IN THE SPOTLIGHT – DALLAS WAYNE When Dallas Wayne, 64, announced he had moved from Austin, Texas, to Bristol, Tennessee, I decided it was time for an update from the Willie’s Roadhouse (SiriusXM) deejay.
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JEFF CHANDLER When Jeff Chandler woke up in the middle of the night, unable to breathe and with the feeling of an elephant sitting on his chest, his wife immediately called 9-1-1. By daybreak, he had four stents in his heart and was in the recovery room. Carole’s phone call saved […]
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT – RAY BENSON It’s been fifty years since Ray Benson dropped out of college at age 18 to form a band. When we connected last week for a phone conversation, and I asked him to summarize the early days, he told me, “I was in college and realized I was not going […]
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NEWS Katherine Williams-Dunning, 27, daughter of Hank Williams Jr., was killed in a single-vehicle accident on June 13. Country Now reports she was driving a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe and towing a boat southbound on Highway 79 near Paris, Tennessee. At 7:44 p.m., her SUV crossed the median, rolled over on the northbound lanes and stopped […]
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JERRY KENNEDY It had been a few years since I last talked to Jerry Kennedy, who produced Faron Young’s Mercury records. They both grew up in Shreveport, Louisiana. When I got in touch with him last week, it was an enjoyable catch-up conversation. “I hope you know how much I enjoy […]
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By Wayne Warner Backstage Nashville: The Undisclosed Story of a Major Label Recording Artist is Wayne Warner’s memoir of his life as a musician in the country music world. Warner talks about touring the country and headlining shows where he followed Lonestar and “Amazed,” Josh Turner and “Long Black Train,” and Billy Ray Cyrus of […]
http://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Backstage-Nashville.png320206Diane Diekmanhttp://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.pngDiane Diekman2020-05-25 17:01:522026-02-05 17:02:29Backstage Nashville: The Undisclosed Story Of A Major Label Recording Artist
NEWS BookAuthority’s “81 Best Country Music Books of All Time” lists the 2019 Randy Travis memoir, Forever and Ever, Amen as its number one choice. Number four is 2016’s Whisperin’ Bill Anderson: An Unprecedented Life in Country Music. Imagine my surprise to find this title at number fourteen: Twentieth Century Drifter: The Life of Marty […]
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NEWS A second member of my favorite singing group, the Statler Brothers, is gone. Harold Reid, 80, died at home in Staunton, Virginia, on April 24, following a long battle with kidney failure. In 1964, the Statler Brothers (Harold, brother Don Reid, Lew DeWitt, and Phil Balsley) drove to Roanoke to see Johnny Cash in […]
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT – BILL ANDERSON When I checked in with Bill Anderson last week, he told me, “I’ve got a three-point thing I’ve been trying to do: Stay in, stay safe, and stay sane. I’m doing pretty good on the first two; I don’t know how I’m doing on the last one.” Bill is […]
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT – TERRY SMITH The best $100 Terry Smith ever spent was for a 12-cassette course by Peter C. Knickles, called Doing Music and Nothing Else. He purchased it about the time he retired from teaching in 1996. The course “covered the music business from A to Z,” Terry told me during our […]
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Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 29 July 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – DALLAS WAYNE When Dallas Wayne, 64, announced he had moved from Austin, Texas, to Bristol, Tennessee, I decided it was time for an update from the Willie’s Roadhouse (SiriusXM) deejay.
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 15 July 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JEFF CHANDLER When Jeff Chandler woke up in the middle of the night, unable to breathe and with the feeling of an elephant sitting on his chest, his wife immediately called 9-1-1. By daybreak, he had four stents in his heart and was in the recovery room. Carole’s phone call saved […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 1 July 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – RAY BENSON It’s been fifty years since Ray Benson dropped out of college at age 18 to form a band. When we connected last week for a phone conversation, and I asked him to summarize the early days, he told me, “I was in college and realized I was not going […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 17 June 2020
NEWS Katherine Williams-Dunning, 27, daughter of Hank Williams Jr., was killed in a single-vehicle accident on June 13. Country Now reports she was driving a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe and towing a boat southbound on Highway 79 near Paris, Tennessee. At 7:44 p.m., her SUV crossed the median, rolled over on the northbound lanes and stopped […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 3 June 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JERRY KENNEDY It had been a few years since I last talked to Jerry Kennedy, who produced Faron Young’s Mercury records. They both grew up in Shreveport, Louisiana. When I got in touch with him last week, it was an enjoyable catch-up conversation. “I hope you know how much I enjoy […]
Backstage Nashville: The Undisclosed Story Of A Major Label Recording Artist
By Wayne Warner Backstage Nashville: The Undisclosed Story of a Major Label Recording Artist is Wayne Warner’s memoir of his life as a musician in the country music world. Warner talks about touring the country and headlining shows where he followed Lonestar and “Amazed,” Josh Turner and “Long Black Train,” and Billy Ray Cyrus of […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 20 May 2020
NEWS BookAuthority’s “81 Best Country Music Books of All Time” lists the 2019 Randy Travis memoir, Forever and Ever, Amen as its number one choice. Number four is 2016’s Whisperin’ Bill Anderson: An Unprecedented Life in Country Music. Imagine my surprise to find this title at number fourteen: Twentieth Century Drifter: The Life of Marty […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 6 May 2020
NEWS A second member of my favorite singing group, the Statler Brothers, is gone. Harold Reid, 80, died at home in Staunton, Virginia, on April 24, following a long battle with kidney failure. In 1964, the Statler Brothers (Harold, brother Don Reid, Lew DeWitt, and Phil Balsley) drove to Roanoke to see Johnny Cash in […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 22 April 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – BILL ANDERSON When I checked in with Bill Anderson last week, he told me, “I’ve got a three-point thing I’ve been trying to do: Stay in, stay safe, and stay sane. I’m doing pretty good on the first two; I don’t know how I’m doing on the last one.” Bill is […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 8 April 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – TERRY SMITH The best $100 Terry Smith ever spent was for a 12-cassette course by Peter C. Knickles, called Doing Music and Nothing Else. He purchased it about the time he retired from teaching in 1996. The course “covered the music business from A to Z,” Terry told me during our […]