Red Lane

Darrel Roberts · Post by **Darrel Roberts** » 1 Jul 2015 9:44 pm

My best friend, tremendous songwriter (thirty six cuts on Merle alone), great guitar player, and my mentor Red Lane is gone on. Miss him terribly. Listen to his music. He'll never be gone.

robert kramer · Post by **robert kramer** » 2 Jul 2015 11:57 am

Here's Red on guitar backing Dottie on "Country Girl" a song he wrote:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5JjtiNc1to

Here's three examples of how a top songwriter writes a song and "crafts" that song directly for a specific artist - in these examples - a major singing star.
This is how it's done:

"Til I Get It Right" (w/Larry Henley) Tammy Wynette

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9Oj4RUiGQg

"My Own Kind of Hat" Merle Haggard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w2FeT9by2FA

"Tell Me Something Bad About Tulsa" Merle Haggard

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvyQE7rE-Tg

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 5 Jul 2015 10:09 am

I like that song about Tulsa.

That's an impressive song-writing record, on Merle alone.

robert kramer · Post by **robert kramer** » 7 Jul 2015 4:36 am

Here is Red Lane's obit in the Nashville Tennessean:

http://www.tennessean.com/story/enterta ... /29618869/

Darrel Roberts · Post by **Darrel Roberts** » 8 Jul 2015 11:04 am

Funny thing. Red loved coming down here to the beach where I live. The last time he was down (last fall), we were eating seafood and I asked him if he was thinking about recording a new project. He kind of smiled and said (I'm thinking about recording all those songs Merle did and call it " Red Lane Sings Merle Haggard Singing Red Lane". He loved Merle dearly. They were great friends.

robert kramer · Post by **robert kramer** » 8 Jul 2015 5:58 pm

Red was a big fan of the pedal steel guitar and he has said many times he wrote his songs around steel guitar harmonies. Red was also a fan of Buddy Emmons' steel playing. Emmons did a seminar in Houston ca. 1980. Hag was working in town with Red on the band and they snuck into the Kiwanis Hall where Emmons was playing. They sat in the front row and finally Emmons looked up and saw them much to Buddy's surprise and Hag and Red's amusement.

Darrel Roberts · Post by **Darrel Roberts** » 8 Jul 2015 8:08 pm

Red did love steel guitar. He told me he told me he wanted to try it out (Red was a perfectionist) so he borrowed one from Emmons. Said he started learning a lick when the sun was going down, when the sun was coming up he was still working on on it,when the sun went down he was still working on it. He took the guitar back to Emmons and said you can have it back. He said Buddy asked him how the steel playing was going a lot from then on. Maybe Buddy can chime in on this.

Darrel Roberts · Post by **Darrel Roberts** » 8 Jul 2015 8:14 pm

Also if you get a chance,listen to Jamie Johnson's Hank Cochrans tribute cd.Red had three songs he had co- written with Hank that he played guitar on. Killer.

Terry Wood · Post by **Terry Wood** » 8 Jul 2015 11:21 pm

Yes, He was a great songwriter and very talented man! Prayers for his family and many Friends!

Ben Elder · Post by **Ben Elder** » 14 Jul 2015 6:26 am

Back in 1978-79, I worked for the TV side of an AM-FM-TV combination. While there, I was going through an archive of deactivated records from the AM station and found but, to my later frustration, did not abscond with, a 45 of "Blackjack County Chain" by Willie Nelson. It was a black-label RCA Victor single, suggesting early '60s. (I use the copy I used to have of "Ringo" by Lorne Greene for comparison as it had the same label.) Willie's version was very rare even among the thousands of reissues over the subsequent years.

The name in parentheses (songwriter) was Red Lane, which didn't mean anything to me until probably the late '90s when I was watching a documentary on Tootsie's Orchid Lounge. There he was, talking about the struggling years, amidst the legendary regulars: Willie, Waylon, Harlan Howard, Kris Kristofferson, Roger Miller and other legends. At that point I realized he was not merely the author of one great song, but a Nashville Big Deal, even if not one of the most famous ones.

Darrel Roberts · Post by **Darrel Roberts** » 15 Jul 2015 9:54 pm

Black Jack County Chain was indeed a great one that Red penned. He was on the road (can't remember who he was playing for at that time, too many to keep up with), but on the bill were Willie, Johnny Rodriguez, and Charley Pride who was on fire at that that time. He played the song for Willie in his hotel room. Willie said "let's go down to Charlie's room and you play it for him. If he won't cut it, I'll cut it. They went to Charlie's room and he played it played for Charley.if your not familiar wth the song it deals tha prisoner on a chain gang who dreamed about escaping the cruel sheriff. The last line being " and I killed the sherif with forty pounds of black jack county chian".
After playing the song for Charley, Charley thought a few minutes and said Red, I really like that song but I just can't see doing a song about me killing no sheriff in Georgia. Willie recorded the song.

Darrel Roberts · Post by **Darrel Roberts** » 15 Jul 2015 10:17 pm

Me and Red at the Flora Bama last fall. Dear friend, songwriting hero, and mentor. He came to hang with me (must have known heat be moving on). We visited, wrote (May have been his last) and just enjoyed talking.

Fred Jack · Post by **Fred Jack** » 20 Jul 2015 7:15 pm

LJD told me a story of a session that went on one night in a Nashville motel.. I don't know who all was there but LJD said Red was pitching some songs and he cut down on Raggedy Ann. LJD said when Red finished the song that he and Red were the only two left in the room. The others has fled the scene blowing their nose and wiping their eyes.

Jeffery Self · Post by **Jeffery Self** » 27 Jul 2015 6:20 pm

Sorry to hear of this sad news. Red was indeed a pioneer and legend. To numerous things to mention in which Red was involved over the years. You are quite a lucky man to have known and got to hang with such a fella, Darrel. The man was definitely a one of a kind. Sad, sad, indeed. He will be missed greatly by those who were fortunate enough to have known him!

Jeff

Tommy Shown · Post by **Tommy Shown** » 28 Jul 2015 8:20 pm

Red was from Bogalousa, Louisiana. I remember one song he wrote and recorded back in the 70s called "The World Needs A Melody". Great message in that song.