September 23, 2017

Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville...Angaleena Presley

Hello once more!! On tonight's episode of Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville the special guest happened to be Angaleena Presley.

Ray opened the show with a performance of "Ahab the Arab" and it was delivered with just the right amount of silliness that you'd probably expect. He performed the entire song...including the often over looked final verse of The Sultan catching Ahab and Fatima's tryst twist by surprise. If you hadn't seen a recent performance of the song, either in concert or from a television program, it may take you by surprise that Ray's added some lines to the song. Instead of saying the phrase "whoah, babies" at the conclusion of the fictional Arabic chant Ray has often substituted that phrase with a reference toward the tenor of Slim Whitman. During the encounter Ahab has with Fatima most recordings have Ray saying "crazy, baby!" in falsetto voice...in one recording Ray (as Fatima) scolds Ahab and says "get out of here, you idiot!". In more recent performances Ray (as Fatima) giggles uncontrollably. This can be seen in the 1995 music video and I assume this is why Ray stopped reciting lines as Fatima and now simply giggles.

After the opening performance a clip from We Ain't Dead Yet airs. This time it's a clip of Ray as the Wolfman Jack-inspired disc jockey, Rooster, attempting to sell 500 baby chickens to some person he randomly called on the phone. The 'radio station' is actually Rooster's room at The Encore...he's lost his mind and thinks he's hosting a radio show. The name of the station is WILD.

Prior to actually seeing this episode I was under the impression that the guest, Angaleena Presley, appeared as Margaret during a performance of "It's Me Again, Margaret" and more or less reacted to Ray's antics. I was surprised to learn that she actually performs the song, as Margaret, while Ray recites the Willard McBain lines. The performance by the two comes off like a live music video. Ray is seen a few feet away using a rotary phone prop which is hanging on a wall. During his call's to Margaret he appears full screen while Margaret (Angaleena) is shown in a small thumbnail screen shot in the upper left. There's a sign above the stage, but part of the performance, which reads S.T.O.P., which stands for Stop Telephone Obscenity Please. I took it to be a jab at political correctness because there's a lot of critics that say the song glorifies prank callers...so what better way to mock thin skinned critics than by having the performance take place near a PSA regarding obscene phone calls.

I did some research on the special guest and learned that she happened to be born on September 1, 1976...that makes her the same as me...and learned about The Pistol Annies.

I had heard of this group, actually, but having no real knowledge about them I didn't know much; which includes not knowing the names of the group members. It's a trio of singers...some critics have described them as outlaws...but I looked them up and discovered that they've been in existence as a trio for a number of years but they record solo, too.

After the performance of "It's Me Again, Margaret" another clip from We Ain't Dead Yet appears. In this clip Rooster once again calls somebody and informs the guy on the other end to expect delivery of 500 baby chickens. Darrell Waltrip can be seen listening on the other side of the door and he's informed that Rooster thinks he's on the radio but in reality he isn't. Ray introduces Angaleena and she discusses her career and remarks that she loves "The Pirate Song". Ray tells her that the music video happened to be shot in the very studio they're seated in and she tells him that she likes the squirrel song as well. She mentions that "It's Me Again, Margaret" happened to be a relative's favorite and loved being able to perform it as a tribute to her late relative. Angaleena peaks of being a descendant of the McCoy's...and Ray wonders whatever became of the Hatfields. She reacts with mock anger over hearing that last name. She performs "American Middle Class" which happened to be the name of her 2014 solo album. She has a current album out...released earlier this year...titled Wrangled. That particular release is also available in vinyl.

Ray closes the show with a performance of "Bon Temps Roulette". This is a song that Ray recorded back in 2000 and it's appeared on a couple of CD's. It's the first time I've seen him perform the song, though. It's a bouncy sing-a-long detailing the exploits of a woman on a riverboat while her past is revealed as the song progresses. There were no YouTube video clips promoting this episode or the one from last week guest starring Duane Eddy.

Next week's episode (September 30) guest stars The Riders in the Sky. It should be hilarious.

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