John Denver died on October 12, 1997. Almost 30 years later, one of his hit songs re-appears on 2 Billboard charts that didn’t exist during his lifetime.
The song is “Take Me Home Country Roads,” written by Bill and Taffy Danoff (Fat City) and John Denver. If ever a song stood the test of time, this one has and will continue to stand, and it will be “growing like a breeze” for generations to come.
The event that propelled the song back to the Billboard charts was February’s 2025 Superbowl game, with the innovative idea to make a television commercial interactive with a live audience by inviting everyone to sing along – joining the fans and players of opposing teams in a few moments of blissful unity.
Of all the wonderful John Denver songs we are privileged to perform, the very first notes of “Country Roads” brings the most excitement and happy reactions during our tribute shows. Heck – in West Virginia, we are required to sing it twice, once at the beginning of the show and again at the end…lol, it’s how they do it in West Virginia!
In my years of performing. I’ve heard a lot of stories about how this song has brought back many memories of home and family.
Please, take a moment and share in the comment section what Take Me Home Country Roads means to you:
People STILL ask if Jim had ever met John Denver… it is one of our most frequently asked questions – so please forgive me for repeating an old story (originally posted in 2012 and again in 2021).
:
Jim and Anne Curry, 1978
As long as I’ve known Jim, I’ve known that the one person in the world he most wanted to meet was John Denver. It’s a common question we get at every one of our concerts, and we’ve met so many people and heard so many stories of how they met John and how nice he was to them. We wish we had a story to share!
Jim has never met John Denver, but not for the lack of trying.
The summer after Jim graduated from high school, he bought tickets to see a John Denver concert near his home in Houston, TX. Somehow he obtained a precious backstage pass….this was his chance to meet John! Jim went to the concert with a girlfriend and two other friends from high school. Being a gentleman, Jim handed the pass to his girlfriend and said, “We’ll take turns, you go first.”
But she didn’t return to share the backstage pass.
Jim and his two other friends found themselves waiting for her in the parking lot after the concert. They were an hour away from home, and they didn’t know if they should leave her there, or how they were going to explain to this girl’s parents that they lost her in Houston. After about a half hour, she finally returned to where they were waiting in the parking lot. She was overjoyed and full of stories about hanging out with John Denver and the entire band, and how nice everyone was, and what a wonderful time she had…..
Not too long after that Jim moved to California to resume a relationship with me (we had dated earlier, before Jim’s family moved to Texas). The rest is history, MY history. I kind of think it’s possible that if this girl had not been selfish, Jim might have been able to realize his dream to meet John Denver. But then again, he might have stayed with that girl in Texas instead of moving back to California and marrying me in 1979.
What was your worst kitchen accident? My worst kitchen accident happened in my mid 20s – baking pecan pie for the annual family gathering. Everyone in my family was assigned to bring their specialty to Thanksgiving dinner at Mom and Dad’s house, and my specialty was pecan pie.
I look forward to making pecan pie, and I only do it once a year. Pecan pie is limited to Thanksgiving time, in the season when pecans are being harvested and we aren’t counting calories. I follow the exact recipe on the back of the Karo corn syrup bottle and I used to pride myself on my home-made crust – which my Grandma raved over how light and flaky it was (of course, she taught me, sooooo……)
This one particular night before Thanksgiving, after working a long shift all day, I picked up the ingredients from the store and made my way home. After dinner, I prepared the crust, mixed up the filling and I loaded my pie shell with said filling. It was getting late, and I was tired….. but all I had left to do was stay up another hour until the pie was finished baking.
Now, If you have made pecan pie yourself, you will know that the filling is pure sticky liquid (sugar, Karo syrup, eggs and vanilla) with pecans floating on the top. The liquid pie is placed on a cookie sheet, then both are placed in the preheated oven. The cookie sheet catches any drips from the pie that might happen during the cooking process, and it also helps to remove a hot pie safely once it’s done cooking. Pro tip (and ultimate irony): I cover my cookie sheet with aluminum foil to make cleanup a breeze.
As I was lowering my liquid pie into the oven, it suddenly slid forward on the aluminum-foil covered cookie sheet until it hit the edge – and before I could stop it – the entire contents of liquid pie poured out into my preheated oven. What a mess!! The syrupy, sugary filling immediately started to hiss and burn on the bottom of the hot oven, the grills were covered with sticky goo and pecans. The liquid syrup poured into the bottom vents of the oven (where does that go?) and smoke began billowing into the kitchen.
I don’t exactly remember what happened after. I think there was some crying….
I do remember, my darling husband Jim came to my rescue and did most of the cleanup and none of the crying.
Nothing was salvaged. The stores were closed for Thanksgiving Day (remember when they did that?) so no pecan pie for Thanksgiving that year. All in all, a distant memory and a lesson learned. Now it’s time to make another pecan pie for this year, WISH ME LUCK! And…….HAPPY THANKSGIVING!
What was YOUR worst cooking disaster? Share in the comment section below:
It is now almost the end of October! Fall is in progress; it’s finally cooling down and the leaves are beginning to turn. By the time I write next month’s blog for November, Halloween will have come and gone, Thanksgiving will have come and gone, and a hotly contested election will have come and gone.
That is a LOT of anticipation….and we won’t know how it will all turn out until my next blog.
I suppose I can predict what will happen on Halloween: some folks will spend a LOT of money on cheesy Halloween decorations – and kids will eat a lot of candy. Those things just happen naturally these days without a lot of thought.
I suppose I can also predict what will happen this Thanksgiving: people will eat.
But…. I cannot possibly predict or imagine what the election will bring! Just be sure you VOTE!
No matter what happens, be safe, be happy and we will check in with you at the end of November.
Kool-Aid Man Loves John Denver! Remember the Kool Aid Man?
He would burst through the wall and yell, “Oh Yeah” in a deep voice.
Here’s a clip to remind you of the Kool Aid Man
That was my first thought at one of our recent concerts, when I heard a deep voice in the back of the room (it was dark and I couldn’t see who it was). I could hear him bellowing out, “Oh Yeah!” in between songs. “Ha!” I joked to myself, “The Kool Aid man is at our concert!” He was certainly having a great time, and he sounded like he was having a few drinks of something other than Kool Aid.
I couldn’t see the back of the room. The stage lighting only allowed me to see the first 5 rows of tables and chairs at the front of the stage. The first 5 rows were premium seating for concert goers, the coveted front seats, up close and personal. I had noticed at the beginning of our show that 2 of those seats – front and center – were uncharacteristically empty, and they remained empty as the show progressed. We normally have folks sitting in all of the premium seats, and although I was supposed to be performing songs, I found myself looking down at those empty seats and I began hoping that it was just because they forgot the date of the concert and not some sort of medical emergency that kept them from attending. I sent up a quick prayer and got my mind back to work….many folks DID show up, and they deserved my full attention.
Well, guess who else noticed the empty seats? Oh Yeah…..you guessed it; sometime close to the end of our show, the Kool Aid man made his way from the back of the room to the very first row with no one stopping him. In fact, the girl who was serving drinks quickly placed an adult beverage in front of him as soon as he sat down, as if to welcome him and reward him for his boldness. His age, long blonde hair, jeans and tank top made him look like he got lost on his way to a Guns and Roses Concert.
The Kool Aid Man was not content with stealing a front row seat and playing it…..um…..cool. You might think, having gotten away with his crime, he would sit quietly and try to go unnoticed. NOPE! He proceeded to stand with his arms in the air and bellow out deep and loud! When the other premium seat holders protested, he turned around and bellowed at them. It was distracting to us and intolerable to those around him. The lone security guard made two attempts to remove him, and the Kool Aid Man flatly refused to leave. We were close to the end of the concert, so I suppose security decided not to fight him. In his last act of defiance, the Kool Aid Man decided to break another rule and began videoing himself and the angry people around him with his phone.
After the show, the Kool Aid Man told Jim that he just loves John Denver (we already knew that, he shouted it several times during the show). Then he turned and busted through the wall and disappeared. (Not really, but it wouldn’t have surprised me).
Was this a prank? Did this guy lose a bet and his buddies forced him to humiliate himself at a John Denver Tribute Concert? Will his video be on YouTube someday? Tell me what you think in the comments. it was a different and rare experience for us ….hopefully the last one like that.
"It was an amazing evening. We have had many different performers at our conferences; The Beach Boys, Tony Bennett, Three Dog Night, America. Jim Curry ranks among these acts. I would book Jim and his band again in a heartbeat."
Daniel Young Corporate Function, Keystone, CO
"I have to tell you I don't know when we've enjoyed a show as much as we enjoyed yours. It just swept us away and we did not want it to end! You are all so gifted. And the music of John Denver speaks for itself. It touches the heart."
