YeeHaa!
Yes, John Schneider (Bo Duke) from the Dukes of Hazzard fame dropped by the Red Heaven Ranch. Yes, it WAS amazing! Read on for the details but you really need to know the back story to appreciate HOW John got to our little 44 acre ranch in East TN.
You see, Tami is an avowed extrovert. I am not. All the interesting people we meet are because of Tami. So naturally this story begins with her …
Tami met Bonnie Burns at one of the many concerts she attends each year. Bonnie shared with Tami that she was soon to be married, that it was a whirlwind romance and that her fiancé just happened to be Keith Burns, a founding member of the band “Trick Pony”. Bonnie said, “you should come to our wedding”. Tami said “YES!”, and we got an invite (I initially said I did not want to go – Tami straightened me out). On Sunday April 8th 2018, we drove to Nashville.
From Betty Lou’s to the Mansion:
First some background on Bonnie’s soon-to-be husband Keith Burns and the Grammy Nominated, platinum selling band – “Trick Pony”. They have had 4 top 20 country hits and in 2002 won the coveted CMAs “Artist of the Year”. Keith is also a prolific songwriter and has penned three Top 10 songs. He’s also written songs for artists like Hootie & The Blowfish, Joe Diffie, Sammy Kershaw, Burns & Poe, Mo Bandy and more. It’s likely you’ve heard his signature hits “Pour Me” and “Just What I Do”. In short, Keith is the real deal! We arrived Sunday afternoon and knew there was a planned “pre-wedding” party that was off-site. We followed Bonnie to the event site thinking it was likely another “fancy hotel” or something like that.
We soon realized that it was not another hotel, nor was it the VFW or even an event hall. It was, in fact – Betty Lou’s Lounge. Now this was going to be a waaaay better party than could be had at any fancy hotel! It was open mic night and we watched as Keith joined many of the “walk-ins” to both play guitar and sing. If you could play, the mic was yours. Near the end of the set, “Billy the Singing Mechanic” walked in, signed up and started pickin’. He had black grease all over both hands and under his nails but he played like he was born with a guitar in his hands and we watched in awe as Keith joined in. In Nashville, Keith is “just one of the guys” and if you want to hear real country music, played by real people – Betty Lou’s is a great place to start. For sure this was a lesson in “appearances” can be deceiving. We had a wonderful time.
Bonnie shared that the wedding would be at a mansion in Nashville (near Titan Stadium). We drove over Saturday to see if we could help decorate. Tami was quickly invited to the impromptu “bachelorette” party and I just as quickly exited the area to take in the beauty of the grounds. The Mansion was classic style, almost antebellum. Tall ceilings and wide doors. Immaculate but compact grounds surrounded by tall/thick brick walls. It had an elevated pool with a 4 stall parking garage underneath. There was a river feature and a nice coy pond where I took one of my favorite images of Miss Tami
A stage with about 30 chairs or so, was set up on the upper grassy area near the pool. Even when everyone was seated, you were so close to Keith and Bonnie (and the entertainers) that you could almost touch them. Presley and Taylor were there and we got to meet them. Songwriter Karen Staley was there and sang several songs for us with just her acoustic guitar. She wrote several top 10 hits like “The Keeper of the Stars” for Tracy Byrd and “Let’s go to Vegas” for Faith Hill.
As Keith and Bonnie exchanged vows, I was stuck by the thought that (as far I knew) we were the only “non-family”, non-industry folks at the wedding. Everyone else was a lifelong friend, probably industry related or was a blood/marriage relative. How odd that we ended up here (more on that later)
The beautiful wedding ceremony ended, the cake was cut and served and it was time for the “after party”
The After-Party
With the wedding ceremony now behind us it was time to party so everyone headed downtown (10 minutes) to the Honky Tonk Central where the family had set aside the 3rd floor for the wedding party. We walked upstairs using our “WedFest 2018” tickets to get past security and were greeted by a great (youngish) House band. We listened to several songs before Keith and Bonnie arrived. People were enjoying the band when I saw Keith approach the lead singer to talk to him. A few seconds later, the House band jumped off the stage, handed their instruments to Keith and his band mates and leaned against the wall to listen with the rest of us.
We were blown way. The House band was blown away. In Nashville the worst talent can be better than the best in any other city, so the House band was no slouch but to see Keith and his guys dial it up was awe inspiring. They proceeded to tear the roof off the place with a half-dozen classic songs before “allowing” the House band to return to the stage. My jaw must have been hanging open because the one of the other wedding guests stopped by and said – “impressive aren’t they?” – I had no other answer other than – yea!
Just before we left the bar that night, Bonnie came over and grabbed Keith and Tami and I and asked that her sister take our picture. Even though it was surreal “sitting in on” a wedding we had no real purpose being at, it was in that moment that I realized that it was also a blessing and a privilege and that Bonnie had also appreciated us just “being there” and taken the time to make sure we felt welcome. We sure did.
Fast forward to 2 years later and Keith and Bonnie have spent several nights at our home. We consider them dear friends and have so enjoyed our time together and … it just so happens that Keith knows John Schneider.
Keith met John in Las Vegas years prior during a Trick Pony video shoot (Gene Simmons is in that video too). Keith and John became fast friends. Musicians that appreciate each others craft and talent. Hang in there, the ending of this story is the beginning of the next chapter in the story of how “Bo Duke” landed at the Red Heaven Ranch.
About Keith Burns
So now you know the backstory. Keith just happened to ask if it was “OK” if he invited John and his wife to our ranch. He thought they would enjoy the place as much as he and Bonnie had. So, on November 6th 2020, John and his wife Alicia rolled into the Red Heaven Ranch in a beautiful RV.
In Duke’s of Hazzard style, I asked John to “park it right on the front lawn” – so he did.
We met John and Alicia out on the lawn and offered to let them freshen up in the ranch house but they had everything they needed right in the RV. Tami and I immediately thought that was pretty cool.
About 40 minutes later we all met out in the driveway to spend a few minutes getting to know each other. It was nice to stand in the sun and enjoy the beautiful day. Short sleeve shirt weather in November – gosh how I appreciate TN. I thanked John for stopping by and during our brief conversation asked him about his time on Broadway (The Grand Hotel opened in 1989 and John performed 487 shows). I was assuming that it was a grueling process to put on multiple shows per day. He shared that it was easier than expected and that he really enjoyed the entire experience. I kicked myself later for not asking about Cyd Charisse as I’m a big fan.
After the introductions, we jumped in Miss Tami’s mail wagon (The Kawasaki Mule) and toured the Ranch property. John has owned and been around horses his whole life, so not much of what he saw was a surprise.
The group did enjoy our time out with the Mini’s in their dry lot area. We have a miniature Donkey (Kobe) and a miniature horse (Tubby) that live together in a barn I built out for them. They have it made and they know it! Keith was yukking it up with them and Kobe always loves the attention so both parties benefited greatly!
We made a stop at the shooting range next and, as you would expect, John enjoys exercising his 2A rights like the rest of us. We did not have time to shoot but stopped to look at the setup anyway.
Back at the house it was time to pop into the loft. Keith had shared ahead of John’s visit that he enjoyed Pinball. Well we’ve got lots of it here at the RHR.
It was great to see the look on John’s face when he first walked into the the Pinball Loft. To be honest, its the same look from almost anyone – pinball fan or not. Alicia took some pics and I took the opportunity to show John the Harlem Globetrotters playfield that was nearly complete in the work room.
Alicia saw that I was into the restoration part of the hobby and texted me the contact info of a friend that was the same. He has an extensive collection as well and I did connect with him later. John asked about my favorite Pinballs, the rarest, etc. and I took the time to explain about a few of them. Sharing that the Steve Ritchie Star Trek is one of my favs and that the slings had been signed by Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner. The conversation then shifted to Batman 66. I shared the entire history of the game. The 30th anniversary component, the essay/video needed to simply get in the queue, and finally how Adam West himself had recorded the owners names into the game itself.
I spent a few minutes describing to John and Alicia the more modern era of pinball (since I had been collecting). The fact that Stern was the “last man standing” just 10 years ago … all the way up to today with the huge variety and scope of new machines available. We talked about the Jersey Jack Wizard of Oz machine and the struggles to get that to market and the exciting new Guns ‘n Roses Collectors Edition that was headed our way soon. Unfortunately there was not enough time to get a few games in – we had a movie to watch!
We headed back downstairs for a quick lunch. Tami had ordered some Mexican take out and we had quite a spread of food and snacks ready to pop in the oven to warm up. John asked if we could pray, so we grabbed each others hands and organized ourselves in a circle around our kitchen island – John was then kind enough to lead us in a blessing.
Miss Tami (of course) had a few hundred (kidding) things for John to sign. He was gracious to do so. One of those items is her prized guitar with dozens of country superstar autographs. John dutifully signed it – but as musicians are prone to do, couldn’t help but tune and play it a bit! Well Keith Burns is not going to sit idly by and not join in. For a few minutes the kitchen was filled with impromptu song and banter. We grabbed a bit to eat. Everybody got their fill and John particularly enjoyed Tami’s homemade granola. When done, we headed toward our theater.
Listen – thousands of people have met John Schneider. I’m betting 99.9% would say the same thing about him. He’s a regular guy. His wife Alicia is the same. I know it’s cliché, but they really are down to earth. As Keith says “he’s a man of the people”. He acts that way too. Like a regular Joe, no pretension whatsoever. The kind of person that will put you at ease when you are around them. So … when we sat down, in OUR home theater to watch JOHN’S film with John sitting in the front row, I was at ease, but it was also a surreal moment for me. Not in the “star struck” type of way, more in the way that you ask yourself “how do these events even happen”? Like David Byrne from the Talking Heads sings in the song “Once in a Lifetime” – “how did I get here?”. As an aside, John himself is familiar with those same type of moments. For example – John once spent a year living with Johnny and June Cash. When you read about the details of that year, you will know that the Cash’s were not even the most important part of that story. (see notes at end of post to better understand).
While getting the theater prepped Tami and John spent a few minutes comparing socks as they had on virtually identical footwear. John commented on the 2 channel vinyl rig that sits in the theater and just before we watched the movie, I fired up the mono amps, set the JA Michelle Gyrodec spinning and treated the gang to “Sweet Georgia Brown” from the album Harry James and His Big Band – titled “The King James Version”. It’s a 1976 Sheffield Labs pressing that is simply superb. if you’ve never heard horns from a high end vinyl system, you are missing a special thrill … the entire gang enjoyed the music as a prelude to a broader multimedia experience that was about to happen.
It was now time to get the movie started (we played it from John’s Apple laptop!) “Stand on It!” was written and Directed by John and produced by his beautiful wife Alicia. John hit play on the laptop, tweaked a few technical settings and we quickly settled in to enjoy the film. And enjoy it we did! It’s an homage to the Smokey and the Bandit film that John had an “extra” role in (he snuck onto the set after skipping school and actually landed a part). It’s well written, full of double entendre and funny as heck to boot. It has that fun, edge of your seat, car chase vibe that keeps you wondering what car will wreck next or when all 4 wheels will leave the ground (again).
It was too cool to see both Keith and Bonnie with parts in the film as well. It’s clear that John appreciates his friends. We laughed a bunch during the movie because it’s full of one-liners (as it should be) and the performance by Tyrus (Fox news, ex-pro wrestler) as Clarence T. Necessary was killer. Just simply stuffing Tyrus’s massive hulk into a police cruiser is a sight gag that will make you laugh out loud. John is outstanding of course and shines with his extensive acting experience. As the movie came to end, I couldn’t help but think that in 2020, the world needs more movies like it.
We cleaned up the theater and returned to the living area to shoot a few photos. Again, ever gracious, John and Keith were happy to pose and smile for what I’m guessing is the one millionth time in their lives. Not sure that I could be so giving – but they sure are and I know their fans appreciate it.
We said our goodbyes and shared some hugs and they were off to prepare for an event a few hours away. They were already late so the time they spent at the ranch will forever be appreciated. A special thanks go out to our friends Keith and Bonnie Burns for putting the visit together. The gate is always open for the Schneider and Burns families here at Red Heaven Ranch
YeeHaa!
See postscipt below for more info
Postscript
It would be a shameful oversight if I didn’t share more of John’s story. He was and is so much more than his role on the Dukes of Hazzard. He was just 19 when that TV show aired and a LOT of professional accomplishment has happened since. Many don’t know that John was a founding member (along with Marie Osmond) of the Childrens Miracle Network charity in 1983. Since inception the charity has raised over $5 billion dollars to fund treatment for children. If you take ALL of his other accomplishments away but the CMN you would be hard pressed not to say “job well done”.
As mentioned earlier he has extensive Broadway acting experience. He is credited in over 165 movies and TV roles. On top of all of this, John is an accomplished recording artist with a dozen top 10 hits and around half of those as Billboard #1 hits. If you’re not already familiar with his music, download one of his albums. If you enjoy the country or gospel genres, I can assure you that you will appreciate his music.
https://childrensmiraclenetworkhospitals.org/history/
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/john-schneider-mn0000234890/biography
https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0773884/
About the movie “Stand on It”
https://www.thehollywoodtimes.today/bos-extravaganza-2020/
About John’s gospel album
About living with Johnny Cash
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