Ronnie Milsap’s “Farewell Tour” came to The Villages Friday and it turned into a long, loving and majestic good-bye at a packed Savannah Center.
There were memories of Elvis, Ray Charles and Hank Williams along with the indelible stamp of Milsap’s staggering contribution to country music. The Savannah set list included such Milsap standards as, “Lost in the Fifties,” “Smoky Mountain Rain,” “What A Difference You Made in My Life” and “(There’s) No Getting’ Over Me.”
You can watch a clip of Milsap’s performance on the Villages-News.com Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/TheVillagesNews?ref=hl
Somehow, the powers that be in country music have long overlooked Milsap, now in his early 70s. This is an artist who posted 35 No 1. hits and made 21 albums that sold over 35 million copies. He also won six Grammy Awards and eight Country Music Association Awards, including Entertainer of the Year.
Despite all that, Milsap had to wait until late 2014 to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
He deserved the honor years earlier. Milsap brought a revolutionary dose of R&B, rock and pop to country music and helped it cross over to the mainstream during the ‘70s, 80s and ‘90s.
“We had about 40 No. 1 records and now the problem is to try and play them in about 15 minutes,” Milsap joked. He was in a playful mood. “We drove the bus about 100 miles to get here tonight,” said the singer, who is blind. “I had a lot of fun driving.” Then, a stagehand handed Milsap a camera, and he aimed it at the audience and took a picture. “You look good, as far as I can see,” he cracked.
The music was no laughing matter. Milsap’s voice may be a bit raspy, but he delivered the goods on a box full of hits.
Early on he played a shimmering pop beat to “He Got You.” Milsap followed that with a touch of early-day Motown with a smooth and soulful cover of Chuck Jackson’s “Any Day Now.”
The singer sat at a black piano at center stage. He wore a black jacket, decorated with pink roses, green leaves and ever-present rhinestones.
Milsap covered a number of songs from the 1980s, a golden decade for him. Such numbers as, “I Wouldn’t Have Missed It For the World,” “She Keeps the Home Fires Burning” and “A Woman In Love” hit the right notes with the fans.
Milsap was like a machine that just wouldn’t stop cranking out hits. The concert kept building momentum to the final stretch.
Milsap talked about meeting his hero, Ray Charles
“At school, I wanted to be a professional musician but they kept telling me I’d never make it,” he said. “They wanted me to be a lawyer or something.
“So, one day, I went to Atlanta to see a Ray Charles’ concert. I went back stage in his dressing room and sat at his piano. I told him I wanted to be a musician. He said, ‘play something for me,’ and I did. Then he said, ‘If you love music, be a musician.’ And I did. Ray, like me, always loved Hank Williams. This one’s for Ray.”
Milsap offered up a heart-aching version of “Your Cheating Heart,” that would have made old Hank Williams weep.
The conversation switched to Elvis Presley. Milsap played keyboards on Elvis’ late ‘60s’ hit, “Kentucky Rain.”
“Elvis kept yelling at me, ‘More thunder at the piano, Milsap.’ I kept playing it louder. Then I figured I could try it with my own song.”
And that’ how, “Smoky Mountain Rain” was born. Milsap started the number with a soft vocal but eventually turned up the heat and played a hard-driving piano riff as he sang, “Smoky Mountain rain/Keeps on fallin’/I keep on callin’ her name.”
Milsap also played another classic that moved the audience, “Lost in the Fifties (In the Still of the Night).” It samples the classic Freddy Parris and the Satins, “In The Still of the Night.”
This was street-corner doo-wop love from the ‘50s tenderly wrapped up in a county-pop blanket of sound. It’s one of the great records of all–time. Milsap sets a nostalgic, romantic mood that carries the song and touches the heart.
“That song is our song,” said Villager Norm Buechner. “I used to be with a bunch of guys back in Albany, and we used to always play that song. I was our theme song. I’m not a big country music fan, but I am a Ronnie Milsap fan because of that song.”
Milsap wasn’t the only singer to perform.
Risa Binder, an up-and-coming country singer with looks and personality, lit up the stage as an opening act. Binder, with long blonde hair and a short black skirt, was bubbling with energy.
“It’s an honor to open for Ronnie Milsap,” she said. She offered some contemporary rocking Nashville sounds as well as a traditional number.
Binder captured the audience with a cover of Deana Carter’s “Strawberry Wine.” Binder told the crowd, “that’s one of the songs that got me interested in country music,” she said.
Binder closed her brief but memorable set with a rocking, self-preservation anthem, “Light It Up.” It left you feeling this girl is going places.
