NEWS The Texas Rangers paid tribute to Charley Pride by naming a field at their spring training complex after him, reports Rolling Stone. “Introducing Charley Pride Field! You are greatly missed,” the team tweeted after unveiling the “Charley Pride Field” signage at the spring training site in Surprise, Arizona. Charley died December 12 from complications […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – RON HOGAN Steel guitarist Ron Hogan is one of the plankowners of my newsletter list. He has been there since its beginning in 2005. I had interviewed him about his brief stint, during the summer of 1981, as one of Faron Young’s Country Deputies. While we’ve had email exchanges over the […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – LLOYD GREEN When I read on the Steel Guitar Forum that legendary steel guitarist Lloyd Green was home recovering after major heart surgery, I decided to give him a call. It was good timing. He answered the phone, I asked how he was doing, and he said, “Today’s one of the […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – NARVEL FELTS When Narvel Felts, 82, called me last week, after Dallas Wayne arranged our phone interview, I asked what he’s been doing to stay busy. “Right now, I’m pretty close to the house,” he said. He goes to the grocery store and Walmart once a week. He and his wife, […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT – HOWARD BELLAMY When I called Howard Bellamy for a chat, he was enjoying the 70-degree weather and the sunshine in Florida while I was waiting for a blizzard in South Dakota. He told me we Dakotans should come to Florida. He lives on the Bellamy family ranch near Darby, just north […]
NEWS Ed Bruce (1939-2021): William Edwin Bruce Jr., known as Ed Bruce, died January 8 of natural causes in Clarksville, Tennessee. He was 81 years old. The singer, songwriter, and actor grew up in Memphis and began his music career on Sun Records at age 17. He moved to Nashville to be a songwriter, with […]
NEWS K.T. Olsin (1942-2020): The first female songwriter to win the CMA Award for Song of the Year, K.T. Oslin, died December 21 at age 78. She had been battling Parkinson’s disease and was diagnosed with COVID-19. Kay Toinette Oslin was born May 15, 1942, in Crossett, Arkansas. She was 45 when she released her […]
NEWS Charley Pride (1934-2020): It is with great shock and sorrow that I report the unexpected death of Charley Pride on Saturday, December 12. His publicist said he died in hospice care in Dallas, Texas, due to complications from COVID-19. Charley, 86, made his last public appearance during the CMA Awards show on November 11, […]
NEWS Hal Ketchum, 67, died November 23 as a result of complications from dementia. I reported in January that a tribute concert and fundraising campaign was held for him as he battled Alzheimer’s disease. The event took place at Gruene Hall in Gruene, Texas, where he had given his final performance in 2018. Hal was […]
IN THE SPOTLIGHT — BOBBY GOLDSBORO — PART II My last newsletter gave an update on Bobby Goldsboro. This week, we’ll talk about his “after-65” career as an oil painter. When I asked if he still performs concerts, he said he hadn’t booked any for the past year because he wanted to spend time on […]