Dolly Parton performs at the Nightly Concert at The Coliseum on Thursday, June 9 in Downtown Nashville during the 2005 CMA Music Festival, "Country Music’s Biggest Party™." Photo provided by Country Music Association. Photographer: John Russell / CMA
Check in with Lew Jones for the latest on your favorite country legends!
Q: I was just asked how old Dolly Parton is. For some reason or another, her age is never mentioned. Could you give us an idea of how old she is?
(Brenda, Fillmore, IN)
A: The lady seems to be timeless, Brenda. However, my most trusted source says Dolly was born on January 19, 1946. Therefore I calculate that she is 59. With 24 Billboard No. 1 songs to her credit within a 40-year (so far) career, a host of awards, and her 1999 induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame, is she slowing down? Not so I can tell. She just returned from an overseas tour, keeps her recording career going with Sugar Hill Records, and has continued the expansion of her Dollywood amusement park at Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The latest Dolly Parton effort available from Sugar Hill Records is The Acoustic Collection: 1999-2002. Hard to believe she's been with Sugar Hill long enough for this kind of retrospective, but there it is, complete with bonus DVD and all.
Q: Who is the artist and where can I get a copy of "Wildfire"?
(Nadia, Farmington, IA)
A: It's by Michael Martin Murphey, Nadia. It's readily available on a great many of Murphey's compilation albums. Two of the best are Michael Martin Murphey Ultimate Collection on Hip-O Records, or The Best of Michael Martin Murphey, on Liberty Records. Check for either of these locally, or you can click "shop" on this page and order the Best of? that I just mentioned. Although "Wildfire" was not his biggest song, it set the tone for Murphey, both musically and personally. He raises horses at a ranch in northern New Mexico, and has a series of albums out under the general banner of The Horse Legends. He told me in a radio interview some time back that he once sought career advice from the late Roy Rogers. The famed movie cowboy, (who readily admitted that his best friend was Trigger,) told him to get a horse, and added that people would relate to the animal almost as much as to the cowboy! Michael heeded the advice.
Q: I am a real big fan of John Berry. Is he touring any time soon? My fiancé and I love his songs "Your Love Amazes Me" and "Will You Marry Me". He had them both played for us when he asked me to marry him. We would love to see him in concert.
(Malissa, Poplar Bluff, MO)
A: John only does a limited amount of touring at the moment, Malissa. So, how far do you want to travel? He will be in Nashville all day June 10, 2007 as part of the CMA Music Festival, holding a fan club meeting in the morning, and performing at the River Stages during the afternoon. Or, if you'd like to drive about a hundred miles less, you can catch him at North Little Rock, Arkansas on July 26 and 27, 2007 at the Windsong Performing Arts Theatre. For more information, John's website is johnberry.musiccitynetworks.com. As most artists would advise, be certain you obtain advance tickets and do a last minute double check of your arrangements before making a long drive.
Q: Years ago (back in the '50s) as I recall there was a country singer nicknamed "The Round Man Of Sound". I believe his first name was Kenny. Can you help me with his last name?
(Donny, Atlanta, TX)
A: Donny, you're close on both the nickname and the era. Kenny Price was his name, and he was known as "The Round Mound of Sound". His biggest hit was his first one, "Walking On New Grass" back in 1966. He had 34 charted hits well into the 1980s. Kenny was a regular on "Hee Haw," and the nickname alluding to his size was accurate. He was 6 feet tall and weighed nearly 300 pounds. He was in another television series for which I have only my own personal memory, and for which I find no independent information. However, I seem to remember a reality series- was it on the old TNN?- wherein Kenny drove a motor home to various places in the country and participated in local events. I believe the series was still being filmed when he died in 1987.
Q: Garth Brooks' hit "I'm Too Young To Feel This Damn Old", which helped rejuvenate Chris LeDoux's career, as I recall, was released around '70 by Reba's brother Pake, but I can't find any reference to it anywhere. Any help?
(Mike, Moline, IL)
A: The song was original to, and co-written by, Garth Brooks (with songwriter Randy Taylor), when Garth brought it out in 1989, Mike. However, Pake has it out now on an album titled Singin' Fiddlin' Cowboy, which seems to only be available on Pake McEntire's website, pakemcentireshow.com. He also has cover versions of "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" and "San Antonio Rose" on that CD.
Pake (along with sisters Susie and Reba) did do his first recording in the 1970s, but it was a song called "The Legend Of John McEntire." He proudly boasts that it "sold 17 copies? then tapered off". Pake had another song out in 1986 with a title similar to Garth's song, "Too Old To Grow Up." Could that be the one you remember?
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