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FromBill-btn-blu

January 3, 2023

Hi Gang:

And Happy New Year!

I wish each of you twelve months of health and happiness here in 2023. After a couple of wacky years dealing with Covid, inflation, and all kinds of other distractions, let’s hope the roads smooth out and we can return to some sense of normalcy in the days ahead. I hope you had a great Christmas, and I appreciate your  joining us for our first newsletter of the New Year.

Christmas was anything but normal for those of us in Whisperville. Five members of my family tested positive for Covid during the holidays, and then sub-zero temperatures, snow, and wind chills of minus 20-degrees invaded us. Like many of you, we had to spread our Christmas family time across an entire week, but I learned to be flexible years ago when I was on tour so much of the time. This was just another small pothole, and I’ve hit lots of those over the years.

I spent much of my time reading your letters, notes, and Christmas cards, and I thank you for every one of them. Your messages were very kind and thoughtful.

As we move into a New Year I find myself looking over my shoulder at the year just past, and while lots of good things happened in 2022, there was a large dose of sadness as well. Seems like every time I turned around I was having to say goodbye to somebody special in my life.

Peter Cooper, the co-author of my 2016 autobiography and the prime architect behind my exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame, died unexpectedly December 6th, the result of a fall. He was only 52-years old. He and I bonded from his early days in Nashville as a reporter for the Tennessean newspaper. After all, we were both journalists from South Carolina who loved country music and baseball more than just about anything. We went to the Braves Spring Training together, to Nashville Sounds games on many occasions, and once even snuck away to Green Bay, Wisconsin, to watch his beloved Packers play that other sport at Lambeau Field. Working on the book and the exhibit with him were truly labors of love. He leaves behind a 13-year old son and a lot of hurtin’ hearts…including mine.

And then a few days before Christmas, I got word that Charlie Monk, the self-proclaimed Mayor Of Music Row and a friend of mine for more than fifty years, had passed away as well. Many of you were familiar with Charlie as the morning DJ on Willie’s Roadhouse on Sirius/XM radio. Charlie was one of those guys who made everybody he came in contact with feel better simply by smiling and saying hello. Music Row won’t be the same without our Mayor.

Looking ahead, our February newsletter will probably be a few days late because I hope to include some news and a picture or two from my trip to the Grammy Awards Feb. 5th out in Los Angeles. Whether I win or not, receiving the nomination is a great way to begin the New Year. I haven’t been on a commercial airline flight since Covid broke out in 2020, though, so wish us smooth skies and safe landings.

Right now I don’t plan to go back on tour this year, but I do have some interesting projects in the works. Among other things, I hope to write a bunch of new songs, make a new record or two, and continue to perform as often as possible at the Grand Ole Opry. There’s excitement in my family, too, as my son, Jamey, begins a new phase of his career at Delta Air Lines by moving up to pilot their largest planes, the 757 and 767. My grandson, Blake, is going on a six-week mission trip to Prague, Czechoslovakia, for Crusade For Christ in May, and grandkids, Gabe and Greta, will both be graduating from high school that same month. Gabe’s health continues to hold steady, and we continue to thank you for your positive thoughts and prayers on his behalf.

Well, I’m about out of time and space, so stay warm, stay safe, and as always, thanks for everything….

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FromBill-btn-blu

September 5, 2023

Hi Gang:
August went out with a bang and now, following Labor Day, here comes September in with a roar. Things are never dull in Whisperville.
I guess by now most of you have seen the footage of my asking Sara Evans if she would like to become a member of the Grand Ole Opry last month. I flew home early from a business trip to California in order to be the one to pop the question, and it was so worth it. The look on Sara’s face and the tears in her eyes told me how much it meant to her, and on October 7th her lifelong dream of Opry membership will come true. That’s the night she will be formally inducted, and it comes during the Opry’s 98th birthday celebration. I hope lots of you can come be with us or at least tune into the festivities.
Sara becomes the fourth artist to whom I have personally extended an Opry membership invitation….joining Brad Paisley, Mel Tillis, and Jamey Johnson. Each of the others has made me awfully proud over the years, and I’m sure Sara will do the same.
What else is going on? Well, my big September weekend will be the 15th and 16th of the month when I will perform on the Friday Opry and then take part in an exciting program inside the Ford Theater at the Country Music Hall of Fame the following afternoon. It will be a panel discussion called Opry Memories with Bill Anderson, and will feature myself, Jeannie Seely, Mark Wills, and former Opry general manager, Bud Wendell, talking about what the Opry has meant in each of our lives. The panel will be moderated by the Hall’s Paul Kingsbury and followed by a meet ‘n greet with the fans and all the participants afterward. Several of you have told me that you’ve already gotten your tickets and made your plans for a “wild weekend,” and I hope more of you will join us. Hurry, though, because I’m told it’s almost sold out.
I can’t tell you how many people have congratulated me recently on my becoming the oldest member of the Grand Ole Opry. NO…NO…NO…I am not the oldest member. I know of at least four members who are older than I am. What we were celebrating a few weeks ago was my becoming the LONGEST SERVING member of the Opry in the show’s history. I’ve simply been an Opry member for over 62 consecutive years, longer than any other performer in history. Please don’t try making me any older than I am!
On a more somber note, we have had to say goodbye recently to two ladies who were each, in their own way, a big part of my career back in the day. Bev Porter who played keyboards and sang back-up vocals with my Po’ Folks Band in the eighties, passed away last month from a rare type of leukemia that went undetected until it was too late. She was 67. And Jeanne Chennault, whom some of you knew as Jeanne Gaddis, died Labor Day weekend at the age of 94 near her home in Texas. Jeanne worked for me for 24-years, serving as both my secretary and fan club president. She was the mother of my longtime assistant, Kathy Gaddy. Both Bev and Jeanne contributed so much to my life and my career. They will both be missed.
I had planned to spend the last few days of August and the early days of September relaxing amid the surf and sand in Florida, but unfortunately, a hurricane named Idalia had a similar idea. She was bigger and stronger than me, so I let her have the territory at first. I just relaxed at home until she moved out and I could move in.  Hopefully, I’ll arrive home refreshed and ready to climb back in the saddle. Lots of things involving new music are on the horizon, and I hope it won’t be long before I can share some of them with you.
Have a great month with whatever is on your plate, and we’ll see you back here in my favorite month of October. As always, thanks for everything….
FromBill-btn-blu

August 1, 2023

Hi Gang:
 
I wish you all could have been there!
 
What a night we had on July 22nd celebrating my 62nd Grand Ole Opry anniversary and the fact that I have now been an Opry member longer than anyone else in history. I’m still having trouble believing it all.
 
By now you have probably read the stories and seen the pictures, but I want you to hear directly from me that it was one of the most special and memorable nights of my life and my career. Thanks to Dan Rogers, Gina Keltner, and the Opry staff for all the behind-the-scenes work they put into the occasion, and my deepest appreciation to Vince Gill, Jeannie Seely, Jamey Johnson and all the other greats who filled the night with so many kind words and so much of my music.
 
I’ll never forget Jeannie leading the audience in singing “Peel Me A ‘Nanner” or Jamey and me onstage trying to remember in what key we sang “Everybody Wants To Be 21.” And Vince decked out in his Bill Anderson t-shirt! Money can’t buy those kinds of memories. Not to mention the incredibly long standing ovation the audience gave me when the announcement of my longevity was made.
 
My three children and seven of my eight grandchildren were standing in the wings taking it all in. I was laughing one minute and wiping tears off my face the next.
 
Thanks to each of you who sent me a congratulatory message. Thanks for the beautiful flowers that brightened my dressing room. And thanks to each of you who have been alongside me for all or part of this incredible journey. It’s been amazing, and it’s not over yet.
 
In fact, I’ll be on the Opry four times this month….August 12th, 22nd, 26th, and 29th. Come see us if you can, or tune us in if you can’t be here.
 
What else is happening? Universal Music has released seven more of my Decca/MCA albums into the digital world where you can now download and stream them. Watch for some upcoming news about each album. And I’ve been in the studio recording some new music that I hope you’ll be hearing soon.
 
I appreciate your continuing to be the best fans and friends in the world. It’s exciting to think of where these roads have wound over the years and where they might continue to lead us in the days ahead. Have a great month, stay as cool as you can in this incredible heat we’re having, and I’ll see you back here in September.
 
Thanks again for everything….
FromBill-btn-blu

July 3, 2023

Hi Gang:

And to all our friends and fans in the United States, here’s to a Happy 4th of July!

This is going to be both an interesting and a fun month here in Whisperville. After some pretty extensive research, it has been determined that when my 62nd
anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry rolls around on July 12th, I will have been an Opry member longer than any other performer in the almost 100-year history of the show. How cool is that? And you read it here first!

There was an old-time string band on the Opry for years known as The Crook Brothers, and Herman Crook was a member of that group for 61-years, 11-months, and 17-days. He came close, but no artist, male, female, or group, has been blessed to have made it all the way to 62 consecutive years. And it truly is a blessing, believe me.

The Opry will commemorate my special anniversary on Saturday night July 22nd, but I have no idea what they are planning to do. I told them I don’t want a gift nor a party…they did that on both my 50th and 60th year celebrations. If a few of my friends want to show up to help me mark the occasion that will be enough…along with a few smiles and thumbs-ups from those in the audience. I hope some of you can be there and that many of you will be tuned in.

Back in the summer of 1953 when I was 15-years old and my mom and dad brought me to the Opry for the first time…and on July 12, 1961, when I was 23-years old and became an Opry member, who would have thunk it??

Oh, and while we’re on that subject, my Opry dates this month will be Saturday the 8th, Sunday the 16th, Saturday the 22nd, and Saturday the 29th.

There’s going to be another celebration of my Opry years on Saturday September 16th at the Country Music Hall of Fame just prior to my exhibit coming down. From what I’m told this will be an all-star panel of Opry folks on stage in the Ford Theater swapping stories, songs, and probably telling a few lies based on my Opry career. It’s open to the public with a Hall of Fame admission that day, and you’re all invited. I’ll have more details between now and then so stay tuned.

Right now, in addition to everything else, we are continuing to fill lots of orders for our new CD of old music titled, “1984,” named after the year in which it was recorded. We ran out of copies for a short while, but we’ve restocked the shelves and we’re mailing them out as fast as your orders come in. We are out of our “Nothin’ But Hits” double-CD’s at the moment, but reinforcements are on the way. If you experience a delay on your order, it should only be a short one. I hate for us to have any kind of problems with our merchandise, but I guess selling-out is the best kind of problem to have! I appreciate it every time you visit our online store.

On the personal side, my grandson, Blake, returned home June 24th from having spent 6-weeks in the Czech Republic on a Christian mission trip.  He enjoyed the experience, but he agrees with his PawPaw that the best part of any trip is arriving safely back home!

Before I go, let me remind you to check your Spam or Junk mail if you miss hearing from us when you think you should. Cyberspace can be crazy sometimes. Meantime, thanks for everything, and I’ll see you back here again in August.