Hello once again and in this particular blog entry I'm giving a recap of an episode of Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville in which Ray presented three performances from previous guests. The episode's title is Special Moments. As explained in a couple of previous blog entries this episode isn't a clip-fest of performances that have previously aired...instead, this particular clip-fest features never before aired performances. The guests that are spotlighted are from Season Four (the show is currently airing Season Six episodes).
Ray opens the show performing "The Cat Song". For those not familiar this is a song that goes back to the mid 2000's in Ray's career. It first became available on a compilation called Box Set as one of the brand new recordings. Box Set is a 3-CD compilation of songs recorded by Ray...the bulk of which were recorded for Curb Records in the early 1990s and for his own label, Clyde Records, in the late 1990s and early 2000s. In fact, the collection was first distributed on Clyde Records in 2005 and then Curb Records began distributing the collection in early 2006. Anyway, "The Cat Song" was later recorded 10 years later under a different title, "She Only Talks that Way to the Cat", by commentator Mark Steyn in 2015. That's just a bit of trivia I decided to sprinkle into this blog entry. To give the performance an exclusive, Ray utters a 'meow!' at the end, which isn't part of his original recording in 2005.
Following the opening performance Ray describes the nature of this particular episode, Special Moments. Ray mentions that during the taping sessions there is always a lot of material that is recorded and some of it doesn't make it to the final cut. So, on this episode, Ray is presenting three performances that weren't part of the final cut of three Season Four episodes. First up there's Rex Allen, Jr. who performs "Can You Hear Those Pioneers?". Ray accompanies him on piano and sings harmony. Prior to the performance Ray does some brief impressions of Gabby Hayes and Walter Brennan.
The spotlight is then turned to Don McLean who performs his version of "Crying". Ray sets up the episode by speaking about Roy Orbison and how much of a fan Don happens to be of the late pop music legend. I looked back in my notes and discovered that Ray closed the Don McLean episode with a performance of "Pretty Woman". I even think in my blog entry back then I wondered why Don didn't perform "Crying"...now we know he did but it just wasn't part of the final cut. Don's cover of the song was the biggest of all the cover versions. It hit the Top-10 on the pop, country, and adult-contemporary charts and it topped the United Kingdom chart. Don's recording, ironically, is from 1978 but it wasn't issued as a commercial single until 1981.
After the clip of Don McLean concludes Ray performs "Priceless", a song he said he wrote from inspiration upon seeing television advertisements. The song is on a CD he released a couple years ago called Bozo's Back Again. The CD itself featured re-recordings of songs that newer fans probably weren't familiar with since they were mostly album tracks. The title track, for example, was originally recorded in 1989 as "Your Bozo's Back Again" for the Beside Myself album. The CD also featured a particular song, released on his own label, that was issued as single-only on Mp3 but had never been available in CD format: "Ruby Falls". Now, obviously, this wasn't re-recorded as the single had originally been released on Clyde Records anyway.
Next up is Lari White. Ray introduces the segment and mentions that in the taping session they had so much material that they weren't able to fit in her performance of "That's How You Know", one of her biggest hits. Her clip begins with her speaking about her family and how everybody sang...but she was the only one that made a career out of it. Ray walks her to the red carpet and jokes about how they couldn't afford a larger carpet...only a square.
Ray closes the Special Moments episode performing "Hit the Road, Jack" with his band and the harmony singers. After the closing credits there's a special memorial card that appears on screen for Lari White who passed away earlier this year. This Special Moments episode had already been completed months prior to her passing away and so Ray doesn't provide any reference to it on-camera.
The episode airing on local PBS stations across the country this weekend is another special episode...this time around it's centering on previous guests that are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Ray will once again provide commentary/wraparound segments but this time he will be at the CabaRay Showroom in West Nashville rather than his television studio on Music Row. Once this episode appears on raystevens.tv next weekend I'll watch it and provide a summary/recap.
April 28, 2018
April 22, 2018
Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville...Mark Chesnutt
Happy early Sunday morning...well, it's early Sunday morning as I type this blog entry. I just finished watching Mark Chesnutt's episode of Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville. This particular episode began with Ray performing "The Streak", his massive hit from 1974. On the heels of the performance came Ray's introduction of Mark Chesnutt.
Ray starts things off by mentioning that Mark recorded a song from a writer that also happened to write one of his own hits, Paul Craft. In Ray's case it was "It's Me Again, Margaret" whereas in Mark's case it was "Brother Jukebox". Mark describes it being brought to his attention by the record company but he didn't want to record it because it had already been recorded by Keith Whitley (one of Mark's music heroes). However, Keith's recording wasn't issued as a single, and eventually Mark decided that since Keith didn't technically have a hit with it then that's when he decided to do it. Mark's recording was the second single released during his career and it hit number one.
During the conversation Mark mentions that he always wanted to do a song with a line asking a woman if she happened to be naked (referring to "It's Me Again, Margaret"). Ray suggests that he'd be happy to go into the studio and record Mark performing the song. Mark plays along and points out that Ray would have "to do the pervert part" (referring to Willard McBaine's giggle) which has Ray, Mark, and the audience howling with laughter. Ray composes himself and states that he may laugh like a pervert but Mark sings like a pervert...which causes more laughter...and Mark comes back with "well, I am a pervert...". It was a nice give and take banter that you normally do not see take place during the interview/talking segment of the program. Mark (lead vocals) and Ray (piano/harmony vocals) perform "I Don't Need Your Rockin' Chair".
Ray asks how Mark got acquainted with George Jones. Mark says that he first met George back in 1983. He says that he was part of a local band opening up for a concert George was going to do. Any other host/emcee would probably have been crass enough to ask if George shown up for it, given the era in George's career being spoken of, but Ray side-stepped that kind of a question. Afterward things get a bit too serious...some may say candid...but it began when Mark spoke of his father's dreams of becoming a country music artist. He said his father wrote a lot of good songs but things didn't work out due to family commitments. Ray says there's a fine line trying to balance family and life on the road and being part of the music business in general.
Mark tells of the day he decided to quit school and become a country music singer. He says his father didn't really try to stop him from quitting given the age factor of Mark being legally able to quit school if he wanted but he says the problems arose when he told his father that he wanted to try and become a country music singer in Nashville rather than Texas. The family lived in Texas and his father said that Mark could become very successful as a singer in Texas without the trappings of having to record in Nashville. Mark mentioned that he spent at least 10 years as a singer at honky-tonks and clubs in Texas before getting a recording contract with a major label. He said the first label he signed to was a small Independent label called D Records.
Mark calls Ray a music hero and says that although they've never met for any lengthy period of time he's the reason he decided to return to Nashville. He pointed out that he doesn't return to Nashville to do interviews but he couldn't turn down an appearance on a television show Ray hosts.
Mark performs a song titled "Hot" which is from his 2016 release, Tradition Lives. He follows this with one of his hits, "It's a Little Too Late". Ray closes the show doing a performance of "You Don't Know Me" at the piano. This weekend on local PBS stations an episode titled Special Moments is airing. This will be uploaded onto Ray's video website next weekend. The Special Moments episode is to feature clips of performers who've previously appeared on the program singing songs that weren't part of the original airing of their episode. It's an out-take presentation.
Ray starts things off by mentioning that Mark recorded a song from a writer that also happened to write one of his own hits, Paul Craft. In Ray's case it was "It's Me Again, Margaret" whereas in Mark's case it was "Brother Jukebox". Mark describes it being brought to his attention by the record company but he didn't want to record it because it had already been recorded by Keith Whitley (one of Mark's music heroes). However, Keith's recording wasn't issued as a single, and eventually Mark decided that since Keith didn't technically have a hit with it then that's when he decided to do it. Mark's recording was the second single released during his career and it hit number one.
During the conversation Mark mentions that he always wanted to do a song with a line asking a woman if she happened to be naked (referring to "It's Me Again, Margaret"). Ray suggests that he'd be happy to go into the studio and record Mark performing the song. Mark plays along and points out that Ray would have "to do the pervert part" (referring to Willard McBaine's giggle) which has Ray, Mark, and the audience howling with laughter. Ray composes himself and states that he may laugh like a pervert but Mark sings like a pervert...which causes more laughter...and Mark comes back with "well, I am a pervert...". It was a nice give and take banter that you normally do not see take place during the interview/talking segment of the program. Mark (lead vocals) and Ray (piano/harmony vocals) perform "I Don't Need Your Rockin' Chair".
Ray asks how Mark got acquainted with George Jones. Mark says that he first met George back in 1983. He says that he was part of a local band opening up for a concert George was going to do. Any other host/emcee would probably have been crass enough to ask if George shown up for it, given the era in George's career being spoken of, but Ray side-stepped that kind of a question. Afterward things get a bit too serious...some may say candid...but it began when Mark spoke of his father's dreams of becoming a country music artist. He said his father wrote a lot of good songs but things didn't work out due to family commitments. Ray says there's a fine line trying to balance family and life on the road and being part of the music business in general.
Mark tells of the day he decided to quit school and become a country music singer. He says his father didn't really try to stop him from quitting given the age factor of Mark being legally able to quit school if he wanted but he says the problems arose when he told his father that he wanted to try and become a country music singer in Nashville rather than Texas. The family lived in Texas and his father said that Mark could become very successful as a singer in Texas without the trappings of having to record in Nashville. Mark mentioned that he spent at least 10 years as a singer at honky-tonks and clubs in Texas before getting a recording contract with a major label. He said the first label he signed to was a small Independent label called D Records.
Mark calls Ray a music hero and says that although they've never met for any lengthy period of time he's the reason he decided to return to Nashville. He pointed out that he doesn't return to Nashville to do interviews but he couldn't turn down an appearance on a television show Ray hosts.
Mark performs a song titled "Hot" which is from his 2016 release, Tradition Lives. He follows this with one of his hits, "It's a Little Too Late". Ray closes the show doing a performance of "You Don't Know Me" at the piano. This weekend on local PBS stations an episode titled Special Moments is airing. This will be uploaded onto Ray's video website next weekend. The Special Moments episode is to feature clips of performers who've previously appeared on the program singing songs that weren't part of the original airing of their episode. It's an out-take presentation.
April 20, 2018
Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville...Season Six...
Hello
one and all!! I
found out the guest line-up for the new season of Ray Stevens CabaRay
Nashville. It will have 13 half hour episodes and the first two episodes
have already aired on local PBS stations as most of you may already be aware of.
The local PBS station in my area (KET2) will begin airing Season Six episodes in late May. They're airing the last several episodes of Season Five at the moment. I'll be watching the current season on Ray's video website, raystevens.tv, but I continue to DVR the episodes as they air on KET2, also. Here is the Season Six guest line-up:
1. Jamie O'Neal
2. Mark Chesnutt
3. Special Moments**
4. Hall of Fame (clips featuring guests that are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame; Ray will provide wraparound segments from the CabaRay Showroom)
5. Moe Bandy
6. Linda Davis
7. CeCe Winans
8. Micky Dolenz
9. Tribute Show (Ray sings the songs of Jerry Reed, Glen Campbell, Mel Tillis, and Merle Haggard)
10. Ronnie McDowell
11. Shoji Tabuchi
12. John Schneider
13. Lee Roy Parnell
On episode three, first airing on local PBS syndication this weekend, Ray presents performances from Rex Allen, Jr., Lari White, and Don McLean. It's kind of like a clip-filled out take episode in which footage that didn't originally air is finally making it to the airwaves. It's worth noting that a lot of footage is taped and some of it airs and some of it doesn't. Rex guest starred on episode one of Season Four; Lari White was the guest on episode two of Season Four; and Don McLean guest starred on episode nine of Season Four. Lari has since passed away from cancer (earlier this year at the age of 52).
On the Hall of Fame episode Ray presents clips from past episodes of CabaRay Nashville featuring guests that are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Ray will appear on the stage of the CabaRay, likely seated at his piano and likely minus an audience, introducing each clip with probably some history of the song or perhaps his friendships with some of the Hall of Fame guests. Even though this clip-filled episode will feature Ray at the CabaRay introducing Hall of Fame members from previous episodes I don't think it's going to be counted as the first episode at the CabaRay Showroom because of the special nature of that particular episode. To my way of thinking Moe Bandy will hold the distinction of appearing on the first episode to air originating from the CabaRay Showroom while Mark Chesnutt will hold the distinction of being the final guest to appear at the original recording studio...meanwhile...
A third special episode is titled Tribute Show. I can't wait to hear Ray perform the songs of Jerry Reed and others!! Mark Chesnutt's episode (which aired last weekend on some local PBS affiliates) will be uploaded onto Ray's video site this weekend. Once I see it I'll provide a recap.
Did you hear Ray's guest appearance on the Grand Ole Opry this past Tuesday (April 17th)? He performed three songs: "Nashville", "Ahab the Arab", and "Please Help Me I'm Falling". In between the songs he spoke about their origin and he also spoke of his CabaRay Showroom and his PBS television series. WSM radio's website has the Tuesday Night Opry available in their audio archives. You can listen to the show by clicking HERE. Ray appears midway through the first half hour. The Whites perform during the first 13 minutes and then Ray Stevens takes the stage not long afterward. Pay close attention to one of his jokes...he mentions he got a request from someone who happens to be 111 years old.
The local PBS station in my area (KET2) will begin airing Season Six episodes in late May. They're airing the last several episodes of Season Five at the moment. I'll be watching the current season on Ray's video website, raystevens.tv, but I continue to DVR the episodes as they air on KET2, also. Here is the Season Six guest line-up:
1. Jamie O'Neal
2. Mark Chesnutt
3. Special Moments**
4. Hall of Fame (clips featuring guests that are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame; Ray will provide wraparound segments from the CabaRay Showroom)
5. Moe Bandy
6. Linda Davis
7. CeCe Winans
8. Micky Dolenz
9. Tribute Show (Ray sings the songs of Jerry Reed, Glen Campbell, Mel Tillis, and Merle Haggard)
10. Ronnie McDowell
11. Shoji Tabuchi
12. John Schneider
13. Lee Roy Parnell
On episode three, first airing on local PBS syndication this weekend, Ray presents performances from Rex Allen, Jr., Lari White, and Don McLean. It's kind of like a clip-filled out take episode in which footage that didn't originally air is finally making it to the airwaves. It's worth noting that a lot of footage is taped and some of it airs and some of it doesn't. Rex guest starred on episode one of Season Four; Lari White was the guest on episode two of Season Four; and Don McLean guest starred on episode nine of Season Four. Lari has since passed away from cancer (earlier this year at the age of 52).
On the Hall of Fame episode Ray presents clips from past episodes of CabaRay Nashville featuring guests that are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Ray will appear on the stage of the CabaRay, likely seated at his piano and likely minus an audience, introducing each clip with probably some history of the song or perhaps his friendships with some of the Hall of Fame guests. Even though this clip-filled episode will feature Ray at the CabaRay introducing Hall of Fame members from previous episodes I don't think it's going to be counted as the first episode at the CabaRay Showroom because of the special nature of that particular episode. To my way of thinking Moe Bandy will hold the distinction of appearing on the first episode to air originating from the CabaRay Showroom while Mark Chesnutt will hold the distinction of being the final guest to appear at the original recording studio...meanwhile...
A third special episode is titled Tribute Show. I can't wait to hear Ray perform the songs of Jerry Reed and others!! Mark Chesnutt's episode (which aired last weekend on some local PBS affiliates) will be uploaded onto Ray's video site this weekend. Once I see it I'll provide a recap.
Did you hear Ray's guest appearance on the Grand Ole Opry this past Tuesday (April 17th)? He performed three songs: "Nashville", "Ahab the Arab", and "Please Help Me I'm Falling". In between the songs he spoke about their origin and he also spoke of his CabaRay Showroom and his PBS television series. WSM radio's website has the Tuesday Night Opry available in their audio archives. You can listen to the show by clicking HERE. Ray appears midway through the first half hour. The Whites perform during the first 13 minutes and then Ray Stevens takes the stage not long afterward. Pay close attention to one of his jokes...he mentions he got a request from someone who happens to be 111 years old.
April 16, 2018
Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville...Jamie O'Neal
Hello to all the fans of Ray Stevens!! Well, I learned earlier this morning when I visited raystevens.tv that there have been some changes in the CabaRay Nashville presentation. For several weeks I've been mentioning that Season Six will mark the debut of episodes taped at the CabaRay Showroom but I found out that a couple of episodes taped during the Season Five sessions at Ray's Music Row location will kick off Season Six.
On the weekend of April 7th the episode guest starring Jamie O'Neal aired on local PBS stations and it was uploaded onto Ray's video site yesterday. That is when I discovered that her episode kicks off Season Six. I should have known because each season has 13 episodes...which meant Tony Orlando's episode was the final episode of Season Five if you're keeping track.
I've updated the episode list I previously posted in a couple of other blog entries to reflect the start of Season Six. I know that Mark Chesnutt's episode aired on local PBS stations this weekend (April 14th) and it'll be uploaded onto Ray's video site next weekend. This will be episode two of Season Six...and then the episodes taped at the CabaRay Showroom should start to air. As of this writing I have no chronological guest list for Season Six. Once a guest list is made available I'll edit this blog entry and fill in the rest of the season's line-up.
Season One: (January - March 2017)
1. Steve Wariner
2. Larry Gatlin
3. Bobby Bare
4. Don Schlitz
5. Charlie McCoy
6. Bobby Braddock
7. Jimmy Fortune
8. Aaron Tippin
9. John Conlee and Jeff Bates
10. Tanya Tucker and T.G. Sheppard
11. Gene Watson
12. James Gregory
13. Billy Dean
Season Two: (April - June 2017)
1. Bobby Goldsboro
2. T. Graham Brown and Suzi Ragsdale
3. Williams and Ree
4. Leroy Van Dyke
5. Bellamy Brothers
6. The Gatlin Brothers
7. Collin Raye
8. Darryl Worley and Lee Greenwood
9. Bill Anderson
10. Sylvia
11. Con Hunley
12. Jimmy Wayne
13. Reed Robertson
Season Three: (July - September 2017)
1. Harold Bradley and Mandy Barnett
2. Shenandoah
3. Michael W. Smith
4. B.J. Thomas
5. Rhonda Vincent
6. Restless Heart
7. John Michael Montgomery
8. Baillie and the Boys
9. Tommy Roe
10. Mark Wills
11. Duane Eddy
12. Angaleena Presley
13. Riders in the Sky
Season Four: (October - December 2017)
1. Rex Allen, Jr.
2. Lari White
3. Charley Pride
4. Janie Fricke (originally aired on RFD)
5. Gary Mule Deer
6. Gary Morris
7. John Berry
8. Jeannie Seely
9. Don McClean
10. Felix Cavaliere
11. Suzy Bogguss (originally aired on RFD)
12. Deborah Allen
13. New Year's Eve Cast Show
Season Five: (January - April 2018)
1. Ray Hildebrand
2. Steve Wariner (edited airing of the series debut episode)
3. Paul Overstreet
4. Daily and Vincent
5. Jenny Gill
6. Tracy Lawrence
7. Sam Moore
8. Wilson Fairchild
9. Deana Carter
10. Gary Puckett
11. John Rich
12. John Rich, Part Two
13. Tony Orlando
Season Six: (April - June 2018)
1. Jamie O'Neal
2. Mark Chesnutt (current episode as of this writing; I'll add the rest of the season's guests once they become available).
And so now...here's my recap of Jamie O'Neal's episode...
Ray opens the show performing his version of "Open the Door, Richard". He had recorded this for The Encyclopedia of Recorded Comedy Music but never mentioned this during his brief introduction/backstory about the song. Upon the conclusion of the song Ray mentions his early years in Nashville as a member of the A and R department of Mercury Records. He mentions that the guest on this week's episode also began her career at Mercury Records and by pure coincidence also worked in Mercury's A and R department. The initials stand for Artists and Repertoire...which basically means the person in charge of listening to songs, writing songs, or finding songs that he or she feels best fits a recording artist among a whole host of other functions.
Jamie mentions how much she loves classic/traditional country music and she name drops several legends such as Dolly Parton, Larry Gatlin, and Hank Williams. She mentions her birthplace being Sydney, Australia but at the age of five her family moved to the United States which Ray acknowledged is the reason she doesn't have an Australian accent. Ray brings up Hank Williams being universally recognized as a traditional country music icon and says he'll be performing one of Hank's songs later in the show but suggests that he and Jamie perform a duet rendition of Hank's "Hey, Good Lookin'".
After the duet performance Jamie tells of how she and her family used to do the county fair circuit opening for the headlining acts. Ray asks about her studio, which she said is nicknamed The Grotto, at the suggestion of her husband. She goes into detail about how much she loves the studio life but says that one of her dislikes is the audio mixing...saying she doesn't know how to do it. Ray asks about her record label, Momentum Label Group, of which she speaks about it's formation. He asks her to sing once again and she performs a song she said is brand new and hasn't been released called "Just Whiskey". Afterward she performs her signature hit, "There is No Arizona", a number one country hit for her in 2001.
Ray closes the show singing "Your Cheatin' Heart", the Hank Williams song he hinted at earlier in the show. As previously mentioned Mark Chesnutt was the special guest on this weekend's episode of CabaRay Nashville and once I see it next weekend on Ray's video site I'll write a recap of it. Episode three should take place at the CabaRay Showroom. Some of the guests on Season Six will be Moe Bandy, Mickey Dolenz, Lee Roy Parnell, and CeCe Winans...but as of this writing I don't know when their episodes are going to air.
On the weekend of April 7th the episode guest starring Jamie O'Neal aired on local PBS stations and it was uploaded onto Ray's video site yesterday. That is when I discovered that her episode kicks off Season Six. I should have known because each season has 13 episodes...which meant Tony Orlando's episode was the final episode of Season Five if you're keeping track.
I've updated the episode list I previously posted in a couple of other blog entries to reflect the start of Season Six. I know that Mark Chesnutt's episode aired on local PBS stations this weekend (April 14th) and it'll be uploaded onto Ray's video site next weekend. This will be episode two of Season Six...and then the episodes taped at the CabaRay Showroom should start to air. As of this writing I have no chronological guest list for Season Six. Once a guest list is made available I'll edit this blog entry and fill in the rest of the season's line-up.
Season One: (January - March 2017)
1. Steve Wariner
2. Larry Gatlin
3. Bobby Bare
4. Don Schlitz
5. Charlie McCoy
6. Bobby Braddock
7. Jimmy Fortune
8. Aaron Tippin
9. John Conlee and Jeff Bates
10. Tanya Tucker and T.G. Sheppard
11. Gene Watson
12. James Gregory
13. Billy Dean
Season Two: (April - June 2017)
1. Bobby Goldsboro
2. T. Graham Brown and Suzi Ragsdale
3. Williams and Ree
4. Leroy Van Dyke
5. Bellamy Brothers
6. The Gatlin Brothers
7. Collin Raye
8. Darryl Worley and Lee Greenwood
9. Bill Anderson
10. Sylvia
11. Con Hunley
12. Jimmy Wayne
13. Reed Robertson
Season Three: (July - September 2017)
1. Harold Bradley and Mandy Barnett
2. Shenandoah
3. Michael W. Smith
4. B.J. Thomas
5. Rhonda Vincent
6. Restless Heart
7. John Michael Montgomery
8. Baillie and the Boys
9. Tommy Roe
10. Mark Wills
11. Duane Eddy
12. Angaleena Presley
13. Riders in the Sky
Season Four: (October - December 2017)
1. Rex Allen, Jr.
2. Lari White
3. Charley Pride
4. Janie Fricke (originally aired on RFD)
5. Gary Mule Deer
6. Gary Morris
7. John Berry
8. Jeannie Seely
9. Don McClean
10. Felix Cavaliere
11. Suzy Bogguss (originally aired on RFD)
12. Deborah Allen
13. New Year's Eve Cast Show
Season Five: (January - April 2018)
1. Ray Hildebrand
2. Steve Wariner (edited airing of the series debut episode)
3. Paul Overstreet
4. Daily and Vincent
5. Jenny Gill
6. Tracy Lawrence
7. Sam Moore
8. Wilson Fairchild
9. Deana Carter
10. Gary Puckett
11. John Rich
12. John Rich, Part Two
13. Tony Orlando
Season Six: (April - June 2018)
1. Jamie O'Neal
2. Mark Chesnutt (current episode as of this writing; I'll add the rest of the season's guests once they become available).
And so now...here's my recap of Jamie O'Neal's episode...
Ray opens the show performing his version of "Open the Door, Richard". He had recorded this for The Encyclopedia of Recorded Comedy Music but never mentioned this during his brief introduction/backstory about the song. Upon the conclusion of the song Ray mentions his early years in Nashville as a member of the A and R department of Mercury Records. He mentions that the guest on this week's episode also began her career at Mercury Records and by pure coincidence also worked in Mercury's A and R department. The initials stand for Artists and Repertoire...which basically means the person in charge of listening to songs, writing songs, or finding songs that he or she feels best fits a recording artist among a whole host of other functions.
Jamie mentions how much she loves classic/traditional country music and she name drops several legends such as Dolly Parton, Larry Gatlin, and Hank Williams. She mentions her birthplace being Sydney, Australia but at the age of five her family moved to the United States which Ray acknowledged is the reason she doesn't have an Australian accent. Ray brings up Hank Williams being universally recognized as a traditional country music icon and says he'll be performing one of Hank's songs later in the show but suggests that he and Jamie perform a duet rendition of Hank's "Hey, Good Lookin'".
After the duet performance Jamie tells of how she and her family used to do the county fair circuit opening for the headlining acts. Ray asks about her studio, which she said is nicknamed The Grotto, at the suggestion of her husband. She goes into detail about how much she loves the studio life but says that one of her dislikes is the audio mixing...saying she doesn't know how to do it. Ray asks about her record label, Momentum Label Group, of which she speaks about it's formation. He asks her to sing once again and she performs a song she said is brand new and hasn't been released called "Just Whiskey". Afterward she performs her signature hit, "There is No Arizona", a number one country hit for her in 2001.
Ray closes the show singing "Your Cheatin' Heart", the Hank Williams song he hinted at earlier in the show. As previously mentioned Mark Chesnutt was the special guest on this weekend's episode of CabaRay Nashville and once I see it next weekend on Ray's video site I'll write a recap of it. Episode three should take place at the CabaRay Showroom. Some of the guests on Season Six will be Moe Bandy, Mickey Dolenz, Lee Roy Parnell, and CeCe Winans...but as of this writing I don't know when their episodes are going to air.
April 8, 2018
Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville: PBS Special and More...
If you're familiar with the television series then you'll know that Bill Cody introduces Ray and provides the voice over during the opening and closing credits. Bill, rather fittingly, narrates the documentary. A brief overview: Bill's been heard on radio in Nashville ever since the mid 1990s (April 1995) as the morning host on 650 WSM but that was following a lengthy career on radio stations from neighboring state, Kentucky, and on radio stations as far west as Texas. His radio career dates back to the mid 1970s but his 23 years (and counting) at WSM is more than likely where he'll eventually retire from broadcasting.
In the photo, even though it doesn't show up clearly, there's an As Seen on Public Television publicity stamp on the lower right hand side of the DVD case. The documentary features performances taken from episodes of the television series...including the one of a kind performance of "Mr. Businessman" featuring Ray on piano and B.J. Thomas singing lead. Ray sings one of the verses but B.J. performs the majority of the song. It's from Season Three. The performance of "Georgia on My Mind" by Ray and Con Hunley (from Season Two) is also highlighted in the documentary as are other performances and some music videos of "Santa Claus is Watching You", "Shriner's Convention", and "Mississippi Squirrel Revival".
In panels three and four are the Season One and Season Two DVD releases of his television series based upon their chronological air dates on public television. As many of you know the first 26 episodes of Ray's television program aired on RFD and they were reran on PBS beginning in January 2017 with some episodes airing in different order from when they aired on RFD. The title of the show had also changed, slightly. During it's RFD airing it ran as Ray Stevens' Nashville. Once it moved to PBS, coupled with the planning and ultimate construction of the future CabaRay venue, the title of the show was changed to Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville.
The taping of the television show at the future showroom was probably already under consideration by Ray and so why not promote the upcoming showroom within the title of the television series? The showroom opened in January of this year and taping of television episodes began the following month. A marathon taping session for sure considering material for 13 episodes were recorded throughout the month...sandwiched between regularly scheduled concert performances at the showroom.
Let's also not forget that last month Larry Black began taping his television series at Ray's showroom. His long running series, airing on RFD, is titled Larry's Country Diner. The diner set was re-constructed on the stage and so, on camera, it'll still appear as if it's at a diner even though the tables will be floor level while Larry and the guests will be stage level. The show has long had a reputation for airing practically anything captured on camera...whether it be flubbed lines, dropped dishes by waitresses, Larry or one of the guests losing track of time, etc...and this kind of loose atmosphere led to the show's motto of "where the camera keeps rolling and we don't care".
In a previous blog entry I made mention of a certain funky instrument being played by a member of Ray's band on a recent episode of the television show. Ray was performing "Your Bozo's Back Again" and I noticed the instrument due to it being prominently featured throughout the performance. It's from Episode 12 which was Part Two of John Rich's appearance. I made mention in that blog entry that once I found the name of that instrument I'd share it with all of you; although I'm sure a lot of you already knew the name of that instrument long before I did.
Well, I found out that the instrument is called a melodica and you can also find it listed as a pianica. Do an on-line image search and you'll see various versions of the instrument. It's a piano/harmonica hybrid kind of instrument. My assumption as to why an actual harmonica wasn't used in the performance is because there isn't a harmonica player in Ray's house band but given the melodica can be played like a saxophone it made more sense to just have the saxophonist play the melodica since the distinct sound of a harmonica was the lead instrument in the original recording.
Make plans to attend a concert at the CabaRay...here's all the information...
April 7, 2018
Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville...Tony Orlando
Hello all once again...I just finished watching the latest episode of Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville. This time around the special guest happened to be Tony Orlando. The episode originally aired for the first time in local PBS syndication last weekend (March 31st).
Ray opens the show performing "I Remember You". He walked out on stage and spoke about the song having been a hit in 1962 by Frank Ifield (I had to look up his name for proper spelling). I had heard the song, in bits and pieces, for years but never knew who sang it. Once I heard Slim Whitman for the first time I mistakenly thought he must have been the singer of that song. The song is from the pen of Johnny Mercer and perhaps it'll be on this Great American Songbook CD that Ray made mention of several months ago in an interview.
Tony is brought out and he speaks about a tour he happened to be on in 1961 which featured Ray and several others. Tony recalls a comical situation in which Ray was getting tired of sleeping on a chair inside the tour bus and, according to Tony, decided to sleep up on the luggage rack. Apparently after several hours of sound sleep the bus had to make a quick stop and Ray slid off the luggage rack to a rather rude awakening. The conversation shifts to current day and Tony credits Ray with all the success he enjoyed in Branson, Missouri. Tony opened his theater, called The Yellow Ribbon Theater, in 1993 and performed there for the rest of the decade. The first song that Tony performed on the show happened to be "Knock Three Times". He made mention that he couldn't call Ray's backup singers The Raelettes or Dawn so maybe he'll refer to this impromptu group as Tony Orlando and Dust. He asks if any of the harmony singers were born when the song was a hit.
A thoroughly engaging performance ensues as Tony has the audience in his hands...giving instructions as to what lyrics come next during the sing-a-long portion.
After the performance of "Knock Three Times" he is asked by Ray to perform his first hit, "Candida". Tony asks if the audience remembers it.
A lot of people forget that Tony had a massively popular recording career throughout the bulk of the '70s. A lot of this is due to the internationally recognizable imagery of his act at that time and a couple of songs which tend to overshadow everything else he did that decade...including a variety show that ran three years (1974-1977).
The enormously successful "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" is performed next. Tony delivers a brief history of the song and it's impact on his career...stating that he's performed it all over the world at various USO events as well as political events over the decades. This is the song that came to identify the act for decades to come. It hit the top of the charts in eight countries and sold millions upon millions of copies. Of all of the picture sleeves and music books advertising the single I chose the picture sleeve from it's release in Australia to spotlight in this blog entry. I happen to like this one the best out of all the others I'd seen. For this performance Tony engages the audience and harmony singers as he did with "Knock Three Times" earlier. Near the end of the song he pulls Ray into the spotlight to help him finish the song. Ray and Tony take turns trading lyrics with Ray adding sing-a-long harmony vocals with repeats of "tie a yellow ribbon, tie a yellow ribbon". Tony ad-libs a brief portion of the song to acknowledge his appearance on CabaRay Nashville and asks if he can appear at the actual CabaRay showroom when it opens. Ray thanks Tony for appearing and as Tony makes his exit Ray humorously calls him Mr. Shyness.
Ray closes the show with a performance of "In the Still of the Night"...but during this episode Tony Orlando is brought back to finish the song with Ray. The two of them share the spotlight as they trade scat singing phrases such as shoo-wop and shooby-doo. Having made mention of this I should also mention that the song they perform is the pop standard from the '30s and not the pop hit from the late '50s...even though the arrangement of the song by Ray recalls the late '50s pop hit by the time the performance ends. Ray opened and closed the show with his versions of pop standards...so maybe these songs are kind of like sneak previews of this pop standards project that Ray's cryptically referred to, albeit briefly, over the last couple years.
Up next in the series is the episode guest starring Jamie O'Neal. Earlier in the year they had this episode airing the weekend of April 14th but it's actually airing this weekend on local PBS stations. So, if you're keeping track, her appearance is Episode 14 of Season Five. If no PBS stations carry his television series in your area you can subscribe to his video site and watch the episodes on-line. You can visit his video site by clicking HERE. You can either subscribe for half a year or a full year. I subscribed for a full year back in November 2017. If you're a dedicated/serious fan of Ray Stevens you should think about becoming a subscriber.
Ray opens the show performing "I Remember You". He walked out on stage and spoke about the song having been a hit in 1962 by Frank Ifield (I had to look up his name for proper spelling). I had heard the song, in bits and pieces, for years but never knew who sang it. Once I heard Slim Whitman for the first time I mistakenly thought he must have been the singer of that song. The song is from the pen of Johnny Mercer and perhaps it'll be on this Great American Songbook CD that Ray made mention of several months ago in an interview.
Tony is brought out and he speaks about a tour he happened to be on in 1961 which featured Ray and several others. Tony recalls a comical situation in which Ray was getting tired of sleeping on a chair inside the tour bus and, according to Tony, decided to sleep up on the luggage rack. Apparently after several hours of sound sleep the bus had to make a quick stop and Ray slid off the luggage rack to a rather rude awakening. The conversation shifts to current day and Tony credits Ray with all the success he enjoyed in Branson, Missouri. Tony opened his theater, called The Yellow Ribbon Theater, in 1993 and performed there for the rest of the decade. The first song that Tony performed on the show happened to be "Knock Three Times". He made mention that he couldn't call Ray's backup singers The Raelettes or Dawn so maybe he'll refer to this impromptu group as Tony Orlando and Dust. He asks if any of the harmony singers were born when the song was a hit.
A thoroughly engaging performance ensues as Tony has the audience in his hands...giving instructions as to what lyrics come next during the sing-a-long portion.
After the performance of "Knock Three Times" he is asked by Ray to perform his first hit, "Candida". Tony asks if the audience remembers it.
A lot of people forget that Tony had a massively popular recording career throughout the bulk of the '70s. A lot of this is due to the internationally recognizable imagery of his act at that time and a couple of songs which tend to overshadow everything else he did that decade...including a variety show that ran three years (1974-1977).
Ray closes the show with a performance of "In the Still of the Night"...but during this episode Tony Orlando is brought back to finish the song with Ray. The two of them share the spotlight as they trade scat singing phrases such as shoo-wop and shooby-doo. Having made mention of this I should also mention that the song they perform is the pop standard from the '30s and not the pop hit from the late '50s...even though the arrangement of the song by Ray recalls the late '50s pop hit by the time the performance ends. Ray opened and closed the show with his versions of pop standards...so maybe these songs are kind of like sneak previews of this pop standards project that Ray's cryptically referred to, albeit briefly, over the last couple years.
Up next in the series is the episode guest starring Jamie O'Neal. Earlier in the year they had this episode airing the weekend of April 14th but it's actually airing this weekend on local PBS stations. So, if you're keeping track, her appearance is Episode 14 of Season Five. If no PBS stations carry his television series in your area you can subscribe to his video site and watch the episodes on-line. You can visit his video site by clicking HERE. You can either subscribe for half a year or a full year. I subscribed for a full year back in November 2017. If you're a dedicated/serious fan of Ray Stevens you should think about becoming a subscriber.
April 2, 2018
Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville...John Rich, Part Two...
Hello once more!! I just finished watching Part Two of Episode 11 of Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville guest starring John Rich. The episode's dialogue didn't make any reference to it being a 'part two'...in fact it played like a typical episode. Ray opened the episode singing "Game Show Love". Now, for those not aware, this happens to be one of my favorite songs of his. I had never, ever seen him perform the song and so you could guess my excitement at seeing him on camera and singing the clever break up song using game show catchphrases and titles in the lyrics. The song itself goes back to his 1983 album, Me, but he re-recorded it fairly recently for a CD titled Bozo's Back Again.
Ray re-introduces John Rich. The first thing Ray asks about is John's work as a record producer. John tells of how he's produced some of Kenny Rogers' later recordings as well as those from John Anderson. John Rich describes John Anderson was "the George Jones of my generation...nobody can sing like John Anderson and you immediately know it's him when you hear his voice". John tells of how great it is to make music in America because you're free to do whatever you want. He speaks of visiting a local bar in Nashville and frequently encountering a bartender there trying to get into the music business. He told her to make a demo, etc. etc. and the next thing he knew his discovery became a big hit...that discovery being Gretchen Wilson. Ray demonstrates visible enthusiasm over John's house containing a showroom complete with a bar.
John also speaks of discovering an act going by the name of Cowboy Troy, a rapping country entertainer. Ray then asks how John and Big Kenny met and formed their duo, Big and Rich. John remarks that his first impression was one of concern because here he was dressed a bit more conservative by comparison to Kenny's wild hair and rock 'n' roll attire. John tells of seeing Kenny tossing small, wrapped pieces of bubble gum into the audience...and one happened to land in the middle of John's forehead. He speaks of their success as a duo before speaking about his grandfather and World War Two. He mentions that his grandfather received 6 Purple Hearts during his military service and this sets up the performance of "The Good Lord and the Man".
After this performance John starts to talk about the 2009 market crash and the bailouts of the banks. John commented that the news angered him so much that he literally threw one of his boots at the television. This inspired him to come up with "Shuttin' Detroit Down", a collaboration with one of his music idols, John Anderson. John Rich performs the market crash/bailout song to wild applause.
Ray then closes the show singing "Your Bozo's Back Again", arranged in the manner that you hear on the Bozo's Back Again CD from 2011 instead of it's original arrangement on 1989's Beside Myself. I should point out the difference in arrangement is very subtle but if you're as familiar with 1989's recording as I am then you'll notice the subtle differences in the 2011 re-recording. Unlike "Game Show Love", "Your Bozo's Back Again" happened to be a song that I've seen him perform on television before...but only once. One of the band members was playing an instrument that I have to admit I'd never seen before. It was a handheld instrument that had the appearance of a piano but it was being blown into as if it were a member of the horn family of instruments. If I come across the name of that instrument I'll make note of it in my next blog entry. Speaking of which...my next blog entry should be this coming weekend sometime...it'll be a re-cap of episode 12 guest starring Tony Orlando! I can't wait to hear the things the two of them discuss!!
Ray re-introduces John Rich. The first thing Ray asks about is John's work as a record producer. John tells of how he's produced some of Kenny Rogers' later recordings as well as those from John Anderson. John Rich describes John Anderson was "the George Jones of my generation...nobody can sing like John Anderson and you immediately know it's him when you hear his voice". John tells of how great it is to make music in America because you're free to do whatever you want. He speaks of visiting a local bar in Nashville and frequently encountering a bartender there trying to get into the music business. He told her to make a demo, etc. etc. and the next thing he knew his discovery became a big hit...that discovery being Gretchen Wilson. Ray demonstrates visible enthusiasm over John's house containing a showroom complete with a bar.
John also speaks of discovering an act going by the name of Cowboy Troy, a rapping country entertainer. Ray then asks how John and Big Kenny met and formed their duo, Big and Rich. John remarks that his first impression was one of concern because here he was dressed a bit more conservative by comparison to Kenny's wild hair and rock 'n' roll attire. John tells of seeing Kenny tossing small, wrapped pieces of bubble gum into the audience...and one happened to land in the middle of John's forehead. He speaks of their success as a duo before speaking about his grandfather and World War Two. He mentions that his grandfather received 6 Purple Hearts during his military service and this sets up the performance of "The Good Lord and the Man".
After this performance John starts to talk about the 2009 market crash and the bailouts of the banks. John commented that the news angered him so much that he literally threw one of his boots at the television. This inspired him to come up with "Shuttin' Detroit Down", a collaboration with one of his music idols, John Anderson. John Rich performs the market crash/bailout song to wild applause.
Ray then closes the show singing "Your Bozo's Back Again", arranged in the manner that you hear on the Bozo's Back Again CD from 2011 instead of it's original arrangement on 1989's Beside Myself. I should point out the difference in arrangement is very subtle but if you're as familiar with 1989's recording as I am then you'll notice the subtle differences in the 2011 re-recording. Unlike "Game Show Love", "Your Bozo's Back Again" happened to be a song that I've seen him perform on television before...but only once. One of the band members was playing an instrument that I have to admit I'd never seen before. It was a handheld instrument that had the appearance of a piano but it was being blown into as if it were a member of the horn family of instruments. If I come across the name of that instrument I'll make note of it in my next blog entry. Speaking of which...my next blog entry should be this coming weekend sometime...it'll be a re-cap of episode 12 guest starring Tony Orlando! I can't wait to hear the things the two of them discuss!!
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