My parents, fortunately, have always been more than a little on the "arty" side. When it came to music... strains of Miles, Stravinsky, Monk, Duke, Ella, Muddy Waters, Ray Charles, Sarah Vaughn, Lead Belly, Mary Lou Williams, Rolling Stones and Beatles were abundantly heard and forever burned into my consciousness before adolescence.
My father, in particular, gave me a true appreciation for country & bluegrass. On my tenth birthday, we went to see Bill Monroe and Doc Watson at the Grand Ole Opry. At 11 years, on a family ski trip to Utah, I first heard the laid back sound of Don Williams and was immediately hooked. Even Eric Clapton paid homage to him on "Lay Down Sally", which is a direct descendent of Don's style.
A few years back, I decided to pay my own tribute to Don Williams and wrote a song inspired by him. When the tune was finished, I gathered my bandmates together, including Chris Haugen, dusted off my pedal steel guitar and went into the studio record it.
If you listen to the musical break, Chris plays the first solo on dobro and I play the second bit on electric guitar. I love writing this type of stuff and wonder if maybe there was a missed career opportunity in Nashville? Who knows...
Listen to Betty Lou.
(eyeneer music publishing/BMI ©2004/2006)
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