Last Sunday, while millions were marching around
the globe, registering their support for continued
U.N. weapons inspections in Iraq and condemning the
Bush administration’s rush to Gulf War II, a couple of
thousand older Memphians were making their own political
statement at GPAC. They assembled to salute and
enjoy “The Stars of the Lawrence Welk Show” in a special
reunion performance sponsored by WKNO.
Far be it for Fly to ever pass judgment on these
fun-loving septuagenarians who have been around
long enough to see trends come, go, and come back
again. Attendees waxed nostalgic while listening to
former Welk crooners Ralna English and Guy Hovis, and the
undisputed queen of honky-tonk piano, Jo Ann
Castle, who tickled the ivories as formidably and flamboyantly
as Jerry Lee Lewis ever has. Fair play to them.
But our reporter was struck by the combo’s
choice of an opening number that now rarely heard
1920s classic, “Are You From Dixie?” Most of us are
well aware that casual use of the word “Dixie” tends to
rub half of the Memphis population the wrong way.
The Welk stars were obviously unconcerned about
political correctness, and perhaps the complexion of their
audience explains why. If there was a black face among
the sellout crowd, our reporter didn’t see it.”First time in
decades anybody’s had the chutzpah to sing that one in
public in this town,”
he noted.
Okay, so it’s not the end of the world. But what
kind of person, in this day and age, would make a
decision so clearly politically incorrect? A quick glance at
the show’s program provided one possible
explanation. You see, group-leader Guy Hovis, a 12-year regular
on the Welk show back in the 1970s, has another job
these days when he’s not on the tour circuit. Hovis, the
program tells us, is “state director of U.S. Senator
Trent Lott’s offices in Jackson, Mississippi.”
