Classic Country Memories

By JoeMac & Rachel

What are we thankful for? Each other, family, friends, the music that we both love, the melodies, the lyrics, the God- given talents of the artists we both grew up with. Thankful for memories. Not only the memories that we make together, every day of our lives, but also the old memories. Memories like a handsome little boy, standing on stage, looking up, (at least 12 feet!) at the well dressed star, smiling down at him, reaching out his arm to him, handing him... (UNBELIEVABLY!) the star's very own favorite guitar. "Here, son, show me what ya got." And later, "You got it, son, you got it." Memories like Nashville and the country music family as it...

by JoeMac & Rachel

Location- A honky tonk tavern right outside Corsicana, Texas on March 31, 2007
We've all seen it. The obnoxious drunken fan who thinks he owns a piece of the entertainer. And he just Will. Not. Stop.
Billy Joe and his wife had been out in the brutal Texas heat all day, shooting photos for an upcoming album cover. They were hot, hungry, thirsty, and exhausted. They stopped at a local joint to eat a bite and cool off a bit before heading home. A "fan," named Billy Coker, was in the joint drinking. Spotting Billy Joe, he loudly started insisting that Billy Joe sit with him, drink with him, sign autographs, and in general become his best friend. Billy Joe tried to be the gentlem...

Classic Country Memories

By JoeMac & Rachel

Hillbilly Hauntings

These events have been related to us from some of our country heroes-
This one was told to us by our friend, Steve Kilgore (Merle Kilgore's son)
Listen to him-
"Dad told me of an event about Johnny Horton that I’ve never forgotten. My Dad, Johnny Horton, were extremely close friends, who were also firm believers in the supernatural. One afternoon Johnny Horton came over to our house and he gave my Dad, Merle Kilgore, his beautiful custom-made mother of pearl guitar. "Merle, I want yo...

Classic Country Memories by JoeMac & his bride

By- JoeMac & Rachel

The first time I remember hearing Merle Haggard was on Ralph Emery's show. I first loved his stuff because he could sound like Lefty. We both later learned to love Hag for his own work. His voice and songwriting were, in our eyes, comparable only to Hank's. And the boy could play one more mean fiddle! He sold me on "Same Train, A Different Time": Merle's tribute to Jimmie Rodgers. My all time favorite cd of his is "A Tribute To The Best Damn Fiddle Player In The World: Or, My Salute To Bob Wills." JoeMac loved his honkytonk sound. We soon dove headfirst into his music and have never looked back.

He&rs...

Classic Country Memories

By- JoeMac & Rachel

Bill Mack, a genuine country music icon passed away this morning. According to his son, his death was attributed to COVID-19 with underlying conditions. He was 88 years old, and a legend.
He went a million miles with JoeMac, all over this country, in the truck, on the radio, his presence as real as if he was riding shotgun. And, of course, he rode with thousands of others.
Nobody in broadcasting has a more recognizable voice than Bill Mack. He has been heard on radio - - - seen on television - - - heard on records, and featured in various publications for years.
He was born in Shamrock, Texas on June ...

Classic Country Memories

By JoeMac & RachelMac

A while back, a group of musicians totally SCALDED the designer socks off of the CMAs in Nashville. What was to be a low key, new country sounding show was turned into a rip roaring, audience pleasing, REAL country music and bluegrass, honest to "GLOW-RY" hoedown. And the whole thing was the fault of Ricky Skaggs. As planned, Ricky opened the show with his band, Kentucky Thunder. And they were righteous! So much so that Charlie Daniels, (who was seated in the audience) jumped up out of his seat, grabbed his fiddle, ran onstage, hollering, "HOLD IT! Wait for me! I want in on this!" No sooner than he got up there with Ricky, up from his seat comes...

By Sean Andrew Murray-

A little article I wrote about being a songwriter and all the struggles writers face. Have a read and let me know your thoughts. maybe if we work together, we can put this right. My songwriter friends are mostly struggling, just to make a living, and thats often with hit songs to their name. I'm looking forward to everyone's opinions and if I have got this wrong, then lets get a discussion about this and how we can make it better. Yours in Music....Sean
So You Want To Be A Songwriter

The promise of riches galore and rubbing shoulders with superstars in music and film is enough to entice anyone into the world of songwriting. It’s been said that everyone has at least...

Our once revered WSM is following in the same footsteps as all the others. Cutting 'on air' personalities and replacing them with “canned” music or what is commonly referred to as "New Country, Pop Country" which is polluting the airwaves, and the web. WSM has lost it's personal touch. The "All Nighter" show is now another victim. WSM radio is unrecognizable. Marcia Campbell, creator, producer, and host of the All-nighter Show (classic country music, since 2010), and long time member (since 1984) of the Grand Ol' Opry Square Dancers, was abruptly fired as she was "too country", and "no longer suited t...

Classic Country Memories

By JoeMac & Rachel

“Hello Walls”

When Willie Nelson arrived in Nashville in the early 1960s, many wondered if the singer/songwriter would fit in. Willie sure looked like he belonged. In those days, the young Texan wore his hair short, slick and precisely combed, dressed in nicely-pressed suits, complete with white shirts and thin ties. Yet, underneath this all-American cover was a man who was already a bit of a rebel. The independent nature that would someday make the man a major star was, at this time, evident only in his songwriting.

If anyone was a product of hard times, it was Willie. Born in Fort Worth, Texas, Willie had grown up "as poor as Job's turkey...

Classic Country Memories

by JoeMac & Rachel

J.R. and the ostrich-
Johnny Cash had a herd of ostriches on his farm, Bon Aqua, in Tennessee. The birds had always fascinated him, and he had the herd for several years before the incident. He had a few that he considered his pets. He said that one, especially, was his special pet. “That day, though, he was not happy to see me. I was walking through the woods in the compound when suddenly he jumped out onto the trail in front of me and crouched there with his wings spread out, hissing nastily. Nothing came of that encounter. I just stood there until he laid his wings back, quit hissing, and moved off. Then I walked on. As I wa...