Reservations mount for Sunday Mike Lunsford tribute

Reservations are rolling in for Sunday's benefit tribute to Mike Lunsford, given by Todd Nalley and his Restless Wind band. Reservations are advised and as soon as possible. Reservations are coming in for four to 10 or 20 seats at a time, and seats will be assigned in the order that the reservations came in. The first caller ordered 10 seats, so the first row behind the family seats were taken then. We think reservations are over 200 right now -- counting some that Todd Nalley has taken. We just received 50 reservations from the Audubon Police Department. Todd has had inquiries that suggest we will have close to a full house. We don't want to see you turned away.

This is Todd's show, and he and the band have been rehearsing Mike Lunsford's songs, including those that he recorded -- there were 40 of them, mostly ballads - and those other songs usually more spirited that he sung on his many appearances at the Lemon Tree Lounge. The Lemon Tree was before my time, though my wife Nancy and her previous husband Charlie, now deceased, danced there often when Peggy Jo was singing there with Sonny Mayes. I am told it was a pretty nice dance hall.

Glen Phillips said he visited there often, the place had good talent and that their bouncers were good about keeping order and moving any problems outside fast. There is nothing quite like the Lemon Tree Lounge today. Jim Porter's is probably the closest, and as I recall, it has three dance halls. I have been there several times, but not since Nancy and I married.

If you have recollections to share about The Lemon Tree, I would love to receive them by email.

Our favorite GI, Matt Lyerla will have his hands full this weekend. He is playing Sunday with Todd Nalley at the Mike Lunsford tribute -- and will need to know all those Mike Lunsford's songs. But he also is playing Saturday night, the night before the tribute, at Music Ranch with the Slick Andrews Band. Slick suffered a broken leg -- the femur -- a month ago when his ATV hit a rock and overturned, and he is not yet able to get out of bed. So Matt also will lead the band in place of Slick, including doing a lot more singing replacing Slick.

Matt is lucky that the guests for Saturday's show are Bobby Dean and Steve Knight. If he wanted (he won't), he could almost just sit back and watch, because this two-man singing team takes the bit in their mouth, collectively, and the race is on. That's horse talk about a country show, folks. It means they are take-charge singers, and they have a good following, too.

Back to Mike Lunsford -- many of those attending Sunday were very close to Mike. One said "He was like my brother." Some of Mike's relatives will be present -- his daughter Lisa has worked closely with Todd.

Mike died in his Guymon, Oklahoma home April 17, seven days after the found his wife of 18 years -- Sharon, dead in bed. He would have been 56 June 30.

Sharon's sister Connie Williams said she will be here with six others of Sharon's family. Sharon was at Mike's side and worked for many years at Ryan's Streak House on Dixie Highway. When they moved to Clarksville, IN, she worked at a Ryan's in Clarksville. She and Lisa were close.

We'll be looking for you Saturday night and Sunday afternoon too -- and Saturday at 2 p.m. for our Gospel show.

Rube