My Country Side Of Life

Although I enjoy most styles of music (the obvious excluded), my musical background began with country music. Back in the day, we listened to AM radio stations (FM didn't exist), most of whom played a little bit of everything. There weren't any stations that played one style of music exclusively. Actually, there weren't that many stations, period.

In those days, Brother Kirt and I would sing along with the country music songs on the radio and harmonize together. Since we didn't play any instruments at the time (I was seven, Brother Kirt was ((and still is)) 18 months younger), we would grab old straw brooms and play them as if they were guitars. Come to think of it, I guess we were pioneers of playing "air guitar." We had an RCA Victor radio and every afternoon after school, we'd listen to country music and sing along.

The country music recording artists of the day were singers like Hank Williams, Kitty Wells, Red Foley, Hank Snow and Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. Bob Wills was already an established Texas swing and country music artist, with such notable hits as "Take Me Back To Tulsa", "Stay A Little longer", San Antonio Rose" and "Faded Love."

Hank Williams was one of the most popular and oft played singers on the charts, having barrage of number one and top ten hits in the early fifties, including "Kaw Liga", "Cold, Cold Heart", "Your Cheating Heart" and the incomparable "Lovesick Blues", a song which Williams was asked to do seven encores on the Grand Ole Opry.

My parents bought Brother Kirt and I a couple of plastic guitars and we learned to play them. Later on, in the sixth grade, my teacher Leroy Hall showed me some chords on the six string guitar and I, in turn, taught Brother Kirt what I had learned. The rest is history as Brother Kirt and I went on to perform together and formed a band. Our repertoire expanded with the rock and roll craze that came in the mid fifties.

This week, Johnnie Walker Black and I recorded an old Texas swing song which I have added to my YouTube site. Here's my latest recording. Remember, to mute my playlist on the left sidebar. For those of you who don't know the song, it's entitled "Right Or Wrong." For those of you who do know it, it's still entitled "Right Or Wrong." I hope you enjoy it.

The News As I See It: A new poll shows that only 19 percent of Americans strongly approve of President Obama’s performance. The other 81 percent don’t own gas stations.

According to the New York Post, the house from "Jersey Shore" is now for rent. But the hot tub was sent to the Centers for Disease Control for analysis.

The Pentagon announced that openly gay soldiers will begin serving this summer. When people asked why this summer, the Army said, "Because 'Glee' will be in reruns."

President Obozo said he misses being anonymous. He said that in the old days, he could blend in with all the other Hawaiian Barack Obamas.

Denny’s has announced that they will be opening as many as 50 restaurants in India. When they heard this, people in India said, "Hey, we’re hungry, but not that hungry."

Because of a holiday, the deadline for taxes is April 18, so you have three extra days to dig through restaurant dumpsters for receipts.

According to a CNN poll, Trump nearly doubled his support from March. Actually, he just combed his March numbers over his current ones.

Applebee’s apologized for serving a toddler a cup of tequila. They also apologized to the family for serving them food made by Applebee’s.

This Date In History: 1598; The Edict of Nantes gave religious tolerance to the Huguenots in France. 1742; Handel’s Messiah was first publicly performed in Dublin, Ireland. 1964; Sidney Poitier became the first African American to win the Academy Award for best actor.

1970; Apollo 13 announced "Houston, we've got a problem," when an oxygen tank burst on the way to the Moon. 1975; Civil War began in Lebanon when gunmen killed 4 Christian Phalangists who retaliated by killing 27 Palestinians.

1997; Tiger Woods became the youngest person to win the Masters Tournament and the first Black to win a major golf title. 2004; Barry Bonds hit his 661st homer, passing Willie Mays to take third place on the lifetime list.

Picture Of The Day: Hank Williams was probably one of the most influential artists in my music. An excellent composer and writer, Williams songs lamented the trials and tribulations of his relationship with wife Audrey and his pain was reflective in his music. Hank Williams died on New Years Day in 1953.

Printable Things I Never Told You: 1) I used to be a lifeguard, but some blue kid got me fired. 2) Follow your dreams, except for that one where you're naked at work. 3) Today I was busier than a one-toothed man in a corn-on-the-cob eating contest. 4) The problem with sex in the movies is that I usually spill the popcorn. 5) My pal Jack is so old he shops at Extremely Old Navy.....and that's five!

Bonus Sixth: My friend went out with some friends last night and really tied one on. He got really plastered. So, in respect of our new drinking and driving laws, he did something that He had never done before. He took a bus and arrived home safe and warm, which is surprising because he had never driven a bus before.

Today's Birthday Horoscope: Aries - April 13th: The latin phrase for what you're feeling right now is: "Non semper inquisit damascus. Aroooooo ! Woof !". There's a little bit of dog language mixed in there too. Your future may be tainted by a mistake in your past. Now is the time for a new resolution. The pain in your foot will lessen today as the pain in your hand grows. You will start to feel animosity towards forms of public transport and its workers, simultaneously regretting having your foot injured in a closing door and punching the driver.

Next year will see the start of something great for you.This year will be good for you. I know this is a fairly general reading but then life is always full of ups and downs, balls and strikes and so on. Basically, the whole thing just cancels itself out. You'll see when the time comes. Destiny is calling you. Unfortunately destiny is blind as a mule with no head and is unlikely to have found anything decent for you. In fact, chances are destiny is trying to set you up with a mule with no head. Be warned the some lazy-boy reclining chairs can become dangerous if soaked in lime juice.

Birthdays: My pal Linda - Happy Birthday girl! 19XX, Thomas Jefferson, American president 1743, Butch Cassidy, outlaw 1866, Samuel Beckett, playwright 1906, Eudora Welty, novelist 1909, Ben Nighthorse Campbell, U.S. senator 1933, Seamus Heaney, poet 1939.

The AREA 51 Retirement Home Bar And Grill: In a rural program for farmers, a female TV reporter seeking the main cause of Mad Cow disease, arranged for an interview with a farmer who may have some theories on the matter. The lady reporter said, "I'm here to collect information on the possible sources of Mad Cow Disease. Can you offer any reason for this disease?" The farmer stared at the reporter and said, "Do you know that a bull mounts a cow only once a year?"

The lady reporter, obviously embarrassed, said, "Well, sir, that's a new piece of information but what's the relation between this phenomenon and Mad Cow disease?? The farmer continued, "And, ma'am, do you know that we milk a cow twice a day?"

The lady reporter responded, "Sir, this is really valuable information, but what about getting to the point?" The old farmer said, "I am getting to the point, ma'am. Just imagine, if I was playing with your tits twice a day and only screwing you once a year, wouldn't you go mad?"

A busload of politicians were driving down a country road, when suddenly the bus ran off the road and crashed into an old farmer's barn. The old farmer got off his tractor and went to investigate. Soon he dug a hole and buried the politicians.

A few days later, the local sheriff came out, saw the crashed bus and asked the old farmer where all the politicians had gone. The old farmer told him he had buried them. The sheriff asked the old farmer, "Lordy, were they all dead?" The old farmer said, "Well, some of them said they weren't, but you know how them crooked politicians lie."

The Hits Just Keep On Coming: My thanks to my pal Wally for his contribution to today's stories.

Two cowboys come upon an Indian lying on his stomach with his ear to the ground. One of the cowboys stops and says to the other, "You see that Indian? He's listening to the ground. He can hear things for miles in any direction." Just then the Indian looks up and says, "Covered wagon, about two miles away. Have two horses, one brown, one white. Man, woman, child, household effects in wagon."

The cowboy to his friend, "Amazing! This Indian knows how far away they are, how many horses, what color they are, who is in the wagon, and what is in the wagon." The cowboy says to the Indian, "Tell me how are you able to know this?" The Indian looks up and says, "Wagon ran over me about a half hour ago."

The Lone Ranger and Tonto walked into a bar one day and sat down to drink a beer. After a few minutes, a big tall cowboy walked in and said, "Who owns the big white horse outside?" The Lone Ranger stood up and said "I do. Why?" The cowboy looked at the Lone Ranger and said, "I just thought you would like to know that your horse is just about dead outside."

The Lone Ranger and Tonto rushed outside and sure enough, Silver was about dead from heat exhaustion. The Lone Ranger got him some water and made him drink it. Soon Silver was starting to feel better. The Lone Ranger turned to Tonto and said, "Tonto, I want you to run around Silver and see if you can create enough of a breeze to make him start to feel better." Tonto said, "Sure, Kemosabe", and took off running circles around Silver.

Not able to do anything but wait, the Lone Ranger returned to the bar to finish his drink. A few minutes later, another cowboy struts into the bar and announces, "Who owns that big white horse outside?" The Lone Ranger stands again and claims, "I do. What is wrong with him this time?" The cowboy says to him, "Nothin' much, I just wanted you to know....you left your Injun running."

That's it for now my little papooses. Remember, the trouble with life is that there's no background music. Speaking of music, AREA 51 sounds like a good idea. More on Friday.

Stay Tuned !