Thanks, Troubadour, Thanks
My Tribute
To Justin Tubb
By Darrell Ellis
Introduction
The world wide web has been around now for well over a decade, and yet there aren't many websites that talk about the legendary country singer and songwriter Justin Tubb. There are brief biography pages that tell the usual statistics: birth, death, recording career, etc. But there aren't many pages where people talk about the man himself. Justin Tubb was not only a huge musical influence to me, but I was also proud to call Justin a friend of mine. I am creating this web page as a small way of paying tribute to Justin. This isn't a standard "biography" page...those kind of pages can be found elsewhere on the internet and I will provide some links at the bottom of this page. This page is my documentation of my memories of how I got to meet Justin and become friends with him and how his music has inspired me.
First, A Little Bit Of Information About Myself
I was born in 1982, but if you were to examine my musical tastes you would find that hard to believe. As a child, I grew up surrounded by the sounds of traditional country music. I learned at a young age not only to listen, but to appreciate the music of legends like Roy Acuff, George Jones, Hank Williams, Ernest Tubb, Kitty Wells, and Lefty Frizzell just to name a few. I still vividly remember watching "Grand Ole Opry Live" on TNN on Saturday nights and watching that big red curtain rise as Roy Acuff stepped onto center stage wailing "From the great Atlantic Ocean to the wide Pacific Shore..." accompanied by Bashful Brother Oswald and Charlie Collins. Or if it wasn't Roy, it was Hank Snow and his Rainbow Ranchboys performing a song about that "big eight wheeler rolling down the track means your true loving daddy aint coming back...".
Country music was all around me as a child. There's a difference between "listening" to country music and "appreciating" country music. Lots of people "listen" to country music, but few really "appreciate" it. As a child, I appreciated it. Growing up, I knew nearly every George Jones song by heart. While other kids my age were listening to M.C. Hammer or New Kids on the Block, I was reading library books about Jimmie Rodgers and Hank Williams.
I had such a passion for traditional country music that when I was around 10 or 11 years old, I decided I wanted to be a DJ when I grew up so that I could play REAL country music on the radio, instead of the garbage that most DJ's were trying to pawn off as a cheap imitation of country music. As the years passed, the Grand Ole Opry I grew up with in the 1980s made way for a new generation of stars that were less and less country with each passing week. Roy Acuff and Hank Snow were forced to make way for new singers whose names aren't worthy of being mentioned in the same sentence. If you were to talk to me back then about the music business, you would have thought you were talking to a 50 year old industry veteran instead of a 10 year old kid. I knew the music business inside out, I knew all about the evil radio and marketing consultants, and how the legends who created country music couldn't get any airplay anymore because they were "too country" and over the age of 40 and it really frustrated me. I wanted to do something about it...but what could I do?
"What's Wrong With The Way That We're Doing It Now?"
Here in Iowa, we have a radio station in Fort Dodge that has always stayed true to traditional country music, KWMT 540 AM. On Saturdays they do a "Golden Oldies Show" that I used to listen to every week (and still do when the occasion permits). One week, when I was especially frustrated about the shape that modern country music was in and how none of the songs today are as good as the songs of yesteryear, my mom asked me if I'd ever heard the Justin Tubb song "What's Wrong With The Way That We're Doing It Now?" I told her I hadn't. I knew who Justin Tubb was, I'd seen him many times on the Grand Ole Opry and Nashville Now back in TNN's glory years, but I didn't recall having ever heard that song she mentioned. One Saturday morning, she suggested I call into KWMT and request they play that song on their oldies show. So I did, and that morning I heard "What's Wrong With The Way That We're Doing It Now" for the first time.
It was a song that changed my life.
Everyone has a song that speaks to them the first time they hear it and they feel like "this song was written for me / about me". That's the way I felt the first time I ever heard "What's Wrong With The Way That We're Doing It Now". That song summed up every feeling I had about country music. At that very moment it became my all-time favorite country song, and it still is today nearly 16 years after the first time I heard it. Soon after that, I began listening to the "Midnite Jamboree" on WSM AM 650 every Saturday night and I got the chance to hear Justin sing the song many times live on the air.
In 1994, when I was 12, my parents took me to Nashville, Tennessee on vacation. We went to the Opry of course, and we went to the Midnite Jamboree. I had been told that Justin Tubb would be hosting the Jamboree the night we were there and I was looking forward to meeting Justin and letting him know how much I loved his song. On Saturday, while we were visiting the Music Valley Drive record shop browsing around, we found out that Justin would not be hosting the Jamboree that night and that Jack Greene would be hosting instead. Justin's uncle (Ernest Tubb's last living brother) had passed away and Justin was on his way to Texas for the funeral. I got to see the Midnite Jamboree in person for the first time and enjoyed Jack Greene's performance, but was saddened that I didn't get to meet Justin.
How I Became Pen-Pals With Justin
At some point in 1994, after returning home from Nashville, I was reading some books about country music at the local library and came across some information about the Midnite Jamboree. I've always been a history buff and my mind is filled with all sorts of odd facts that most people would find useless, but I love studying some of the most trivial stuff. In one particular book I was reading, I came across a passage that said the Midnite Jamboree was originally broadcast from the stage of the Ryman immediately after the Opry signed off each week, for at least a year before moving to the first Ernest Tubb Record Shop on Commerce Street in Nashville.
"Midnite Jamboree from the Ryman"? "Original Ernest Tubb Record Shop on Commerce Street?" What on Earth was I reading? I had always been under the impression that the store at 417 N. Broadway was the original store and that the Midnite Jamboree had always been broadcast there from 1947 up until the late 1970s. This book I was reading contradicted everything I had previously learned on the matter. I wanted to get my facts straight and knew there was only one person who could set me straight: Justin Tubb.
In late 1994, I made up my mind to write a letter to Justin. I let him know how much I enjoyed his music (especially "What's Wrong With The Way That We're Doing It Now?") and told him what a historian I was and how much I loved traditional country music and how I listened to the Midnite Jamboree every week (and remember, I was only 12 years old at the time!). I told him about this book I had read that said the Midnite Jamboree originated from the Ryman Auditorium and was puzzled about this 720 Commerce Street Record Shop (that I never knew existed and wondered why it wasn't still there). I asked him if he could fill me in on any details to help me set the record straight. I knew that Justin was a big fan of Diet Cherry Coke, and that he could not buy it in Nashville so everytime he went out of state he would stock up on it. So I sent him a 12 pack of Diet Cherry Coke along with my letter.
I wasn't sure if he'd get my package I sent him or if he'd even have time to write back. But then on the January 1, 1995 broadcast of "The Midnite Jamboree" Justin acknowledged the letter and package I sent him to thousands of listeners who just happened to be tuning into WSM radio that night! He promised me he would write me back and let me know all the details I had asked him.
AUDIO: Listen To Justin Acknowledge My Letter On The Midnite Jamboree
Several months went by and I never heard back from Justin. By mid 1995, Justin was no longer hosting the Midnite Jamboree (after an unfortunate dispute with management, Justin parted ways with the Ernest Tubb Record Shop). I figured that Justin had probably forgotten about my letter and I would never hear back from him, and now that Justin was no longer hosting the Jamboree I didn't really know for sure how to even contact him. Then in June of 1995 my mom brought in the mail and had a huge excitement in her voice. "You'll never guess what you got in the mail! A letter from Justin Tubb!!!"
He sent more than a letter! He sent an autographed picture of himself, as well as an autographed picture of Ernest (a truly rare item considering Ernest passed away in 1984), a picture of his family, and some other miscellaneous items along with his letter. In his letter, he went on to tell me about everything that had been going on that year and why he was unable to write me back sooner. He also told me about being in Texas for his High School reunion and seeing the Astros beat the Cubs (Justin was a HUGE baseball fan). He closed the letter by answering my questions about the record shop and the Jamboree and thanked me for the Diet Cherry Coke.
Coming Soon: Read The Letter Justin Sent Me
That started a pen pal relationship with Justin and we exchanged letters for quite some time after that. He greatly appreciated a 12 year old kid who loved traditional country music and he was very gracious in answering any questions I had.
Finally Getting To Meet Justin
For several years, Justin did two performances a year at the Red Barn Opry in Omaha, Nebraska as part of a talent show he sponsored. In November 1997, I got to meet Justin for the first time during one of his appearances at the Red Barn to judge finalists for the contest. We spent several hours visting before the show before the doors opened to the general public. Most entertainers want to be alone and rest for a few hours before the show starts, but Justin wanted to visit. He couldn't have been more gracious. He wasn't in a hurry to say hello and brush me off, as some entertainers might do. Rather, he wanted to keep the conversation going and several times when I asked him to autograph some items I'd brought with me, he would respond "Lets wait til later." I thought this strange at first, until I realized he was afraid I'd get my autographs and go home instead of sticking around to visit!
That night I got to see Justin Tubb perform live for the first, and only, time. After the show, I had my picture taken with him and got his autograph on some items. My parents and I were the very last people to leave the building. We continued to visit with Justin right up until about 2:00 in the morning when finally we decided we needed to get on the road. I didn't realize it at the time, but it was the first, last, and only time I would ever get to meet Justin. That show - November 22, 1997 - ended up being Justin's final concert ever.
On January 24, 1998 - my 16th birthday - Justin Tubb passed away from an abdominal aneurysm at the age of 62.
Epilogue
Country singers come and go. Some become legends, some become household names, while others have only one or two hits and are soon forgotten about. Sadly, even some of the legends who had dozens of hits are soon forgotten by a fickle music industry that only seems to care about the latest, greatest, fad. It saddens me that there's not more websites on the internet about Justin Tubb. A list of Justin's accomplishments deserves a webpage of its own, but here's just a few of them: he was the youngest male member of the Grand Ole Opry (I believe he was 19 when he became a member), he was the first second generation star to join the Opry (his father of course was country music legend Ernest Tubb). Justin won six BMI songwriting awards for songs such as "Lonesome 7-7203" (a hit for Hawkshaw Hawkins) and "Walking Talking Crying Barely Beating Broken Heart" (originally recorded by Johnny Wright and later a hit for Highway 101). Justin's recording career spanned 45 years (he made his first recordings in 1953, and his final album was released posthumously in 1998). For 13 years (from 1982 to 1995), Justin was the regular host the "Midnite Jamboree" radio program, the second longest running live radio program in the world (had Justin not taken over the hosting job when E.T. retired in 1982, perhaps the show would have gone off the air!)
There's much more that could, and should, be said about Justin Tubb. I hope that one day, the powers that be will see to it that Justin is inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
This page is my personal tribute to him, a place to share my memories of the man and his music. I hope if you're a Justin Tubb fan, you've enjoyed the memories I've shared on this page. If you're not familiar with Justin Tubb, I hope you'll give some of his music a listen. For more information about Justin, please visit the links below...
Links
Album Discography
(courtesy of www.lpdiscography.com)
Singles Discography (courtesy of www.lpdiscography.com)
Biography (courtesy of www.wikipedia.org)
Audio Files
The audio files below are the property and copyright of their respective owners: First Generation Records, MCA/Dot records, and the Ernest Tubb Record Shops, Inc. No copyright and/or royalty infringement is intended and no monetary gain of my own is being made off of the song samples below. They are included simply for tribute purposes.
What's
Wrong With The Way That We're Doing It Now?
Blue-Eyed Elaine (duet - Ernest Tubb
& Justin Tubb)
Sing "Blue Eyed Elaine" Again
Midnite Jamboree Introduction & Theme
Song (Carol Lee Cooper & Justin Tubb)
The following CD's are the only Justin Tubb albums I'm aware of that are still "in print" and available to purchase. The Ernest Tubb Record Shop in Nashville carries all of these CDs, and as a matter of fact, it is the only place where you can purchase the CD reissue of his 1985 MCA/Dot album.
"24 Big Ones" (King
Records)
This CD contains all of Justin's 1960s Starday recordings, such as "Five
Minutes Of The Latest Blues", "I'd Know You Anywhere", and "One-Eyed
Red" to name a few.
"Just You And Me Daddy"
(First Generation Records)
Justin Tubb's final album. Most of the album was finished when Justin passed
away, and the result was finally released in early 1998. Prior to this album,
only one duet existed of Justin and his father, Ernest. That recording of "Blue
Eyed Elaine" was recorded in 1978. 20 years later, Justin decided to record
an entire album with his father, via overdubbing. Justin was so proud of this
album when I visited with him at the Red Barn Opry in Omaha in 1997, he couldn't
stop talking about it. The album's title "Just You And Me Daddy" comes
from a song he wrote in 1985. Justin had planned on re-writing the lyrics of
the song to reflect the years that had gone by since then, but sadly Justin
never got to record his new version of the song for this album.
"Justin Tubb" (MCA/Dot)
Released in 1985 on MCA records, the album was supposed to have been called
"Thanks, Troubadour, Thanks". Justin was furious for many years that
MCA titled the album simply "Justin Tubb" as it took away from the
fact it was a tribute album to his late father. This album is Justin's heartfelt
tribute to Ernest Tubb, featuring Justin's covers of some of Ernest's biggest
hits as well as 3 new songs that Justin wrote to share his feelings about losing
his father. For many years, this album was available on only LP and Cassette.
Justin tried for years to get MCA to release it on CD, but they wouldn't. Finally,
a couple of years ago, the Ernest Tubb Record Shops were able to get the album
released on Compact Disc. The CD is available only through them.
"Star of the Grand Ole
Opry" (Starday)
This is a re-release of Justin's very first Starday album from 1960. I recommend
purchasing "24 Big Ones" instead of this album, as it contains all
the songs on this album as well as 12 more.
"What's Wrong With The
Way That We're Doing It Now" (First Generation Records)
This album is also sometimes titled "Justin Tubb" or "Star of
the Grand Ole Opry". The name of the album was changed to "What's
Wrong With The Way That We're Doing It Now?" to avoid confusion with two
other albums that share the same title. This album features re-recordings of
some of Justin's most requested songs such as "As Long As There's A Sunday"
and "Looking Back To See" (this time as a duet with Jean Shepard)
as well as songs that were new at the time like "2 out of 3 Ain't Bad"
and "You'd Never Be Happy With Me". This album of course also features
the famous title track.
The albums above can be purchased
through the Ernest
Tubb Record Shop on CD format only.
