In Britain we had Tom Dooley all over the radio,I already had a guitar at that time.I was 12 then,but it wasn't untill our neibour's daughter moved back to London with her husband, who was from De Kalb,Illinois,with a stack of country albums, that my guitar took on a new meaning.It wasn't just the music,it was a window onto something that couldn't be found anywhere in the place I was living.It seemed to come from some other planet.I can't explain the effect it had on me.All the other music went out the window as far as I was concerned.It wasn't just Hank Williams of course,but he started it off for me.Suddenly a whole new world opened up which,in my own small way I just had to be part of.One couldn't sit still and just let this stuff come down the airwaves,you wanted to be like the singers,who they were and where were all these places that they were singing about.Living in some London backstreet,already bored by it all,this in a naive way,was a way out of there.I think I'll shut up now....