Memories We Lost in 2023

Tommy Towery

LHS '64

I saw this on Facebook right after the first of the year and thought some of you might not have seen it and might want to.  Very few of the people on this list do not hold some memories for me. I could probably spend a half-day explaining what each one meant to me, even some of which would be stories about how I did not see them when I had a chance. Actually, I really only saw three of them in person. One was David Crosby, who I saw when I attended a concert at Memphis State when he was part of The Byrds. Another was Tommy Smothers, who with his brother Dick gave a concert I attended when I was stationed in Omaha, Nebraska, with the Air Force. I saw Lisa Marie Presley down at Graceland one time.

I also have a signed picture of  Stella Stevens, given to Henry Loeb, the ex-mayor of Memphis, and passed down to me through my stepfather, one of Henry's closest friends. I missed a chance to see Topol when I was stationed in England while nd he was playing in Fiddler on the Roof  in London, and one of my Air Force friends had an extra ticket but I had to work.

If you have any interesting stories about any of them you wish to share I would love to hear them.

The Wayback Machine takes us back to when The Byrds appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show on December 12, 1965. Also included is a video of their first big hit "Mr. Tambourine Man."

My cataract surgery went better than expected last week. I also had a new lens inserted and the doctor says I now have 20/15 vision in that eye. The world is brighter and much more colorful since the surgery. I plan to have the right eye operated on in about two weeks. It was not painful, but a little uncomfortable during the operation.

Last week I mentioned that Sammy Gilbreath had written a book. Earlier we learned that Jim McBride and John Scales had also authored books. I have 22 books published on Amazon, some of which are ebook copies of the printed version. It made me wonder if I have missed any other works by some of you classmates. If you have written a book please let me know about it so we can share it with others. Thanks.

Last Week's Questions, Answers, 

And Comments

Joel Weinbaum, LHS ‘64, "Touring the music scene in Nashville several years back, we visited RCA Studio "B" where Elvis recorded the song "Are You Lonesome Tonight," with the lights out to gain the best effect in the recording. As I may have mentioned in the past, I share ancestors with Elvis but the talent didn't come my way. The family name was originally Preslar, coming from Palatinate, Gr about 1700 arriving at Staten Island, courtesy of England."

Skip Cook, LHS ‘64, "Wanting to keep the spirit of Lee's Traveller alive, I thought I would make a quick response to your request for comments about "Are You Lonesome Tonight". I listened to all 3 recordings starting from Charles Hart to Al Jolson to Elvis. Hard to give a review on the original by Hart because the music/recording/style was almost 100 years old. The beginning/entry to the song was too busy and cluttered.

Al Jolson's rendition was much easier to listen to and he had a great voice. I didn't care for the speech near the end of the record. He sounded pissed off which is the opposite of Elvis' rendition which was more pleading with his lost love.

I've always been challenged at keeping focus on an issue and this led me to look at the other YouTube suggestions on the right side of the screen. I ended up plunging back into those wonderful days of Soul Music and listening to some of my favorite songs from the past. They included "Cry to Me", "I'm your puppet" and my all-time favorite "My Girl". All 3 of those songs are "easy to dance to and I'd give 'em a 95." Thanks for the memories Tommy."