I left there to head up to 3rd & Lindsley but was lured in The Stage on Broadway by some great steel guitar playing. Ended up there for about half an hour. Good stuff but it all got decidedly weird when the band offered to play anything for a $20 donation to their charity jar .... so we ended up with a country version of YMCA!! Very, very odd!!
Met some other people from the party at the top of the queue and asked them to save me a seat on their table. Ended up right at the front!! It's a bit trying having to wait from around 6pm to 9 for the music to start but it's always sold out well before the start time so you have to do it if you want to see the band. Once again they were fantastic!! Any fan of western swing, and particularly Bob Wills, would have gone away delighted. Highlight of the evening was a superb version of "Night Life" sung by Dawn Sears - what a voice!!
During the interval a woman walked passed our table and I recognised her as Elena James from Hot Club of Cowtown. I stood up and said hello, to which she replied, "Oh hi, how are you? How are the legs?" She remembered me from my Austin trips and the conversation we had about my accident last year! Amazing! Turned out she's a friend of Ranger Doug and his wife and was there as their guest. Hence the unusual photo opportunity of me, Ranger Doug, and Elena James!! I'm not sure what Doug's looking at!!

The choices start tonight - the Opry or the Billy Yates charity gig. Neither line up appeal greatly. But, either way, afterwards it's down to the Rodney Atkins street party. I figure I should be finished in time to see Atkins himself close the show. Nice!!
