BILL BLOG
Monday September 8, 2025
Monday morning, and I’m back home in Nashville. A little cooler in Nashville today, with a high of just 79 before it gets hot again by mid-week.
Meanwhile, all eyes are on Hurricane Kiko, which could hit Hawaii today. “Massive Waves” is not a great forecast.
THE WEEKEND
Friday morning in Marion, Illinois, I was up early and had breakfast with some of my extended family. Stacy Raymer and her granddaughter, Sid, used me to set up and surprise Stacy’s Dad, Dodge Raymer. They were staying in the same hotel as I was, as they were in town to see the Crystal Gayle show just down the road, and I was there for Freedom Sings USA. Dodge did not know he would be seeing me at breakfast. Quite the surprise.
It was surely great getting to see them for a bit.
VETERANS
Then at 10 AM, I sat down with 71-year-old Vietnam veteran Calvin Scott, who was part of an artillery unit in Vietnam.
Drafted. And off he went. He admitted that he was scared…a lot. He was behind the lines most of the time, except once when they had a mission, but at the last second, his sergeant told him he didn’t have to go. And then his Sergeant was killed in action. Years after he was out of the service, Calvin went to D.C. and found his Seargent’s name on The Wall.
And then, just last year, Calvin and his cousin returned to Vietnam as tourists and took a tour of the Vietnam War Museum in Saigon, now known as Ho Chi Minh City. He ducked into a tunnel that was used to hide the Viet Cong, which he was trying to blow up sometimes with artillery shells. And he talked about how much he enjoyed going back and seeing the difference in the country now, full of hotels and resorts, and American tourists. His song is titled “Back To Vietnam”.
Last year, my cousin and I took a trip
I saw those tunnels where the Viet Cong hid
Saigon looked different, full of fancy hotels
And I could see myself loading those artillery shells
Back again in Vietnam
I was back again in Vietnam
FRIDAY NIGHT
We played a little songwriter round at a place called “Little Nashville,” located on the town square of Marion. It’s owned by a songwriter, who lived in Nashville several years writing songs, before winding up in Marion with this great little venue. He actually opened our Freedom Sings USA songwriter show Friday night and was terrific.
Bobby Tomberlin, Steve Dean, Irene Kelley, Bill DiLuigi, and I each did two songs before a wonderful crowd of music lover and patriots.
Then it was back to the hotel, where we found a group of folks gathered at a table talking. Turns out that three of these folks are from St. Joseph, Missouri, and they are considering hosting a Freedom Sings USA event in the Show Me State. That would be a great thing for me, to get to write with veterans near where I grew up. I was headed to the elevator and my room to go to sleep when Don Goodman, the writer of songs like “Ole Red” for Blake Shelton, and “Angels Among Us” by Alabama, asked if I would stop, take my guitar out, and play “I’m Going Ugly Early” for these folks. Since Don is one of the co-founders of Freedom Sings USA, I obliged.
And here’s the VIDEO of that moment.
SATURDAY NIGHT
What a great concert we had on the downtown square in Marion, Illinois.
Five veterans were honored, as each songwriter performed the song they wrote with that veteran this weekend. Mine was this guy…Calvin Scott.
And a LOT of his family showed up to see him be honored. What a privilege it was to be his songwriter.
My old friend and former member of my band “The Shortline Express” showed up with his wife again this year. So great to see Mike Herndon, who played bass and saxophone and added some comedy for our band back in the Missouri days when we were all young. That made the trip even more special for me.
My thanks to the organizers here who make this event truly special. And that was on display when the organizers brought a local choir of kids with their band teacher to sing the song that Don Goodman, one of the co-founders of Freedom Sings…” Angels Among Us” by Alabama. It was Don’s birthday Saturday, and what a way to honor him! There weren’t many dry eyes.
All of us look very forward to returning to Marion again next year.
SONG OF THE DAY
My friend Scott Southworth just released a vinyl version of his project “Comin’ Round To Honky Tonk Again”, which includes songs I wrote with him. Here’s one of those, “Everything I Never Knew”.
HEALTH NOTES
Alarming. Three people in Maine have active tuberculosis, the world’s deadliest disease.
Prostate cancer cases have increased steadily over the past decade after years of decline, according to the American Cancer Society. One in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime.
An early study suggests that long-distance running is tied to a higher risk of colon cancer.
HERE’S YOUR SIGN
POWERBALL
Nope…I didn’t win either. But someone in my home state of Missouri had a winning ticket, as did someone else in Texas. The two of them will split that jackpot of 1.8 billion dollars! That’s a bunch of dollars.
Which brings me to this thought from comedian Jay Leno, who once asked, “How come you never see a headline that reads, ‘Psychic Wins Lottery’?”
DOG VOTING
How about the California woman who illegally registered her dog to vote? She did. The dog “Maya” cast two votes. The woman turned herself in for doing it. Proof that the voting system truly has gone to the dogs, I suppose.
DARTH
The Darth Vader lightsaber that we saw in the original Star Wars movie just sold at auction. It fetched 3.6 million dollars!
And while that seems like a ton of money, keep in mind that Dorothy’s ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz sold for 32.5 million at auction.
TODAY’S HEADLINE
10 Bras That Are More Supportive Than Any Relationship I’ve Ever Had. (Sounds like a danged country song to me)
TODAY
I’ve got an off day to recharge for a busy rest of the week writing songs with folks.
Have a great Monday!
Comments
Post a Comment