IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JANET ROBBINS Janet Robbins (Robinson) is the daughter of Marty Robbins. When I contacted her to get an update for my newsletter, I was surprised to learn she’s living in England. She and her Alaskan Malamute-Husky, Max, arrived there on the Queen Mary on August 4, 2017. “If you’re going to […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – MARGIE SINGLETON I couldn’t find Margie Singleton when I was writing Faron Young’s biography, but I’ve found her now–thanks to discovering Margie Singleton Walton on Facebook. During our recent phone chat, she brought me up to date on her life and her new music. Back in the 1960s, 12 of her […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JIMMY FORTUNE “I’m at a really good place right now,” Jimmy Fortune said when he called me for our scheduled interview. “I feel like God’s not finished with me yet. I’m singing as good as I ever did, and I’m writing quite a bit.” He has had to build a new […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – MO PITNEY Morgan Daniel “Mo” Pitney is 25 years old and a native of Rockford, Illinois. He released his first single, “Country,” in 2014. He co-wrote the song with Bill Anderson and Bobby Tomberlin. His first album, Behind This Guitar, was issued in 2016. On the day he called me, he […]
CONCERT REVIEW – JIMMY FORTUNE This past Saturday evening, Coteau Entertainment hosted Jimmy Fortune at the Performing Arts Center in Sisseton, South Dakota. Just Between Friends gave their usual excellent opening performance. My sister, Kayo Paver, and I enjoyed both performances and sold my books during intermission. Jimmy kicked off his one-and-three-quarter-hour show of spectacular […]
This newsletter is late because I just returned home from the national convention for the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Kansas City. I received my second consecutive award for All-American Commander of VFW Post 628 in Sioux Falls. NEWS Larry Gatlin wants his Grammy back–no questions asked. He won his only Grammy in 1977 for […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – BOBBY BRADDOCK Golden Ring – Old Flames Have New Names – He Stopped Loving Her Today – I Wanna Talk About Me – D-I-V-O-R-C-E – Would You Catch a Falling Star – You Can’t Have Your Kate and Edith Too – Her Name Is – Nothing Ever Hurt Me Half As […]
NEWS Dominic Joseph Fontana (1931-2018) D.J. Fontana, 87, died in his sleep on Wednesday evening, June 13. He played drums for Elvis Presley from 1954 to 1968, both onstage and on approximately 460 recordings. A native of Shreveport, Louisiana, he taught himself to play drums by listening to big band records. Hired in 1953 as […]
CONCERT REVIEW – SUZY BOGGUSS Coteau Entertainment recently hosted Suzy Bogguss at the Performing Arts Center in Sisseton, South Dakota. It was a show worth driving 170 miles to see. Just Between Friends gave their usual excellent opening performance. Suzy played a 90-minute set, with the backing of Elio Giordano on upright bass and Craig […]
FEATURED ARTIST — Wylie Gustafson If you’ve heard the three-note yodel for Yahoo.com, you’ve heard Wylie Gustafson. He told me the story when I called him last week. The Montana cowboy had moved to Los Angeles in the mid-1980s to pursue a musical career. Playing at the Palomino Club, he became known as one of […]