Howdy Dusty,

Been a while, but since the CMA announced the 2008 inductees to Hillbilly Heaven otherwise known as the Country Music Hall of Fame, I thought I’d send a line or two about one of the nominees - Tom T. Hall. Before the world enjoyed music videos on such cable channels as MTV or VH1, country music fans had a song painter named Tom T. Hall. I’m not surprised that Tom T. Hall is now in the HOF. I'm surprised it took this long.

Way back when, his Clayton Delaney album was one of the six albums I got when I joined a so-called “record club” where you order six albums on your first order, then half to order six more later. I played that album to death in college in the early 1970s and got to know his songs over the years.

Tom T. Hall didn’t just write a song, he painted a picture that you could see in your mind as you listened along. When you listened to his tunes, you could actually hear the lyrics - they weren’t drowned out by over-instrumentation - and you could see a picture he was painting in your mind.

His tunes were full of imagery.

“Trip to Hyden” - a song about coal miners who met an untimely desmise. I always enjoy listening to this song which tells of his visit to the town of Hyden and his observations along the way. “They’re worth more now then when they were living...”

“Who’s Gonna Feed Them Hogs” - A farmer meets up with a health problem and sings, “Here I am in this danged bed and who’s gonna feed them hogs.”

“It Sure Can Get Cold In Des Moines” - any of you folks that have traveled as part of your job might relate to this tune. He painted a picture of a cold winter night and a woman he saw in a hotel bar. “Oh, it sure can get cold in Des Moines...”

“The Ballad of Bill Crump” - how many songs do you hear about a fellow who could do wonders with wood and ends up building his own wood coffin? “He built church, he built the pews, he could build anything you could build out of wood...”, etc.

“Ravishing Ruby” - one of his hit songs... how could you not relate to lines like, “Ravishing Ruby ain’t got time for guys like you and me...”

Then he would turn around and do songs that we could all enjoy during happy hour. He was one of us.

“I Like Beer” - I like beer, it makes me a jolly good fellow.. and sometimes it makes me feel mellow...” and on it goes - he took you along with him as he unwound a bit. Yeah, he was someone you could enjoy happy hour with.

“Bourbon Man” - oh, from the first line, you knew you were going to enjoy the tune. Tex Ritter did probably the best version... “Lord, can a drunk get to heaven... well, frankly, I don’t see why not...” “... and remember, I’m a bourbon man...”

“Ramona’s Revenge” - who could not wonder and smile at the story he would weave in such stories where that included lines like “she spat upon the ground”.

“The Lady and the Preacher” - another story that takes you along for a ride and the last line stays with you, “...and I often wonder who it was that converted whom.”

Tom had a way of looking at our lives and could paint a song for us to listen to and let our minds paint the picture that went with that song. His tunes were tailor made for the music video generation. But his music was an example of what songwriting is about. He told a story. He painted a picture. He told a story you could follow along with. I saw him in person once on a package show that included Bobby Bare. He may not be the most charismatic singer, but the stories he told were about life and from where I sit, there’s not much of that type of song painting being done today.

And we didn’t even get to “well, I was sitting in Miami .. I turned 65 about eleven months ago.”

His tunes were full of imagery that painted a picture in your mind as you listened to him tell the story. I played that Clayton Delaney album to death when I was in college back in the early 1970s; it is still an album I enjoy listening to today. I didn’t even mention songs like “Harper Valley PTA” that he wrote for Jeannie C. Riley or other tunes that he wrote about the times we lived in back then.

Mr. Hall, we’re happy for your honor, but it makes us wonder – who’s telling the stories about life we live today? Who’s gonna fill your shoes? And Mr. Hall, it’s a shame you laid down your pen and stopped telling us the stories of life you observed. But at least we have our old records.

And as you sang in “Salute to a Switchblade” - the Army has a new motto, “... salute it” - we salute you!

Cheers,
Dave