This photo is courtesy of my sweet friend Bobby Maupin, who was kind enough not to use it as blackmail, thus freeing me to share this with the entire intrawebs as a testament to the fact that yes, the 80’s WERE just as embarrassing as we remember.
I’d like to also add that I did actually have a face at the time of this photo, it’s just that the blinding spotlight apparently washed it out. Too bad it couldn’t have done that to my outfit. And no, I probably wasn’t really singing– as I recall, I would be trotted out on the encores and would usually just pull a Linda McCartney-type move and *look* like I was…
P.S. On top of the bumblebee striped skirt and polka-dotted leggings? The jacket was houndstooth. Sadly, my big-ass hair bow doesn’t show because it was on the other side of my over-permed head, and my Michael Jackson buckle boots are obscured by the monitor. The entire ensemble was louder than the band.
(I am working on a post about Tennessee’s EPIC CICADA INVASION!!!!!!!– but I wanted you guys to see this video first.)
OK, so you remember last month when my Daddy only had a few days left to live, and I left Arkansas and drove back to Nashville to tape six months worth of Homecoming Radio shows? Well, I almost canceled, and then just felt like I needed to go ahead and do it. I didn’t say anything to Bill or the rest of the crew about what was going on, I just thought I would somehow get through it, fulfill my duties and then rush back home. Well, once again God in His infinite wisdom knew exactly what I needed, because those two days in the studio were such an unexpected blessed relief. What I thought I would just try to get through ended up being so healing and restorative– laughing your head off for two straight days can do a sad heart a world of good!
Here’s just a quick taste of why I loved those two days, that dang radio show and everyone involved with it so much:
Every show they play at least one of those old camp meeting/singing convention-type songs, which is William Gaither’s favorite music in the world and gets him going every time. Now, we are trying to knock out 6 months of radio shows in two days, so we don’t listen to all of the recorded music when we tape– we just do the intros to the song, and then skip ahead to when the song is over and we move on to the next bit of business (or silliness). But nine times out of ten, when the sound of those convention songs starts wafting into Bill’s headphones, he waves at the guy in the control booth and says, “Let that one play for a minute!” He starts grinning ear to ear, and singing along, and conducting, and punching the arm of the poor person sitting next to him because he JUST CAN’T HELP HIMSELF, HE LOVES THOSE SONGS THAT MUCH! In this case, the unfortunate soul within arm-punching distance was Larry Gatlin, and I grabbed my phone and made a little video of a typical Bill reaction…
Honestly, he is so cute sometimes ya just wanna dunk him in your coffee.
