About Steve's Grand Ole Opry Debut


This site also has a picture gallery of Steve playing.

http://www.wkrn.com/global/story.asp?s=10451384

Comedian Steve Martin makes Opry debut
Posted: May 31, 2009 08:53 AM

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Emmy Award-winning actor, comedian and writer Steve Martin played the Grand Ole Opry on Saturday night.

Martin has played the banjo for 40 years and performed with longtime friend John McCuen of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Vince Gill and Amy Grant.

The performance included cuts from "The Crow", his first music album, which was recorded in Nashville.

Martin talked about the opportunity to work in Nashville with artists like Gill and Dolly Parton, who sing duets on the album.

"I started my comedy career in a lot of places, but Nashville was a very big part of it because I played the Exit/In," Martin recalled.

"When I was an up and coming comedian that was one of the first places I ever sold out and now I've been selling out for the rest of my career, of course," he joked.

Martin played the Exit/In in the 1970s.

"I took the entire audience to a burger stand and I ordered 300 hamburgers," he joked, "and then changed it to one bag of French fries, but that was a long time ago."

Vince Gill said he's always been a fan of Martin's acting, and that the comedian's talent on the banjo is impressive.

"I knew that he had a musician's heart," Gill said, "as well as being one of the funniest people I'd ever seen."

"Not one of the funniest," Martin interjected.

"The funniest," finished Gill.

Before taking the Grand Ole Opry stage for the first time, Martin received a framed poster commemorating his debut.
- posted by sookeyjane 6/04/2009 07:09:00 PM PERMALINK 0 COMMENTS