MATTHEW BURNETTE

Staff Writer

Somehow, despite being a lifelong, 33-year Middle Tennessean, I’ve only just recently made my first trip to see a Grand Ole Opry show.

I had been to the venue twice before, once to see Steve Martin and Martin Short with my grandfather, and the other time was at a Disney Junior Live! show where my cousin who was 4 or 5 at the time nearly tumbled off the balcony because he was so excited dancing.

But this was my first time experiencing the show that the building was made for.

My brother and I went to the 9:30 show because that’s the one we were able to get a ticket for. It actually worked out nicely because there were less people which meant more leg room on the pew seating.

The show opened with a performance from the Opry Square Dancers, a lively way to get things started.

Next was a set from long-time Opry regulars Riders in the Sky, a country and western style group. I didn’t think I was familiar with the group until they introduced a medley they were going to close their portion of the show with.

Apparently, the group were the performers of the “Woody’s Roundup” and “Jesse, the Yodelin’ Cowgirl” songs from story. Who knew?

They then ended the medley with a performance of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” a song that always strikes a chord with me no matter who is singing it.

Linda Davis was next on the lineup. I mostly know her from her 90’s duet with Reba McEntire, but she sang a few covers that night, opening with “Those Memories of You” in honor of Dolly Parton and ending her set with a beautiful rendition of Georg Strait’s song “The Chair.”

The absolute highlight of the evening though was watching an up-and-coming artist play the Opry stage during his debut weekend.

Clayton Nile Young, an upcoming singer-songwriter and fiddle player, stepped into the circle made of floorboards from the Ryman Auditorium, the Opry’s former home, and grasped the audience’s attention with his “holler poetry.”

He immediately grabbed the audience’s full attention and didn’t let it go until the end of his time when several of them jumped up to give him a standing ovation.

It’s always incredible to see new artists find success, especially when that artist offers something original and new. You always want to be able to tell folks later that you “remember when…”

Oh, by the way, did I mention that Young just happens to not only be from good ol’ Woodbury, my hometown just north of here but also the first person from Cannon County to play there in over half a century?

He and my brother have been long-time friends since high school, and he even backs him up on the keyboard for local shows.

We also grew up in the same church, and many members of the Young family are people that I just happen to hold very near and dear to my heart.

I can remember as a teenager going to various performances of our high school’s JRB (pronounced Jerby and stands for Jazz, Rock and Blues) and watching the two of them playing together, and now, this guy’s playing the Grand Ole Opry.

The fact that he was given the opportunity was incredible enough, but to actually get to bear witness to it was something that’ll stick with me forever. And getting to sit with my brother during the show was kind of cool too, I guess.

Young ended his set with a fiddle waltz that he wrote after his grandmother Della, a very special person to a lot of people including me, passed away a few years ago.

He was originally a drummer but switched to the fiddle after sustaining a knee injury that prevented him from playing the drums. As he learned to play, no matter how bad it may have sounded, his grandmother told him that he would play the Opry one day.

Though she didn’t get to see it in person, he explained that playing the Della Young Waltz, which he first played during her funeral, on the Opry stage felt like he was getting to play for her one last time.

It was one of those full circle moments that takes your breath away.

Being from a small town like Woodbury, you often let yourself think that there’s no way anyone could ever make something of themselves on such a large scale, so it was nice to see that it’s possible, especially when it happens to such a good dude.

 My first trip to the Grand Ole Opry was a great experience, and I plan on going back sometime, but there’s just one problem.

How could my next visit possibly top my first?