Who says Jeannie Seely can’t be funny and then sing a heartbreaker ballad?

“The best thing always is to do what your own heart tells you.” Before Jeannie Seely sank her teeth into future husband Hank Cochran’s empowering “Don’t Touch Me” and watched it rise to the top echelon of Billboard’s Hot Country Singles in 1966 and nab a Grammy thanks to her unerring determination, the Pennsylvania-raised blonde wrestled with the edict of a high-ranking music executive. He insisted that Seely, a natural-born, quick-witted entertainer, ditch the jokes and focus squarely on her singing if she wanted fans to keep buying her records. Seely acquiesced temporarily but ultimately stuck with her guns.

“Miss Country Soul” was asked to join the Grand Ole Opry a year later, prevailed when aghast Opry management decried her penchant for mini-skirts, and has amassed a record-shattering 5,200-plus appearances there. She still composes, drops new records, introduces rising artists, and hosts Sundays with Seely on SiriusXM’s Willie’s Roadhouse. Ahead of Seely stepping back into the hallowed circle of the “Mother Church” to mine jewels from her extensive catalog, make way for an exclusive conversation.

The Jeannie Seely Interview

I really got a kick outta seeing you sport the black T-shirt that read, “55 years on the Opry and all I got was this lousy T-shirt” during the Sept. 23, 2022, Friday broadcast of the Grand Ole Opry.

Twin sisters Carrie Moore-Reed and Debbie Moore are entertainers, but they’re also my booking agents. They got me that shirt. I thought it was hilarious. They are so fun.

Did your mom and dad possess a sense of humor?

I’d say my mother [Irene] more than my dad [Leo]. Mother was hilarious, actually. She was a feisty little 5-foot tall Irish lady, but she was so fun. Having a sense of humor was a part of life for Mother’s strong Irish side of the family. The Seely side was more serious and business-minded. Hopefully I got a good blend of both.

When you first sang onstage, were you funny? Or was there a period of trial and error?

I always used humor. In fact, when I was in California, they kinda discouraged that a little bit. An executive in the music industry actually advised me, “You need to decide if you wanna be a comedian or a serious singer because the audience won’t accept you doing both.”

So I kinda dropped the comedy. I eventually realized that one of my heroes, Little Jimmy Dickens, could be so funny and then turn right around and sing a heartbreaker ballad. I thought, ‘Everybody’s opinion isn’t good anyway’ [laughs].

The best thing always is to do what your own heart tells you. You gotta be real and truthful with yourself first. That’s what comes through to people. They look for the reality in an artist. I do.

One of my all-time favorite artists, the “Man with the Golden Thumb” Jerry Reed, played guitar on “Don’t Touch Me,” the accompanying Seely Style debut studio album, and possibly more of your Monument sessions where documentation remains sketchy. Is there a Reed story on the tip of your tongue?

Jerry was a really good friend to me. When I first came to Nashville in October 1965, I worked as a secretary for Four Star Music’s Bob Jennings in the RCA building [hired as the “girl singer” for The Porter Wagoner Show that November, the success of Seely’s “Don’t Touch Me” single prompted her to embark on a solo career in 1966]. Jerry always stopped by the office to joke around when he was doing sessions in the studio. A few times he brought his eldest daughter Seidina [born in 1960] when he had to overdub or change a guitar lick, which didn’t take as much time as a full session. He would leave Seidina in the office with me, and we’d play secretary while Jerry ran over to Studio B. His wife, singer-keyboardist Prissy Mitchell, was also a longtime friend. They were wonderful people and so talented. Actually Jerry’s grandson Jerry Roe [son of Seidina and Johnny Cash’s final 1992–2003 bassist Dave Roe] played drums on An American Classic [2020, Curb Records] for me.

It’s hard to picture the “Alabama Wild Man” being contained alongside other session pickers in light of his inventive, take-charge nature.

Jerry was a complete professional, so he knew when to clown around and when not to.

I have interviewed Buddy Kalb, best known as country comic Ray Stevens’ right arm in the songwriting department [e.g. “Mississippi Squirrel Revival” and “Osama-Yo’ Mama”]. On An American Classic I noticed a Kalb credit on the third selection, “To Make a Dream Come True.” I reached out to Buddy and learned that he “altered the song’s lyrics to fit you. Originally the first line went, “A girl named Tricia and a dog named Jack driving thru Dixie in a black Cadillac.’” No one else has attempted a recording of it.

I have not done “To Make a Dream Come True” live because I can’t seem to memorize the lyrics. For some reason I can’t get the story straight in my mind, but it’s a great song. Buddy’s a great songwriter. He and Ray have been best friends for years. Seldom see one without the other, and that’s a good thing.

[“I got a call from Ray”, according to An American Classic producer Don Cusic in Behind the Scenes in the Studio: The Recording of the New Jeannie Seely Album ‘An American Classic’. “Ray told me that he and Buddy had driven to Gulf Shores, Alabama. During the drive down and back they listened to CDs of songs from their catalog. They found a song, ‘To Make a Dream Come True,’ that Buddy had written that Ray thought would be a hit for Jeannie. I told him we’d finished cutting. Ray pushed on; he wanted Jeannie to hear it. I told him we’d run out of budget and he said that didn’t matter — he was willing to cut the song in his studio so I told him we’d be at Ocean Way doing overdubs and invited him to come by the studio around 11:30 a.m. After we finished Ray’s harmonies and co-lead vocals on ‘Dance Tonight,’ Ray and Buddy played ‘To Make a Dream Come True’ for Jeannie and she liked the song. It’s a story song that tells of a singer coming to Nashville to hit the big time. Ray said he’d work on basic tracks in his studio and they went over to the piano and worked out the key for Jeannie. A few days later I stopped by Ray’s studio and we talked about ‘To Make a Dream Come True.’ I told him I wanted the acoustic guitar brought up, but what can you tell a producing genius when it comes to producing? Ray cut the tracks and the song really came to life. I stopped by to listen a time or two but Ray had everything well under control and I told him he should have producer credit for that song. He offered to be listed as arranger but that track was all Ray and so Ray is credited as producer on that song”].

Another American Classic front-runner is “Dance Tonight,” originally composed by Paul McCartney on mandolin for his latter-day high water mark Memory Almost Full. What prompted this left field choice featuring Ray Stevens?

Don Cusic suggested “Dance Tonight.” I remember looking at Don and going, “Why would I do this song?” He replied, “Because nobody would expect us to do it, and it would be a fun moment in the album and something that would be right at home in a country music dance club.” And Don was absolutely right [Cusic is also a prolific country music biographer and Curb Professor of Music Industry History at Belmont University].

When Ray came in, he asked, “What do you want me to sing?” I said, “You are the master. You tell me where your vocals will be good. I just have one request. Sing the yodel line because my yodel’s broke” [laughs]. Ray did a superb job.

“Dance Tonight” is not a familiar McCartney tune, either. Bravo for confounding fans’ expectations.

It’s one people should know. “Dance Tonight” is just a feel-good song, and we need more of ‘em.

• Keep in the Seely loop by accessing her official website and all of her social media platforms — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
• Stream and download Seely music on Apple Music/iTunes, Spotify, Amazon Music, Pandora, or YouTube Music.
• On Sundays with Seely, Seely spins her favorite classic country and shares side-splitting behind the scenes nuggets on SiriusXM each Sunday morning at 11 am CST.

© Jeremy Roberts, 2022. All rights reserved. The Jeannie Seely interview was edited for clarity, brevity, and sequenced cohesively. To touch base, email [email protected] and mention which story led you my way. I appreciate it sincerely.