Dolly Parton - Here You Come Again -  1978

  Again, released before my time in Country Radio, but this song for Dolly was a big time game changer.  She recorded dozens of albums before and after this. But this album and single took her to the next level.  This song was a 5 week number one, and a very short time after this song, Dolly was more than a country singer, she became a pop culture icon and legend.  This was a big pop hit as well and introduced Dolly to millions of new fans.  I also feel this song was very important for us, as it predated Urban Cowboy and helped show the world that country was more than what many may have thought before. (Read - Three Big Songs, Three Great Women). In the years ahead Dolly became a movie star, a star of stage, and a TV star with her own show.  Dolly had a nice run though the 1980's and beyond, and this song and album set that into a higher gear.  This is timeless, it still sounds great, and to me is among the perfect examples of "pop country."  A wonderfully done uptempo, vulnerable love song, that wasn't too far from center.  Vulnerability, Dolly's incredible and unmatched calling card.

#42 Last Week

Dolly - My Full Profile Of Her

I know, I know, salmon, right?  While I lean more towards pork, beef and chicken, when salmon is done right I do like it. Windy makes it darn good, and I love that.  I'm not good a cooking it either.  But, when salmon is done right, it's right.

Try this, it's different and it's delicious!

Salmon Done Right

50 Favorites Monthly Recap - February

Eat Of The Week

50 Favorites From 40+ Years - #42

The Forgotten Jukebox - 2

Country Music Memory Lane - Were They Or Weren't They - Part 2

Wynn At The Movies And More

Box Office Results -  Creed 3  -  (59 Million)

Avatar: The Way of Water - You'll be able to own it soon, on March 28th through Prime Video, Apple TV, Vudu and Movies Anywhere.

New This Week - Champions /  Scream VI - (originally scheduled for 3/31)  -  (In RealD 3D, 4DX and Dolby Cinema) /  65 

Creed 3 - Largest opening for a sports movie ever  (Story) 

The Oscars - Are this week - Sunday Night - 8PM  (Story)

Roberto Clemente - The baseball Hall Of Famer died in a plane crash while on a humanitarian mission to Puerto Rico in 1972, will be the subject of a new movie  (Story)

Keanu Reeves - Says he REALLY wanted the role of Wolverine - (Story)

Rachael Ray’s - Talk show will end after this season. She's been on since 2006 and was nominated for 37 Daytime Emmys  (Story)

In Case You Wondered - Concessions account for about 80% of a movie theaters profits – that's why the corn is expensive   (Story) 

This Weekend – Check out my Country Music Memory Lane  (link)

Also - My 50 Favorites Over 40+ Years This Week #42  (Link)

The saying, "That ain't country" is nothing new. It's been going on the 43 years I've been in country radio. Sometimes it's right on the money, and then there's times it's up for debate. For the next couple weeks, I'll feature artists that got a fair amount of play on country radio at one time, and we can decide if they were or were not.  Keep in mind when these artists were getting play, country was not the massive popular format it is today.  We needed real star power, and these artists helped supply it to give us a bit more street cred -  especially with young fans that we had a hard time attracting then. 

They are long gone from country radio as we are now the big dogs on the block with plenty of star power.  But these fringe acts were incredibly influential to our future stars.  After a few weeks we can decide, were they or weren't they? - Country!  This is Part 2  -    Were They Or Weren't They Part 1

Bob Seger

Even Bob Seger's band, The Silver Bullet Band sounded like a country band.  Seger in my mind is another underrated artist in his own format.  A blue collar Detroit native on the regular sang songs about the common man as we do in country and I always loved that. He got a lot of country play with Shame On The Moon and we were so cool.  But when you listen back to some of Seger's stuff like, Against The Wind, Fire Lake, Like A Rock, Still The Same, and a few others, they all have country-style arrangements and story lines that are as country sounding as many of today's country currents.  Also, his gem We've Got Tonight, was covered by Kenny Rogers and Sheena Easton and went number one country.  And I'm not so sure that Old Time Rock And Roll isn't one of the most popular songs ever  - it has been played at many country concerts as a cover.  Of course there was plenty of Seger that was way outside of our scope. In the end, many country fans still share the same kind of love for Seger -  as they do the Eagles.

 
Linda Ronstadt

One of the most incredible and versatile singers of most any kind of music, and that's exactly what she recorded in her amazing career. I feel she was the precursor to Trisha Yearwood in a more modern sense who did the same. I worked at many stations where we played a lot of Linda Ronstadt music.  Granted we did not play, You're No Good, but we did play, When Will I be Loved (#1), Blue Bayou (#2), Love Is a Rose (#5), I Can't Help It (#5) and a few others.  She was also a part of that incredible album with Dolly and Emmy Lou Harris, Trio, which is one of the best albums of any kind in the 1980's. And even tough her version of Poor, Poor Pitiful Me did not do well for her country, a few years later it did for Terri Clark who took it #1.  The incredible thing about her was she just recorded "music" and it found its way to various charts and fan bases.  She was gifted that way and everyone loved her.  In the end, another tough call, but she did have a lot of charting success with us.

Gordon Lightfoot

One of the most gifted songwriters you'll ever find anywhere, Gordon Lightfoot from Canada was another artist everyone liked. (He is one of Bob Dylans favorite songwriters).  He is also a good example of folk, pop, and country meeting and producing a very slick acoustic sound.  I feel that sound was his ticket to being played on country radio for a while.  NO, we did not play The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald, but we did play others in an attempt to create some familiar star power on the radio, and being fair, his sound for the most part did blend in with the pop country phase we were going through. Everyone knew Lightfoot and he enjoyed real success, with Sundown (#13 country) (one of my all-time favorite songs) , Carefree Highway, (top 30 country) and If You Could Read My Mind for us. All easy to listen to, all great songs, and all very popular.  Should be noted MANY of his songs charted very well on the Canadian Country Charts including a bunch of #1's. He also has 13 Juno Award wins and has been nominated for 29 - BTW he has as many Juno wins as Shania Twain. In the end was he?  For us - he wasn't real far away.

Wednesdays here now have a new feature that will run for the foreseeable future, The Forgotten Jukebox Series.  I will spotlight a big hit song - post 1980 - that you just don't hear anywhere anymore.  All of these songs were very popular at the time, in fact most were number ones, and they all are from great artists that you know and love.  Many times we still play a ton of songs from these stars, but for some reason these songs over time have fallen through the Country Music Cracks pretty much everywhere, and have sadly been lost.  But for now, they have a new and safe home in my basement in My Forgotten Jukebox.

This is not a countdown and there is no order, rhyme or reason, just toss a quarter in and punch in some numbers - every song it great!

H- 71

A Night To Remember  - Joe Diffie - 1999 - (Album - A Night To Remember)

The late Joe Diffie is an exceedingly underappreciated country star. Make no mistake he was a big star in a huge decade, as the original traditionalist music making mullet man breaking through in 1990.  I still love to hear him sing a country song and this song for me was his very best, off his impressive hit list.  Many of his songs were lighthearted and fun, but I really think he shined the brightest when he did real traditional stuff like this. This went to number six on the charts and should have been a number one, as it was one of the most played country songs on radio for 1999, and hit number 35 on the pop charts.  The fact you don't hear this song, or him much anymore is sad as we don't have many songs like this recorded right now.  The trend lately is to strike out in anger and that's fine. We don't hurt much these days, we get mad and get even in songs.  But hearing Diffie sing a real powerful hurtin' number like this is refreshing and reminds us of all the different kinds of country there is.  This will not be the only time we hear from Joe Diffie in this series.

Beer In Mexico  - Kenny Chesney  -  2007

This is another number one song from Chesney and that's no surprise.  But what may stun you is this was the first song to go number one that he wrote solo.  I always thought the difference maker in this song was the skillful use of horns. This is a song that gets them out front and let's you enjoy the ride with them. Too many times when horns are used, the producers seem to try to bury them.  If you're using them  - use them!  This song zings along at a great pace.  BIM is a fantastic concert song for him and a song I will drive around the block to hear entirely if I'm too close to the house to not catch the whole thing.  Chesney was on such a roll at this time, this incredible song was the fifth single off his The Road And The Radio album. Think about that, a song this good having to wait for four other songs to clear before it gets on the charts.  We all love to hear Chesney party in a song, and this one certainly does!

Last Week #43

Four Tuesdays in February and in case you missed any of them in my Year Long Countdown of My 50 Favorites From 40+ Years, here's a monthly Recap

#43 - If Lovin' You Is Wrong - Barbara Mandrell

#44 - Lotta Leavin' Left To Do - Dierks Bentley

#45 - How Do You Like Me Now - Toby Keith

#46 - Roll On Big Mama - Joe Stampley

Gotta love a good noodle.  Even when you're out of everything else in the house you always seem to have noodles of some kind.  AND generally something to throw on them. 

Here's fun article for your noodle.

Lots Of Noodles!

Sunday Morning Song 2/26 - Hannah Ellis

Eat Of The Week

50 Favorites From 40 Years #43

The Forgotten Jukebox 1 B-34

Country Music Memory Lane - Were They Or Weren't They

Wynn At The Movies And More