September 1, 2010


Hi Folks:

This is the first of two fan club newsletters we will be sending out this month. Consider this our regular edition. In a couple of weeks we'll be sending a special edtion letting you in on the big plans we've made for my 50th Anniversary at the Grand Ole Opry set for July, 2011.

Everything seems to be falling into place, and we're sure excited. We've been setting up special phone lines for you to call, special facilities to handle your questions, your credit card payments, and a million and one other things that go into trying to pull a big event like this together. Hopefully, we'll have most of the answers in place by the middle of this month and we can start to rock 'n roll. In a country kind of way, of course!

I've been getting back into doing some songwriting these past few weeks after having taken some time away from writing this summer. Billy Ray Cyrus recorded a song I helped write a few days ago, and I'm really excited about it. I'll tell you more as the release date approaches. It's part of a patriotic album he's doing, and it's based on a powerful true story. I think the Disney folks have it scheduled to come out in November.

The Grand Ole Opry is headed home to the Opry House on the 28th of this month after almost five months of bouncing around from place to place due to the Nashville floods. Supposedly they've done a lot of remodeling, particularly backstage, while we've been away. I can't wait to see what all they've done.

Did you know you can take backstage tours at the Opry House now when you come to Nashville? They even offer them on show nights following the performances. I think you'd enjoy that. You might want to put it on your list of things to do when you plan your next visit to Music City.

I'm going to repeat something that I wrote on my web site recently because some of you might not have seen it. Several of you have written to me recently telling me of problems you've had receiving our online fan club newsletters and of certain issues you've had with some of the messages that have been posted on our message boards. My webmaster has asked that from now you please address your questions and concerns directly to board@billanderson.com rather than send them to me. This will allow her to begin solving your problems much quicker. Thanks.

We'll be back in your mailbox again in a couple of weeks, so be watching for us. Meantime, take care, and my best to you all.

August 9, 2010

Hi Folks:

Our fan club newsletter is late this month, but I have a good excuse. I've been on vacation.

Before I left, I asked my friends on Facebook where I should go to get away and relax. I received over a hundred suggestions, many of them extremely appealing. Unfortunately, I couldn't go everywhere, but I ended up dividing my time between a week in the mountains and a week at the beach. I've come home refreshed, and ready to hop back in the saddle again.

Plans are continuing to take shape for our 50th Anniversary celebration at the Grand Ole Opry set for next July. I'm having lunch with Opry manager, Pete Fisher, tomorrow, in fact, to discuss some ideas with him. Kathy Gaddy, who was my secretary and personal assistant for thirty-five years, has offered to come out of retirement for a few months to oversee the distribution of tickets and be the liason between our office and our fans. Many of you know Kathy already, so you'll be in contact with an old friend as you plan to come be with us.

Speaking of friends, the nice folks at Country Weekly magazine have always been very kind to me, but I want to thank them for being especially nice here lately. There have been several pictures, record reviews, and stories concerning me and my career in recent issues. They even ran a contest where they offered some of my new CD's and my latest book as prizes. I hope you will join me in expressing your appreciation to them. They do an incredible job.

Speaking of our newest CD, "Songwriter," I'm happy to report that it continues to sell well and to receive excellent coverage in the press. Judging from your comments, I'd say the two favorite cuts at this point appear to be ballads: "Papaw's Sunday Boots" and "If Anything Ever Happened To You." I'm glad you like them, and remind you that you can still order an autographed copy for yourself or as a gift from both our web site at www.billanderson.com or from P.O. Box 888, Hermitage, TN., 37076.

[More:]

We'll be on the Opry several times during August, then back on the road for a few dates in September. Check the Tour page, and if we're anywhere close to you, I hope you'll come see us. Notice some of the appearances are the Country's Family Reunion Road Shows. If you've never seen one of those, they are different and a whole lot of fun.

Well, lots of things have piled up on my desk while I've been gone, so I'd better stop yakking and start sifting through them. Thanks so much for continuing to support me and my career, and my best to each of you.

Stay cool.

July 1, 2010


Hi Folks:

I'll be honest with you. I'm not particularly sad to see the month of June come to an end.

During the past thirty days, I've been to funerals for my first wife, Bette, mother of my two daughters, and for Jimmy Dean, one of the closest friends I have ever had.

I've had dental surgery and seen my tour bus catch on fire. The nicest dress suit I've ever owned, which was hanging in the back of the bus, now smells like I cooked it on a charcoal grill, and

the matching boots have an odor similar to what I imagine a race car tire smells like at the end of the Daytona 500.

And then, to top it all off, I returned home from the Grand Ole Opry this past Saturday night to find that while I was performing, a violent storm had roared through my neighborhood, toppling a large tree in my neighbor's yard, causing it to fall across the road and sever the power lines to my house. By the time it was reconnected, I had been without power (and air conditioning in 90-plus degree weather) for almost 48-hours.

I sure am glad it's finally July!!

From looking at my calendar, this month should be a breeze. We only have one road trip....of course, it does take us from Indiana to Alberta in the space of four days...and a week's worth of vacation time to look forward to as the month winds down. There are always surprises, but I can only hope that during this month all the surprises will be good ones.

I'll be visiting with Bill Cody on WSM Radio July 2nd at the Hall of Fame, and if you can't be there with us in person, you can dial us in on www.wsmonline.com at 9:15 a.m. Central time.

I'll be hosting the Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree on July 17th, although I'm told the broadcast will not air until the following weekend. And I'll be making five appearances on the Grand Ole Opry.

I don't know what I'll do on the 4th of July. We're not working, so I hope I can just sit around my house, eat a burger, and be grateful for all my many blessings.

Not the least of which will be that it's not June anymore.

"Still,"

Hi Gang:

Bette Anderson, my former wife and the mother of my two daughters, Terri and Jenni, died Monday following a long, vigorous battle with cancer.

She was 69.

Many of you who follow my career these days might not know nor remember, but Bette and I were married from December, 1959, until June, 1969. She gave me two incredible daughters who, in turn, gave us four equally incredible grandchildren.

She died peacefully in the early hours of Memorial Day morning. I had been able to spend some time with her on Sunday afternoon in her room at Alive Hospice here in Nashville. She was tired, but able to converse and think clearly. Terri and Jenni, whom many of yo

u do know, were at her side when she passed.

If any of you would like to express your condolences to the girls (they are grown ladies, of course, but to me they will always be "my girls") there is a way for you to do so online. Our local newspaper, the Tennessean, has listed Bette's obituary in today's editions. Go to tennessean.com, click on the Obituary icon, and look for Bette's name. You can leave a message by signing the Guest Book at the bottom of the page.

Please do this rather than trying to contact Terri and Jenni through me. I simply do not have the time nor the capacity to see that they get all the messages.

We come into this life knowing that death is part of the life experience, but that doesn't make it any easier for us to say goodbye to those we love. Bette was a wonderful mother to our daughters, an open and giving "stepmom" to my son, Jamey, and I'm proud to say, a proven and trusted friend to me.

Rest in peace, Sweet Lady. We will miss you.

May 6, 2010

Hi Folks:

Even after posting both on Facebook and on my web site that my family and I suffered no major damage due to the Nashville floods, I was still receiving 25 to 30 e-mails an hour last night and this morning from folks wanting to know if we were all o.k.

I truly appreciate your concern.

There's no way for me to possibly answer each individual letter, so I thought I'd use this "blast" to reassure all our fans and friends that all is well in Whisperville.

Even though I live on the lake and water came about halfway up into my yard, the inside of my house stayed dry. Across the way at my office, however, we did have a couple of inches of water in the basement. We store our souvenir merchandise there along with some of our stage equipment, but I was able to move most of it to higher ground and avoid major damage. The carpet has been torn out and will have to be replaced, but that's only a minor inconvenience. To many in our city, and many in the music business, these floods were a disaster.

I'm sure in the coming weeks and months you'll be hearing of fund-raising events....auctions, radiothons and telethons, concerts, etc....where you can pitch in and help. Country music fans have always been the best at times like this, so I'll try to keep you informed.

On a lighter note: My secretary, Judy, was going through some of our merchandise items and found a few Bill Anderson t-shirts that were damp in the bottom of a big box. She removed them and took a dozen or so outside into the sunshine, spreading them out along the railing that surrounds our deck. I'm sure the neighbors thought Jed Clampett and his family had moved into the neighborhood when they spotted all those clothes blowing in the breeze. I can't believe neither of us had a camera.

We're headed to Canada tomorrow for a series of concerts across Ontario. If you're in that area, come see us. Otherwise, thanks again for caring enough to get in touch, and please rest assured that my family and I are among Nashville's lucky ones.

Oh, you can check out our new video this weekend at youtube.com/billandersontv among other places. Hope you like it.

April 7, 2010

Hi Folks:

I’m sorry that our monthly newsletter is a little late this time, but as most of you know, we’ve been on a lengthy road trip, and we just got back to Nashville yesterday.

We traveled 5,452 miles in a little over two weeks, met a lot of great country music fans, and in spite of oil leaks and “ghosts” on our tour bus, we had a great time.

If you’d be interested in seeing some excerpts from our trip, both onstage and behind the scenes footage, go to www.youtube.com/billandersontv. Our manager, Lee, and our sound engineer, Ryan, took along their cameras and shot some fun stuff.

In the future, we’ll be posting other things on this site, including our new video on the song, “Thanks To You,” from our latest CD. I’m hoping you’ll mark this address and visit us here often.

Our next road dates will be the Country’s Family Reunion shows in Branson April 18th and 19th. So many of you tell us you watch these shows on RFD-TV and that you've purchased the DVD’s for your at-home collection. If you haven’t seen one of our “live” shows, I hope you’ll make plans to visit us soon. We’ll be at the RFD Theater in Branson in April, June, September, and November.

And we’ll be performing at the big Stagecoach Festival in Indio, California, on Sunday April 26th. We don’t get to the west coast all that often, so I hope lots of our friends out that way will plan to come see us. Then it’s back to Ontario, Canada, for another group of concerts in May. It keeps us busy, but we like it that way.

Our new CD, “Songwriter,” will be available for downloading soon, the new video will be posted online, and the physical product will begin popping up on store shelves. Thanks to those who have ordered advance copies from our office and our web site and those who have purchased copies at our concerts. Your kind comments have been most encouraging.

Stay well, enjoy the beautiful Spring weather that’s on its way, and we’ll see you back here again next month. Thanks, and all my best to each of you.

March 1, 2010

Hi Folks:

Having been in the entertainment business for over fifty years now, there’s not a lot of things that I haven’t done. Last week, however, I discovered one.

I had never before invited a production crew into my home to record a video. And before the day was over, I realized why I had never done it. And why it will be a hot day in February before I do it again.

Actually, it was fun. But imagine how nerve-wracking it would be to wake up to dozens of lights, cameras, sound equipment, electrical cords, and things that defy description snaking their way through your living room, dining room, kitchen, and great room at seven o’clock in the morning. So many cars parked in your driveway that the neighbors think you’ve opened a used car lot. People swarming everywhere barking out orders…. “raise that light,” “get me a different lens,” “grab me some fresh coffee.” At one point, I counted sixteen people standing in my kitchen scarfing down pizza.

My dressing room became a makeup station. A guest bedroom became the ladies’ wardrobe room. Furniture was moved and rearranged. Pictures and plants were suddenly in places I never intended for them to be. Outside, my sun deck and my yard morphed into backdrop scenery. And I’m out there in near-freezing temperatures trying to concentrate on singing a love song called “Thanks To You.” There were moments when I wasn’t nearly as thankful as I sounded.

They carried the last piece of equipment out my front door shortly before midnight. I didn’t fall asleep. I passed out.

OK, so I'm exagerating. But only slightly. And like I said, it actually was fun. I’m hopeful that the result will be a warm, fuzzy video that you will want to share with those in your life that you are thankful for….whether it be a husband, a wife, a significant other, a child, a grandchild, a dog, or even God. After all, without those special relationships, there wouldn't be a whole lot in life to make it worth living.

I’ll let you know when the video will be online for you to see…or on television…or available for you to own on a special DVD that we are planning. It’s an exciting time to be in this business, because each day the world gets smaller and there are exciting new ways of communicating and connecting with others.

Next time, though, I think I’ll do my connecting from somebody else’s living room.

“Still,”

January 28, 2010

Hi Folks:

I’m writing our February newsletter a few days early because we’ve got some ice, snow and cold weather headed toward Music City. If it hits as predicted, this town will be shut down completely on February 1st!

It’s an exciting time here in Whisperville, what with the release of both our new book and now our new CD, “Songwriter.” We’ve got some fancy and far-reaching plans for this new record, including the production of a video and distribution of the music in all the latest, most innovative ways.

Right now, though, the album is only available to our fans and fan club members through our website at www.billanderson.com and our office at P.O. Box 888, Hermitage, TN. 37076. If you order one of the first 200 copies, it will come autographed at a special introductory price of only $12.95 plus $5 shipping. That offer is good, though, only until March 1st.

Thanks so much for the steady stream of orders for our new book, “Letters To My Fans – Volume I.” Your comments after receiving and reading the book have been most welcome as well. Nearly every letter and e-mail ends with, “I can hardly wait for Volume II.” That’s awfully nice, and truthfully, neither can I!

Some other fun things coming up: Those of you who have followed my career since back in the eighties will have a special treat on Saturday night February 6th. Lisa and Laurie, the Harper Twins, who were a big part of my road show for almost a decade, will return to the Opry stage with us that night to celebrate their 50th birthday and to reunite with their fans and friends. In all my years, I have never had a sweeter, more talented pair of entertainers working with me than the Harpers. I hope you’ll plan to tune in for our “reunion” on AM650, on The Roadhouse @ Sirius/XM satellite radio, or via www.opry.com.

Speaking of “reunions,” we were in the studio for three days last week putting together some new Country’s Family Reunion videos, and one additional day for a Songwriters’ Reunion. You can get all the information about ordering at www.cfrvideos.com. They have a wonderful new website, by the way.

Stay warm and well wherever you are, and thanks for everything. See you back here again soon.

Still,

January 5, 2010

Hi Folks:

Welcome to our first fan club newsletter of not only the New Year but of the new decade. Gee, where does the time go??

I hope each of you enjoyed a great Christmas and that you had the chance to spend it with the people who are the most special in your life. I did, and for me, life doesn’t get any better than that.

With seven grandkids between the ages of one and sixteen, you can only imagine the chaos at our Christmas gatherings, but it’s “good chaos.” We ate and we opened gifts and we tried on new shirts and new shoes and we laughed and then we ate some more. And now “losing weight” is at the top of everyone’s list of New Year’s Resolutions!

I usually don’t make “resolutions” as such, but I’ve got one this time. Actually, it’s more of a New Decade Resolution, so I’ve got more than just one year in which to get it done.

I am resolving to do my best to write at least one more song that makes it onto the national popularity charts. If I’m able to do that sometime between 2010 and 2019, I will have put one song into the charts every decade for the past seven. Nobody in country music has ever done that, and I’d sure like to be the first. Cross your fingers that somehow it might just happen. And maybe sooner rather than later.

What else is going on? Our new CD, “Songwriter,” is being manufactured as I write this letter, our new book, “Letters To My Fans – Volume I,” is being shipped from the printer's, and this upcoming year is bursting with excitement and promise. We’ll be recording some new Family Reunion TV shows in mid-January, setting a busier tour schedule than we’ve had for quite some time, and looking forward to taking our music to lots of interesting places as the year progrresses.

Thanks for being a part of our fan club and for your continuing support of all that’s going on in and around Whisperville. We'll continue to keep you updated with newsletters the first of every month. Stay warm.

"Still,"

December 1, 2009

Hi Folks:

I hope each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and I appreciate all your colorful cards, letters, and e-mails wishing me the same.

I had a great day. All three of my children were at my house, along with all seven of my grandchildren. We had a fire going in both of my fireplaces and one burning in the fire-pit outside. We roasted marshmallows, shot a few hundred games of pool, watched parades, ball games, and cartoons on the giant-screen TV downstairs, and ate ourselves silly.

And we each had so much to be thankful for.

It’s hard to believe that Christmas is now just around the corner. I guess I’m old-fashioned, but I don’t sing Christmas songs on stage until after Thanksgiving is over. I heard Christmas music in the stores back before Halloween, but I prefer to take my celebrations one-holiday-at-a-time. How about you??

We’ve got a lot to be excited about coming up in 2010. I’ll have a new CD and a new book out early in the year, and based upon the success of our first Country’s Family Reunion Road Show in Branson, we’ll probably be touring more than we have in recent years. Hopefully, we’ll be coming in your direction.

A reminder for those of you who want to continue receiving the printed edition of our fan club newsletters next year: We need you to send us your $8 check as soon as possible so your service will go uninterrupted. And thanks to each of you who have already done so.

Have a terrific holiday season, spend as much of it as you can with the special people in your life, and we’ll see you back here again next year.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all.

Still,

November 2, 2009

Hi Folks:

I had a wonderful birthday yesterday, and I thank all of you who sent me cards, letters, and e-mails. It’s awfully nice to be remembered on special occasions.

The Tennessee Titans even won their first game of the year in honor of my birthday and wished me a “Happy Birthday” on the Jumbotron at the stadium. Had my car battery not died in the parking lot (probably from the shock of the Titans winning for a change!) the day would have been perfect. As it was, I pulled out my trusty-dusty jumper cables, solicited the help of a nice man parked nearby, and headed home without too much hassle.

Did you see the article in the November 9th issue of the National Examiner about country music artists over seventy years old? I don’t normally read the tabloids, but a fan club member alerted me to this, and I’m glad she did. The story featured pictures of George Jones, Glen Campbell, Merle Haggard, Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson, Bobby Bare and myself. It talked about young people discovering our music by saying, “These young people want to hear the real deal, not pop songs with fiddle or steel guitar tacked on.”

Thank you very much.

Speaking of older country music, would any of you out there anywhere happen to have in your archives a picture of me and Roger Miller together? When I went to his hometown a couple of weeks ago, several members of the Board of Directors at the Roger Miller Museum were asking me for such a picture. Seems they have plenty of video footage of us, but not a single photograph to hang on the wall. I’ve searched my scrapbooks and can’t locate one. I realize this is probably like looking for the needle in the haystack, but I thought I’d ask.

I’m beginning to doubt that we’ll have our new book or our new CD available in time for Christmas gift-giving, but we’re still trying and hoping. If they aren’t ready in time, we should easily have them both by the first of the year. Don’t forget the new “Precious Memories” version of our Country’s Family Reunion series available at www.cfrvideos.com, and our first Family Reunion Road Show live at the RFD Theater in Branson November 20th and 21st.

And an early “Happy Thanksgiving” to each of you from someone who is always thankful for your friendship and support.

October 5, 2009

Hi Folks:

It's been almost a year since we converted our fan club from a dues-paying club that communicated with its members three or four times a year via the postal service into a free, online club that tries very hard to keep its members updated on a consistent and timely basis.

I had no idea when we started this new format whether it would work or not, but in the ten-plus months that we've been online, our membership has more than tripled. For this, I thank each of you.

During our transition year of 2009, we offered our members who did not have computer access the opportunity to continue to receive our monthly newsletters through the mail for one year. All they had to do was to send us twelve self-addressed, stamped envelopes, and we would take care of the rest. I was surprised at the number of folks who accepted this option, and so far as I know, this has worked very well also.

As we come to the end of this year, we've been asked by many to please continue the printed newsletters into the future, and after much in-house discussion, we have decided to do so. However, to make it easier on everybody, we're going to change the procedure ever so slightly.

Instead of your going to the trouble of addressing and sending us a year's supply of stamped envelopes, we are asking that you send us one check for $8.00 to cover the costs of postage and mailing. (Canadian members please send $10 US). We will address and mail the newsletters to you each month just as we've been doing. I think you will agree that this method will simplify things all the way around.

You can send your check to us anytime between now and the first of next year and we'll guarantee uninterrupted service from January through December, 2010. Simply make it out to The Bill Anderson Fan Club, and mail it to us at P.O. Box 888, Hermitage, TN. 37076. We'll take care of everything else.

And by the way, here's something else I'm excited about: All our club members, online and otherwise, will be offered an opportunity to purchase a copy of our new CD before it goes on sale to the general public. We will also conduct a random drawing from our membership list and send some autographed copies to the selected folks free of charge. I've been told that we can fulfill orders in plenty of time for Christmas gift-giving, so stay tuned. In the next few weeks you'll be receiving all the necessary information.

Thanks to each of you for your continued interest in me and my music. Your help and your support never go unnoticed or unappreciated. There's lots of exciting new stuff coming your way, including a new web site design built around our upcoming album release. Hang on, folks. Even after all these years, we're still having fun!!

And you're "Still" the ones!

September 3, 2009

Hi Folks:

It’s good to be visiting with you again through our Fan Club newsletter. Thanks for continuing to stay connected to all that’s going on here in WhisperWorld.

I had quite a walk down memory lane just before I left on my recent vacation. I sat for most of an entire afternoon in Larry Black’s office watching tapes of “The Bill Anderson Show,” the syndicated half-hour weekly TV program that I hosted from 1965 to 1974.

As you’ve probably heard me say, there are very few of those old episodes still around, but we’ve uncovered somewhere between 20 and 25, and most of them I hadn’t seen in over thirty years.

It was so much fun watching me interact with guests like Johnny Cash, June Carter, and Mama Maybelle Carter. There was a half-hour devoted entirely to Faron Young, a performance from a young and shy Waylon Jennings, and a show with 13-year old Tanya Tucker. I asked Tanya on the show if she liked boys. She replied snappily, “No, I like motorcycles!”

Even the commercials for our longtime sponsors, Stanback Headache Tablets and Powders and Homelite Chain Saws, were still in the shows. And some of our hair styles and clothes were downright laugh-out-loud funny.

Larry and I were watching these shows in an attempt to try and come up with a way to make them available for our fans via DVD. We are currently having the tapes digitized and dealing with the economics and legalities of it all. I hope we’re going to have something to offer you before too long. I'll keep you posted.

I’ve said many times that I don’t like to live in the past. But while I was watching those shows I realized it sure is a fun place to visit from time to time.

All my best,

August 3, 2009

Hi Folks:

And welcome to our August fan club newsletter.

I’m told we have gained several hundred new members since our last visit , so a very special word of thanks and welcome to each of you.

I’ll be spending most of this month in the recording studio working on a new album. I had over a thousand pictures taken recently (1,267 to be exact), so hopefully at least one of them will look good enough to put on the cover. When you reach my age, you never know!

The plan at this stage is to make the album a “fun” project with several up-tempo, laugh-along/sing-along songs. I’ve written and recorded so many sad songs over the years that I figure this will be a welcome change of pace. There will be a serious ballad or two as well, but the overall focus of the CD will be on having a good time. Cross your fingers with us that it turns out the way we’ve planned.

My new book, “Letters To My Fans – Volume I,” is in the middle stages of production right now, and like the new CD, we hope to have it available before the end of the year. In this business, however, you never know.

I am scheduled to have all my vocal parts recorded for the new project by August 18th. On the morning of the 19th, I plan to be on my way to the coast of Maine for a late summer getaway. I’ve made no secret of the fact that that area is just about my favorite place to recharge my batteries when they start running down, and I’m sure this visit will be no exception. I may even duck back over into the Maritimes and visit Canada again while I’m up that way. I’ll be back on the Opry and back out on the road again in early September.

I hope to see you soon somewhere up or down the trail. My thanks and best wishes always.

Hi Folks:

And depending on when you receive this, I hope you either have or had a Happy 4th of July!

June was a busy month for us what with our Fan Club Dinner & Show sandwiched into an already-busy week with the CMA Music Festival. Thanks to all of you who came, and to those who weren’t able to make it this year, we’ll look for you next time we all get together.

If you haven’t seen the video clips from the show on our web site, go to www.billanderson.com and click onto the News item from the 2009 CMA Music Fest. There's a fifteen year old girl singing on there that I'm mighty proud of!

I’m going to be on the Grand Ole Opry quite a bit during July, then I’ll be taking time off in August to begin working on a new album. I hope we can have the project finished and available in plenty of time for Christmas. I’m also putting together a new book called “Letters To My Fans” which I hope to have out this fall.

I wanted to include the group picture at the bottom of the page from our recent show in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, because it was quite a gathering of country music legends. We don’t get to perform at very many of these type shows anymore, and it’s always special when we do. You might be watching for our live Family Reunion show in Branson, Missouri, in November. It’s going to be special as well.

Stay cool during this hot summer weather, and we’ll see you back here again the first of August. Thanks for everything.

Hi Folks:

This will be my last chance to communicate with you before our big Fan Club Dinner & Show on June 10th here in Nashville. I’ll try to answer the most-asked questions that we’ve been receiving.

Directions: From downtown Nashville, go east on Interstate 40 toward Knoxville. Take exit 216C onto Donelson Pike north. Stay to the right and continue north on Donelson Pike for six-tenths of a mile (third traffic light) to Elm Hill Pike. Turn right on Elm Hill, and American Legion Post 88 is one-tenth of a mile down the road on your left. There is plenty of free parking.

(Coming west into Nashville on I-40, simply get off at Exit 216, turn right onto Donelson Pike, and follow the directions above.)

The dinner itself starts at 6:30 p.m., but doors will open for a meet ‘n greet at five o’clock. We’ll have souvenir items for sale, including our new fan club laminates. You can take pictures, and after you’ve gone through the line, you will be given your assigned seat for the dinner. There are no reserved seats this year, but if you wish to sit with a particular person, it might be a good idea to arrive with that person. Seats will be assigned in random order, so there is no need to arrive early. Based on my previous experiences in this room, there are no bad seats. Everybody has a good view of the stage, and the dinner is served buffet style.

I mentioned in my online Journal last week that the Legion will be decorated in a Hawaiian or Polynesian theme, and if anybody wants to come dressed for a Luau then come on. Somebody asked if that meant the band and I would be wearing grass skirts. Nice try, but I’m afraid we’re not going quite that far!! I might just wear a big ole flowery shirt, though.

The Po’ Folks Band and I will do a show after we eat and draw for some door prizes. I will have a couple of special guests that I think you will enjoy. It should be a fun, relaxing, informal evening, and I’m thrilled that so many of you are coming.

Travel safe, and we’ll see you there.

Hi Folks:

During the almost twenty-five years that Jean Brown was president of my fan club, she prided herself on being able to make identification buttons available to our club members.

Many of you had them...shiny round buttons about four inches in diameter with my picture on them, identifying the wearer as a member of the Bill Anderson Fan Club. Early ones were gold with black lettering, later ones were pale blue. The buttons were sold to our members for a few dollars above the cost of the fan club membership itself.

When Jean passed away last fall, the fan club went on hiatus for awhile, then re-emerged earlier this year as a free online club open to anyone who cared to send us their e-mail address. One of the first questions we began to receive after the new club was formed was, “Are you still going to have the fan club buttons?”

Well, we don’t have the buttons as before, but our folks have designed something that I think you’ll like just as well, and perhaps even better.

The big thing in ID badges these days seems to be laminates. At concerts, you see folks everywhere sporting laminates around their necks, particularly musicians, technicians, and members of the official concert or venue party.

Our new fan club badges are laminates, like the one you see pictured here. They are full color, two-sided ID tags, measuring almost five inches in height and a little over three inches in width. They come with a lanyard-type clip-on cord and tell everyone who sees them that the person wearing it is an “Official Bill Anderson Fan Club Member.”

We are making these laminates available for the first time on our Canadian tour which runs from May 1st through May 12th. However, if you’d like to have one and don’t want to wait until we appear in person in your area, you can order yours directly from our website. Just click on the Merch icon at the top of this page and you’ll be taken directly to an order form. The laminates are only $6.00 each and that includes shipping. Those of you who receive these newsletters via print can order from our office at P.O. Box 888, Hermitage, TN. 37076.

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These won’t get you backstage at one of our shows, but next time you come to the Opry or to one of our concerts, we’ll know just by looking that you are one of our special friends and fans. Later on, we hope to be able to use the laminates for discounts on recordings, pictures, and other merchandise.

I hope you’ll want to add one or more of our laminates to your collection. At just six dollars, they make colorful, inexpensive gifts for any country music fan on your list.

Thanks, and I hope you’ll keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we travel several thousand miles over the next couple of weeks. I’ll look forward to visiting with you again when we return.

Still,

Hi Folks:

Your response to our upcoming fan club dinner in June has been spectacular…so much so that if you’re thinking about joining us, it might be a good idea to go ahead and order your tickets now. Because we have to give a head-count to the food folks, we'll have to cut off our ticket sales on May 18th. Thanks so much to all of you who have already ordered and all who are planning to come.

I had a nice vacation the last week of March, then came home and had to face some minor surgery on April 2nd. I had a condition called “trigger finger,” which has nothing at all to do with shooting guns. It has to do with a tendon in my hand that came loose from a little “pulley-type” device and caused the middle finger on my left hand to often “lock” into a closed position. Since I’m left-handed and use that hand to chord my guitar, type on my computer, etc., I thought it might be a good idea to have it fixed. So far, so good. I’m crossing my fingers (on my OTHER hand) that I won’t have any complications.

I’ve been writing lots of new songs lately, and can only hope that you’ll be hearing some of them soon. Some of my co-writers have included Carrie Underwood and Brad Paisley, with upcoming sessions set to include both of them again, plus the quarterback for our Tennessee Titans football team, Kerry Collins.

Just because I write a song, though, does not assure that it will be recorded. If it’s recorded, that does not assure it will be released. If it is released, that doesn’t assure that it will be promoted to radio as a single. If it’s a single, that doesn’t assure that it will be a hit. It’s not the easiest way in the world to make a living, but I still enjoy the process and I guess I always will.

Hope to see lots of you at our shows in Burgettstown, PA. on the 17th of this month and in Nashville, Indiana, on the 18th. Thanks for continuing to support me and my career. We’ll visit again soon.

Our fan club dinner and show will be held Wednesday night June 10th at American Legion Post 88, 2864 Elm Hill Pike in Donelson, Tennessee. This is the same place we last held the party in 2007.

The evening’s activities will include an early-bird autograph and picture-taking session at 5 p.m. followed by a hot buffet dinner (roast beef, chicken, mashed potatoes, green beans, mixed vegetables, salad bar, hot rolls, drink, and dessert) at 6:30.

After we eat, there will be a raffle and door prizes given away. The party will wrap up with a show featuring the Po’ Folks band, myself, and probably a surprise special guest or two. I’m not promising anything, but in the past our guests have included Kitty Wells, Johnny Wright, Jim Ed Brown, Jan Howard, Craig Morgan, Josh Turner, and a 14-year old Taylor Swift.

The cost for the entire evening is only $30 per person, but space is limited and tickets will be sold on a first-come, first-serve basis.

There are three ways to order. One, beginning Wednesday March 4th, you can go online at www.billanderson.com, click on the Merch section at the top of our Home page, and sign up there. You can pay by credit card, just as you would do if you were ordering any of our product. You will be sent an e-mail confirmation which you will bring to the dinner with you and exchange for your tickets. Two, you can send a check made out to Bill Anderson Enterprises, P.O. Box 888, Hermitage, TN. 37076, and receive your confirmation letter by return mail. The third way to order would be to also use your credit card and call my assistant, Judy Price, @615-773-8920.

We didn’t have a fan club dinner last year due to the illness of our president, Jean Brown, but so many of you have asked that it be revived that we’re going to give it a try.

Y’all come!

P.S. - Hope to see lots of you at the Imperial Palace in Biloxi, Mississippi, on March 20th. We'll be there with our friends Janie Frickie and T. G. Shepherd for one big show at 8 p.m.

Thanks for signing up to receive our Fan Club newsletters, and welcome to our first full edition.

The big news right now is our Fan Club Dinner & Show which we are planning for Wednesday night June 10th here in Nashville. We'll have all the details in our next newsletter, including information as to how you can order tickets and be a part of our big evening. For now, I hope you'll circle the date on your calendar and plan to be with us.

You'll notice we've opened our Fan Club photo gallery, and we appreciate all the pictures you have sent to us so far. Each picture seems to have a special memory attached to it for me. I'm so glad you've chosen to share them. Remember to send your pictures to photos@billanderson.com, though, and not to me personally.

One other reminder: If your e-mail address changes, be sure to submit your new one, using the form you used to sign up for the club. We don't want you missing any of our mailings.

I hope we'll see lots of you on Valentine's Day in Houston, Texas, or at one of our several Opry appearances during February.

Thanks for everything.

Hi….

And welcome to our new online Fan Club. Thanks for stopping by to check us out.

If you would like to become a member of our club, you’ve already done everything you have to do. We’ve got your name and your e-mail address, and beginning shortly we will start sending you monthly updates on everything going on in and around Whisperville.

This page is a prototype of what our newsletters will look like (at least until we come up with some new and improved ideas) and we hope you like it.

If you feel as though you don’t want to receive these newsletters in the future, just click on “Unsubscribe” and your name will be removed from our list, no questions asked.

Hopefully, you’ll want to hang around. We’ll try our best to make you glad you did.