appearances, have either retired or do not appear do to health reasons. Those would include Billy Grammer, Barbara Mandrell, Jeanne Pruett and Ricky Van Shelton.

As far as non-Opry members who appeared the most in 2010? Here are the top ones:

1. 16-Holly Williams, Chris Young
2. 15-Dailey & Vincent, Darryl Singletary
3. 14-Mandy Barnett
4. 12-Emily West
5. 11-Restless Heart, Rebecca Lynn Howard
6. 9-Jimmy Wayne, The Grascals, Elizabeth Cook, Joey+Roey
7. 8-Chuck Mead, Cherryholmes
8. 6-Point Of Grace, Sam Bush, Gene Watson, Eric Church

And, as always, I have tried to make sure the list is accurate. However, there is the possibility that I may have missed an appearance by someone. But, I think it is overall correct. Hope you enjoy this little look back.