The date was May 6th, 1981… The Oak Ridge Boys did the old Tonight Show… the REAL Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. In the afternoon we would have a rehearsal and afterwards we would adjourn to the famous Mexican restaurant across from NBC Studios in Burbank. We did just that and got back over to the show to perform… I’ll never forget Fred Satterfield playing Ed Shaughnessy’s drums and I got to play the grand piano that Ross Tomkins played each night with the Tonight Show Band… a huge thrill for both of us.
But I’ve gotta say, the biggest rush of all was being on the show the same night as none other than Ringo Starr. Sadly, John Lennon had passed a few months earlier, so Ringo had MAJOR security around him and rightly so. It was a little intense. But I DID get to meet a Beatle… and a nicer man you will never meet. I LOVE it when ICONS are regular people and they treat you like they are no better… even when they clearly ARE. We also got to witness the historic first appearance of an unknown comedian at the time that Mr. Carson seemed to really like… uh… I seem to recall his name being Jerry Seinfeld! So I get to meet a Beatle… and a future Comedic Icon on the same day? At 22 years of age? I am a lucky MF….hahahaha…
Here’s a somewhat grainy video of our appearance that night…