Grand Ole Opry

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however, to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

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I grew up in Ontario, Canada. I’m 80 years old, but I can remember a song that started, “There’s an old hollow tree down the road here from me where I laid down a dollar or two.” If you could identify the name of the song and the singer or singers of the era, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks,

Marven Petersoon

Ashmore Queensland Australia

Dear Marven,

The song you remember from your days as a strapping young lad in Canada is “Mountain Dew.” The tune was sung for years on the Opry stage by Opry legend Grandpa Jones. Grandpa’s good friend Jimmy Dickens has been known to dust off the tune these days, with the song often accompanied by a joke about Dickens’ “drinkin’ uncle.”

You sound like a man after my own heart, Marven, what with your love of a country classic and a clear taste for the medicinal effects of some Mountain Dew. I’ll bet you and I could have had some fun under that old hollow tree had our paths crossed there 60 years ago or so.

Thanks for asking,

The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady?
Click here to submit your question.

Hi there,

I was at the Grand Ole Opry, the Ryman location, around 2004 or 2005. Taylor Swift performed that night– her first time at the Opry I think. Anyway, there was a 20-something brunette vocalist who played that night. I think she was from Kentucky. She had one back-up singer and played the guitar. She sang a song about going to yard sales on Sundays or something like that. I got the impression that she was a semi-frequent guest performer at the Opry. I really enjoyed her performance and haven’t been able to find out who she was. Have any idea who this might be?

Thanks,

Dave Wallace

Mesa, AZ

Dear Dave,

I love unraveling a good Opry mystery like the one you have presented. First of all, Taylor Swift debuted on the Opry on Sept. 1, 2006, and that night’s show was not at the Ryman, but rather the Grand Ole Opry House. So that tells me you saw Taylor’s second-ever Opry appearance, which took place on Dec. 29, 2006. A look at the artist line-up for that night confirms what the Q & a Lady suspected all along: you saw Salyersville, Kentucky born and bred singer-songwriter Rebecca Lynn Howard. Rebecca Lynn has releases of her own to her credit, and has also written tunes covered by the likes of Trisha Yearwood and John Michael Montgomery. She has a smile as wide as the Bluegrass state itself, and can raise the roof of either the Opry House or the Ryman. The evening you saw her at the Opry, Rebecca Lynn’s offerings were “Bargin Bin Betty” (that’s where your “going to yard sales on Sundays” comes in) & “Seventeen”.

Mystery solved, Dave! Now if I can only figure out where I misplaced my reading glasses!

Thanks for asking,

The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however, to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady?
Click here to submit your question.

Do you know a song about a Baby Ruth and a rose or some song about a candy bar and a rose?
Thanks,

Sue Howard
New Palestine, IN

Hi Sue,

The song you’re thinking of is the teen love ballad “A Rose and a Baby Ruth”, and was a pop hit in the 50s for Opry member George Hamilton IV before he began enjoying success on the country charts. George the IV is known as the “International Ambassador of Country Music”, and his signature song is the classic “Abilene.” Here’s a piece of trivia on “Rose” you’re not going to get just anywhere, Jan. The song was covered by Marilyn Manson on a limited edition live album in 1999. And that, Jan, is the one degree of separation between George Hamilton IV and Marilyn Manson. Take that to your next cocktail party, why don’t ya?

Thanks for asking,
The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady?
Click here to submit your question.

What was the announcer’s name at the Grand Ole Opry? He was in “Coal Miner’s Daughter.”
Thanks,

Glenn Martin
Garden City, MI

Dear Glenn,

The Opry has had some storied announcers through its history, but none made a deeper impact than the fellow you’re thinking of, Grant Turner. Turner became renowned as the “Dean of Grand Ole Opry announcers,” and his voice became as much a part of the Opry for radio listeners as many of the vocalists they’d hear each week. He was a 47-year Opry vet and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1981. Turner had a smooth, down-home style and was recognized by thousands of Opry pre-show guests as he sat on stage and played records by artists set to appear on that night’s shows. He died on a Saturday in October 1991, just six hours after having performed his regular gig on the Friday Night Opry. I love to listen to old clips of him on 650 AM-WSM and always watch out for him and his part in “Coal Miner’s Daughter.” He looks like he is having the time of his life in that scene, and I believe he was. A lot of us around the Opry are fortunate to be able to say the same, Glenn!

Thanks for asking,
The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady?
Click here to submit your question.

How old is Little Jimmy Dickens?

Peggy Wilbur
Kansas City, MO

Dear Peggy,

Jimmy, our most treasured star at the Opry, turned 91 last month. You may have read of my love for Mr. Vince Gill or Mr. Josh Turner, but please know that I would drop either of those class acts like a hot potato for Mr. Jim. He’s a gentleman and a scholar, to say the least. I just muttered one of his punchlines to myself (“thanks, doc, now I know what I did with my hearing aid!”) and laughed out loud. Long live Little Jim!

Thanks for asking,

The Q & A Lady

Here are some fantastic Little Jimmy moments on the Opry stage:

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady? Click here to submit your question.

Who is the fiddle player that plays the opening  songs on the Opry?

Kevin Pierskalla

Avon, Minnesota

Dear Kevin,

That fiddle sound you hear as the Opry opens is almost always made by Opry band fiddler Hoot Hester. Hoot has backed everyone from Bill Monroe to Ray Charles to Randy Travis. The nickname “Hoot” comes from cowboy actor Hoot Gibson.

Thanks for asking,

The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady? Click here to submit your question.

I visited Nashville four years ago– went to the Hall of Fame. It was great, but was there another Country Music Hall of Fame building before this one? Is it still around?

Arlene Mac Donald
River Denys, Nova Scotia

Hi Arlene,

Thanks from all of us for visiting Tune Town! You’re overdue for a return trip! Your memory serves you correctly. The first Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum building was located on Music Row and opened on April 1, 1967. It was razed around the time the new Hall of Fame and Museum building opened in downtown Nashville on May 17, 2001. While the new Hall building dwarfs the one built in 1967, it’s going to grow even more over the next couple of years. You’ll have to come check it out! Now if I can just get some more of my favorites inducted— Ronnie Milsap and Crystal Gayle, among them.

Thanks for asking,

The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady? Click here to submit your question.

What was the secret that Porter Wagoner sang about in the song ” Carroll County Accident” ?

Mel Newton
Cornelius, NC

Dear Mel,

I’m glad you asked. “Carroll County Accident” is listed as the No. 2 Country Music Story Song in the Opry’s book “Tune Town Trivia.” I guess only songwriter Bob Ferguson knew exactly what the lyrics to his gem meant, but I have always assumed that Walter Browning wasn’t really sick that fateful day and that his ride back into town in Mary Ellen Jones’ car wasn’t the only ride the couple was enjoying that day, if ya know what I mean. Take another listen and see if you don’t agree.

Thanks for asking,

The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady? Click here to submit your question.

Who was the singer and comedian that passed away several years ago. He was very large and usually wore a sailor cap.

Johnny

Dear Johnny,

The man in question shared your first name. Johnny Russell passed away almost ten years ago, July 3, 2001. In addition to the humor you remember (“the last workin’ ride at Opryland,” “can ever’body see me all right?”), Johnny penned a number of tunes you still hear on the radio. Among the biggest hits of his songwriting career: “Act Naturally” (Buck Owens, The Beatles, among others) and “Let’s Fall to Pieces Together” (George Strait).

Thanks for asking,

The Q & A Lady

When it comes to the Grand Ole Opry and country music, the Q & A Lady is the first to admit she hasn’t seen and done it all. She’s equally quick, however,  to add that she’s been lucky to see and do quite a little bit, and she’s happy to share her country insight with readers each week. She knows her Con Hunley from her John Conlee and her “Your Cheatin’ Heart” from her “Achy Breaky Heart.” If you have a question about country music you’d like to submit for her to consider answering, you’re welcome to do so here. Or you can just drop by each week to read her responses to other inquiries from across the country and around the globe. You just might learn a fun fact or two along the way.

Do you have a question for the Q & A Lady? Click here to submit your question.

Is Ramona Jones, wife of Grandpa Jones still alive?  I love listening to her on the fiddle.

Bob Held
Hagersville, ON

Hi Bob,

I’m happy to report Ms. Ramona is alive and well. You’re not the only one who loves her musicianship, Bob. Her appearances on HEE HAW with Grandpa are some of my favorite performances to emanate from Kornfield County. That lady could sure play the spoons! Looks like she can use a spoon in the kitchen, too. I just noticed she has a cookbook at The Ernest Tubb Record Shop. Give ‘em a call and order a book, Bob. You’ll be keeping up with the Jones’!

Thanks for asking,
The Q & A Lady