I’ve commented, if not here, on other people’s blogs about the changes on SiriusXM radio, especially “Willies Place” which used to be reliable for classic honky tonk music.
Since the merger, it seems that ole Willie himself has decided to take more of a day to day interest in his namesake channel.
On the plus side, I hear less and less Jerry Lee Lewis. I’ve never thought of him as a CW singer, although that’s where he got his start.
On the negative side, I’ve heard a lot more Leon Russell, who I’ve never considered much of any kind of singer. I’ve also heard a lot less Bob Wills, Lefty Frizzel, Hank Thompson, Hank Williams Sr., and other classic CW stars.
I won’t even start on Bill Mack’s gabfest.
Back to Leon Russell. Turns out Leon used to play with Willie way back when. They are still buddies to this day. As a result we get to hear Leon butcher cover songs by Patsy Cline (Crazy), Bob Wills (San Antonio Rose), and others. A side note: Willie kills San Antonio Rose too.
What he does to “Crazy” should be a felony.
All of which reminds me of this exchange from Brideless Groom.
Shemp: “Don’t forget, gargle with old razor blades.”
Miss Dinkelmeyer: “Alright professor, I know you wouldn’t want anything to happen to my throat.”
Shemp to Larry: “Except to have somebody cut it.”
Sigh…
This isn’t making me want to get Satellite radio ….
I haven’t heard Willie’s “San Antonio Rose,” but I love, love, looooove his rendition of “Stay A Little Longer” as done on 1978’s Willie And Family Live cd. (You can also find it on Willie’s “Greatest Hits (And Some That Will Be) cd.) I suppose some might consider it heresy, but I am not really that big on Leon Russell either. On the other hand, I’ve been a bit disappointed in Bill Mack’s Sirius debut, for just that reason — it’s a gabfest. If I wanted to hear talk I’d listen to the talk channels. I did get a nice treat on his show the other day, though, with George Strait and Alan Jackson’s recording of “Murder On Music Row.”
BP, my son and I discussed that yesterday. As much as we might grouse, we agreed it’s 100 x better than terrestrial radio. Pistolero, I also like Willies rendition of “Stay A Little Longer”, but it’s a much different song that San Antonio Rose. Maybe a few emails paraphrasing Laura Ingraham “Shut up and play music” will give Bill Mack the hint. Speaking of which, I’d never heard of him or Dallas Wayne before they came to XM. Which means that either they were not as big as the station wants us to think, or more likely, I’m just not as in touch with CW music as I think I am.
Believe me, BP, it’s still more than worth the coin. I still tell people it’s the best $12.95 a month I’ve ever spent, though. I still like Willie’s Place, but as far as the country channels go my preferences are The Roadhouse and Outlaw Country, which skew more toward classic country and Texas-red dirt-Americana, respectively. And there are still over 100 other channels if those aren’t to your liking. 😉
I’d never heard of Dallas Wayne either, but I’d guess that’s just because I was not as in touch as I’d like to be. I think I’d heard him on Sirius as a deejay but never as a singer. He’s pretty good, too. Bill Mack’s a radio legend down in these parts, though. due to his stint on 820 WBAP, the clear-channel 50,000-watt country music powerhouse out of Fort Worth. I wouldn’t be surprised if the bulk of his listeners were in the territory that WBAP reached — which, admittedly is quite big, as those clear-channel AM stations have a range of up to 750 miles at night.
Clear channel AM stations can have a long range. WBZ AM in Boston is heard throughout the eastern US and up into Canada. There is an interesting history to clear channel AM, but it’s probably only interesting to a radio geek such as I.