Farewell, Mr. Jones!

Over the past few days, there have been countless mentions and memories mentioned concerning the passing of George Glenn Jones. Of course, my job required that I write what has amounted to several stories so far on the legacy of the artist known as “The Possum.” I can only hope and pray that I have done him justice.

But, long before I was writing or on-air for a living, I was a George Jones fan. As I have written before, I was a strange kid. I was listening to Country Music exclusively until I was fourteen, and one of those artists was George Jones. Now, I am not going to say that I was a major fan from the first listen. But, when I was about eleven years old, he released a song called “The One I Loved Back Then.” That hooked me, and as I got older, I began to research more and more of his music. By the time I was fifteen, I had many of the classics he had recorded some thirty years before in my collection.

As a teenager in the age of Jackson (Michael or Janet) and Guns ‘N’ Roses, what was it about his music that appealed to me so? In his songs, Jones sounded like the ultimate underdog. He wailed like he was down to his last dime – or almost his last breath. He sang about pain and heartbreak like nobody else. People talk about Johnny Cash or Merle Haggard being (quote) “bad ass,” well, maybe. But, did either one of them take a Tennessee State Trooper – and WSMV Channel 4 – down Interstate 65 in the middle of the Six O’Clock news? Not saying it was a moment he was proud of twenty years later, but it also proved that if he was going to go down, he was doing it in Rock & Roll style!

But, thankfully, he didn’t. Due to the love of a woman named Nancy, he rebounded strongly, and though there were still some struggles, the George Jones of 1995 was better than 1985, and his 1999 SUV crash seemed to end his long struggle with his demons. Over the past couple of days, it has been mentioned how sad it is that George Jones – the greatest living Country singer – had passed away. And, I’m not disagreeing. But, the true sadness is that Nancy Jones lost her husband. Georgette – and his other children lost their father, and others lost their grandfather, brother, or friend. But, at 81, more than any artist the term “cat with nine lives” fittingly described Jones to a tee. In those eight plus decades, Jones lived a life that few of us will ever come close to approaching. How many times do you think the Tennessean or the Nashville Banner had the Jones obituary written and waiting from 1978 or so on? In 1994, maybe, when Jones had heart surgery that turned out to be very serious? And, the 1999 crash – though he did bounce back quickly, was a lot more serious than most knew. The fact that Nancy had stood by her man and helped him to quieten his inner demons made the announcement of his passing Friday morning.....surprising. He had toned down his act so well that we thought he would live forever.

As a fan, he touched my life many times over. Whether it was professing his undying love in “When The Grass Grows Over Me,” hoping for another chance at love in “Someday My Day Will Come,” or singing about the wrong turns in life that one takes in Billy Yates’ masterfully written “Choices,” he gave us so many classic recordings that will live forever. My favorite? That’s almost impossible to say, but one that would have to place high upon my list would be “Where Does A Little Tear Come From,” a # 10 hit from 1964. Brilliant yet simple. Seek it out. The only thing is, that search might take you to “I’ll Follow You Up To Our Cloud,” “These Days I Barely Get By” or “Wine Colored Roses,” and then, there are the album cuts......Don’t get me strarted!

So, tonight as I sip my Pepsi Max (a “bad ass” I am not), and listen to his recordings while I write this.....I think about the lyrics of one of my favorite cuts – a song he recorded with the Sweethearts Of The Rodeo back in 1991....

How Many Times Have I Stumbled Or Lost My Way Again

Bitter Tears Have I Cried Even Knowing Deep Inside

How Much Sweeter The Journey’s End....

Let Me Face The Road I Must Travel

Let Me Feel The Cold And Heat

Let Me Walk In The Sun Till My Journey Is Done

Let Me Taste The Bitter With The Sweet.

You want poetry? It doesn’t get any better. Rest in peace, Possum! Your music will live on!

A Cliffhanger of a Monday!

Escapism is a great thing. It’s always good to be able to forget your troubles for a few minutes. For me, I am happy that my escapism also means work. If I don’t feel well, or something is bothering me – it’s not usually on my mind while on air, doing an interview, or covering a ball game.

Aside from work, television is probably my greatest “out.” If I need to recharge my batteries, I can usually do so by taking a trip to rural Waltons Mountain, Virginia for a jaunt back in time to CBS Thursday nights circa 1977. I think I have seen every episode of the “Waltons” at least once, and (un-macho moment) have cried through many of them a few times – particularly “The Achievement,” an episode from 1977 where John Boy leaves the mountain to follow his dream as a writer in New York City.

But, as much as I love that show, I have to admit that nothing engrosses me or captivates my attention as a viewer as that big white ranch outside of Plano, Texas. The series “Dallas” - both in CBS original and TNT reboot form – is my form of Novocaine. I don’t think during that hour. For some reason, the show has always captivated me like no other.

Of course, the series revolves around the oil tycoon family known as the Ewings. At the helm of the family was Larry Hagman as the conniving yet lovable John Ross Ewing, Jr, aka “JR.” He pretty much swindled everyone he met, but did so with a smile. In fact, he wasn’t really a nice person at all. But, Hagman played the role like a child at play – and for fourteen seasons, that role became one that I almost thought human throughout my school years. Along with a family named Duke from Georgia, it made Friday nights all the more worth looking forward to!

Flash forward to 2012. TNT announced plans to bring the show back. It premiered in June of last year, and I was somewhat skeptical. And, to be honest, the first season was uneven, ending with a season finale that just kind of laid there. But, it was ‘Dallas’ after all, so I would be there in season two.

Of course, before the second (or sixteenth, as I like to call it) season began in January, tragedy struck with the passing of Larry Hagman. Many of the viewers wondered how the show would fare without him. The tribute episode to him, which aired last month, was absolutely brilliant. And, as crazy as it is to believe, the show has stepped it up a notch since then.

It’s still the JR character that drives the shows, as the centerpiece of the series is a plan called “JR’s Masterpiece.” Devised to defeat a pair of the biggest enemies of the Ewing clan, the plot has included more twists than a country road, with pieces of the puzzle falling into place. Only Bobby, his good-guy brother, played superbly by Patrick Duffy in this plotline, knows how it all fits – via a letter written by JR before his mysterious death. Somehow, this plot ties into the disappearance of Bobby’s first wife, Pamela, in 1987, and also into some business sub-plots that have since happened – making you wonder how much JR had actually planned. You have to leave reality at the door, but it’s truly engrossing stuff. Duffy is showing a little bit of a dark side, and Josh Henderson and Julie Gonzalo – as John Ross Ewing, III and his new bride, Pamela Barnes Ewing (Yes, that name has been used before!) are the stars of this new “Dallas.” Henderson studied Hagman’s mannerisims, but yet adds his own style to the youngest John Ross – while Gonzalo – after a whiny first season, has stepped up her game as well. Starting off the season as a evil villianess, she has developed a little more of a softer side as the season goes on – especially after losing her twins she was pregnant with in an accident planned by her own father – Cliff Barnes – to nail the Ewings to the wall.

Well, tonight is season finale night. In a two-hour episode, we find out “who killed JR,” “Where is Pam,” and just how the ‘masterpiece’ plays out. I have tried to figure out where this is going, even visiting the excellent Dallas fan board, www.OilBaronsClub.com, from time to time, but I guess I am going to be guessing until the very end. I hope it results in a Ewing victory. It’s been too long. Either way, I’ll be there tonight just like it’s 1986 all over again!

From A Grateful Man In Vegas.....

Pardon me on this blog if I sound like a small-town country boy who doesn’t get out of the woods that much. There’s a reason for that. I really don’t get out a lot. Much of the past five days for me has been spent in Las Vegas, Nevada – the city that never sleeps. I think that description defines it pretty well.

Whatever your vice in life, food, gambling, drink, or the opposite gender, you can find it here. It’s almost like a 24-hour carnival of everything. There are certain aspects of the city that have made me miss Centerville just a little bit. The pace is so hectic...maybe even more so than the Big Apple. That’s not a bad thing....or a good thing....just a reflection. The waitresses at the casinos sure dress different than Papa Kayjoe’s or Breece’s (As that wise old philosopher known as Gump once said - ‘That’s all I have to say about that!).

Oh, yeah, the reason I have been here. I am out covering the 48^th Annual Academy of Country Music Awards. I have to tell you that the past few days have been some of the most fun of my career. It makes me very grateful for the opportunities I have been blessed with. I say ‘blessed,’ because while I feel I do have the talent to do what I do, the opportunity doesn’t come from me. There was a day about two years ago where I didn’t know what tomorrow would bring. And, to some degrees I still don’t. But, I have a deeper faith than ever before that I am going to get to where I am meant to be – if that makes any sense. It does to me, that’s all I know.

Probably the highlight of the weekend was Sunday. Covering the Red Carpet for Billboard was the biggest thing I have ever got to do in my career. The Band Perry, Darius Rucker, Little Big Town, San Francisco QB Colin Kapernick, and Kacey Musgraves all came through the line. Ashley Monroe thanked me for writing of the articles I have done on her lately – thanked me? That was cool. I guess the biggest thrill for me was interviewing Craig Morgan. Back in the day, Craig used to bring his guitar by the studios of WDKN and play live on my morning show there. Now, he’s a star....and again, I’m just thankful to be there, as Minnie Pearl would say. Then, John Fogerty? Seriously? Of CCR? That was cool. To say I was in awe was an understatment.

That might surprise some of my friends inside the industry. But, while I do try to consider myself a professional, I am in the business because there was a six year old kid who took a Kenny Rogers album to school for “Show and Tell” in second grade. He also gave several long-winded speeches as a sophomore in Randy Sullivan’s speech class at DCHS about the history of Country Music. Yes, I was different at the time! Then, later that year, I started a radio career that I still tinker around with some today. Pretty much every decision in my life – good or bad – stems from the fact that I love doing what I do. It’s cost me at times, but the payback has been far greater. I just hope it continues.

Some of those decisions have not served me well. And, while I am not going to dwell on that, other than to say I wish I had a couple back, I feel like if I can just stay focused...it’s all going to work out. I hope that I can make some better personal and financial decisions than I have made, though some I had to for survival. But, that is the future.....I just didn’t want these couple of hours at a crowded airport to go by without me saying how much I love what I get to do. And, to those who have had any part in it – from my father all the way to people who have extended the olive branch to me that I didn’t even know, let me say thank you. I hope I haven’t or don’t let you down!

By the way, did I mention I got to interview John Fogerty?

MUSINGS FROM AN APRIL FOOL....

Hope everyone had a great Easter! It was a slow weekend – the way it should be sometimes. A lot to talk about, so I’ll break it down....

VEGAS

In just a few days, I will be taking my first trip to Las Vegas, NV to cover the Academy of Country Music Awards for Billboard. I am very excited about this, as it will be my first trip to Vegas. It’s going to be a working trip, but hope to see some of the town while I am there. Should be a fun time! I have been exceedingly blessed over the past couple of years in my career. I don’t take any of it lightly.

THE SHOW THIS WEEK

If you get a chance, tune into Kix 96 for the weekly installment of “Crazy Chucky’s Classic Country Corner” this Wednesday. My guest will be one of the greatest singers to have ever graced a microphone, BJ Thomas. We talk about his new album, The Living Room Sessions, which includes duets with some of music’s top stars. One song that has a particular impact on me is “Rock & Roll Lullaby.” This is one of those songs that - to quote Ms. Charlene Darling, “always makes me cry.” I have written before about taking many a Saturday morning trip to 100 Oaks Mall with my mother as a child. On the way there, I remember so many hits of the day on the radio – some Country, but also several pop hits from acts like Dionne Warwick, Debby Boone, Neil Diamond, and yes, BJ Thomas. Some of those songs do take me back a few years, and the older I get---the more they are like lullabies!

TONY ROMO

This week, it was announced that Tony Romo received a contract extension from the Dallas Cowboys that – if played out – will earn him more than Ravens QB Joe Flacco. Really? Take the Super Bowl win away from Flacco, and I would still shake my head in astonishment. Have you seen Flacco’s playoff record? Have you seen Romo’s? Better yet, have you seen Romo’s record in games that would get the Dallas Cowboys into the playoffs? (Uttered in my best Jim Mora impersonation) I am a Cowboys fan, and the struggles the past few years have not all been Romo’s fault, but Jerry Jones, I need a car. That almost would have been money better spent!

NO HOME COOKIN’ LIKE DAD’S

Somewhere over the years, my father perfected the art of making what is called a “Low Country Boil.” It consists of crab meat, sausage, potatoes, shrimp, corn on the cob, and a few other things I am leaving out. When I say “perfected,” think a 1982 episode of “Dallas,” Marilyn Monroe in a white dress, or 72 and sunny on the beach. A few weeks ago, he and Marcia made one for my birthday. Then, while I was in Nashville a few days later, I stopped at a restaurant chain that advertised one on their menu. Not even close. Won’t name names, but suffice to say, there was no comparison...

COINCIDENCE? I THINK NOT!

The past couple of weeks have seen some interesting things happen in my life. (You’re thinking---another rant about being single, right?...Come on, admit it!) None of them bad, but each has given me pause to think and reflect. Some really cool things and people have come into my life as of late. As time goes on, you meet people who impact your life for a reason. It’s neat how God can take on the figure of many people, or at least that’s how I look at it. Whether it be one of the biggest-hearted people in Madison County, who last year urged me to leave it in the Hatchie (she knows who I’m talking about, and I’m still trying), or a couple of people I met last week who reminded me about how God introduces like-minded people together – sometimes in eerie fashion, I think it’s safe to surmise that these things don’t just happen. I used to shy away from thinking that shows like “Touched By An Angel” or songs like “The Christmas Guest” are real....but why not? More often than not, that explanation makes a lot more sense than saying “That’s just fate.” And, to think, we sometimes feel he doesn’t answer us.....See, I didn’t mention anything about my being single....Oops....Well, those are my thoughts for April Fools’ Day......Going to get ready for ‘Dallas’ tonight...two more weeks after today! More on that later.....