Multi-Grammy award winner and MCA Records Nashville recording artist Vince Gill celebrated his milestone 25thAnniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry® with two memorable shows Saturday night, claiming “This is a pretty sweet night.” Gill, one of the Opry’s most beloved and frequent players, was inducted as an Opry member on August 10, 1991.
Gill celebrated the special night he claimed was “the best night ever” doing what he loves most- performing, collaborating and sharing the stage with family and close friends including Amy Grant, Rodney Crowell, Patty Loveless, The Time Jumpers, Ashley Monroe, Andrea Zonn, Bill Anderson, Jenny Gill, Paul Franklin, and Charlie Worsham. After opening the night with his classic hit “One More Last Chance,” an emotional Gill welcomed everyone saying, “This evening is filled with people I hold more than dear. They have made my entire life.” Gill and friends had so much fun reminiscing and playing music that the first show ran almost an hour over its two-hour schedule, treating the audience to almost three hours of music. “Sorry we made you late,” Gill said to a packed audience at the top of the night’s second show. “We were having a blast in here.” The fun included both Amy Grant and Rodney Crowell joining in the Saturday night tradition of dancing with the Opry Square Dancers.
Throughout the night, Gill’s friends and family told stories and reminisced. Daughter Jenny Gill told the audience of the time when she was in first grade and her dad finally got the call he had been waiting for– the Grand Ole Opry calling to invite him to make his Opry debut. However, he had to decline the long-awaited opportunity, saying he was already booked. He had promised Jenny he would accompany her on guitar on “You Are My Sunshine” for her school’s talent show. She remarked, “It’s a great thing they called him back, don’t you think?”
Longtime friend Patty Loveless said before the two performed Gill’s iconic classics “When I Call Your Name,” and “Go Rest High On That Mountain,” “It’s always been an honor to sing with Vince Gill.”
“Vince has truly become family to all of us at the Opry,” said Pete Fisher, Vice President and General Manager, Opry. “Like Mr. Acuff before him, his dressing room door is always open, and he’s often ready to pick one backstage and catch up with friends in the wings as well as to collaborate with them musically on the Opry stage.”
“It is obvious in watching clips from Vince’s Opry induction 25 years ago that Opry patriarch Roy Acuff was a big Vince Gill fan and that he was hoping Vince would help carry on the magic of the Opry for future generations,” added Fisher. “Though Roy died the next year, there is no doubt he would be proud tonight of all that Vince has accomplished and everything he has meant to Mr. Roy’s beloved show.”
About Vince Gill:
Gill celebrated the special night he claimed was “the best night ever” doing what he loves most- performing, collaborating and sharing the stage with family and close friends including Amy Grant, Rodney Crowell, Patty Loveless, The Time Jumpers, Ashley Monroe, Andrea Zonn, Bill Anderson, Jenny Gill, Paul Franklin, and Charlie Worsham. After opening the night with his classic hit “One More Last Chance,” an emotional Gill welcomed everyone saying, “This evening is filled with people I hold more than dear. They have made my entire life.” Gill and friends had so much fun reminiscing and playing music that the first show ran almost an hour over its two-hour schedule, treating the audience to almost three hours of music. “Sorry we made you late,” Gill said to a packed audience at the top of the night’s second show. “We were having a blast in here.” The fun included both Amy Grant and Rodney Crowell joining in the Saturday night tradition of dancing with the Opry Square Dancers.
Throughout the night, Gill’s friends and family told stories and reminisced. Daughter Jenny Gill told the audience of the time when she was in first grade and her dad finally got the call he had been waiting for– the Grand Ole Opry calling to invite him to make his Opry debut. However, he had to decline the long-awaited opportunity, saying he was already booked. He had promised Jenny he would accompany her on guitar on “You Are My Sunshine” for her school’s talent show. She remarked, “It’s a great thing they called him back, don’t you think?”
Longtime friend Patty Loveless said before the two performed Gill’s iconic classics “When I Call Your Name,” and “Go Rest High On That Mountain,” “It’s always been an honor to sing with Vince Gill.”
“Vince has truly become family to all of us at the Opry,” said Pete Fisher, Vice President and General Manager, Opry. “Like Mr. Acuff before him, his dressing room door is always open, and he’s often ready to pick one backstage and catch up with friends in the wings as well as to collaborate with them musically on the Opry stage.”
“It is obvious in watching clips from Vince’s Opry induction 25 years ago that Opry patriarch Roy Acuff was a big Vince Gill fan and that he was hoping Vince would help carry on the magic of the Opry for future generations,” added Fisher. “Though Roy died the next year, there is no doubt he would be proud tonight of all that Vince has accomplished and everything he has meant to Mr. Roy’s beloved show.”
About Vince Gill:
Combining unequaled musicianship and creativity with a strong sense of tradition — and a personality that has won him a reputation as one of the nicest people in country music — Vince Gill is one of the most honored artists in the music’s history, and one of the youngest to earn membership in the Country Music Hall of Fame.
A talented guitar picker by the time he was in his teens, Vince began his career playing with bluegrass bands — first in his native Oklahoma, then in Kentucky with the Bluegrass Alliance and, briefly, Ricky Skaggs’ Boone Creek. Moving to Los Angeles, he signed on with fiddler Byron Berline’s Sundance before joining the pop-country-rock Pure Prairie League. He followed that with a stint in the Cherry Bombs with Rodney Crowell and work backing Rosanne Cash. In 1984, he moved to Nashville and signed his first recording contract as a solo artist, occupying himself with work as a sideman in studios and onstage.
Though several of his songs flirted with Top 10 status, Vince’s real breakthrough came in 1990 when “When I Call Your Name” reached No. 2. For the next decade, he was a steady presence in the Top 10, racking up several dozen hits that ranged from soulful country ballads (“I Still Believe in You,” “Tryin’ to Get Over You”) to feel-good country rockers (“Liza Jane” and “What the Cowgirls Do”).
Rewarded by his peers with a long list of Country Music Association awards and Grammy trophies (the most for a male country artist), he’s sold more than 26 million albums while being hailed as a soulful singer, innovative instrumentalist, and creative force who showed a strong grasp of country traditions from bluegrass to honky tonk.
In more recent years, Vince has settled into a unique role as one of country music’s youngest “elder statesmen.” An eloquent spokesman for the Grand Ole Opry and for the Country Music Foundation, he has headed all-star casts at prestigious venues around the country, hosted the CMA Awards for multiple years, made guest appearances onstage and on recordings with artists ranging from the world-famous to the obscure, and toured extensively. Vince is also a member of the 4-time Grammy-nominated band, The Time Jumpers.
Vince’s current album on MCA Records is Down To My Last Habit and on September 9, The Time Jumpers will release their third album, Kid Sister.
About the Grand Ole Opry: The Grand Ole Opry® is presented by Humana®. Opry performances are held every Friday and Saturday of the year, with Tuesday Night Opry shows through December 13 and Wednesday shows through August 10. To plan an Opry visit, call (800) SEE-OPRY or visit opry.com. The Opry presents the best in country music live every week from Nashville, Tenn. Celebrating nine decades of entertainment, the Opry can be heard at opry.com and wsmonline.com, Opry and WSM mobile apps, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, and its flagship home, 650 AM-WSM. The Grand Ole Opry is owned by Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE: RHP). For more information, visit opry.com.
A talented guitar picker by the time he was in his teens, Vince began his career playing with bluegrass bands — first in his native Oklahoma, then in Kentucky with the Bluegrass Alliance and, briefly, Ricky Skaggs’ Boone Creek. Moving to Los Angeles, he signed on with fiddler Byron Berline’s Sundance before joining the pop-country-rock Pure Prairie League. He followed that with a stint in the Cherry Bombs with Rodney Crowell and work backing Rosanne Cash. In 1984, he moved to Nashville and signed his first recording contract as a solo artist, occupying himself with work as a sideman in studios and onstage.
Though several of his songs flirted with Top 10 status, Vince’s real breakthrough came in 1990 when “When I Call Your Name” reached No. 2. For the next decade, he was a steady presence in the Top 10, racking up several dozen hits that ranged from soulful country ballads (“I Still Believe in You,” “Tryin’ to Get Over You”) to feel-good country rockers (“Liza Jane” and “What the Cowgirls Do”).
Rewarded by his peers with a long list of Country Music Association awards and Grammy trophies (the most for a male country artist), he’s sold more than 26 million albums while being hailed as a soulful singer, innovative instrumentalist, and creative force who showed a strong grasp of country traditions from bluegrass to honky tonk.
In more recent years, Vince has settled into a unique role as one of country music’s youngest “elder statesmen.” An eloquent spokesman for the Grand Ole Opry and for the Country Music Foundation, he has headed all-star casts at prestigious venues around the country, hosted the CMA Awards for multiple years, made guest appearances onstage and on recordings with artists ranging from the world-famous to the obscure, and toured extensively. Vince is also a member of the 4-time Grammy-nominated band, The Time Jumpers.
Vince’s current album on MCA Records is Down To My Last Habit and on September 9, The Time Jumpers will release their third album, Kid Sister.
About the Grand Ole Opry: The Grand Ole Opry® is presented by Humana®. Opry performances are held every Friday and Saturday of the year, with Tuesday Night Opry shows through December 13 and Wednesday shows through August 10. To plan an Opry visit, call (800) SEE-OPRY or visit opry.com. The Opry presents the best in country music live every week from Nashville, Tenn. Celebrating nine decades of entertainment, the Opry can be heard at opry.com and wsmonline.com, Opry and WSM mobile apps, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, and its flagship home, 650 AM-WSM. The Grand Ole Opry is owned by Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE: RHP). For more information, visit opry.com.
PHOTO CREDIT:
©2016 Grand Ole Opry
Photo By: Chris Hollo
