Faron Young and Marty Robbins newsletter — 20 February 2013
February 1932
Faron Young was born in a two-bedroom rental house in Shreveport, Louisiana, on February 25, 1932. At that time, out in Arizona, Martin David Robinson and his twin sister were first graders at Sunnyside School in Cactus, 12 miles north of Phoenix. Their family had moved the previous summer into an abandoned two-room shack on a hog farm. Five Robinson children rode the bus to school. “I remember times when we did not have lunch,” Marty once said, “and people would get together and bring a lunch for us to have. So I know what it is to be poor.”
Internet Interview
Bonnie Blose will be interviewing me on an her Internet talk show, Books And Beyond, at 7 pm on Wednesday, March 13. The show lasts an hour and is then edited for broadcast on several Internet radio stations.
Directions for those who want to listen live: Go to http://accessibleworld.org. One of the headings contains a list of conference rooms. To enter the Books And Beyond chat room and listen to the show, you will have to download a small file from the web conference software listed in the Download section. It takes just a second and is totally safe. Those listening may participate through the use of a microphone.
Sonny Burnette
Sonny Burnette, who played steel guitar for Faron Young in 1967, died on February 13. According to a message I read, his daughter said he didn’t want a funeral service, and there wouldn’t be a published obituary. As mentioned in my last newsletter, I met Sonny when he attended my Country Deputy reunion in 2000. When I interviewed him then, he told me he’d “retired on disability because I had an injury. My guitar and amp were heavy, and I got to the point where it hurt to carry them, so I retired in March 1991.”
LETTERS
Tara Lanning writes from Nashville, “Diane, so honored, I want to tell you how much I appreciate the wonderful words you wrote of my father Floyd Lanning in your book of Marty Robbins. I would love to chat sometime on how you obtained your information on my dad, for many years that was never mentioned and Thanks to you now the ENTIRE WORLD knows the truth and if my father were still living he would be so pleased. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
Ron Hogan says, “Glad you’re still un-earthing great true stories of our Country Music heroes. In the days when I played with some of the Opry acts, I remember the Opry always putting Marty on the last spot Saturday night. Often when I talk with my Nashville Musician brothers, we say that there are so many stories we have that will go untold. Some probably can’t be told as they are on the edge and we would make enemies of some of the ones the stories are told about.”
Marilyn Horchem asks, “How can I get a autographed copy of Marty’s book from you? You’re one of my Facebook friends also. I always promote your books to keep our Classic Country Stars alive.”
Response: Thanks for the support, Marilyn. I hope you’ve received and read Twentieth Century Drifter by now.
Dominique “Imperial” ANGLARES writes from France, “Greetings for the work done and thanks for the newsletter. That’s always a pleasure to read your and the guest words. Thanks for remembering us the passing time for Marty and Faron. Time amy goes fast, their music is just as fresh and entertaining than when recorded. We sure miss them as human and artists.”
Maheen Wickramasinghe (hemantha.maheen@gmail.com) requests, “In your next newsletter, could you please ask your subscribers whether any of them could please assist with a Jimmie Davis LP called The Last Walk? This LP is from 1985 but to my knowledge, it is not available in any online store like eBay. Does anyone happen to have a copy of this LP? If so, I would truly love to get in touch with them.”
Update on Hank Corwin
I called Barbie Corwin to ask how Hank is doing. The former steel player in the Country Deputies band (1975-76) is in the rehab section of the nursing home. They’re trying to get him well enough to go home, but there hasn’t been much change. Barbie wishes she had better news. She doesn’t have much time available to spend on the computer. I told her to let Hank know he isn’t forgotten, and that people are asking about him.
SIDEMAN SIDEBAR
John Schattenberg, Robert Bowlin, and Ozzie Ozment played fiddle in Faron Young’s Country Deputies band, John in 1973, and Robert in 1983 followed by Ozzie 1984-5. I did phone interviews will all three for Faron’s biography but never got to meet them. “It was a short period,” John said. “However, it made such an impact on me, it seems like a lifetime, almost. It was my first Nashville experience. Faron was my first real big-time experience, if you will.” Faron called Robert “Ping Pong” because he was restless on the bus and always changing seats. Robert said, “Faron was very nice to me, and I recognize him as in the very top of all singers any genre.” Ozzie has degenerative arthritis, and when his hip broke in 1986, Faron gave him $1000 and then went to the Opry staff, and the Opry trust fund paid the hospital bill. “He is what made me survive,” Ozzie recalled. “I would have lost everything.”