NEWS
On his 83rd birthday, Bobby Bare received a surprise from the Grand Ole Opry. He was on the Opry stage April 7, singing during the segment hosted by Jeannie Seely, when Garth Brooks walked to the microphone. Garth invited him to officially rejoin the Opry family. “I’ve got to tell you that this is quite a surprise,” Bobby responded. “I was a member of the Opry for 10 years, but then I just drifted away.” Bobby had joined the Opry in the early 1960s, but over the years his membership lapsed. His name was never removed from the list on the backstage wall at the Opry House. The Tennessean says Bobby performed on the Grand Ole Opry more than 10 times in the past year, as a guest. (more…)

NEWS
This year’s inductees into the Country Music Hall of Fame are Johnny Gimble, Dottie West, and Ricky Skaggs. They were announced March 27 at an event in the rotunda of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood were the hosts. Western Swing fiddler Johnny Gimble from Texas was chosen posthumously as Recording/Touring Musician. He died in 2015 at age 88. His son and granddaughter performed his “Under the ‘X’ in Texas” during the ceremony. Dottie West, who lived her entire life in Tennessee, was named posthumously as Veterans’ Era inductee. The “Country Sunshine” singer and songwriter died in 1991, just before her 60th birthday, following a car accident on her way to the Grand Ole Opry. Ricky Skaggs is the Modern Era inductee. (more…)