Hey, we have friends that we've had ALL our lives!! I mean, since little kids!! And we love it!! Friends in the music business like Betty Hofer (she's in PR), Johnny Western, Pappy Dave Stone (Pinkston), who owned/operated the FIRST all-country formatted radio station, KDAV in Lubbock, Texas. He and a business partner, Bob Clark, started the "sun-up to sun-down" station. A teenaged Waylon Jennings was one of the DJs; I think he was 17 at the time. They did live radio shows in the studio -- Buddy Holly did one, I think a 30-minute live show. Elvis Presley was one of the "new acts" who did the show! I think Pappy told us he booked Elvis for $25 a night!! It's a hoot and a genuine pleasure to know and love this man.

He eventually owned five radio stations; in addition to KDAV, KPEP-San Angelo, TX; KZIP-Amarillo, TX and KPIK-Colorado Springs. When he started KPIK, that's when we met and became friends. This was 1957 (I was a BABY!)! Pappy told our Dad to "bring the girls" to the station when George Jones (one of our favorites) came to Colordo Springs as we were too young to go to the the Navajo Hogan to hear him sing. ALL of us were too young to go to the clubs. I'll clarify this; Loudilla was the BIG fan of country and George. (Believe it or not, when we met George, he still was wearing his Marine uniform and of course, that flat-top hairdo!)

Kay was border-line but I WAS NOT a big country fan (most of it). I liked The Platters, Fats Domino, etc. I felt put upon to be "forced" to go the "grand ole opry shows" which KPIK sponsored almost every month. The FIRST country act I liked was Brenda Lee! She was on the Ozark Jubliee out of Springfield, MO! Anyway, that's how we got into country music; Pappy Dave. In fact, Pappy Dave put up the money - as our first client - so that we could launch Tri-Son Promotions and Tri-Son News ... which later evolved into Tri-Son, Inc.! We promoted his radio stations for years .... or maybe we still do!?! Seriously, he sold the stations some years ago, but we stay in touch with Pappy! At the station, we sat in on interviews with Left Frizzell, Jim Reeves, Faron Young, etc., even a 16 year old Barbara Mandrell! We had a BLAST - shared hamburgers in the floor of Pappy's office one evening before the show and Barbara was really worried about her new record -- the first ballad she'd recorded, titled "Midnight Oil"! We assured her it was the BEST record she'd ever had .. her Dad was a little concerned that they might be trying to market her as a "sex symbol". Irby even quipped "The sexiest thing about Barbara is ME!" We got a hoot out of that!

Our Dad gave us a little "instruction" on how we should conduct ourselves when we got the chance to sit-in on these interviews -- often even going to dinner with Pappy and the artists, sometimes other folks from the station. "When Pappy invites you girls to sit-in on these things, that's an honor and a compliment," he said. "So don't ask for autographs and take pictures and be a nusiance to these people - they're working! And remember that they're just like your neighbors, they just do a different kind of work!" (Well, I guess! Our neighbors were farmers and ranchers!)

So we DID all this stuff without getting pictures and the autographs - but we got lots of great memories and it was fun! We were invited to have dinner with Pappy and Jim Reeves one tiime; in fact, the day after John Kennedy was assinated. Jim Reeves and Pappy got on the radio and told the people if they wanted him to still do the show, to call. The station was inundated with phone calls and Jim Reeves did one of the most touching, beautiful shows we ever saw him do! Anyway, we had already promised other friends that we would eat dinner with them so we declined. I was REALLY upset about it and especially when our friends, upon hearing that we were invited to eat with Jim Reeves and Pappy (I made sure they knew! ha ha) said, "Well, we would've gone with them and just called to let you know that we weren't going to pass up the chance of a lifetime up!" And they probably would've! ha We think Pappy should be in the Hall of Fame! What foresight this man had. He's in his 80's; lives in Colorado Springs. We like getting birthday cards to him on his special birthday (November 9th). On his 82nd birthday, we asked a bunch of his ol' friends, Sheb Wooley, Little Jimmy Dickens and others to call or send cards - Sheb even called him up and sang his new record, "I Just Don't Look Good Naked Anymore". Pappy loved it!

Speaking of age, do you know there is only ONE artist in Christian (Gospel) or Country Music that has EVER reached the age of 100 years? The first centurian ever is Governor Jimmie Davis (he still records, performs, etc.! We thought they should've quickly flashed a photo of Governor Davis (with his 100th birthday cake), and said "Happy Birthday" on the CMA Awards Show this year. I KNOW for a fact they were asked (by some pretty impressive folks) to do this ... but that never happened. What a shame to pass up the chance to extend best wishes to the man who wrote one of the industry's greatest copyrights, "You Are My Sunshine" and TONS of huge hits!! While Pappy Dave may never be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Disc Jockey Hall of Fame paid him that honor last Fall. However, Pappy's "knee problems" prevent him from walking a lot, so he was unable to attend the ceremony.

Well, so much for history! ha ha I get to rambling -- is that a symptom of "old age"!?!?! I prefer to think of it as THE MEMORIES OF MATURITY!!

Written By: Loretta Johnson {IFCO}