These Are My People
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These Are My People

These Are My People

by Mark Rickert

Overview

What would it be like to be a part of country music history? Singer/songwriter and manager Merle Kilgore could have told you. He awed his fans with tales of his life in the music business, always with a supporting cast of impossibly famous friends. At age fourteen Merle carried the guitar for Hank Williams Sr. Four years later he wrote his first song, and Webb Pierce turned it into a million-seller. He double-dated with Elvis Presley, wrecked hotel rooms with Johnny Cash, held seances with Johnny Horton, and convinced Audrey Williams to put Hank Jr. on the road at fourteen-years-old. Merle became a prolific songwriter, entering the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. He co-wrote his signature accomplishment, Ring of Fire with June Carter Cash. This work is listed by CMT as one of the top four all-time country music songs. These are just a few of the amazing stories of Merle's life, showcased in These Are My People, written by his grandson Mark Rickert.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781608081721
Publisher: Boutique of Quality Books
Publication date: 09/27/2016
Pages: 262
Sales rank: 790,059
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.60(d)

About the Author

Mark Rickert grew up in a country music household, just a few miles from the Opryland USA Theme Park and the Grand Ole Opry, and only a block from the home of Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis Presley's manager. Mark's father even worked as a Nashville tour guide. But it was his grandfather Merle Kilgore who showed him backstoage to the business. Before publishing his first novel, The Tone Poet, Mark served eight years as a photo-journalist for the US Army Reserve, spending a year of that service in Baghdad, Iraq, writing for military publications. In 2008 he earned a Master's in English Literature from Middle Tennessee State University. Today, he works as chief of public affairs for an Army recruiting battalion. Mark lives in Annapolis, Maryland with his wife and two children. These Are My People is his second book.

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These Are My People 3 out of 5 based on 0 ratings. 1 reviews.
BoxerLover2 More than 1 year ago
These are My People. A story of Merle Kilgore. Written by his grandson, Mark Rickert This book is a collection of stories about The Louisiana Hayride, Hank Williams Sr., Webb Pierce, and Faron Young thru the memories/stories of Merle Kilgore.. We learn that Elvis Presley bombed in his first performance on the Louisiana Hayride, suffering from stage fright. Elvis returned to the stage after a pep talk from Merle and et al. It is sad that a man would abandon his wife in a crowd and go backstage to see Elvis on his last Louisiana Hayride performance. Why didn’t he take his wife with him backstage?. It is no wonder they later divorced. I never realized there were that many differing stories regarding the writing of the song “Ring of Fire”. I found a major faux pas regarding the location of the original acetate recordings of “There’s a Tear In My Bear”. Although it is pronounced “Bernie”, it is spelled “Boerne” Texas. This is important to us Native Texans. Merle carried Hank Sr’s guitar, managed Hank Jr’s. career. He had 5 wives and a long career in Country Music. 3 stars. Interesting read