Here's an old guy singing old songs. Just to put time in perspective, after serving in the Marines in WWII, he eventually drifted to Nashville in 1950, rooming with a kid named Hank Williams. Yeah, that Hank Williams. A number of people got their start in his band, The Cherokee Cowboys - at one time including Roger Miller, Willie Nelson and Johnny Bush. He was 83 years old when this was recorded and is still singing today at 85. Amazing. His voice may be a little thinner now, but then again he started out with an incredible instrument. Nice phrasing on Don't Get Around Much Anymore.
Keith Urban and his ilk really, really, really suck.
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In 1965 I was working for a man in Corpus Christi, Texas selling house trailers. That was my first "get out of California" experiment. We went to a trailer show in Dallas, Texas and while there went out partying one night. This place was a real dive. Low ceiling, post on the dance floor to hold the ceiling up and smokey. It was a beer drinking pill poppin' place full of belt buckles and women with big hair. There was not a soul in there that was not high on something including yours truly. Lots of so called dancing. All of a sudden there was this voice singing and quickly all the buckle polishing stopped and the entire place went quite. It was Ray Price and when he sang these cowboys, whores and truck drivers all stopped to listen many with their eye closed. I might add with reverence. He held us in his grip for about an hour. It was like a church in there. It was an experience I will never forget.
Was I impressed? When I hear him now I can close my eyes and I'm back on that dance floor with all the smells and textures of the evening just as if it was yesterday. I guess I was.
My brother took my mother to hear Roy Orbison in his prime. They said when he finished his first song, Crying, it was dead silence for a while before the applause began. People just needed to catch their breath.
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