Devil in the Bottle
Saturday 9: Devil in the Bottle (1974)
Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.
1) This song begins with T. G. Sheppard taking off his shoes to slip into the house with disturbing his sleeping wife. Are you wearing shoes as you answer these questions? Yes, I almost always have on shoes unless I am going to bed.
2) His wife hears him anyway. Are you a light sleeper? Not really, but I used to be so much worse. When I was young I slept through a fire across the street from our house. I have always been a good sleeper.
3) This is the first of 22 consecutive #1 hits for T. G. Sheppard. Not bad for a high school dropout. What's the last year of education that you completed? I have graduate hours (9), but I never completed a masters. I was just trying to get my teacher certification fast so I could teach. I already had a college degree, so the university put me into a master's program, but some classes were graduate courses and some were regular. It was about getting it done in the times I had available...nights and summers. They really worked with me. Josh was in 2nd grade when I started that.
4) He was born William Browder and chose the stage name T. G. Sheppard just because he liked the sound of it. He says "T. G." doesn't stand for anything, and he gets a kick out of fans who insist there's some secret meaning behind the initials. Since most of us didn't choose our names: Is there a story behind your name? Did your parents tell you why they chose it? (If you did choose your name, share what influenced your decision.) This is so silly, but my mom always told me she had a totally different name picked out for me, a bigger name, but I was such a small baby, she felt like I needed a little name, so Lori Lynn it was.
5) It was after hours at a Memphis roller rink when he first met Elvis and his entourage. As T. G. was leaving, Elvis was entering and asked if he wanted to stay and skate longer. T. G. was confused because he knew the place was closing for the night. "Not for me," Elvis replied and T. G. skated with Elvis and his buddies until dawn. Are you good on roller skates? What a cool story! I have not heard that one. When I was younger I roller skated quite a bit and yes, I was pretty good. I wouldn't dare get on skates now.
6) T. G. loves NASCAR and was an associate sponsor of the Folgers Chevrolet. He enjoyed the collaboration with the coffee company and has performed the familiar jingle – "the best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup" – in concert. Are you loyal to a particular coffee brand? no, I do not drink coffee.
7) T. G. understands the lifestyle of his fans. That's why he named his live country music venue Guitars and Cadillacs. If you were going to name a business after two of your favorite things, what would you call it? Dogs and Desserts...maybe it could be like a cat cafe, but with dogs and desserts.
8) In 1974, when this week's song was on the country charts, Linda Ronstadt was getting a lot of radio airplay with "You're No Good." That song is about a real cad. Let's turn that around: Who is the nicest person you know? I worked with a teacher a few years ago named Lori. I worked with her several years and I have never heard her say a bad thing about anyone. She is also so sweet and giving. Such a great person. She retired and I miss her. She told me she would be subbing this year, but I haven't seen her yet.
9) Random question: Have you ever had your palm read? no
I am sorry I was missing last weekend. My mom's assisted living called and she was not talking very well and she was not able to take her medicine very well. I was worried she had a stroke and they sent her to the hospital. Karl, Josh and I met her at the hospital and as soon as we walked in she was talking and acting normal. I then thought mini stroke, but they did tests and everything came back good. She had another UTI. Thank goodness! We took her back to assisted living early Saturday morning about 4:30AM. I saw her tonight (Friday, a week later) and she was doing good. It scares me to death everytime something like this happens.
