This guy was just amazing--country music's version of Woody's "Biggest Thing That Man Has Ever Done".

Engineered the Million Dollar Quartet.

Wrote some great songs, including "Guess Things Happen That Way" and one of my all-time favorites, "Just Someone I Used To Know"--(we thought such a great song needed another verse so my duet partner and I wrote one.)   

Convinced Kris Kristofferson to move to Nashville.

A Marine who saluted Princess Elizabeth in 1951 during her visit to the Capitol in DC--there's a picture of that.

Good friend of Johnny Cash, wrote several songs for him including above "Guess Things Happen"---and arranged the mariachi horns for "Ring of Fire". And played rhythm guitar on it.   

Formed a bluegrass group with Buzz Buzby (while in the Marines).

Pushed for Charley Pride to make it big in Nashville, wrote some songs for him --and paid for the first session. That indeed is one of the biggest things.

And on and on.

And on top of all this, what a perfect whimsical sense of humor:   started a record label called "Summer";    summer hits, summer not.    In an interview he said he was the polka king of Nashville.   Evidence:   he liked polkas, started calling himself the polka king of Nashville, nobody argued with him. "So it must be true."

What a delightful guy. We're lucky to have had him on the planet.


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