FARON YOUNG, FORTY-FIVE YEARS AGO: On September 16, 1961, Patsy Cline returned to the Opry after a serious car accident. She sang while leaning on a pair of crutches. Following a standing ovation and an encore, she hobbled off the stage. Faron teased, “Some people will do anything to get applause.” She told him, “No, […]
FARON YOUNG, FIFTEEN YEARS AGO: Faron performed at the Strand Theater in Shreveport on September 7, 1991. The show, called Glitz and Grits, was a fundraiser produced by Alton and Maggie Warwick to raise money for the Louisiana state museum in Shreveport. The plan was for Governor Jimmie Davis to open the show, Faron to […]
FARON YOUNG, ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Faron’s two driving-under-the-influence arrests in the summer of 1995 were adjudicated August 30. Society no longer tolerated drunk driving, and Faron’s numerous friends and political connections could no longer change his DUI arrests into reckless driving misdemeanors. Still, he received a lighter sentence than most–but he thought he was being […]
FARON YOUNG, FORTY-FOUR YEARS AGO:Â Faron and Hilda moved into their 5836 Hillsboro Road house in August 1962. They had admired the house whenever they drove down Hillsboro Road to visit friends in southwest Nashville. Set back from the road, behind a curved driveway and a tree-filled yard, the long rambler with double front doors […]
FARON YOUNG, FIFTY-ONE YEARS AGO: Faron took Hilda to Baptist Hospital for the birth of their first child, Damion Ray, who arrived August 16, 1955. “I was in labor like forever,” Hilda recalled. Their doctor did not show up, and someone eventually told Faron it would be a breach birth, with no guarantee of how […]
FARON YOUNG, FORTY-TWO YEARS AGO:Â Faron’s magazine, “Music City News,” celebrated its first anniversary by hosting “Country Music Night” at the Nashville Speedway on August 11, 1964. So many country music personalities signed up for the race that two events were run. Ten thousand fans came to the regular Tuesday night at the speedway to […]
FARON YOUNG, FOURTEEN YEARS AGO:Â With the final version of his Country Deputies band, Faron recorded his only live album, a collection of his greatest hits titled “Live in Branson, MO, USA.” The recording took place at Gilley’s Theatre on August 7, 1992. Richard Bass, who’d been a Deputy since 1973, played lead guitar. Stu […]
FARON YOUNG, FIFTY-ONE YEARS AGO:Â Faron returned to Fort McPherson, Georgia, for a surprise performance at General Bolling’s retirement dinner on July 29, 1955. This was eight months after Faron’s discharge, during which time he’d acquired a band, had a number one record, and made his first movie. The Special Services Officer, who formerly worked […]
Laurie Matheson, Acquisitions Editor at the University of Illinois Press, told me my revised manuscript looks terrific: “tight and clean, and the tone is just right.” A big thank you to Sandy Cooper in Kansas for reading the manuscript and advising me where to cut. Her advice helped me condense 33 chapters into 24. I’m […]
The University of Illinois Press will publish “Live Fast, Love Hard: The Faron Young Story” in the summer of 2007. Please forward this weekly newsletter to anyone who might be interested in reading it, and send an e-mail to al******@*****on.net if you have questions/comments about Faron Young. This will be my last newsletter for a […]