NEWS Kenny Rogers (1938-2020) On March 20, Kenny Rogers, 81, died peacefully at home while in hospice care. He was surrounded by his family, Variety reports. Due to the national COVID-19 emergency, the family will hold a small private service now and a public memorial at a later date.
http://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.png00Diane Diekmanhttp://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.pngDiane Diekman2020-03-25 08:41:072020-03-25 08:48:53Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 25 March 2020
By Heather Cox Richardson In her new book, How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America, Heather Cox Richardson says oligarchy and democracy are two incompatible ideologies woven into the fabric of this nation. While readers may disagree with her premise, and many will, it […]
http://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/How-the-South-Won-the-Civil-War.png320213Diane Diekmanhttp://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.pngDiane Diekman2020-03-13 17:09:222026-02-05 17:09:54How The South Won The Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, And The Continuing Fight For The Soul Of America
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JEANNIE SEELY “I’m so proud of this area of Nashville, that people are all pulling together to help each other,” Jeannie Seely told me when I called her last week. “The tornado has left such destruction here, and such heartache.” She knows of what she speaks. She lost all her possessions […]
http://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.png00Diane Diekmanhttp://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.pngDiane Diekman2020-03-11 07:42:362020-03-11 07:47:35Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 11 March 2020
This week we think back 88 years, to February 25, 1932, the day a little boy was born in a two-bedroom rental home in Shreveport, Louisiana. Five-year-old Dorothy Young stood in the front yard and yelled at those passing by, “We got a new baby brother!” Faron Young remains in our hearts and in our […]
http://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.png00Diane Diekmanhttp://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.pngDiane Diekman2020-02-26 09:07:412020-02-26 09:10:54Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 26 February 2020
NEWS The last original member of the Kingston Trio has died. Bob Shane of Phoenix, Arizona, died of complications from pneumonia on January 26, a few days before his 86th birthday. He, Dave Guard, and Nick Reynolds formed the Kingston Trio in the 1950s and won a Grammy for Country & Western Performance for “Tom […]
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NEWS Bakersfield.com reports the death of 67-year-old Mark Yeary, a California native who spent 19 years as pianist and occasional record producer for Merle Haggard and the Strangers. He died January 17 after suffering a heart attack at his home in Arizona City, Arizona. “He played music Thursday night,” his longtime girlfriend said in a […]
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IN THE SPOTLIGHT – MO PITNEY When Mo Pitney returned my call last Monday night, he said, “I just left the studio. We put the final vocal on our record. So we’re a little closer to having it put out.” He remembered seeing me at his Sisseton, South Dakota, concert in November. And he appeared […]
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By Andrew Marble General John Shalikashvili [shalli-kash-VEE-lee] served from 1993 to 1997 as Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. His thick European accent made people wonder about his heritage. Descended from a line of Tsarist Russian princes and born in Poland in 1936, he and his family had come to the United States […]
http://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Boy-on-the-Bridge.png320221Diane Diekmanhttp://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.pngDiane Diekman2020-01-13 14:10:122026-02-05 14:10:43Boy On The Bridge: The Story Of John Shalikashvili’s American Success
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – MOE BANDY When I called Moe Bandy to ask if he had time for a conversation, he was in the middle of a family Christmas party at his home in Branson, Missouri. Still, he took a few minutes to talk to me. He had just returned from Las Vegas, where he’d […]
http://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.png00Diane Diekmanhttp://dianediekman.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Diane-Diekman-Logo.pngDiane Diekman2020-01-01 10:39:182020-01-01 10:39:19Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 1 January 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JOE STAMPLEY It’s been almost four years since I featured Joe Stampley in this newsletter. shortly after his heart bypass surgery (http://dianediekman.com/dianes-country-music-newsletter-10-february-2016). When I called him for an update, he told me he feels good. “The thing that hurt me more than anything,” he said, “four months after my bypass surgery, […]
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Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 25 March 2020
NEWS Kenny Rogers (1938-2020) On March 20, Kenny Rogers, 81, died peacefully at home while in hospice care. He was surrounded by his family, Variety reports. Due to the national COVID-19 emergency, the family will hold a small private service now and a public memorial at a later date.
How The South Won The Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, And The Continuing Fight For The Soul Of America
By Heather Cox Richardson In her new book, How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America, Heather Cox Richardson says oligarchy and democracy are two incompatible ideologies woven into the fabric of this nation. While readers may disagree with her premise, and many will, it […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 11 March 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JEANNIE SEELY “I’m so proud of this area of Nashville, that people are all pulling together to help each other,” Jeannie Seely told me when I called her last week. “The tornado has left such destruction here, and such heartache.” She knows of what she speaks. She lost all her possessions […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 26 February 2020
This week we think back 88 years, to February 25, 1932, the day a little boy was born in a two-bedroom rental home in Shreveport, Louisiana. Five-year-old Dorothy Young stood in the front yard and yelled at those passing by, “We got a new baby brother!” Faron Young remains in our hearts and in our […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 12 February 2020
NEWS The last original member of the Kingston Trio has died. Bob Shane of Phoenix, Arizona, died of complications from pneumonia on January 26, a few days before his 86th birthday. He, Dave Guard, and Nick Reynolds formed the Kingston Trio in the 1950s and won a Grammy for Country & Western Performance for “Tom […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 29 January 2020
NEWS Bakersfield.com reports the death of 67-year-old Mark Yeary, a California native who spent 19 years as pianist and occasional record producer for Merle Haggard and the Strangers. He died January 17 after suffering a heart attack at his home in Arizona City, Arizona. “He played music Thursday night,” his longtime girlfriend said in a […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 15 January 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – MO PITNEY When Mo Pitney returned my call last Monday night, he said, “I just left the studio. We put the final vocal on our record. So we’re a little closer to having it put out.” He remembered seeing me at his Sisseton, South Dakota, concert in November. And he appeared […]
Boy On The Bridge: The Story Of John Shalikashvili’s American Success
By Andrew Marble General John Shalikashvili [shalli-kash-VEE-lee] served from 1993 to 1997 as Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. His thick European accent made people wonder about his heritage. Descended from a line of Tsarist Russian princes and born in Poland in 1936, he and his family had come to the United States […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 1 January 2020
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – MOE BANDY When I called Moe Bandy to ask if he had time for a conversation, he was in the middle of a family Christmas party at his home in Branson, Missouri. Still, he took a few minutes to talk to me. He had just returned from Las Vegas, where he’d […]
Diane’s Country Music Newsletter — 18 December 2019
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – JOE STAMPLEY It’s been almost four years since I featured Joe Stampley in this newsletter. shortly after his heart bypass surgery (http://dianediekman.com/dianes-country-music-newsletter-10-february-2016). When I called him for an update, he told me he feels good. “The thing that hurt me more than anything,” he said, “four months after my bypass surgery, […]