Fan Club Party and Late Night Jam - 2002


June. The dictionary defines it as; the sixth month of the year, containing thirty days.

It's apparent that the Webster people have no clue. Have they not heard of Nashville, Tennessee? Or of Fan Fair? Or Marty Stuart for goodness sake! Anybody that's anybody knows June is much more than the sixth month and thirty days long! June is the heavenly time for all country music folks! It's the time we yearn for all year, and if ya' ain't country ... well ... that is an entirely different handicap, and I'll not go into that now.

We had a great time on our little adventure. On Friday, the 7th, we rolled out of bed and crawled to the car at 4 a.m. to head east. We arrived at our daughter's in Arkansas that morning and breakfast was ready. We left there Sunday morning and headed for our son's in Tennessee. It's a nine hour drive, and we arrived there to the aroma of grilling hamburgers. Now don't we know how to time things? (smile)

All day, Wednesday, June 12th, I was preparing and getting ready for my treat of the year, it would soon be 'MARTY TIME!'

We arrived at the Ryman at six, so we had an hour to kill, but we were up near the door, so I could handle the wait. We hadn't been there long before Judy arrived. We chatted a while, both excited about seeing Marty again. Then Mike got my attention, and pointed out a long limo that was creeping by ever so slowly. We were wondering who might be in it as we watched it disappear around the corner. I said something about Serena was dropping Bev off, and Mike said that maybe it was Bev in the limo. We were still laughing about that when there was a tap on my shoulder. I turned, and there stood Bev! I had to ask her if she had just arrived in that limo! She said no, but I still wonder. (smile)

As we waited in line we spotted more 'Marty Friends'. Serena Lee was in front of us, (where she remained all through the entire thing, even claiming a front row seat at the Late Nite Jam) and Mary, Sherry, and Mario, who were on down the line behind us.

How wonderful it was when the doors finally opened! I mean wonderful in many perspectives. The first was just the sheer joy of that cool AC air washing out over our hot and sweaty bodies. We inched our way in slowly as everyone received their tickets for the big show. But we were finally in, and the fan club party for 2002 had begun!

We found ourselves a seat in the balcony and settled down. I got to looking around and spotted LaDonna & Gary, Bev, Sherry & Mario, and Mary sitting just over in the next section. So we shuffled around and moved to the row right behind them. I told 'em I had moved just to keep them from talking about me.

Jodee stepped up to the microphone and the event officially got underway. She gave us an update on the status of the fan club members and passed out prizes to some. Then Marty appeared and everyone's faces lit up! You could have turned off the lights and there would have been a glow in that balcony!

Marty spoke on several subjects but I couldn't tell you what all he said because all I can really remember was how wonderful it was sitting there just looking at him. When it was announced that there would be a meet and greet, it was the best thing any of us could have heard. So we began lining up to have our personal time with one of the greatest men there are. After the meet and greet we had the time to visit one another as we waited for the main doors to open so we could find our seats for the performance.

I won't go into all that happened at the Late Nite Jam, except to say:

Can you spell fun?
Can you say fun?
Can you yell FUN?
That is it in a nutshell ... fun ... fun ... FUN!

Looking forward to next year!

The Tennessee Mafia Jug Band Marty joins Montgomery Gentry in a song
T. Graham Brown, Ray Benson, and Richard
Young of the Kentucky Headhunts join Marty
ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons stops by, too
Unknown Hinson
(he's a great guitar player)
Pam Tillis was a guest
Newcomer Joe Nichols sings a few songs Marty's best friend, Travis Tritt
was a special guest
Travis wowed the crowd Marty and Travis kept the crowd laughing
Looks they had a good time themselves Marty can't quite believe it's THAT BIG
Travis and Marty "Let It Roll" Connie Smith closed the show
Review and photos by Darlene Renteria, Ringling, OK

Return To Fan Fair Page Return To Home Page