1) When I first started learning to play guitar years ago the first song I wanted to learn was, “Cincinnati, Ohio,” due to the fact that I live just north of Cincinnati. I love hearing you sing it as well as Connie Smith’s cover. I wanted to ask what inspired you to write “Cincinnati, Ohio?” I […]
ASK BILL!1) Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to help others understand the music business. We all appreciate it. My question is, after you write a song and have it copyrighted, how do you pitch it to an artist to record it? I’m not able to drive all over the place […]
1) Did you ever meet Roy Rogers or Gene Autry?Yes, I was lucky enough to meet them both, and under vastly different circumstances. Roy Rogers was a guest on my television show in the early 70’s shortly after I mentioned his name in my song, “Where Have All Our Heroes Gone.” His wife, Dale Evans, […]
1) I just read where there is a Music City Walk of Fame with stars on it like in Hollywood. Where is it, is it new, and how many stars are on it?The Music City Walk of Fame is located in downtown Nashville on Demonbreun Street between 4th and 5th Avenues South. Or, in simpler […]
1) I am enjoying your newsletter. You mentioned a box set of your music from earlier days. Is it still available? I sure would like to purchase one! Thank you. Just to be sure, I checked with Amazon and they still have some copies of our box set called “The First Ten Years.” It contains […]
1) I often buy the autographed items you have on your website. Is there a way that you can offer an autographed set list from one of your concerts? Or maybe an autographed Hatch Show Print poster? I don’t see any reason why not. Frankly, I never thought of it. The band and I can […]
1) As a child I had a stack of used 45-rpm records, among them many of yours. I was particularly taken with one called, “Country Music Died Today.” Now a lot of my friends and I are getting in arguments as to the validity of the song. I’d be interested in knowing if the song […]
1) Miss Kitty Wells was my favorite female singer. My question is how come you never recorded with her…or did you?No, I never did. Miss Kitty and I were on the same record label for many years, but during that time she cut duets with other label-mates such as Red Foley, Webb Pierce, Roy Drusky, […]
1) I heard you sing a song on TV one night and it said something about I know there was someone before me. What is the name of that song?It’s simply called, “Before,” and I wrote it along with Steve Wariner and Sharon Vaughn. It was from my “Fine Wine” album that Steve produced back […]
1) How is it determined which songs from an album will be released as singles?That’s a good question, but one of those that has no one-size-fits-all answer. Most of the time it’s a team decision, made by some combination of the artist, the producer, the record company, the promotion team, radio stations, and fans. Sometimes […]