November 26, 2024 • 56 mins
Celebs are just like us...they get starstruck too! We've taken stories from past BobbyCast episodes of famous people meeting other celebrities. You'll hear from Craig Morgan on becoming friends with Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani, Randy Houser on meeting Leonardo DiCaprio and Sheryl Crow on opening for Michael Jackson. Some artists, like Darius Rucker, Gavin DeGraw and Ben Rector, got to meet their musical heroes and they share how those interactions went. You also hear super personal stories from Terri Clark, Richard Marx, Lionel Richie, Brenda Lee, Reba and Ronnie Dunn from Brooks & Dunn.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Ladies and gentlemen, we are experiencing technical difficulties.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
This is the Bobby Cast. Hey, welcome to a special
episode of the Bobby Cast. You're gonna love this episode.
Four eighty three artists sharing personal stories about other celebrities
they've met, whether they got to perform with their musical
hero or work with them on a project. It's always
fun to hear these untold stories about celebrities thinking other
celebrities are cool. And these are all stories and luckily
(00:31):
from the Bobby Cast for me talking to these people,
so Darius, Gavin de Graw, Randy Hawser Ronnie Dunn from
Brooks and Dunn, Cheryl Crow, Lionel Richie, they have great stories.
So let's kick off this Bobbycast special with Craig Morgan
sharing how he and Blake Shelton became friends and what
Gwen Stefani did to him that he really respected. Well,
(00:53):
how did you and Blake become friends? How did you?
Because it seems like he has pretty close.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
We were and it are we still are?
Speaker 2 (01:01):
You know, I don't Blake had got here before I did.
Speaker 4 (01:04):
Blake was working on his career long before, not long before,
but a few years before I got here, and so
he had started having some radio success, and we literally
met at some event in Nashville and just started hanging out.
And then he had lived in Hitton County and I
was in Dixon, so we weren't that far apart. Both
(01:25):
realized that we liked hunting. I invited him on a
hunting trip on a trip that I was doing in Kansas.
I'm sorry, yeah, in Kansas, And at that trip we
became like we were buddies.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
I knew right then that I liked the.
Speaker 4 (01:43):
Guy, and we were both kind of like I said,
he had already had a couple of songs on the radio,
and then I started having some success at Broken Bow,
and then we just stayed in touch. I mean, at
one point we were we were with each other all
the time. Every time we could do something together we would.
(02:06):
And then he got divorced from Cat and he and
Miranda got married. And I had known Miranda a little
bit and really thought that Miranda and I had a
decent relationship. And she used to tell a story about
how she came to Fanfair and it was one of
my early on first two or three years of Fanfare,
(02:27):
when he still called it Fanfair, you know, and she
tells the story, and I remember her telling me that
how she waited after the show to meet some of
the artists, and that I came out and was the
only one that came out afterwards and gave.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Her an autograph. And so I thought, man, this is
gonna be awesome.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
You know, my buddy's marrying this girl who's turned into
an artist of her own right and turn in this.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
You know, it's great. But something happened with them.
Speaker 4 (02:53):
Two got married, and I don't know, she was no
longer a Craig Morgan fan for some reason, you know,
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Oh, but you know that's history. And here we are now.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
I remember when you were doing the Opry Blake when
him I think him and Gwen were playing from his ranch.
I think, yeah, I was there. I've just I've done
Opry shows in the past year, But I was he
setting you up? Were you setting him up? Are you
going back and forth? Always it's yeah, it's it's horrible.
Speaker 3 (03:25):
I will tell you though. We uh uh.
Speaker 4 (03:28):
When my son died, a lot of my friends uh
in this business came out there and I had, man,
I gained so much respect and admiration already loved all
these people, but it's really weird.
Speaker 5 (03:43):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
And Jerry was with me, it's weird when I know
them and I love them and they're I consider them friends.
But when a guy like Tray Satkins, Blake Shelton, Jim
and Brown and John Colleen, these guys show up at
at my son's funeral and they stand in line with
everyone else out there, asked nothing, didn't want to come
(04:07):
in early, you know, I it just, man, it just
floored me.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
And when I'll never forget.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
We were we.
Speaker 4 (04:14):
Were downstairs and Cec had come in and was talking.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
She sang it my son's funeral, and uh, you know,
I'm trying to. I'm trying to. I don't know have
a sense of.
Speaker 4 (04:28):
I wanted to comprehend my people and and and them
to know that I appreciate them being there. But I
remember Blake coming in and we cried, you know, we
cried together, and he hugged me, and I felt such
an embrace of friendship from him.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (04:46):
And I knew.
Speaker 4 (04:48):
I knew then that there was nothing that Blake or
I could do that would sever that friendship.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
It wouldn't happen.
Speaker 4 (04:56):
And I also at that moment became Gwenn's bugs fan.
Speaker 3 (05:01):
I had met Gwen.
Speaker 4 (05:02):
Via FaceTime a few times when Blake and I were together,
and he was like giddy, silly and love FaceTime in her,
and we would we would lay there together and sit
and talk to Gwen or her own FaceTime, you know,
And I really liked her, but I didn't really know her.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
But when he.
Speaker 4 (05:20):
Came in the room, I said, where's Gwen? And you know,
was she not able to come? He said, no, she's outside.
She was being respectful and she did not want to
come in until she was invited in.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
And I just met I thought, my.
Speaker 4 (05:33):
Lord, you know, if she came in and she too,
like cried and hugged my wife and showed her such
an embrace of friendship and kindness and warmth, and it
just absolutely hammered me in I've never experienced anything from
her but that since, you know, when we're at the
award shows and he's like, let's get out of here
for a few minutes and we go out to the
bus and hang out, and they're just He's in such
(05:56):
a beautiful place with her that I've never seen And
I love that.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
I love it.
Speaker 4 (06:01):
Now Having said all that I can text Blake on Monday,
April the first, and it might be Monday, June first
when I heard from he is the worst man. And
then I'll get nothing a picture of him flipping me
a bird or something, you know. But yeah, so we've
been friends for a long time. I mean he came
(06:22):
out when I did read That Yacht Club and I
remember when we did reading That Yacht Club he had
a huge hit and even you know, just to show
you how weird this businesses. I remember talking to Blake
him going, man, I don't know if this is gonna work.
I don't know what's going to happen. I'm like, you
got a big, huge hit, are you kidding?
Speaker 2 (06:40):
You know?
Speaker 3 (06:40):
And he's like yeah, but you just don't know. And
now he look crazy?
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Is that you know?
Speaker 3 (06:44):
It's just it's wonderful.
Speaker 6 (06:47):
Now.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
I want you to hear this from Gavin de Grass
talking to Gavin, and Gavin talked about opening up for
his hero Billy.
Speaker 7 (06:52):
Joel is whenever you open Billy Joel, oh Man, Billy Joel.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
That aside from it being an artist that you just
loved listening to and represented who where you're from, you know,
we have a sure but you go back to that Christmas.
I mean the first time, did you twenty fourteen is
what I said, says the first time you opened for
Billy Joelen, Yeah, I just did you have any of
those emotions the first time you went up to go like,
(07:20):
oh man, we came here for Christmas, this is our
Christmas present, and now I get to be up here doing.
Speaker 8 (07:24):
This unbelievable full circle moment in life, you know. And
I'd met him briefly before, once or twice. I met
him because I'd founded the pavement for so long, for
so many years, before I ever had a record deal,
I used to play at an open mic thing a
bunch of player, studio session guys and stuff on the
(07:46):
Upper West Side. I'd had a gig every Monday night,
and after my Monday night gig, I used to go
to another place after ours and jam with these guys.
And one of them was a sax parent named Richie Kanata,
who was Billy Joel's early sax player. I put a
record out, I got lucky with it, did good. Richie
reached out ears later. I said, Billy's playing at the
garden eleven dates or whatever it was, will you come
(08:11):
be my guest.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
I said sure.
Speaker 8 (08:13):
He said, one caveat sit with my son. He's a fan.
I said, I love to get to the show. Richie
texts me come backstage. Billy wants to meet you.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
I was like yeah, So I go backstage. There's Billy.
Speaker 8 (08:28):
Billy introduced himself and I was hoping he'd say, hey,
I love your music, but he said I've been reading
a lot about you.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Thanks. And I said I'm a huge fan a lot
about you.
Speaker 9 (08:50):
You know.
Speaker 8 (08:51):
And I was like cool, I'm gonna go back and
sit in my chair now. And then years later the
phone rang and my dad said, hey, Billy wants you
to open for him. And I said, Billy who? Because
it had been you know. He said, Billy joel you
moron and I said yeah, okay. When he said this date,
(09:11):
that date, this one date, I said, good. Where is
it going to be a place called the BB and
T Center, South Florida. So I said, great, I go
to the gig. I'm backstage. I just get there. Guitar
player Tommy Burns, Billy's guitar player, be forever sees me backstage.
He said, Gavin, Gavin, have you seen Billy yet Billy's here.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
Have you seen him? I said no, No.
Speaker 8 (09:37):
He said, come outside, we're having a smoke. I said, oh, okay,
I go outside. Guys are standing in a semi circle.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Billy is in the middle.
Speaker 8 (09:49):
Having a drag, and.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
I walk out.
Speaker 8 (09:51):
Tommy says, heay, Billy, Billy, Gavin's here, Gavin's here. I
introduced myself again. I said, hey, man, thanks for thanks
for having me. He said, hey, thanks for thanks for
coming out, you know, thanks for coming good. Glad, glad
you were able to come here. I said, listen, you're
my idol. Okay, that's an honor. But I know there's
(10:14):
other musicians out there who want this gig. But I
want to say candidly, if you have anyone else in
mind for opening for you, yo, fuck that guy. I
want this gig. They all started laughing. You know, he said,
can you do more more dates? I said, all cancel dates?
(10:37):
To do these dates, I'll cancel. You're such a huge
influence on me. He was like, you're the guy you're hired,
you know, And and he did. And I'm like, man,
he gave me a million dates.
Speaker 5 (10:51):
You know.
Speaker 8 (10:51):
We played the Garden a bunch of times. I don't
even know how many times you know Fenway Park.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Ah Field.
Speaker 8 (11:01):
I lived around a corner from Fenway Park when I
was in college. For about a year, I could never
go to Fenway Park. I didn't have money to go
to Fenway Park. Then one day I hop into shuttle
bus hop out of my hotel, getting a shuttle bus,
drive through a tunnel, and I get out of a
van in the middle of the field in Fenway Park
(11:21):
because I'm going to open for Billy that night, And.
Speaker 3 (11:23):
I thought this was how I was supposed to see
famwa to park.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
This is so much better. Darius Rutger and I had
a great conversation, and part of that was him sharing
the story of the time he got to perform with
his musical hero Al Green with hooting the Blowfish. What's
the highlight professionally and what is kind of the low light?
Because I kind of want to wrap hoodie up and
(11:48):
move to a different part of your career. But what's
the highlight where you're like, God, dang, you can't believe it.
This is it? And then what's kind of like, man,
I don't know what we're gonna be able to do
this anymore.
Speaker 5 (11:57):
Oh, I think the highlight was for me. I'm sure
for each member has their different highlight, but the highlight
for me was when we played the Billboard Music Awards.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
With Al Green. That was.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
Ki who you sang as a kid. Yes, was one
of those.
Speaker 5 (12:19):
We had played every every award show and they want
us to play the Billboard Music Awards and we just
didn't want to play it. We played every show, and
Billboards is different. You know who's gonna win. You know,
it's not like the politics of having to play something
else so you could get a win.
Speaker 3 (12:32):
You know who's gonna win.
Speaker 5 (12:33):
And so we weren't going to play it, and they
say to us, if you play it, we'll get All
Green to play with you. And I was like, yeah right.
They were like, no, if you play it, we'll get
All Green to play with you. I was like, when
you get All Green to play with us, we'll say yes,
And sure enough they got. I don't know what they
did or how much they paid them, but he said yes,
and that performance I start like every now and then.
That's one of the few things I still watch it
(12:54):
from us.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
Can you remember it vividly from doing it?
Speaker 5 (12:57):
I remember, like I'm standing on stage right now, like
when Dean hit that baseline to take me to the river,
and Al walked out. You could first of all, you
could have shot the crowd in the face because nobody
expected it. And second of all, he went off, Bobby,
you can look at You're in TV. You do this
for a living. We're playing over our time we're supposed
(13:18):
to play and is Al won't stop. And as long
as Al jammin, we're jamming, so Al won't stop. They
go to they go to the announcer to go to
commercial and we are killing it so hard. They changed
their mind and going back to the stage.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
That never happened. It could have cost money, never happens.
Speaker 5 (13:35):
It was awesome.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
Okay, dang, that's crazy. Yeah, just I mean, I'm thinking
of the TV part of it, not even your career.
I'm like, yeah, it was crazy. They they go to
Bardow up in their corner like, well, let's go back.
That never happened.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
I know, it was crazy.
Speaker 1 (13:50):
Hang tight, The Bobby Cast will be right back. Wow,
and we're back on the Bobby Cast.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Love. Terry Clark was talking to Terry Clark and she
talked about Toby Keith and talks about their time touring
and even partying together. I'm gonna ask you about Tobe
to you kind of wrap this up, you, you know,
with Toby a bunch too, Like, what give me a
Tobe story memory.
Speaker 10 (14:17):
Well, it's not just one memory.
Speaker 11 (14:19):
I mean I toured with him and he kinda I
kind of looked at him like a big brother.
Speaker 10 (14:26):
You know.
Speaker 11 (14:27):
We talked a lot. He gave a lot of advice.
He was always very honest, brutally honest and told the truth.
I would ask him questions that I think some people
were like, wow, I can't believe she just asked him
that question. And we would after the shows, you know,
go to his bus and I would just get to
be a part of like a Toby Keith bus party.
(14:48):
Everybody's the bus is bouncing up and down. Brian O'Connell's
on there, DJing from his computer, and I'm just like
I felt like I was just got.
Speaker 10 (14:56):
To be in the cool kids club.
Speaker 11 (14:58):
And Toby played basketball with the crew and the bands
every single day. And I have a radio show and
I interviewed him for this radio show.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Act like I don't know that, by.
Speaker 10 (15:10):
The way, Well, I don't know.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
By the way, when you win all the when you
win the awards. I'm like, all right, whatever, and then
then it makes me feel lesser than But.
Speaker 11 (15:19):
Oh, I'm not winning awards. I'm winning only women. I
want a Gracie Award. You don't qualify for that because
you're a boy. And congratulations on all your awards, by
the way, You've got a lot of them. I'm still
saying I can still get a CMA award as a
radio host. I never got one as an artist, and
it was my childhood dream to get a CMA award.
So I'm like, man, if Bobby Bones would just, you know, retire, well.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
They ever, Well, please God, I can't retire. I don't.
I'm not going to retire. I have no work. If
I'm doing this, that's that's funny.
Speaker 10 (15:50):
But yeah, But back to Toby, he was. He was great.
Speaker 11 (15:52):
We would always like dip together back then I was
I would dip school and I know, I'd walk on
the bus and he'd hand me he had a solo
cup with a napkin in it, and he'd borrow one
from me, and I borrow one from him and just
stand there talking just about everything. And I remember getting
really hammered with Dean Dylan on his bus and I
don't even remember getting back to my bus, and Toby said,
(16:15):
I watched you walk back to your bus and make
sure you were all right.
Speaker 10 (16:17):
How are you feeling today?
Speaker 11 (16:20):
And then I you know, he just like always so cool,
so respectful, and when I remember one thing he said
when he was doing press for that tour and they said, well,
Terry clarksh're coming out of your opening act and he said,
he said, Derrek Clark is one of the most underrated
artists out there. And that to me just like he's
not He's not somebody just throw stuff out there like that,
because he's so honest.
Speaker 10 (16:40):
It meant the world to me that he said that.
Speaker 11 (16:45):
And then I interviewed him for the radio show and
I think this was right before he got diagnosed with
cancer or right around the time, because it was it
was right around two years ago, a little over two
years ago. And the first thing he said was, you know,
I'm all, you know, getting ready to interview, and I'm like, okay, okay, Toby,
you're ready ready to He goes you want to dip, like,
(17:07):
did you hear me?
Speaker 10 (17:10):
But no, he's just he's just always great.
Speaker 11 (17:13):
We talked a bit after the interview and he said,
call me, we'll go to lunch because I was frustrated
with creative stuff. And you know, I'm like, I don't
I could really stand to talk to you right now
and get your advice on a few things.
Speaker 10 (17:24):
And he has he had a record label and stuff.
Speaker 11 (17:26):
And he said, call me, We'll go to lunch, and
the Coole Covid thing was going. It was just, yeah,
I didn't get to get to I wish I'd gotten
to get together with him one more time, you know,
but it's a tremendous loss. I think he is has
He was one of the greatest songwriters of all time
in country music and a great entertainer, a great guy
and didn't bother him to disagree with you and didn't
(17:51):
care if he didn't care if he agreed or disagreed.
Speaker 10 (17:53):
He just said what he felt.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
Randy Hauser was in the movie Killers of the Flower
Movie and he got to work with Leo DiCaprio. That's
pretty cool. He was doing that while filming the movie,
and he told us what Leo said to him on
set one time. Mike Mike d loved Killers of the
Flower Movie. Did he My wife read the book and
so we're waiting. Yeah, well did you read it before?
Speaker 7 (18:17):
I read it when I got cash.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
So we're waiting for it because it's an Apple Apple movie, right, Mike, yep.
So we're waiting for it to come. And she's from Oklahoma.
My wife is, oh, yeah, yeah, like very much. What
part of Oklahoma like near ish Tulsa.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
Yeah, so that's where.
Speaker 2 (18:34):
Yes, So she knows a lot about it through like
three and four generations that would talk about it, right,
and like she's moved by the story because she has
personal relationships with people that had personal relationships. Yeah. So Mike,
I'm gonna let you ask the first couple questions. I
know you've seen it, I know the story, but you're
way more educated on the actual movie.
Speaker 12 (18:53):
The TENI have is with Leonardo DiCaprio and one of
my other favorite movies he did was Scorsese was Wolf
of Wall Street. And I've seen like a behind the
scenes whip of him like totally in the zone, like
doesn't even look like he's there, and then right when
the camera goes on, he instantly goes into that character.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Yeah does he do that?
Speaker 3 (19:09):
Yeah?
Speaker 7 (19:10):
I mean one of the like, uh, one of the
things that was noticeable by well he's he's also when
he doesn't look like he's working his mind. Like one
of the strangest things would happen was like between like
between like takes, if we had like downtime, changing out
film stuff like that, just hanging out talking I did,
(19:32):
I'd notice that he would like we'd just kind of
shoot to shoot the ship, you know, I don't know
if I can say that all. Yeah, but and then
you know, like the next day he would come back
to the set and we'd be talking and he would
repeat things that I said to him just like me,
(19:52):
like he would download my accent and stuff like that,
which is crazy and uh, but no, he would, you know,
he like there be time we'd just be throwing a
ball or something out out in the yard, and then
you know it would be time to.
Speaker 3 (20:06):
Go back in.
Speaker 7 (20:06):
You know, like very normal, very normal guy.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
But also freaking.
Speaker 7 (20:13):
Amazing whenever whenever they would yell action, how he would
just freaking go at it.
Speaker 5 (20:19):
You know.
Speaker 7 (20:19):
It's just kind of like stepping on the Grand Ole
Opera and them saying if your turn and like doing
what I do you kind of have to Just one
of the things that was so cool about it to
me and I enjoyed about the whole process is that
I was, first of all, was scared of death, you know,
like I'd never done this. I was like, I don't
(20:42):
know what the hell I'm doing here. And but the
same is even now before I go on stage, I'm
a little anxious and like these people want to hate
me whatever. But when it came time to go to
the set from you know, the actors a little where
we're staged, to go to the actual getting cameras, the
(21:06):
same the same gear was shifted.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
In my being that that.
Speaker 7 (21:12):
Is when I'm walking to the stage, go play music
and that and it became it fed me like to
go do it rather than you know, all the every
fear was gone. It was just go time, really, so
I seek. I could see that in him as well.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
Man, that is awesome that you're just weren't so self conscious.
Speaker 7 (21:33):
Oh I was, but but I was able to like
that blocking mechanism that that happens with going to make music.
It totally was the same thing.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
Was it like watching a different kind of artist? For example,
got a major League baseball game. Never bet it didn't
go until I was older, but I would see a
like a real athlete, Like, oh God, I thought I'd
seen a real athlete until I saw, oh, a freaking
real athlete.
Speaker 3 (21:56):
That's what it was. Absolute damn lutely it was.
Speaker 7 (22:00):
It was like and first of all, I'd never seen
this whole process at all, you know, and so it
was it was strange that it was, and I'd never
really done and I'd never done it. And the first
first scene I shot was the scene that actually made
the film. There's a lot of scenes that got cut,
(22:20):
you know, they should had hundreds of hours of stuff,
but they, Uh, the first scene that I shot was
the scene that actually made the film. And it was
like four hours of like going back because they shoot it,
you know, from every angle. Everybody's in the scene has
(22:41):
to do their thing. But and I remember just being
like totally like.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
What the hell, where's Martin? Of course saying you're over there.
Speaker 7 (22:50):
And and he's coming over to me, and he's standing
over my shoulder right here, and I'm sitting at that
this desk, you know, it's like that bigger than that
thing but like old school, and I'm sitting there and
he's explaining what he wants out of me and talking
to me, and I'm literally.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
In lah Lahlen.
Speaker 7 (23:08):
And so we shoot my angle like I don't know,
four times, and Marty he's over there in this other
room where their viewing what's going on. He comes out,
all right, we got it, and I went because I
had seen a guy the day before I got there,
and I stayed on set all day dressed ready to
go to shoot. This scene didn't happen, but I'd seen
(23:29):
a guy h and another and another scene.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
That that didn't make it.
Speaker 7 (23:35):
Uh, they shot his this thing like I don't know,
it must have been twenty something times because they couldn't
get it and get it and you could sense the
you could sense the air leaking out of the room
and wasting time and money, and so I was just
like went back to my bus out and I was like, please, God,
don't let me be that guy to study studies. Well,
(23:57):
so then he comes up and he goes and he goes.
Marty comes out, Okay, Randy, we got it, and I
was like we do and he's like, yeah, we got it.
And I was like, are you sure. He's like yeah,
and he said what and so Leo looks sad and says,
what do you mean you sure? I was like I've
never really done this. He said, what do you mean,
(24:18):
You've never really done this? I was like, I've never
done this. He said, we wouldn't You wouldn't know you.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
Here Cheryl Crowe talking about opening for Michael Jackson back
in the day. Did you ever you talk about Stevie Nicks.
Did you ever have a relationship with her? Did you go,
oh my gosh, like that had to be the coolest thing.
Speaker 9 (24:37):
I have so many weird experiences.
Speaker 10 (24:41):
With people like that.
Speaker 9 (24:42):
Okay, So I like, if you dig back through the
anals of my my school pictures, I had the Stevie
Nicks here do I met her at my first Grammys.
I met her at an after party and I have
a picture with her and Anita Pointer and Bonnie Rait
and Carly Simon and me and I was the newbie
(25:02):
and She's like, I love you. Would you I'm getting
ready to do some songs for Practical Magic that movie?
Speaker 10 (25:10):
Would you produce it?
Speaker 2 (25:11):
And I was like, uh yeah.
Speaker 9 (25:14):
And she came to New York and she had her posse,
you know, some bunch of women, and I produced her
and it was just it was unbelievable. I can remember
looking at her out in the recording booth, and she
looked like a fourteen year old. I mean literally, she
looked like she had aged a day. She looked exactly
as I remembered her, and she just was like so
(25:37):
embracing and so told stories like I imagine that we
probably talked and hung out for two hours and then
she'd sing, and then we'd hang out and talk for
a couple of hours and then she'd sing and it
was but it was so glorious. And then she said, well,
you were produce the record, and I went up producing
and going on the road with her, and she's just
(25:58):
been like very godmom to me.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
And I don't want you to say any names here,
but I have had experiences where I really was loved people,
got to know them, not that goal ruin the people
that I would and I now I don't really idolize
except for like hearts, yeah yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, So,
(26:21):
but there have been times where that's happened and I'm like, well,
I cannot believe I could just spend time we're gonna
do And then you're like, oh man, I kind of
wish I wouldn't have because it's ruined what I cherished,
which was these beliefs and yeah, I'm with how massive
you got. I had to assume that happened too some
I will.
Speaker 10 (26:37):
Say I've been really lucky.
Speaker 9 (26:39):
Almost everybody I've met has been beyond beyond my wildest dreams.
Speaker 2 (26:43):
I got a few people and you do them.
Speaker 10 (26:46):
Yeah, I bet you fix that. We'll fix that up
a few relatives.
Speaker 9 (26:50):
Interestingly, I worked with Michael Jackson before I hit it big.
I was a backup singer, went on the road with
him for eighteen months, and there were some things on
that tour like this doesn't make sense, And then later
on the documentary came out, and I mean he was
he was already eccentric on that tour. But people ask
(27:10):
me all the time, are you able to listen to
his music? And I'm like, man, that was the first
album I ever owned. I got it from Santa Claus
when I was five years old.
Speaker 10 (27:16):
ABC.
Speaker 9 (27:17):
I grew up watching his TV show, I you know all.
That music was important to me and it definitely changed
the way I felt about him. And but I can
still listen to the music from when he was a
kid because I feel like he was who he was then.
Speaker 10 (27:32):
He wasn't who he became. But for the most part.
I mean, I can't really.
Speaker 9 (27:36):
Think of anybody that's just been a douchebag, you know
what I mean?
Speaker 2 (27:39):
Can you separate art an artist?
Speaker 9 (27:41):
It depends, I mean it depends there. I mean we're
kind of looking at that with the Will Smith thing.
Now it's like, okay, we're gonna still, We're gonna be
able to watch some movies.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
Can we take out that?
Speaker 9 (27:51):
You know?
Speaker 10 (27:52):
It depends.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
I think it's and how severe?
Speaker 10 (27:55):
Yeah, well yeah, yeah, like yeah r Kelly.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
Ever even no, if it comes on somewhere, I'll leave, yeah,
like no, but again there are artists. Again, if Smooth
Criminal comes on, I probably just jammed along to it
before I realize yeah, and then the song's over, and
then I don't want to leave because I got a
burger and I'm, you know, feeling pretty good. I did
meet It's interesting.
Speaker 9 (28:14):
I met a young artist who totally blew up, who
I had the weirdest experience with, and I can't listen
to her music. I wouldn't say her name, but I
mean became massive. And you know, there are just certain
people that you go, Okay, they got into it so
they could be famous. And then there are other people
that you go, oh, I can totally relate to this person.
Speaker 10 (28:30):
They're just they they love what they do.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
Eighties superstar Richard Marx talked about the time he became
a backup singer for Kenny Rodgers and then how he
went up to him in the studio and pitched Kenny
Rodgers a song that he wrote. He also shared how
he became friends with Lionel Richie.
Speaker 13 (28:48):
That's all I did when I wasn't doing math homework,
when I wasn't doing.
Speaker 10 (28:51):
The school work that I was forced to do, I was.
Speaker 13 (28:54):
Just listening to music and memorizing every nuance of every record.
I was paying attention into the production and arranging, and
I went to like I just studied it like out
of love. So when I ended up in LA at eighteen,
I got my first job was singing background vocals on
a Lionel Richie record. He was really the catalyst. He
(29:16):
was the guy he heard my demo tape of my
first couple of songs and actually called my parents' house.
This is when he was like leaving the Commodorees and
maybe next to Michael Jackson, arguably the biggest star in
the music business. This guy took the time to call
some kid in Chicagi didn't know, and he just encouraged me.
(29:37):
He said, you know, I really like your voice and
these are your first songs. Man should heard my first songs.
So I when I moved out to LA he had
me sing some background vocals and then he recommended me
as a singer to Kenny Rodgers, his buddy, and that's
how I started writing songs.
Speaker 3 (29:52):
I wrote songs for Kenny Rodgers.
Speaker 13 (29:53):
That's how my songwriting career started.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
It's funny that Lionel, because I know Lionel pretty well
from working with him. I went there's stuff and he
pulled me aside and like give me advice. He's awesome.
But it's funny. He's always been that way.
Speaker 13 (30:04):
He's always been that way. He's a class act and
he's so generous with his time. He's a little bit
I really don't know anybody else. I've never known anybody
else who has that level of grace about themselves and
who go out of their way to be encouraging of
people where there's gonna be nothing paid back.
Speaker 2 (30:24):
He's just that good a guy. And so I recommend
you to Kenny Rodgers and you go to sing background
vocals for Kenny. So are you the guy, yeah, the
three behind and you're doing the dances at the same.
Speaker 13 (30:36):
That I'm only in the studio work.
Speaker 2 (30:39):
Yeah, got it.
Speaker 13 (30:40):
I get hired to work for two days on this
Kenny Rodgers album and it was in the like towards
the end of the making of that album. And so
I go in and I've sang some harmonies and stuff
on this one track or two tracks, and then I
knew I was coming back the next day. And during
the session I overheard Kenny, his producer, that they still
(31:01):
needed one more song, and he even described it. He says, man,
we still need one more ballad. We need that like
sort of Lionelsh ballad. We got to find it.
Speaker 2 (31:09):
You hear this conversation happening.
Speaker 13 (31:10):
I overhear this conversation. I go home to my apartment
in La I write a song. I come back the
next day and I do exactly what the background singer
should never do, which is go up to the artist
and say, I'm a songwriter.
Speaker 10 (31:27):
I've got a song.
Speaker 13 (31:29):
And again Grace Kenny Rogers could have immediately called security
and had me escort it to my car, and instead said, well,
let me hear it, and we sat down at the
piano and I played it. My hands are shaking, and
he liked it.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
And you knew it. You can remember it. Did you
memorize it from that?
Speaker 5 (31:47):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (31:47):
Yeah? Really?
Speaker 10 (31:47):
Oh yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 13 (31:49):
And it was a number one country song.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
And the song was craze crazy for you kids.
Speaker 3 (31:58):
You see, that's.
Speaker 13 (32:00):
My Kenny Rodgers, like eighty five or so eighty four maybe, yes,
I was nineteen when I wrote it.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
And speaking of Lionel Richie, here's Lionel Richie talking about
Kenny Rogers after he passed and how Kenny was one
of the most amazing men. And I want to talk
to you about Kenny a little bit because I got
to know Kenny later, and Kenny and I became really
friendly in the later part of his life, and I
know you and him were close for years.
Speaker 6 (32:26):
Well, you know, let me let me let me be
very honest with you. I just lost one of my heroes.
That is the best way I can describe Kenny because
of the fact that you know, I met him at
a time in my life when I was trying to
figure out life, you know, transitioning from the Commodorees into
my solo career. And you know, God sent me an
(32:49):
angel because this guy was probably one of the nicest
guys I'd ever met in my life, and full of knowledge,
full of life knowledge, and he was able to you know,
he was in a group called the First Edition, and
everything I was about to experience as a young kid,
(33:12):
he had already been through it. And so it was
just a beautiful relationship that blossomed into something called a
friendship forever. We have lived a lot of life together.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
So when you write lady, how long did you have that?
Or you was that meant to get to him? It
was for you? Like what was the story between you
writing it and him recording it?
Speaker 6 (33:37):
Well, it's all about I think it's about God's plan
because it was actually designed. The melody of it was
supposed to be for the Commodorees. And at that particular
time I had written you know, three times a Lady
and all these other songs, and so the guy said,
you know what, Donald, do you have anything else besides
(33:59):
another love? So I said, well, I wrote a religious
song that Jesus is love. He said, well take that.
We like that. That's a good that's a good transition
from what we're doing. So now I went from having
another ballad to now having this thing sitting around. Well.
I got a call from Kenny Rogers saying do you
(34:20):
have a song for me? And I said, Kenny, I'm
quite honest with you. I have a song, but I
don't have time to do it because we're the Comodos
are going on tour in about two weeks and I'm
not going to be able to do it, but I'll
do it when I come back. I hung up with
the phone. About three days later, the drummer for the
(34:41):
Commodorees fell off his motorcycle and I had two months
of free time because he was recovering. And I called
Kenny back and said, are you interested in that song?
He said absolutely. Well, the funny part about this story
is my mumbles. I don't write the words because if
(35:01):
you know anything about writing a song with the Commodoes,
for God's sake, you don't finish the song because in
two seconds they will say, we don't like it? What
else do you have? So I always would have basically
the first verse of it all and nothing else. Well,
the song was called Baby just Baby Bye, blah blah
blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. Right,
(35:24):
and I now go to meet Kenny and he had
never heard a song pitch like this before because I've
never pitched the song to anyone. So I walk in
his backstage area of his show and he said, okay,
what's the song? And I said, well, he was telling
me about he had just gotten married and he's never
in his life ever and he's never married. He married
(35:44):
a lady, a real lady like Lionel. I mean, what
am I doing with a lady me of all people,
you know? So he said, oh, yeah, by the way,
what's the name of the song? I said, lady, I'm.
Speaker 2 (35:56):
No fool nice.
Speaker 6 (35:59):
And then from there, of course, I said, lady, I'm
your night in Shining Armor and I love you bae.
Blah blah blah blah blah blah bah bah bah bah.
He said, well, I said, do you like it? He said, well,
where's the rest of the song. I said, well, no,
I'll finish it if you like it. So he trusted me.
(36:20):
Of course, he tells that story, you'll hear the story.
He'll repeat the story back. He said, I couldn't believe
that's all he played for me, And of course we
went in the studio and a massive hit. But he
always teases me because while we were recording that song,
I wrote two songs for him. The first song was
called going Back to Alabama and the second song was
(36:43):
Lady Well. I thought, just to warm up with Kenny,
I will do I'll do Going back to Alabama first,
just to get used to recording with him, and then
we'll knock out Lady Well. We get halfway through Going
back to Alabama, he said, I don't really want to
sing the song, Let's just sing Lady Well. I didn't
(37:03):
want to tell him i'd only written the first verse,
so he sang the first verse and then I said,
you know, I'll be all right back. I have to
go to the bathroom, and so I'm now in the
bathroom writing the second verse to lady And of course
the joke with Kenny was, if you want to get
(37:25):
a great hit record from Lionel Richie, make sure he
writes the second verse in the bathroom. But of course
that was the story. But it means it's all true,
as crazy as it sounds. But it was just a massive, massive.
Speaker 2 (37:38):
Record for both of us, you know, until I was
kind of looking back at some old Kenny stuff. You know,
he's saying on We're the World what you wrote?
Speaker 6 (37:47):
Yeah, you know that was you know what that I
was very fortunate too at the particular time when I
went into my solo career, I also I had Kenny
there at my And the joke was I was hanging
out with Kenny's manager, Ken Craigan, and so when I
was looking for a manager, Ken said, well, Kenny said, well,
(38:09):
I got Ken right here. What do you think about that?
And I just segued right to we had the same manager.
So of course, when I did we Are the World
naturally with Michael Naturally, Kenny's gonna be a part of
that no matter what, because I just had to have
him in there. And by that time we were just
we were just two peas in a pot by that time,
(38:31):
and of course we Are the World was just one
of those you know. I I think every once in
a while God kind of possesses you and says, this
is what you're really here to do, and the world
needs to hear this song, and you need to deliver
this message. And of course, you know, even to this day,
(38:52):
someone asked me of the day am I gonna write
another We Are the World, and I said, no, I'm
just gonna play we Are the World again, because every
time I try to write a new We Are the World,
I keep writing the same lyrics that I wrote for
We Are the World. The message is the same. Right now,
we are challenged, but we are our brother's keeper right now,
(39:13):
and we have to make sure that we are taking
care of each other because that's what God planned and
not to be. You know, a tribe and a tribe
and a tribe, but we keep being forced to do
something together. And right now, this is that time in
life to hear those words again. And I must admit
(39:35):
that that song resonates today like it did you know
what thirty some odd years ago, thirty five years ago?
Speaker 2 (39:41):
Well, I know that you and Kenny were dear friends,
and I appreciate you sharing the stories about them, and
I appreciate you being so friendly and so kind to me,
like I love you too. You just have been You
just have been the best to me. You have it.
You didn't need to be, but you just have been
the best to me.
Speaker 6 (39:58):
Well, you know what, I I have to tell you something.
I've been trained by some very famous people. And when
I say that. You know, when I met Kenny Rodgers,
you couldn't get any bigger than Kenny Rodgers. You know,
that was the gambler I walked in on and I
must tell you, in less than fifteen seconds, he made
me feel like we grew up together back in Houston, Texas.
(40:20):
You're to follow him, I'm saying, yeah. And I learned
a big trick, and that is if you're famous, if
you're really famous, you don't have to scare anybody to death.
You just have to be as nice as you possibly can,
because that's they're already uncomfortable when they first meet you.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
The Bobby Cast will be right back. Wow, and we're
back on the Bobby Cast.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
Here as Reba talking about the time she made her
opry debut and her set was cut short because of
Dolly Parton.
Speaker 14 (40:58):
Oh everything I get to do cool. I am thrilled
to death about it. I don't take it for granted.
Speaker 2 (41:02):
Still, after all this time, you're not jaded at.
Speaker 10 (41:04):
Oh no, no.
Speaker 14 (41:06):
When I got to do the video with Dolly Parton,
I was like, I was the biggest fan in the room.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
You know, it's wild to hear someone who I look
at as being the greatest you, and to look at Dolly,
at the greatest she is, and just to know that
you would walk into a room with her and be
like in awe when you moved to Nashville. Where was it?
Was Dolly available when you moved to Nashville? Or was
(41:33):
she in La? Was she in that phase? No idea,
You don't know. I don't know.
Speaker 14 (41:37):
The first time I saw Dolly was September seventeenth, nineteen
seventy seven.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
You remember in person, remember the year, in the day.
Speaker 14 (41:43):
The hour I was going to go on and do
my first performance at the Grand Old Lobbry, and they
told came up and said, we're going to take one
of your songs away from you. You'll only do one.
And I said why simple Dolly Parton just pulled it
in the parking lot and I said, well, she.
Speaker 10 (41:57):
Can take both of them. Can I meet her?
Speaker 14 (41:59):
And she walked buying this chaffon black pants, sued and
had those butterfly Rnstone butterflies on and this big cotton
candy hair.
Speaker 10 (42:09):
I thought, man, that must be what angels looked like.
Speaker 14 (42:12):
That was the most beautiful woman I ever saw in
my life.
Speaker 2 (42:15):
And did you say hello? No, oh, you didn't.
Speaker 8 (42:18):
No.
Speaker 14 (42:18):
I was backed up again wall like everybody else was.
I mean, they said, aren't.
Speaker 10 (42:22):
The waves Dolly's coming in?
Speaker 14 (42:24):
And I slammed back up against that wall and just watched.
I don't think her feet touched the ground.
Speaker 10 (42:29):
She was an angel.
Speaker 2 (42:31):
And when did you guys have your first you know
where we kind of do the same thing experience.
Speaker 14 (42:36):
Years later, and then she came on to read a
TV show and we got to spend the whole week together.
Speaker 2 (42:42):
That was precious.
Speaker 14 (42:43):
That's I absolutely love that priceless.
Speaker 2 (42:46):
I just look at you. Two is out of the
same cut, out of the same cloth. Where as country
as can be. Yep, you have ambitions that are bigger
than just singing country music. Although that's your most important
that's your pillar. You haven't ambitions other than just that.
And you both did it at a really high level.
And I would think that that hopefully she would be
(43:08):
someone same thing with like Taylor to you, you know,
with some of these other artists who are doing that,
that that you could reach out to it after a
point and get advice from her to that ever happen,
you reach out like Dolly, you know, can I can
I pick your brain at all?
Speaker 10 (43:20):
Oh yeah, yeah, I have done that.
Speaker 14 (43:22):
I did that in the early nineties a phone call
and she took my matter of fact, I called her.
She was that I think Caesar's in Vegas and I
was in Bakersfield somewhere and I needed a piece of
advice from her. And she was on the Tonight Show
the night before and she said she's going to Vegas,
won't be at Caesar's.
Speaker 2 (43:42):
So I called Caesar's but you actually called the casino. Yeah, wow.
Speaker 10 (43:46):
And I said.
Speaker 14 (43:48):
I need to speak to speak to Dolly Parton.
Speaker 10 (43:50):
Please.
Speaker 14 (43:50):
She said, one moment, please, who's calling? I said, Reba
McIntyre And presume Dolly came on the last she said,
is this really Reba McIntyre or some squirrel?
Speaker 2 (44:00):
What wishes she was?
Speaker 10 (44:00):
Rebel McIntyre say, it's me.
Speaker 2 (44:04):
That's funny to think about. We just have to call
I mean, I haven't thought about having to do that
where you just had to call a place to get someone.
You just have to call a restaurant and be like, hey,
is my uncle there? Yeah, yeah, that was like back
in the day.
Speaker 10 (44:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (44:15):
Brenda Lee from Rocking Around the Christmas Tree talked about
what it was like being around Elvis Presley back when
she was young. Any other performers that you listened to
or liked in that first year so that you're playing
the opera, that they would play the opera and you
think it was cool to be able to see them.
Speaker 15 (44:33):
I loved Patsy Cline, loved her, loved her heart, loved
her talent, loved her generosity.
Speaker 10 (44:43):
She was.
Speaker 15 (44:46):
Not affected at all by the industry. I loved that
about her, and she just kind of took me under
a wing, as did Dottie West, and we were friends forever.
Speaker 2 (45:03):
Did you ever get to see Hank's senior at the Opery?
Because I know he got some trouble and they were like, hey,
don't come back around here no more. But did you
ever get to see Hank Senior at the Opery?
Speaker 15 (45:14):
I did one time?
Speaker 2 (45:15):
And how was that experience?
Speaker 15 (45:20):
A dream?
Speaker 3 (45:21):
Really?
Speaker 15 (45:21):
Because you know, I sang all his songs and had
hits with a lot of them, and to meet the
guy that wrote him, it's surreal almost.
Speaker 2 (45:32):
And he had to be in his early twenties, right
young at that point, very young. What about Elvis, Oh,
Elvis was a trip.
Speaker 15 (45:40):
I loved Elvis, but he was he was almost like
a pretend person because he was so good you couldn't
believe he was real.
Speaker 10 (45:55):
He was sweet, but he was firm.
Speaker 15 (45:58):
He knew what he wanted, knew what he liked. He
wouldn't really if he really truly believed in it. Don't
try to convince him of something else, because that's what
he was going to do.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
Did you see him in town much in Nashville?
Speaker 15 (46:13):
Not a whole lot went to his sessions and watched
and uh, and that's that's back, gosh, late fifties. That's
back when we didn't have all the knobs to turn
to make you sound so good.
Speaker 2 (46:30):
See, you had to sound good.
Speaker 15 (46:32):
You either sounded good or you were asked to leave.
Speaker 2 (46:37):
He was really good, really good, pure.
Speaker 15 (46:40):
Voice, pure voice, no knob turning, no nothing.
Speaker 10 (46:45):
That was him.
Speaker 2 (46:47):
Who else lived here that you're like? You were excited
to see or run into it? Because I had those
people when I moved here, did you Yeah? For sure,
I moved here and it was you know, for me,
it was all the guys like the chestnuts and all
the not late eighties and nineties gouts. Oh yeah, And
so you know, listen to the radio my whole life
growing up, and listen to stay down a little rock,
(47:07):
Arkansas on Hot Springs, Arkansas. And when I moved here
that Joe Diffy, I got to spend a lot of
time with Joe. Yeah, and I got to know him
pretty well before he died. Like we would spend time
together because we'd performed I think before we got to
know each other. The best was performing together at the Opry.
Not at the same time, but we'd be on the
same night multiple times.
Speaker 4 (47:23):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (47:24):
And so you know, how is it the Opry? Yeah,
doors are just open, they are and you just spend
time with the people that are there. Yeah. And so
for me that was exciting to get to see like
the Diffies Kicks Brooks my first time ever playing the
Opry came into the room and was like this is
what we do here. I'm Kicks and I'm like, you're
Brooks are done. This is crazy. So I wonder, like
(47:45):
those those stories for you because I had my version
of that. Sounds like you did too, Oh I did.
Speaker 15 (47:50):
It was like I was like the little sister you
know and Dotty West.
Speaker 2 (47:56):
And we're the youngest by far? Were you the young
youngest kid?
Speaker 15 (48:00):
But Dotty West, Tammy Patsy, all the greats They just
took me under their wing and I just loved them.
Speaker 2 (48:11):
Ben Rector talked about getting to golf with his musical hero,
Huey Lewis, Would you mind sharing your I don't even
want to spoil who it's about, but I'm gonna let
you tell the story about how you went to a
certain thing and your hero was there and you end
up hanging out with a hero all day. Is he
like chased your a followed you.
Speaker 8 (48:31):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (48:31):
Can you just tell that story just from the beginning,
but yes, yes, go ahead.
Speaker 16 (48:34):
Uh, this was this is maybe like the coolest thing
ever for me personally. I got to go play at
the at and T pro am, which is like the
holy grail of all golf things if you're not a
professional golfer.
Speaker 2 (48:50):
At Pebble Beach.
Speaker 16 (48:50):
At Pebble Beach, Yes, it's like on television all that stuff,
and so I initially was going out there. They were like, Hey,
could you come do some music because they have like
parties every night, and they were like, we'd love to
have you be in the celebrity hole in one, which
is like all the celebrities in the tournament. Jim Nantz
announces it and you all hit like one shot closest
(49:12):
to pin. It's like a miniature tournament. You knew that
you can play in all the practice rounds, you know.
It felt like that was like a good way for
me to like sort of get to know the people
that run the tournament. And I was like, well, yeah,
I'll go out and play pebble and NPCC which is minor,
and Peninsula Country Club it's awesome course, and I'll do
the celebrity hole in one and maybe they'll think I'm
(49:35):
a good guy and decent golfer and will have me back.
They were like, if anyone drops out of the tournament,
you can be the tournament. And I was like totally.
And I'm not great at like not great at networking
or any that kind of stuff, but I was like,
I really like this stuff and if nothing ever happened,
that's just be cool and fun. So I get out there.
I play the concert. It was for the tournament committee,
(49:56):
I guess I don't really remember, and they were like, hey,
we think you have a spot in the tournament. Of course,
I'm over the moon and one of my very favorite artists,
Hugh Lewis. My dad listened to him a lot growing up.
And I thought it was like dorky dad music, and
then I realized after I grew up, I was like,
this is actually like some of the sickest music ever.
(50:18):
And so Hugh Lewis was going to come back and
do one last at and T and he hurt his
shoulder and they were like, you're going to replace hue Lewis,
and I was like, oh, that's incredible. It's wild to
feel bad that he's hurt. He's like, but he was
going to walk with your group?
Speaker 2 (50:33):
Is that cool? And I was like, I was like,
time out.
Speaker 16 (50:37):
What So basically, I'm playing in the coolest golf thing
in the world.
Speaker 3 (50:42):
It really is.
Speaker 16 (50:43):
There's not a cooler amateur golf event. And it's basically
me and Huey Lewis. Steve Young was the other celebrity.
I'm not putting myself in the same category as Hugh
Listen Steve Young, but I do.
Speaker 3 (50:56):
I now do. I didn't.
Speaker 16 (50:57):
Then he's honestly the nicest person. I okay, yeah, Huey
Lewis is walking around and he's him and Peter Jacobson,
who is his pro partner, who's a golf announcer now
was like a dominant golfer in his day. They came
back to do the tournament one last time together. Peter
Jacob's caddy was fluff legendary caddy. It was unbelievable and
(51:21):
so basically my week was I would hit a shot
and then walk down the fairway with Hughey and just
kick it. I mean we hung out all day. He
came to every round and I tried so not to
geek out. Some of his band came, I got to
meet them. I did a project news yes, wow, some
of the news several anchors, but it did. It was incredible,
(51:42):
and he was a gentleman and he was like he
was like my older brother. He was like, oh let me,
let me help you out with this at this tournament,
or like here's the deal. It was the best man.
It was honestly, I was like on cloud nine.
Speaker 2 (51:54):
It was the best. Ronnie Dunn, lead singer of Brooks
and Don, talked about how he became close with Johnny
Cash when he first moved to Nashville. Did you ever
go to meet johny Gosh, Yes, she drove.
Speaker 17 (52:07):
Yes, she brought me in to meet him. Where to
his house in Hendersonville?
Speaker 2 (52:13):
Are you nervous?
Speaker 17 (52:14):
Yeah, I'm scared to death. I don't want to meet them.
And I know they're thinking, hey, you know she's bringing
you know, I want to be singer into my house.
It's just like what I would do with one of
my daughters, just like, ah, please, right, So June takes
her out, and you know, just uh, John had just
given June a blue on blue rolls Royce for her birthday,
(52:36):
you know. So we rolled up to their house and
all this austentatious stuff is outside and go.
Speaker 2 (52:42):
In nervous, yes, more nervous that you walk closer, yes, okay, good.
Speaker 3 (52:46):
It gets worse.
Speaker 17 (52:48):
So the girls after after day one, you know, we
all stop and eat all this stuff, and John's real quiet.
Speaker 2 (52:54):
He's quiet at first.
Speaker 17 (52:55):
You know, he's intimidating anywhere, right, and then under those circumstances,
I'm going, I don't I don't want to, you know,
I don't want to be here like this. So the
next day, June and Janine go shopping and leave me
and John alone at the house. Well, there were two
big black recliners in front of this TV like that
(53:16):
on the wall, and uh, he's sitting there watching CNN,
and I just sat down with a cover of coffee
and I sat there. I said, something going on in
the news, and he goes, I always watch it, always
watch it. He says, I'm an addict. And he says,
I'll watch the TV until the loop changes. He says,
(53:39):
you know that the CNN and all that stuff are
on loops and I'm like no, and he goes, I
just watch it to loops whatever.
Speaker 2 (53:49):
You know.
Speaker 17 (53:50):
That was kind of the only thing I remember. He
just kind of didn't say much. He's like, you want
to go fishing? What are you doing? You want to
be in music? Nothing like that. Janine gets back and
she's kind of pale. She's kind of like down, and
that's not like her because she's a chatter. And uh,
finally we we went back to the bedroom and she
she I said, how did it go? And she goes, well,
(54:12):
June just gave she read me the right act.
Speaker 5 (54:14):
You know.
Speaker 17 (54:14):
She goes, look, you know, because Rodney and Roseanne had
been been married, and the girls, Carlen and all of them,
and Junior had her struggles with John too, and she said, uh,
it's it's it's not a not a pretty business. She goes,
you know, there's these these boys. She says, they're going
to act up on you. You know, they're going to
get out there and you know, theoretically do whatever. And
(54:36):
she says, you know, it's just not it's not a
good life. Even if he does make it. She said,
the chances are, you know, wanted one hundred million that
they even if they make it, will they last.
Speaker 3 (54:48):
She says, you don't, you don't.
Speaker 2 (54:49):
You don't want that life. You don't have to have
that life.
Speaker 17 (54:52):
So Janie said, I'm you know, that's just kind of
bummed me out. And I said, well, okay, let's let's go.
Speaker 2 (55:00):
But we didn't.
Speaker 17 (55:01):
We stayed and had had a good time. But that
was just kind of what we were left with there.
But at the same time, Junia was kind enough, uh
to do whatever they could to help, and they did.
And half the time, more than half the time, I
would go go up to take the rent or pay
the rent six hundred bucks or something like that. This
house looked like something.
Speaker 2 (55:21):
To Johnny's house. You would take the rent to Johnny Cash's house, Yeah,
and just drop it did have like a hole for them. No,
they wouldn't take it.
Speaker 17 (55:26):
No, Junior, I'd say, jen i'mber run over and leave
the rent, and she goes, Honey, don't do that. She said,
don't do that yet. You know there's no need for
you to do that. We're not worry about that.
Speaker 3 (55:35):
Uh.
Speaker 17 (55:35):
Anyway, so they wouldn't take it.
Speaker 2 (55:38):
Did they ever take your rent? No?
Speaker 5 (55:40):
No?
Speaker 2 (55:41):
How long did you live there?
Speaker 3 (55:42):
A year and a half? Two years?
Speaker 2 (55:44):
No?
Speaker 3 (55:44):
Two years?
Speaker 2 (55:45):
Did you ever get closer to Johnny? Uh? Yeah?
Speaker 17 (55:48):
Oh yeah, yeah no.
Speaker 2 (55:49):
No.
Speaker 17 (55:50):
Johnny would come up. There was another it's a little
en Clay cabins and goodlist on top of a hill
that they had built real cool, and uh. He would
come up and stay and spend the weekends and stuff.
Sometimes up there just to be alone, and he'd stopped
at the house.
Speaker 2 (56:10):
Hey, thanks for listening to this special on the Bobby Cast.
We love doing these. We hope you enjoyed hearing the
stories of celebrities interacting with other celebrities. Be sure to
subscribe to the Bobbycast wherever you listening to this. If
you don't mind, give us a rating of five stars.
Back next week with a brand new episode.
Speaker 1 (56:37):
Thanks for listening to a Bobby Cast production
Ladies and gentlemen, we are experiencing technical difficulties.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
This is the Bobby Cast. Hey, welcome to a special
episode of the Bobby Cast. You're gonna love this episode.
Four eighty three artists sharing personal stories about other celebrities
they've met, whether they got to perform with their musical
hero or work with them on a project. It's always
fun to hear these untold stories about celebrities thinking other
celebrities are cool. And these are all stories and luckily
(00:31):
from the Bobby Cast for me talking to these people,
so Darius, Gavin de Graw, Randy Hawser Ronnie Dunn from
Brooks and Dunn, Cheryl Crow, Lionel Richie, they have great stories.
So let's kick off this Bobbycast special with Craig Morgan
sharing how he and Blake Shelton became friends and what
Gwen Stefani did to him that he really respected. Well,
(00:53):
how did you and Blake become friends? How did you?
Because it seems like he has pretty close.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
We were and it are we still are?
Speaker 2 (01:01):
You know, I don't Blake had got here before I did.
Speaker 4 (01:04):
Blake was working on his career long before, not long before,
but a few years before I got here, and so
he had started having some radio success, and we literally
met at some event in Nashville and just started hanging out.
And then he had lived in Hitton County and I
was in Dixon, so we weren't that far apart. Both
(01:25):
realized that we liked hunting. I invited him on a
hunting trip on a trip that I was doing in Kansas.
I'm sorry, yeah, in Kansas, And at that trip we
became like we were buddies.
Speaker 3 (01:41):
I knew right then that I liked the.
Speaker 4 (01:43):
Guy, and we were both kind of like I said,
he had already had a couple of songs on the radio,
and then I started having some success at Broken Bow,
and then we just stayed in touch. I mean, at
one point we were we were with each other all
the time. Every time we could do something together we would.
(02:06):
And then he got divorced from Cat and he and
Miranda got married. And I had known Miranda a little
bit and really thought that Miranda and I had a
decent relationship. And she used to tell a story about
how she came to Fanfair and it was one of
my early on first two or three years of Fanfare,
(02:27):
when he still called it Fanfair, you know, and she
tells the story, and I remember her telling me that
how she waited after the show to meet some of
the artists, and that I came out and was the
only one that came out afterwards and gave.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Her an autograph. And so I thought, man, this is
gonna be awesome.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
You know, my buddy's marrying this girl who's turned into
an artist of her own right and turn in this.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
You know, it's great. But something happened with them.
Speaker 4 (02:53):
Two got married, and I don't know, she was no
longer a Craig Morgan fan for some reason, you know,
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Oh, but you know that's history. And here we are now.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
I remember when you were doing the Opry Blake when
him I think him and Gwen were playing from his ranch.
I think, yeah, I was there. I've just I've done
Opry shows in the past year, But I was he
setting you up? Were you setting him up? Are you
going back and forth? Always it's yeah, it's it's horrible.
Speaker 3 (03:25):
I will tell you though. We uh uh.
Speaker 4 (03:28):
When my son died, a lot of my friends uh
in this business came out there and I had, man,
I gained so much respect and admiration already loved all
these people, but it's really weird.
Speaker 5 (03:43):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
And Jerry was with me, it's weird when I know
them and I love them and they're I consider them friends.
But when a guy like Tray Satkins, Blake Shelton, Jim
and Brown and John Colleen, these guys show up at
at my son's funeral and they stand in line with
everyone else out there, asked nothing, didn't want to come
(04:07):
in early, you know, I it just, man, it just
floored me.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
And when I'll never forget.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
We were we.
Speaker 4 (04:14):
Were downstairs and Cec had come in and was talking.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
She sang it my son's funeral, and uh, you know,
I'm trying to. I'm trying to. I don't know have
a sense of.
Speaker 4 (04:28):
I wanted to comprehend my people and and and them
to know that I appreciate them being there. But I
remember Blake coming in and we cried, you know, we
cried together, and he hugged me, and I felt such
an embrace of friendship from him.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Uh.
Speaker 3 (04:46):
And I knew.
Speaker 4 (04:48):
I knew then that there was nothing that Blake or
I could do that would sever that friendship.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
It wouldn't happen.
Speaker 4 (04:56):
And I also at that moment became Gwenn's bugs fan.
Speaker 3 (05:01):
I had met Gwen.
Speaker 4 (05:02):
Via FaceTime a few times when Blake and I were together,
and he was like giddy, silly and love FaceTime in her,
and we would we would lay there together and sit
and talk to Gwen or her own FaceTime, you know,
And I really liked her, but I didn't really know her.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
But when he.
Speaker 4 (05:20):
Came in the room, I said, where's Gwen? And you know,
was she not able to come? He said, no, she's outside.
She was being respectful and she did not want to
come in until she was invited in.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
And I just met I thought, my.
Speaker 4 (05:33):
Lord, you know, if she came in and she too,
like cried and hugged my wife and showed her such
an embrace of friendship and kindness and warmth, and it
just absolutely hammered me in I've never experienced anything from
her but that since, you know, when we're at the
award shows and he's like, let's get out of here
for a few minutes and we go out to the
bus and hang out, and they're just He's in such
(05:56):
a beautiful place with her that I've never seen And
I love that.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
I love it.
Speaker 4 (06:01):
Now Having said all that I can text Blake on Monday,
April the first, and it might be Monday, June first
when I heard from he is the worst man. And
then I'll get nothing a picture of him flipping me
a bird or something, you know. But yeah, so we've
been friends for a long time. I mean he came
(06:22):
out when I did read That Yacht Club and I
remember when we did reading That Yacht Club he had
a huge hit and even you know, just to show
you how weird this businesses. I remember talking to Blake
him going, man, I don't know if this is gonna work.
I don't know what's going to happen. I'm like, you
got a big, huge hit, are you kidding?
Speaker 2 (06:40):
You know?
Speaker 3 (06:40):
And he's like yeah, but you just don't know. And
now he look crazy?
Speaker 2 (06:43):
Is that you know?
Speaker 3 (06:44):
It's just it's wonderful.
Speaker 6 (06:47):
Now.
Speaker 2 (06:47):
I want you to hear this from Gavin de Grass
talking to Gavin, and Gavin talked about opening up for
his hero Billy.
Speaker 7 (06:52):
Joel is whenever you open Billy Joel, oh Man, Billy Joel.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
That aside from it being an artist that you just
loved listening to and represented who where you're from, you know,
we have a sure but you go back to that Christmas.
I mean the first time, did you twenty fourteen is
what I said, says the first time you opened for
Billy Joelen, Yeah, I just did you have any of
those emotions the first time you went up to go like,
(07:20):
oh man, we came here for Christmas, this is our
Christmas present, and now I get to be up here doing.
Speaker 8 (07:24):
This unbelievable full circle moment in life, you know. And
I'd met him briefly before, once or twice. I met
him because I'd founded the pavement for so long, for
so many years, before I ever had a record deal,
I used to play at an open mic thing a
bunch of player, studio session guys and stuff on the
(07:46):
Upper West Side. I'd had a gig every Monday night,
and after my Monday night gig, I used to go
to another place after ours and jam with these guys.
And one of them was a sax parent named Richie Kanata,
who was Billy Joel's early sax player. I put a
record out, I got lucky with it, did good. Richie
reached out ears later. I said, Billy's playing at the
garden eleven dates or whatever it was, will you come
(08:11):
be my guest.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
I said sure.
Speaker 8 (08:13):
He said, one caveat sit with my son. He's a fan.
I said, I love to get to the show. Richie
texts me come backstage. Billy wants to meet you.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
I was like yeah, So I go backstage. There's Billy.
Speaker 8 (08:28):
Billy introduced himself and I was hoping he'd say, hey,
I love your music, but he said I've been reading
a lot about you.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Thanks. And I said I'm a huge fan a lot
about you.
Speaker 9 (08:50):
You know.
Speaker 8 (08:51):
And I was like cool, I'm gonna go back and
sit in my chair now. And then years later the
phone rang and my dad said, hey, Billy wants you
to open for him. And I said, Billy who? Because
it had been you know. He said, Billy joel you
moron and I said yeah, okay. When he said this date,
(09:11):
that date, this one date, I said, good. Where is
it going to be a place called the BB and
T Center, South Florida. So I said, great, I go
to the gig. I'm backstage. I just get there. Guitar
player Tommy Burns, Billy's guitar player, be forever sees me backstage.
He said, Gavin, Gavin, have you seen Billy yet Billy's here.
Speaker 2 (09:35):
Have you seen him? I said no, No.
Speaker 8 (09:37):
He said, come outside, we're having a smoke. I said, oh, okay,
I go outside. Guys are standing in a semi circle.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Billy is in the middle.
Speaker 8 (09:49):
Having a drag, and.
Speaker 2 (09:50):
I walk out.
Speaker 8 (09:51):
Tommy says, heay, Billy, Billy, Gavin's here, Gavin's here. I
introduced myself again. I said, hey, man, thanks for thanks
for having me. He said, hey, thanks for thanks for
coming out, you know, thanks for coming good. Glad, glad
you were able to come here. I said, listen, you're
my idol. Okay, that's an honor. But I know there's
(10:14):
other musicians out there who want this gig. But I
want to say candidly, if you have anyone else in
mind for opening for you, yo, fuck that guy. I
want this gig. They all started laughing. You know, he said,
can you do more more dates? I said, all cancel dates?
(10:37):
To do these dates, I'll cancel. You're such a huge
influence on me. He was like, you're the guy you're hired,
you know, And and he did. And I'm like, man,
he gave me a million dates.
Speaker 5 (10:51):
You know.
Speaker 8 (10:51):
We played the Garden a bunch of times. I don't
even know how many times you know Fenway Park.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Ah Field.
Speaker 8 (11:01):
I lived around a corner from Fenway Park when I
was in college. For about a year, I could never
go to Fenway Park. I didn't have money to go
to Fenway Park. Then one day I hop into shuttle
bus hop out of my hotel, getting a shuttle bus,
drive through a tunnel, and I get out of a
van in the middle of the field in Fenway Park
(11:21):
because I'm going to open for Billy that night, And.
Speaker 3 (11:23):
I thought this was how I was supposed to see
famwa to park.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
This is so much better. Darius Rutger and I had
a great conversation, and part of that was him sharing
the story of the time he got to perform with
his musical hero Al Green with hooting the Blowfish. What's
the highlight professionally and what is kind of the low light?
Because I kind of want to wrap hoodie up and
(11:48):
move to a different part of your career. But what's
the highlight where you're like, God, dang, you can't believe it.
This is it? And then what's kind of like, man,
I don't know what we're gonna be able to do
this anymore.
Speaker 5 (11:57):
Oh, I think the highlight was for me. I'm sure
for each member has their different highlight, but the highlight
for me was when we played the Billboard Music Awards.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
With Al Green. That was.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
Ki who you sang as a kid. Yes, was one
of those.
Speaker 5 (12:19):
We had played every every award show and they want
us to play the Billboard Music Awards and we just
didn't want to play it. We played every show, and
Billboards is different. You know who's gonna win. You know,
it's not like the politics of having to play something
else so you could get a win.
Speaker 3 (12:32):
You know who's gonna win.
Speaker 5 (12:33):
And so we weren't going to play it, and they
say to us, if you play it, we'll get All
Green to play with you. And I was like, yeah right.
They were like, no, if you play it, we'll get
All Green to play with you. I was like, when
you get All Green to play with us, we'll say yes,
And sure enough they got. I don't know what they
did or how much they paid them, but he said yes,
and that performance I start like every now and then.
That's one of the few things I still watch it
(12:54):
from us.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
Can you remember it vividly from doing it?
Speaker 5 (12:57):
I remember, like I'm standing on stage right now, like
when Dean hit that baseline to take me to the river,
and Al walked out. You could first of all, you
could have shot the crowd in the face because nobody
expected it. And second of all, he went off, Bobby,
you can look at You're in TV. You do this
for a living. We're playing over our time we're supposed
(13:18):
to play and is Al won't stop. And as long
as Al jammin, we're jamming, so Al won't stop. They
go to they go to the announcer to go to
commercial and we are killing it so hard. They changed
their mind and going back to the stage.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
That never happened. It could have cost money, never happens.
Speaker 5 (13:35):
It was awesome.
Speaker 2 (13:37):
Okay, dang, that's crazy. Yeah, just I mean, I'm thinking
of the TV part of it, not even your career.
I'm like, yeah, it was crazy. They they go to
Bardow up in their corner like, well, let's go back.
That never happened.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
I know, it was crazy.
Speaker 1 (13:50):
Hang tight, The Bobby Cast will be right back. Wow,
and we're back on the Bobby Cast.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Love. Terry Clark was talking to Terry Clark and she
talked about Toby Keith and talks about their time touring
and even partying together. I'm gonna ask you about Tobe
to you kind of wrap this up, you, you know,
with Toby a bunch too, Like, what give me a
Tobe story memory.
Speaker 10 (14:17):
Well, it's not just one memory.
Speaker 11 (14:19):
I mean I toured with him and he kinda I
kind of looked at him like a big brother.
Speaker 10 (14:26):
You know.
Speaker 11 (14:27):
We talked a lot. He gave a lot of advice.
He was always very honest, brutally honest and told the truth.
I would ask him questions that I think some people
were like, wow, I can't believe she just asked him
that question. And we would after the shows, you know,
go to his bus and I would just get to
be a part of like a Toby Keith bus party.
(14:48):
Everybody's the bus is bouncing up and down. Brian O'Connell's
on there, DJing from his computer, and I'm just like
I felt like I was just got.
Speaker 10 (14:56):
To be in the cool kids club.
Speaker 11 (14:58):
And Toby played basketball with the crew and the bands
every single day. And I have a radio show and
I interviewed him for this radio show.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Act like I don't know that, by.
Speaker 10 (15:10):
The way, Well, I don't know.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
By the way, when you win all the when you
win the awards. I'm like, all right, whatever, and then
then it makes me feel lesser than But.
Speaker 11 (15:19):
Oh, I'm not winning awards. I'm winning only women. I
want a Gracie Award. You don't qualify for that because
you're a boy. And congratulations on all your awards, by
the way, You've got a lot of them. I'm still
saying I can still get a CMA award as a
radio host. I never got one as an artist, and
it was my childhood dream to get a CMA award.
So I'm like, man, if Bobby Bones would just, you know, retire, well.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
They ever, Well, please God, I can't retire. I don't.
I'm not going to retire. I have no work. If
I'm doing this, that's that's funny.
Speaker 10 (15:50):
But yeah, But back to Toby, he was. He was great.
Speaker 11 (15:52):
We would always like dip together back then I was
I would dip school and I know, I'd walk on
the bus and he'd hand me he had a solo
cup with a napkin in it, and he'd borrow one
from me, and I borrow one from him and just
stand there talking just about everything. And I remember getting
really hammered with Dean Dylan on his bus and I
don't even remember getting back to my bus, and Toby said,
(16:15):
I watched you walk back to your bus and make
sure you were all right.
Speaker 10 (16:17):
How are you feeling today?
Speaker 11 (16:20):
And then I you know, he just like always so cool,
so respectful, and when I remember one thing he said
when he was doing press for that tour and they said, well,
Terry clarksh're coming out of your opening act and he said,
he said, Derrek Clark is one of the most underrated
artists out there. And that to me just like he's
not He's not somebody just throw stuff out there like that,
because he's so honest.
Speaker 10 (16:40):
It meant the world to me that he said that.
Speaker 11 (16:45):
And then I interviewed him for the radio show and
I think this was right before he got diagnosed with
cancer or right around the time, because it was it
was right around two years ago, a little over two
years ago. And the first thing he said was, you know,
I'm all, you know, getting ready to interview, and I'm like, okay, okay, Toby,
you're ready ready to He goes you want to dip, like,
(17:07):
did you hear me?
Speaker 10 (17:10):
But no, he's just he's just always great.
Speaker 11 (17:13):
We talked a bit after the interview and he said,
call me, we'll go to lunch because I was frustrated
with creative stuff. And you know, I'm like, I don't
I could really stand to talk to you right now
and get your advice on a few things.
Speaker 10 (17:24):
And he has he had a record label and stuff.
Speaker 11 (17:26):
And he said, call me, We'll go to lunch, and
the Coole Covid thing was going. It was just, yeah,
I didn't get to get to I wish I'd gotten
to get together with him one more time, you know,
but it's a tremendous loss. I think he is has
He was one of the greatest songwriters of all time
in country music and a great entertainer, a great guy
and didn't bother him to disagree with you and didn't
(17:51):
care if he didn't care if he agreed or disagreed.
Speaker 10 (17:53):
He just said what he felt.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
Randy Hauser was in the movie Killers of the Flower
Movie and he got to work with Leo DiCaprio. That's
pretty cool. He was doing that while filming the movie,
and he told us what Leo said to him on
set one time. Mike Mike d loved Killers of the
Flower Movie. Did he My wife read the book and
so we're waiting. Yeah, well did you read it before?
Speaker 7 (18:17):
I read it when I got cash.
Speaker 2 (18:20):
So we're waiting for it because it's an Apple Apple movie, right, Mike, yep.
So we're waiting for it to come. And she's from Oklahoma.
My wife is, oh, yeah, yeah, like very much. What
part of Oklahoma like near ish Tulsa.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
Yeah, so that's where.
Speaker 2 (18:34):
Yes, So she knows a lot about it through like
three and four generations that would talk about it, right,
and like she's moved by the story because she has
personal relationships with people that had personal relationships. Yeah. So Mike,
I'm gonna let you ask the first couple questions. I
know you've seen it, I know the story, but you're
way more educated on the actual movie.
Speaker 12 (18:53):
The TENI have is with Leonardo DiCaprio and one of
my other favorite movies he did was Scorsese was Wolf
of Wall Street. And I've seen like a behind the
scenes whip of him like totally in the zone, like
doesn't even look like he's there, and then right when
the camera goes on, he instantly goes into that character.
Speaker 2 (19:07):
Yeah does he do that?
Speaker 3 (19:09):
Yeah?
Speaker 7 (19:10):
I mean one of the like, uh, one of the
things that was noticeable by well he's he's also when
he doesn't look like he's working his mind. Like one
of the strangest things would happen was like between like
between like takes, if we had like downtime, changing out
film stuff like that, just hanging out talking I did,
(19:32):
I'd notice that he would like we'd just kind of
shoot to shoot the ship, you know, I don't know
if I can say that all. Yeah, but and then
you know, like the next day he would come back
to the set and we'd be talking and he would
repeat things that I said to him just like me,
(19:52):
like he would download my accent and stuff like that,
which is crazy and uh, but no, he would, you know,
he like there be time we'd just be throwing a
ball or something out out in the yard, and then
you know it would be time to.
Speaker 3 (20:06):
Go back in.
Speaker 7 (20:06):
You know, like very normal, very normal guy.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
But also freaking.
Speaker 7 (20:13):
Amazing whenever whenever they would yell action, how he would
just freaking go at it.
Speaker 5 (20:19):
You know.
Speaker 7 (20:19):
It's just kind of like stepping on the Grand Ole
Opera and them saying if your turn and like doing
what I do you kind of have to Just one
of the things that was so cool about it to
me and I enjoyed about the whole process is that
I was, first of all, was scared of death, you know,
like I'd never done this. I was like, I don't
(20:42):
know what the hell I'm doing here. And but the
same is even now before I go on stage, I'm
a little anxious and like these people want to hate
me whatever. But when it came time to go to
the set from you know, the actors a little where
we're staged, to go to the actual getting cameras, the
(21:06):
same the same gear was shifted.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
In my being that that.
Speaker 7 (21:12):
Is when I'm walking to the stage, go play music
and that and it became it fed me like to
go do it rather than you know, all the every
fear was gone. It was just go time, really, so
I seek. I could see that in him as well.
Speaker 2 (21:30):
Man, that is awesome that you're just weren't so self conscious.
Speaker 7 (21:33):
Oh I was, but but I was able to like
that blocking mechanism that that happens with going to make music.
It totally was the same thing.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
Was it like watching a different kind of artist? For example,
got a major League baseball game. Never bet it didn't
go until I was older, but I would see a
like a real athlete, Like, oh God, I thought I'd
seen a real athlete until I saw, oh, a freaking
real athlete.
Speaker 3 (21:56):
That's what it was. Absolute damn lutely it was.
Speaker 7 (22:00):
It was like and first of all, I'd never seen
this whole process at all, you know, and so it
was it was strange that it was, and I'd never
really done and I'd never done it. And the first
first scene I shot was the scene that actually made
the film. There's a lot of scenes that got cut,
(22:20):
you know, they should had hundreds of hours of stuff,
but they, Uh, the first scene that I shot was
the scene that actually made the film. And it was
like four hours of like going back because they shoot it,
you know, from every angle. Everybody's in the scene has
(22:41):
to do their thing. But and I remember just being
like totally like.
Speaker 3 (22:48):
What the hell, where's Martin? Of course saying you're over there.
Speaker 7 (22:50):
And and he's coming over to me, and he's standing
over my shoulder right here, and I'm sitting at that
this desk, you know, it's like that bigger than that
thing but like old school, and I'm sitting there and
he's explaining what he wants out of me and talking
to me, and I'm literally.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
In lah Lahlen.
Speaker 7 (23:08):
And so we shoot my angle like I don't know,
four times, and Marty he's over there in this other
room where their viewing what's going on. He comes out,
all right, we got it, and I went because I
had seen a guy the day before I got there,
and I stayed on set all day dressed ready to
go to shoot. This scene didn't happen, but I'd seen
(23:29):
a guy h and another and another scene.
Speaker 3 (23:33):
That that didn't make it.
Speaker 7 (23:35):
Uh, they shot his this thing like I don't know,
it must have been twenty something times because they couldn't
get it and get it and you could sense the
you could sense the air leaking out of the room
and wasting time and money, and so I was just
like went back to my bus out and I was like, please, God,
don't let me be that guy to study studies. Well,
(23:57):
so then he comes up and he goes and he goes.
Marty comes out, Okay, Randy, we got it, and I
was like we do and he's like, yeah, we got it.
And I was like, are you sure. He's like yeah,
and he said what and so Leo looks sad and says,
what do you mean you sure? I was like I've
never really done this. He said, what do you mean,
(24:18):
You've never really done this? I was like, I've never
done this. He said, we wouldn't You wouldn't know you.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
Here Cheryl Crowe talking about opening for Michael Jackson back
in the day. Did you ever you talk about Stevie Nicks.
Did you ever have a relationship with her? Did you go,
oh my gosh, like that had to be the coolest thing.
Speaker 9 (24:37):
I have so many weird experiences.
Speaker 10 (24:41):
With people like that.
Speaker 9 (24:42):
Okay, So I like, if you dig back through the
anals of my my school pictures, I had the Stevie
Nicks here do I met her at my first Grammys.
I met her at an after party and I have
a picture with her and Anita Pointer and Bonnie Rait
and Carly Simon and me and I was the newbie
(25:02):
and She's like, I love you. Would you I'm getting
ready to do some songs for Practical Magic that movie?
Speaker 10 (25:10):
Would you produce it?
Speaker 2 (25:11):
And I was like, uh yeah.
Speaker 9 (25:14):
And she came to New York and she had her posse,
you know, some bunch of women, and I produced her
and it was just it was unbelievable. I can remember
looking at her out in the recording booth, and she
looked like a fourteen year old. I mean literally, she
looked like she had aged a day. She looked exactly
as I remembered her, and she just was like so
(25:37):
embracing and so told stories like I imagine that we
probably talked and hung out for two hours and then
she'd sing, and then we'd hang out and talk for
a couple of hours and then she'd sing and it
was but it was so glorious. And then she said, well,
you were produce the record, and I went up producing
and going on the road with her, and she's just
(25:58):
been like very godmom to me.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
And I don't want you to say any names here,
but I have had experiences where I really was loved people,
got to know them, not that goal ruin the people
that I would and I now I don't really idolize
except for like hearts, yeah yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, So,
(26:21):
but there have been times where that's happened and I'm like, well,
I cannot believe I could just spend time we're gonna
do And then you're like, oh man, I kind of
wish I wouldn't have because it's ruined what I cherished,
which was these beliefs and yeah, I'm with how massive
you got. I had to assume that happened too some
I will.
Speaker 10 (26:37):
Say I've been really lucky.
Speaker 9 (26:39):
Almost everybody I've met has been beyond beyond my wildest dreams.
Speaker 2 (26:43):
I got a few people and you do them.
Speaker 10 (26:46):
Yeah, I bet you fix that. We'll fix that up
a few relatives.
Speaker 9 (26:50):
Interestingly, I worked with Michael Jackson before I hit it big.
I was a backup singer, went on the road with
him for eighteen months, and there were some things on
that tour like this doesn't make sense, And then later
on the documentary came out, and I mean he was
he was already eccentric on that tour. But people ask
(27:10):
me all the time, are you able to listen to
his music? And I'm like, man, that was the first
album I ever owned. I got it from Santa Claus
when I was five years old.
Speaker 10 (27:16):
ABC.
Speaker 9 (27:17):
I grew up watching his TV show, I you know all.
That music was important to me and it definitely changed
the way I felt about him. And but I can
still listen to the music from when he was a
kid because I feel like he was who he was then.
Speaker 10 (27:32):
He wasn't who he became. But for the most part.
I mean, I can't really.
Speaker 9 (27:36):
Think of anybody that's just been a douchebag, you know
what I mean?
Speaker 2 (27:39):
Can you separate art an artist?
Speaker 9 (27:41):
It depends, I mean it depends there. I mean we're
kind of looking at that with the Will Smith thing.
Now it's like, okay, we're gonna still, We're gonna be
able to watch some movies.
Speaker 2 (27:50):
Can we take out that?
Speaker 9 (27:51):
You know?
Speaker 10 (27:52):
It depends.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
I think it's and how severe?
Speaker 10 (27:55):
Yeah, well yeah, yeah, like yeah r Kelly.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
Ever even no, if it comes on somewhere, I'll leave, yeah,
like no, but again there are artists. Again, if Smooth
Criminal comes on, I probably just jammed along to it
before I realize yeah, and then the song's over, and
then I don't want to leave because I got a
burger and I'm, you know, feeling pretty good. I did
meet It's interesting.
Speaker 9 (28:14):
I met a young artist who totally blew up, who
I had the weirdest experience with, and I can't listen
to her music. I wouldn't say her name, but I
mean became massive. And you know, there are just certain
people that you go, Okay, they got into it so
they could be famous. And then there are other people
that you go, oh, I can totally relate to this person.
Speaker 10 (28:30):
They're just they they love what they do.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
Eighties superstar Richard Marx talked about the time he became
a backup singer for Kenny Rodgers and then how he
went up to him in the studio and pitched Kenny
Rodgers a song that he wrote. He also shared how
he became friends with Lionel Richie.
Speaker 13 (28:48):
That's all I did when I wasn't doing math homework,
when I wasn't doing.
Speaker 10 (28:51):
The school work that I was forced to do, I was.
Speaker 13 (28:54):
Just listening to music and memorizing every nuance of every record.
I was paying attention into the production and arranging, and
I went to like I just studied it like out
of love. So when I ended up in LA at eighteen,
I got my first job was singing background vocals on
a Lionel Richie record. He was really the catalyst. He
(29:16):
was the guy he heard my demo tape of my
first couple of songs and actually called my parents' house.
This is when he was like leaving the Commodorees and
maybe next to Michael Jackson, arguably the biggest star in
the music business. This guy took the time to call
some kid in Chicagi didn't know, and he just encouraged me.
(29:37):
He said, you know, I really like your voice and
these are your first songs. Man should heard my first songs.
So I when I moved out to LA he had
me sing some background vocals and then he recommended me
as a singer to Kenny Rodgers, his buddy, and that's
how I started writing songs.
Speaker 3 (29:52):
I wrote songs for Kenny Rodgers.
Speaker 13 (29:53):
That's how my songwriting career started.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
It's funny that Lionel, because I know Lionel pretty well
from working with him. I went there's stuff and he
pulled me aside and like give me advice. He's awesome.
But it's funny. He's always been that way.
Speaker 13 (30:04):
He's always been that way. He's a class act and
he's so generous with his time. He's a little bit
I really don't know anybody else. I've never known anybody
else who has that level of grace about themselves and
who go out of their way to be encouraging of
people where there's gonna be nothing paid back.
Speaker 2 (30:24):
He's just that good a guy. And so I recommend
you to Kenny Rodgers and you go to sing background
vocals for Kenny. So are you the guy, yeah, the
three behind and you're doing the dances at the same.
Speaker 13 (30:36):
That I'm only in the studio work.
Speaker 2 (30:39):
Yeah, got it.
Speaker 13 (30:40):
I get hired to work for two days on this
Kenny Rodgers album and it was in the like towards
the end of the making of that album. And so
I go in and I've sang some harmonies and stuff
on this one track or two tracks, and then I
knew I was coming back the next day. And during
the session I overheard Kenny, his producer, that they still
(31:01):
needed one more song, and he even described it. He says, man,
we still need one more ballad. We need that like
sort of Lionelsh ballad. We got to find it.
Speaker 2 (31:09):
You hear this conversation happening.
Speaker 13 (31:10):
I overhear this conversation. I go home to my apartment
in La I write a song. I come back the
next day and I do exactly what the background singer
should never do, which is go up to the artist
and say, I'm a songwriter.
Speaker 10 (31:27):
I've got a song.
Speaker 13 (31:29):
And again Grace Kenny Rogers could have immediately called security
and had me escort it to my car, and instead said, well,
let me hear it, and we sat down at the
piano and I played it. My hands are shaking, and
he liked it.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
And you knew it. You can remember it. Did you
memorize it from that?
Speaker 5 (31:47):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (31:47):
Yeah? Really?
Speaker 10 (31:47):
Oh yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 13 (31:49):
And it was a number one country song.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
And the song was craze crazy for you kids.
Speaker 3 (31:58):
You see, that's.
Speaker 13 (32:00):
My Kenny Rodgers, like eighty five or so eighty four maybe, yes,
I was nineteen when I wrote it.
Speaker 2 (32:08):
And speaking of Lionel Richie, here's Lionel Richie talking about
Kenny Rogers after he passed and how Kenny was one
of the most amazing men. And I want to talk
to you about Kenny a little bit because I got
to know Kenny later, and Kenny and I became really
friendly in the later part of his life, and I
know you and him were close for years.
Speaker 6 (32:26):
Well, you know, let me let me let me be
very honest with you. I just lost one of my heroes.
That is the best way I can describe Kenny because
of the fact that you know, I met him at
a time in my life when I was trying to
figure out life, you know, transitioning from the Commodorees into
my solo career. And you know, God sent me an
(32:49):
angel because this guy was probably one of the nicest
guys I'd ever met in my life, and full of knowledge,
full of life knowledge, and he was able to you know,
he was in a group called the First Edition, and
everything I was about to experience as a young kid,
(33:12):
he had already been through it. And so it was
just a beautiful relationship that blossomed into something called a
friendship forever. We have lived a lot of life together.
Speaker 2 (33:25):
So when you write lady, how long did you have that?
Or you was that meant to get to him? It
was for you? Like what was the story between you
writing it and him recording it?
Speaker 6 (33:37):
Well, it's all about I think it's about God's plan
because it was actually designed. The melody of it was
supposed to be for the Commodorees. And at that particular
time I had written you know, three times a Lady
and all these other songs, and so the guy said,
you know what, Donald, do you have anything else besides
(33:59):
another love? So I said, well, I wrote a religious
song that Jesus is love. He said, well take that.
We like that. That's a good that's a good transition
from what we're doing. So now I went from having
another ballad to now having this thing sitting around. Well.
I got a call from Kenny Rogers saying do you
(34:20):
have a song for me? And I said, Kenny, I'm
quite honest with you. I have a song, but I
don't have time to do it because we're the Comodos
are going on tour in about two weeks and I'm
not going to be able to do it, but I'll
do it when I come back. I hung up with
the phone. About three days later, the drummer for the
(34:41):
Commodorees fell off his motorcycle and I had two months
of free time because he was recovering. And I called
Kenny back and said, are you interested in that song?
He said absolutely. Well, the funny part about this story
is my mumbles. I don't write the words because if
(35:01):
you know anything about writing a song with the Commodoes,
for God's sake, you don't finish the song because in
two seconds they will say, we don't like it? What
else do you have? So I always would have basically
the first verse of it all and nothing else. Well,
the song was called Baby just Baby Bye, blah blah
blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. Right,
(35:24):
and I now go to meet Kenny and he had
never heard a song pitch like this before because I've
never pitched the song to anyone. So I walk in
his backstage area of his show and he said, okay,
what's the song? And I said, well, he was telling
me about he had just gotten married and he's never
in his life ever and he's never married. He married
(35:44):
a lady, a real lady like Lionel. I mean, what
am I doing with a lady me of all people,
you know? So he said, oh, yeah, by the way,
what's the name of the song? I said, lady, I'm.
Speaker 2 (35:56):
No fool nice.
Speaker 6 (35:59):
And then from there, of course, I said, lady, I'm
your night in Shining Armor and I love you bae.
Blah blah blah blah blah blah bah bah bah bah.
He said, well, I said, do you like it? He said, well,
where's the rest of the song. I said, well, no,
I'll finish it if you like it. So he trusted me.
(36:20):
Of course, he tells that story, you'll hear the story.
He'll repeat the story back. He said, I couldn't believe
that's all he played for me, And of course we
went in the studio and a massive hit. But he
always teases me because while we were recording that song,
I wrote two songs for him. The first song was
called going Back to Alabama and the second song was
(36:43):
Lady Well. I thought, just to warm up with Kenny,
I will do I'll do Going back to Alabama first,
just to get used to recording with him, and then
we'll knock out Lady Well. We get halfway through Going
back to Alabama, he said, I don't really want to
sing the song, Let's just sing Lady Well. I didn't
(37:03):
want to tell him i'd only written the first verse,
so he sang the first verse and then I said,
you know, I'll be all right back. I have to
go to the bathroom, and so I'm now in the
bathroom writing the second verse to lady And of course
the joke with Kenny was, if you want to get
(37:25):
a great hit record from Lionel Richie, make sure he
writes the second verse in the bathroom. But of course
that was the story. But it means it's all true,
as crazy as it sounds. But it was just a massive, massive.
Speaker 2 (37:38):
Record for both of us, you know, until I was
kind of looking back at some old Kenny stuff. You know,
he's saying on We're the World what you wrote?
Speaker 6 (37:47):
Yeah, you know that was you know what that I
was very fortunate too at the particular time when I
went into my solo career, I also I had Kenny
there at my And the joke was I was hanging
out with Kenny's manager, Ken Craigan, and so when I
was looking for a manager, Ken said, well, Kenny said, well,
(38:09):
I got Ken right here. What do you think about that?
And I just segued right to we had the same manager.
So of course, when I did we Are the World
naturally with Michael Naturally, Kenny's gonna be a part of
that no matter what, because I just had to have
him in there. And by that time we were just
we were just two peas in a pot by that time,
(38:31):
and of course we Are the World was just one
of those you know. I I think every once in
a while God kind of possesses you and says, this
is what you're really here to do, and the world
needs to hear this song, and you need to deliver
this message. And of course, you know, even to this day,
(38:52):
someone asked me of the day am I gonna write
another We Are the World, and I said, no, I'm
just gonna play we Are the World again, because every
time I try to write a new We Are the World,
I keep writing the same lyrics that I wrote for
We Are the World. The message is the same. Right now,
we are challenged, but we are our brother's keeper right now,
(39:13):
and we have to make sure that we are taking
care of each other because that's what God planned and
not to be. You know, a tribe and a tribe
and a tribe, but we keep being forced to do
something together. And right now, this is that time in
life to hear those words again. And I must admit
(39:35):
that that song resonates today like it did you know
what thirty some odd years ago, thirty five years ago?
Speaker 2 (39:41):
Well, I know that you and Kenny were dear friends,
and I appreciate you sharing the stories about them, and
I appreciate you being so friendly and so kind to me,
like I love you too. You just have been You
just have been the best to me. You have it.
You didn't need to be, but you just have been
the best to me.
Speaker 6 (39:58):
Well, you know what, I I have to tell you something.
I've been trained by some very famous people. And when
I say that. You know, when I met Kenny Rodgers,
you couldn't get any bigger than Kenny Rodgers. You know,
that was the gambler I walked in on and I
must tell you, in less than fifteen seconds, he made
me feel like we grew up together back in Houston, Texas.
(40:20):
You're to follow him, I'm saying, yeah. And I learned
a big trick, and that is if you're famous, if
you're really famous, you don't have to scare anybody to death.
You just have to be as nice as you possibly can,
because that's they're already uncomfortable when they first meet you.
Speaker 1 (40:41):
The Bobby Cast will be right back. Wow, and we're
back on the Bobby Cast.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
Here as Reba talking about the time she made her
opry debut and her set was cut short because of
Dolly Parton.
Speaker 14 (40:58):
Oh everything I get to do cool. I am thrilled
to death about it. I don't take it for granted.
Speaker 2 (41:02):
Still, after all this time, you're not jaded at.
Speaker 10 (41:04):
Oh no, no.
Speaker 14 (41:06):
When I got to do the video with Dolly Parton,
I was like, I was the biggest fan in the room.
Speaker 2 (41:12):
You know, it's wild to hear someone who I look
at as being the greatest you, and to look at Dolly,
at the greatest she is, and just to know that
you would walk into a room with her and be
like in awe when you moved to Nashville. Where was it?
Was Dolly available when you moved to Nashville? Or was
(41:33):
she in La? Was she in that phase? No idea,
You don't know. I don't know.
Speaker 14 (41:37):
The first time I saw Dolly was September seventeenth, nineteen
seventy seven.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
You remember in person, remember the year, in the day.
Speaker 14 (41:43):
The hour I was going to go on and do
my first performance at the Grand Old Lobbry, and they
told came up and said, we're going to take one
of your songs away from you. You'll only do one.
And I said why simple Dolly Parton just pulled it
in the parking lot and I said, well, she.
Speaker 10 (41:57):
Can take both of them. Can I meet her?
Speaker 14 (41:59):
And she walked buying this chaffon black pants, sued and
had those butterfly Rnstone butterflies on and this big cotton
candy hair.
Speaker 10 (42:09):
I thought, man, that must be what angels looked like.
Speaker 14 (42:12):
That was the most beautiful woman I ever saw in
my life.
Speaker 2 (42:15):
And did you say hello? No, oh, you didn't.
Speaker 8 (42:18):
No.
Speaker 14 (42:18):
I was backed up again wall like everybody else was.
I mean, they said, aren't.
Speaker 10 (42:22):
The waves Dolly's coming in?
Speaker 14 (42:24):
And I slammed back up against that wall and just watched.
I don't think her feet touched the ground.
Speaker 10 (42:29):
She was an angel.
Speaker 2 (42:31):
And when did you guys have your first you know
where we kind of do the same thing experience.
Speaker 14 (42:36):
Years later, and then she came on to read a
TV show and we got to spend the whole week together.
Speaker 2 (42:42):
That was precious.
Speaker 14 (42:43):
That's I absolutely love that priceless.
Speaker 2 (42:46):
I just look at you. Two is out of the
same cut, out of the same cloth. Where as country
as can be. Yep, you have ambitions that are bigger
than just singing country music. Although that's your most important
that's your pillar. You haven't ambitions other than just that.
And you both did it at a really high level.
And I would think that that hopefully she would be
(43:08):
someone same thing with like Taylor to you, you know,
with some of these other artists who are doing that,
that that you could reach out to it after a
point and get advice from her to that ever happen,
you reach out like Dolly, you know, can I can
I pick your brain at all?
Speaker 10 (43:20):
Oh yeah, yeah, I have done that.
Speaker 14 (43:22):
I did that in the early nineties a phone call
and she took my matter of fact, I called her.
She was that I think Caesar's in Vegas and I
was in Bakersfield somewhere and I needed a piece of
advice from her. And she was on the Tonight Show
the night before and she said she's going to Vegas,
won't be at Caesar's.
Speaker 2 (43:42):
So I called Caesar's but you actually called the casino. Yeah, wow.
Speaker 10 (43:46):
And I said.
Speaker 14 (43:48):
I need to speak to speak to Dolly Parton.
Speaker 10 (43:50):
Please.
Speaker 14 (43:50):
She said, one moment, please, who's calling? I said, Reba
McIntyre And presume Dolly came on the last she said,
is this really Reba McIntyre or some squirrel?
Speaker 2 (44:00):
What wishes she was?
Speaker 10 (44:00):
Rebel McIntyre say, it's me.
Speaker 2 (44:04):
That's funny to think about. We just have to call
I mean, I haven't thought about having to do that
where you just had to call a place to get someone.
You just have to call a restaurant and be like, hey,
is my uncle there? Yeah, yeah, that was like back
in the day.
Speaker 10 (44:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (44:15):
Brenda Lee from Rocking Around the Christmas Tree talked about
what it was like being around Elvis Presley back when
she was young. Any other performers that you listened to
or liked in that first year so that you're playing
the opera, that they would play the opera and you
think it was cool to be able to see them.
Speaker 15 (44:33):
I loved Patsy Cline, loved her, loved her heart, loved
her talent, loved her generosity.
Speaker 10 (44:43):
She was.
Speaker 15 (44:46):
Not affected at all by the industry. I loved that
about her, and she just kind of took me under
a wing, as did Dottie West, and we were friends forever.
Speaker 2 (45:03):
Did you ever get to see Hank's senior at the Opery?
Because I know he got some trouble and they were like, hey,
don't come back around here no more. But did you
ever get to see Hank Senior at the Opery?
Speaker 15 (45:14):
I did one time?
Speaker 2 (45:15):
And how was that experience?
Speaker 15 (45:20):
A dream?
Speaker 3 (45:21):
Really?
Speaker 15 (45:21):
Because you know, I sang all his songs and had
hits with a lot of them, and to meet the
guy that wrote him, it's surreal almost.
Speaker 2 (45:32):
And he had to be in his early twenties, right
young at that point, very young. What about Elvis, Oh,
Elvis was a trip.
Speaker 15 (45:40):
I loved Elvis, but he was he was almost like
a pretend person because he was so good you couldn't
believe he was real.
Speaker 10 (45:55):
He was sweet, but he was firm.
Speaker 15 (45:58):
He knew what he wanted, knew what he liked. He
wouldn't really if he really truly believed in it. Don't
try to convince him of something else, because that's what
he was going to do.
Speaker 2 (46:11):
Did you see him in town much in Nashville?
Speaker 15 (46:13):
Not a whole lot went to his sessions and watched
and uh, and that's that's back, gosh, late fifties. That's
back when we didn't have all the knobs to turn
to make you sound so good.
Speaker 2 (46:30):
See, you had to sound good.
Speaker 15 (46:32):
You either sounded good or you were asked to leave.
Speaker 2 (46:37):
He was really good, really good, pure.
Speaker 15 (46:40):
Voice, pure voice, no knob turning, no nothing.
Speaker 10 (46:45):
That was him.
Speaker 2 (46:47):
Who else lived here that you're like? You were excited
to see or run into it? Because I had those
people when I moved here, did you Yeah? For sure,
I moved here and it was you know, for me,
it was all the guys like the chestnuts and all
the not late eighties and nineties gouts. Oh yeah, And
so you know, listen to the radio my whole life
growing up, and listen to stay down a little rock,
(47:07):
Arkansas on Hot Springs, Arkansas. And when I moved here
that Joe Diffy, I got to spend a lot of
time with Joe. Yeah, and I got to know him
pretty well before he died. Like we would spend time
together because we'd performed I think before we got to
know each other. The best was performing together at the Opry.
Not at the same time, but we'd be on the
same night multiple times.
Speaker 4 (47:23):
Wow.
Speaker 2 (47:24):
And so you know, how is it the Opry? Yeah,
doors are just open, they are and you just spend
time with the people that are there. Yeah. And so
for me that was exciting to get to see like
the Diffies Kicks Brooks my first time ever playing the
Opry came into the room and was like this is
what we do here. I'm Kicks and I'm like, you're
Brooks are done. This is crazy. So I wonder, like
(47:45):
those those stories for you because I had my version
of that. Sounds like you did too, Oh I did.
Speaker 15 (47:50):
It was like I was like the little sister you
know and Dotty West.
Speaker 2 (47:56):
And we're the youngest by far? Were you the young
youngest kid?
Speaker 15 (48:00):
But Dotty West, Tammy Patsy, all the greats They just
took me under their wing and I just loved them.
Speaker 2 (48:11):
Ben Rector talked about getting to golf with his musical hero,
Huey Lewis, Would you mind sharing your I don't even
want to spoil who it's about, but I'm gonna let
you tell the story about how you went to a
certain thing and your hero was there and you end
up hanging out with a hero all day. Is he
like chased your a followed you.
Speaker 8 (48:31):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (48:31):
Can you just tell that story just from the beginning,
but yes, yes, go ahead.
Speaker 16 (48:34):
Uh, this was this is maybe like the coolest thing
ever for me personally. I got to go play at
the at and T pro am, which is like the
holy grail of all golf things if you're not a
professional golfer.
Speaker 2 (48:50):
At Pebble Beach.
Speaker 16 (48:50):
At Pebble Beach, Yes, it's like on television all that stuff,
and so I initially was going out there. They were like, Hey,
could you come do some music because they have like
parties every night, and they were like, we'd love to
have you be in the celebrity hole in one, which
is like all the celebrities in the tournament. Jim Nantz
announces it and you all hit like one shot closest
(49:12):
to pin. It's like a miniature tournament. You knew that
you can play in all the practice rounds, you know.
It felt like that was like a good way for
me to like sort of get to know the people
that run the tournament. And I was like, well, yeah,
I'll go out and play pebble and NPCC which is minor,
and Peninsula Country Club it's awesome course, and I'll do
the celebrity hole in one and maybe they'll think I'm
(49:35):
a good guy and decent golfer and will have me back.
They were like, if anyone drops out of the tournament,
you can be the tournament. And I was like totally.
And I'm not great at like not great at networking
or any that kind of stuff, but I was like,
I really like this stuff and if nothing ever happened,
that's just be cool and fun. So I get out there.
I play the concert. It was for the tournament committee,
(49:56):
I guess I don't really remember, and they were like, hey,
we think you have a spot in the tournament. Of course,
I'm over the moon and one of my very favorite artists,
Hugh Lewis. My dad listened to him a lot growing up.
And I thought it was like dorky dad music, and
then I realized after I grew up, I was like,
this is actually like some of the sickest music ever.
(50:18):
And so Hugh Lewis was going to come back and
do one last at and T and he hurt his
shoulder and they were like, you're going to replace hue Lewis,
and I was like, oh, that's incredible. It's wild to
feel bad that he's hurt. He's like, but he was
going to walk with your group?
Speaker 2 (50:33):
Is that cool? And I was like, I was like,
time out.
Speaker 16 (50:37):
What So basically, I'm playing in the coolest golf thing
in the world.
Speaker 3 (50:42):
It really is.
Speaker 16 (50:43):
There's not a cooler amateur golf event. And it's basically
me and Huey Lewis. Steve Young was the other celebrity.
I'm not putting myself in the same category as Hugh
Listen Steve Young, but I do.
Speaker 3 (50:56):
I now do. I didn't.
Speaker 16 (50:57):
Then he's honestly the nicest person. I okay, yeah, Huey
Lewis is walking around and he's him and Peter Jacobson,
who is his pro partner, who's a golf announcer now
was like a dominant golfer in his day. They came
back to do the tournament one last time together. Peter
Jacob's caddy was fluff legendary caddy. It was unbelievable and
(51:21):
so basically my week was I would hit a shot
and then walk down the fairway with Hughey and just
kick it. I mean we hung out all day. He
came to every round and I tried so not to
geek out. Some of his band came, I got to
meet them. I did a project news yes, wow, some
of the news several anchors, but it did. It was incredible,
(51:42):
and he was a gentleman and he was like he
was like my older brother. He was like, oh let me,
let me help you out with this at this tournament,
or like here's the deal. It was the best man.
It was honestly, I was like on cloud nine.
Speaker 2 (51:54):
It was the best. Ronnie Dunn, lead singer of Brooks
and Don, talked about how he became close with Johnny
Cash when he first moved to Nashville. Did you ever
go to meet johny Gosh, Yes, she drove.
Speaker 17 (52:07):
Yes, she brought me in to meet him. Where to
his house in Hendersonville?
Speaker 2 (52:13):
Are you nervous?
Speaker 17 (52:14):
Yeah, I'm scared to death. I don't want to meet them.
And I know they're thinking, hey, you know she's bringing
you know, I want to be singer into my house.
It's just like what I would do with one of
my daughters, just like, ah, please, right, So June takes
her out, and you know, just uh, John had just
given June a blue on blue rolls Royce for her birthday,
(52:36):
you know. So we rolled up to their house and
all this austentatious stuff is outside and go.
Speaker 2 (52:42):
In nervous, yes, more nervous that you walk closer, yes, okay, good.
Speaker 3 (52:46):
It gets worse.
Speaker 17 (52:48):
So the girls after after day one, you know, we
all stop and eat all this stuff, and John's real quiet.
Speaker 2 (52:54):
He's quiet at first.
Speaker 17 (52:55):
You know, he's intimidating anywhere, right, and then under those circumstances,
I'm going, I don't I don't want to, you know,
I don't want to be here like this. So the
next day, June and Janine go shopping and leave me
and John alone at the house. Well, there were two
big black recliners in front of this TV like that
(53:16):
on the wall, and uh, he's sitting there watching CNN,
and I just sat down with a cover of coffee
and I sat there. I said, something going on in
the news, and he goes, I always watch it, always
watch it. He says, I'm an addict. And he says,
I'll watch the TV until the loop changes. He says,
(53:39):
you know that the CNN and all that stuff are
on loops and I'm like no, and he goes, I
just watch it to loops whatever.
Speaker 2 (53:49):
You know.
Speaker 17 (53:50):
That was kind of the only thing I remember. He
just kind of didn't say much. He's like, you want
to go fishing? What are you doing? You want to
be in music? Nothing like that. Janine gets back and
she's kind of pale. She's kind of like down, and
that's not like her because she's a chatter. And uh,
finally we we went back to the bedroom and she
she I said, how did it go? And she goes, well,
(54:12):
June just gave she read me the right act.
Speaker 5 (54:14):
You know.
Speaker 17 (54:14):
She goes, look, you know, because Rodney and Roseanne had
been been married, and the girls, Carlen and all of them,
and Junior had her struggles with John too, and she said, uh,
it's it's it's not a not a pretty business. She goes,
you know, there's these these boys. She says, they're going
to act up on you. You know, they're going to
get out there and you know, theoretically do whatever. And
(54:36):
she says, you know, it's just not it's not a
good life. Even if he does make it. She said,
the chances are, you know, wanted one hundred million that
they even if they make it, will they last.
Speaker 3 (54:48):
She says, you don't, you don't.
Speaker 2 (54:49):
You don't want that life. You don't have to have
that life.
Speaker 17 (54:52):
So Janie said, I'm you know, that's just kind of
bummed me out. And I said, well, okay, let's let's go.
Speaker 2 (55:00):
But we didn't.
Speaker 17 (55:01):
We stayed and had had a good time. But that
was just kind of what we were left with there.
But at the same time, Junia was kind enough, uh
to do whatever they could to help, and they did.
And half the time, more than half the time, I
would go go up to take the rent or pay
the rent six hundred bucks or something like that. This
house looked like something.
Speaker 2 (55:21):
To Johnny's house. You would take the rent to Johnny Cash's house, Yeah,
and just drop it did have like a hole for them. No,
they wouldn't take it.
Speaker 17 (55:26):
No, Junior, I'd say, jen i'mber run over and leave
the rent, and she goes, Honey, don't do that. She said,
don't do that yet. You know there's no need for
you to do that. We're not worry about that.
Speaker 3 (55:35):
Uh.
Speaker 17 (55:35):
Anyway, so they wouldn't take it.
Speaker 2 (55:38):
Did they ever take your rent? No?
Speaker 5 (55:40):
No?
Speaker 2 (55:41):
How long did you live there?
Speaker 3 (55:42):
A year and a half? Two years?
Speaker 2 (55:44):
No?
Speaker 3 (55:44):
Two years?
Speaker 2 (55:45):
Did you ever get closer to Johnny? Uh? Yeah?
Speaker 17 (55:48):
Oh yeah, yeah no.
Speaker 2 (55:49):
No.
Speaker 17 (55:50):
Johnny would come up. There was another it's a little
en Clay cabins and goodlist on top of a hill
that they had built real cool, and uh. He would
come up and stay and spend the weekends and stuff.
Sometimes up there just to be alone, and he'd stopped
at the house.
Speaker 2 (56:10):
Hey, thanks for listening to this special on the Bobby Cast.
We love doing these. We hope you enjoyed hearing the
stories of celebrities interacting with other celebrities. Be sure to
subscribe to the Bobbycast wherever you listening to this. If
you don't mind, give us a rating of five stars.
Back next week with a brand new episode.
Speaker 1 (56:37):
Thanks for listening to a Bobby Cast production
Host
Bobby Bones
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